@@sharkeishatwerks1731 Can you expand on how you believe this is hyporcritical? I don't understand this sentiment; it seems driven from a place that seeks to be reactionary and emotional rather than genuinely listening to the message of my videos. I am not against consumerism, nor discount culture, nor marketing. I think all of these things play an important and interesting role in our economy, and I don't feel contradictory by promoting brands with discounts on my channel. What my videos focus on is becoming a conscious consumer who can identify marketing and consumption so that you can decide as an individual if you want to purchase something. It's about equipping people with the tools to reflect with intention, not rejecting any forms of consumerism.
seriously, like I'm getting all the notifications from apps, like pink friday, and this video literally saved me from pressing the order now button haha
This is why I just deleted the shopping apps around the holidays. It does you a world of favor if you don’t have them on your phone in the first place. Out of sight out of mind.
"If you weren't going to get it either way, you're not saving anything - you're just spending, loosing and keeping yourself poor." I think that's a helpful thing to keep telling yourself in situations like that. And don't go to the movies, they're over.
Agree with you and Cara on first part, totally, realized the false lure of "special offers" long time ago, though not soon enough, regrettably - Would have loved for any of my relatives to explain it to me when I was a little kid. As for the movies, I maybe go to the theater once every 2 years, there are still some shows that are worth the ticket on the big screen rather than at home, but only those few ones and if budget permits, of course.
@mmmnahfam I agree with you mostly, however, personally, at the beginning of every year, and throughout the year, add things as needed, I make a list of the things I need, but are a little out of my budget at that moment. Then, I patiently wait every year for the BF/CM sale because I always get the things on my shopping list for 50% to 70% discount with things like household goods, vitamins, clothes that typically throughout the year are out of my price range. The vast majority of clothes I buy are pre-owned (with the exception of sanitary items like bras, underwear, and socks) and I never buy things like new clothes or accessories unless they’re on sale. This is the difference I was going to buy them anyway because things like home goods, clothes, and food are necessities, it’s actually extremely smart and financially responsible to wait until sales like Black Friday / Cyber Monday to buy what you **need.** Overspending is the problem, not using sales strategically to buy what you were already going to buy anyway 💁🏽♀️
Going to the movies is ultimately just an experience. It's not just about seeing the movie - it's about getting out of the house, going to the theater, whatever else you make of it. It isn't inherently a waste of money. It's just a matter of deciding whether or not it is personally worth spending your discretionary money on, which is ofc going to vary from person to person depending on how much money they have and how much enjoyment they get out of the experience.
My roommate's dad taught me "two indian elephants for a quarter is only a good deal if you have a quarter and you need two indian elephants" and that stuck with me...
The first time Black Friday really hit the UK, I was in the market for a simple digital camera. My mum had been keeping an eye on the price (I was working full time) and she told me it had gone up from £179 to £249 in the weeks prior to Black Friday. So she went in on Black Friday and... it was marked as a GREAT DEAL! at £199. We waited another month and it dropped to £159 before Christmas. Take from that what you will, but I just ignore Black Friday deals now, unless it's an essential and I know what the price was beforehand. You're not fooling me lol
Oh this happens ALOT at most stores! I was also keeping an eye on a coat, and it went up in price for the Black Friday sale with some additional 30% off that didn’t even make a difference in price 🤷♀️
AAA games have had a mostly consistent price of $60, so if I see a game that looks like it was from a AAA studio that was on discount at $50, then I can be sure that it was a $10 discount.
@@VictoriaAlexeevaI don't mean this in a snarky way (it's a genuine question) but I'm curious why you can't get all your shopping done on one other day (i.e. not on Black Friday)? That way you'd be saving money too!
What I found useful is looking for what I need when it's being sold at a normal price, and then waiting until it's on sale. By the time it's on sale, I'll know if I really needed it or not. And if they ran out, honestly, there's always options, other versions, etc. Nothing that you truly need is unique, and basics are basics for a reason.
I really don't think temus clothing prices are even that great tbh. When you consider you basically can't return it and there is almost no quality control.
@ElizabethSanto22Sorry for being a nerd, but aluminum doesnt rust it corrodes. So if its actually rusty it was made from carbon steel. Prob the cheapest steel they could get their hands on (China is notorious for their low quality 'pig iron' just watch some of the construction video from china about the crumbling rebar in their buildings)
@ElizabethSanto22 I got something similar from Shein a while ago and it doesn’t even cut through the veggies lol. I have to press REALLY hard to get it to, and often I still can’t do it. When I do manage to, the fruit or veg usually turns to mush. Learned my lesson 😭 (and yes I now know all of the issues with Shein. I didn’t at the time so I’m just commenting on the quality of the item). Temu seems just as sketchy if not more, so I’ll be avoiding them.
@@weird-guyexactly my thought when people act shocked after doing just a mere grain if research. like you really couldnt be that stupid, all the signs of a garbage company were there. you just didnt wanna see it.
@@pinkesthibiscus I guess I got lucky. I got a potato peeler for a dollar...it is my favorite peeler. It also has a side to cut veggies Julienne style. My mom loved it so much I got her one too. Best dollar ever I've ever spent. But I do hate their press on nails. They don't last as long as the ones from Ulta. I am going back to buying my press on nails at Ulta.
I'm surprised nothing was mentioned about the business model of marking the items price up just so it can be given a "discount" that brings it back down to its original cost
@@wolftownesque Where it's illegal, I've noticed that companies just circumvent that by inflating then deflating *juuust* outside of the mandatory period. E.g. if it's illegal to inflate then deflate within 3 months, you'll see them do it over 3 months & a day instead. Lol 😑
The sale prices tend to be a little more than what it originally was when it was put on the shelf. Normalising the upmarked price until the next holiday comes along (adding to inflation)
i love how understanding and kind you are to people who fall victim to predatory marketing like this. it's never "they're taking advantage of idiots who seriously think they need an xyz and actually believe stuff on sale is FREE!!" you're very gentle and validating. i have friends who struggle with impulse purchasing, and i know they'd never react well to aggression towards their problem, so you're doing a great job here and making change. wonderful video!
thank you so much for your kind words! I really appreciate it :) I think progress and the changing of attitudes rarely comes from a place of aggression & defensiveness, so I'm certainly hoping that my approach helps reach more people!
maybe we should be kind and gentle to the people that ostracized, isolated and threatened those who saw very early on that v@ccines didn’t protect against covid and neither lockdowns nor firing us for not taking it doesn’t actually help anyone. esp those who’ve since been diagnosed with turbo cancer after their 2nd booster
The biggest struggle for me is the “add $ more for free shipping” you always see shopping online. I recently ended up with a pair of $10 disco ball earrings that I’ll probably wear once and then forget about, just because I wanted to eliminate the $7 shipping fee on winter boots that I actually need. In that case I was purchasing something I needed and researched ahead of time, but getting to free shipping gets me every time.
This is my problem too. I am not sure whether I am still stuck in the trap or not, but what I am trying to do is to buy a "filler" item that I definitely will use like coconut milk to even up the purchase for free shipping.
If you spend more than shipping to get free shipping, that’s just bad math. But I do understand the “why not get SOMETHING instead of just paying for shipping”. I’ve done it too.
The way I try to deal with this is: If it's not something I need right now, I'll put in on my list and buy it later once the list grew big enough to get free shipping. If it is something I want now, and "free shipping" isn't too far off then I'll just add something small that can find a use for, i.e. soap, printerpaper, socks, stuff you'll buy either way eventually, you're just changing the timeframe when you'll next have to buy those item.
In that case I usually end up getting either an item to cross over that threshold, or I find the boots elsewhere lol. I refuse to pay for shipping bc it's sometimes dumb expensive, and I don't want more of my money going to FedEx or UPS. (USPS is a case by case since the Post Office needs the money)
I’m working as a cashier at a makeup store right now and every time a customer buys a lot while saying, “I don’t need it but it’s a lot cheaper this way,” I gently ask them if they would’ve bought it full price. The answer is almost always no, since it’s never an essential item. It’s kind of heartbreaking how consumerism is keeping people down like this.
someone once said "when you spend money on things you don't need, you rob yourself" and I took it personally. now I'll treat myself to a new item (like jewelry) to celebrate milestones, but most of my money goes to rent, groceries, gas & travel every now and again. when I buy clothes, it's when my old clothes have gone through their life cycle, & I buy timeless pieces. it's great.
The fact that people can beat the system by buying things YOU NEED during sales instead of spending money on unnecessary things. I literally have a tracker for all of my skincare staples and have a “striking price”, as in if I don’t have anymore in stock and it’s on sale with THIS price, then I’m getting it.
I used to feel the same with thrift stores whole “but theres only one”. It is a real tough mentality to get out of. Me and my mom were awful when we first started thrifting but after a year of experience & having stuff with Goodwill tags still laying around that have never been worn; I think we learned our lesson, if we are not in love with the piece and we got the smallest doubt on it, we simply don’t get it
I used the have this problem when I thrifted! I just started thinking “if I was 12 and walking in here with my mom id be stoked to find this” and then I try to leave it for another teen who might feel the same :)
I’ve started to think “is it something I need? (at the moment plain coloured tops) “Or something very special”. If so I can buy it. Sometimes I’ll walk away and leave it and if Im still thinking about it and it’s still there next time then it’s a blessing from the thrift gods of evermore!
One thing I've heard that's stuck with me is that 'the amount that you like an item is always going to decline from the point of purchase'. In other words, you're going to like the item the most when you're deciding to buy it - so if you're only 'meh' about it at the time of sale, you're going to feel less enthused about it by the time you get it home. So if you're a perennial sales shopper, it's no wonder you feel like you have 'nothing to wear' if everything you have in your closet was motivated by price rather than whether you well & truly love it enough to give it a spot in your wardrobe! TL;DR If in doubt, leave it out (on the rack)!
Discounts never caught my attention because of the pressure they make me feel when I see them. Especially, those online flashy ones where there’s a timer for the discounted price. I just immediately leave the store or close the app. I don’t like being pressured into anything whether buying, school, work etc sooo I guess that’s keeping my money intact lmfaoo
I'd call myself a naturally skeptical person so every time I see "This is on sale" my mind goes to "That price was probably marked up before the discount wasn't it?" and "If I buy something I didn't need is it really saving money?"
i've never understood black friday as a holiday. i'm not from the states, but when black friday came to my home country i was so confused what made it so special to people. to me, the concept of a "shopping holiday" is insane, one of the most useless things to ever exist. i grew up in a very low-income household, my parents were in a lot of debt and we didn't have anything else but the essentials, sometimes we even had to cut on those too. spending money just for the sake of spending it is so foreign to me, such a distant idea that i can't understand it.
I mostly like it because it's one easy day for me to get a ton of shopping done, then I'm done for the month. It saves money in the sense that I can use up most of my holiday budget in one go.
@@rosesweetcharlottei think if you genuinely just buy some discounted stuff (and check online to see what other prices for the same thing are like) that you have been wanting/need then these shopping events are fine. my family isn't poor but my grandpa did grow up VERY poor, oranges in your stocking for christmas and your older sibling's shoes that are too big kind of deal, and really the only black friday things he's gotten have been small tvs for the house when old ones wore out or he got a heater for me. this past black friday he got me a small 20 dollar airfryer since i asked for one for christmas. you just have to be intentional and measured about what you buy, i guess
Overtime I realized that discounts occur all the time..over and over again..sometimes in the same cycle..I noticed this a lot more by deciding to be more aware of my shopping and taking a step back. I feel this is easier for me because I am a retail employee, so I started to notice these cycles at my own work. Definitely helped me buy less!
Boy math is me watching this video at 2x with full attention and subtitles, just to continue passively watching reaction videos for 2 hours while playing videogames I am now indeed more conscious. Imo your best video. Concise, actionable and well presented.
Boy math is opening cs:go cases and thinking you can win money on them and or buying 20 games on steam because they are on discount and only playing 5-10 of them
We needed to replace our vacuum cleaner, and we decided to buy a Dyson v12, they are rather expensive. My husband uses a website that tracks prices and a couple weeks after looking up the Dyson he got an alert that the price had dropped. That is when we bought it, it actually was at a store that I have a loyalty card with so we also got cash back on my card, which has been used to buy gifts for birthday parties 😊👍. Definitely worthwhile watching and waiting for a better price. We are loving the Dyson v12 😊 worth the money 💰
My strategy for avoiding 99% of impulse purchases: I just tell myself I will buy it in 1 week. I do not write it down or give myself any reminders. Most often, after 1 week, I have completely forgotten about what I was thinking of buying, and that shows me I never even needed it. If I do remember it 1 week later, I just ask myself if its still something I really need/want, and the answer is almost always no.
I do the exact opposite because I always believe I don't need stuff. I put off buying a belt for over a year. I have 5 pants and in 3 of 5 I actually need a belt. When I finally thought about actually buying one, I immediately did and it is a life changer. No more pulling up pants the whole day haha. If it conveniences my life in a drastic way, I try to just buy it before I put it off for way too long. 😂
Last time I went into a clearance store I saw a sweater I really wanted for 25 dollars and I decided to just take a photo of it to decide if I wanted it later, when I looked at the photo later I was less interested in it so I was happy I left it there for somebody else. So I think taking a photo of it while in the store also helps.
I do this too! I also put things in the shopping cart when I'm on Amazon but dontcheck out right away I find 99% of the time I end up deleting the item once I've had a chance to "cool down."
I work retail and always take photos of things I want to buy then like a week later realise I don't like it as much, and even with the incredible discount it isn't worth it !!
"Leaving it there for somebody else" is a really important way to think about spending (or adopting items) for me. I often fall into the emotional trap of "It's so cute and I don't want to leave it here alone" etc etc, when I really don't need it. Reminding myself that someone else is likely to come along who will actually adore it, instead of getting it because of the sense of obligation I feel, is essential to keeping my house uncluttered...it's still cluttered tho 😅
I like how Cara points out all the psychology, it makes sense. Black Friday is no longer just that Friday, it already started, it’s all month. Same with most stores putting up Xmas decor early, they want you feel them holiday feels. As for the future self, perhaps the pandemic has shown you can be here today, gone tomorrow. If all you did was plan and save, when do you live? Some people I meet just want that lifestyle, lots of debt but every weekend they’ve been somewhere. My weekends, “eh not much, just chilled.” 😂🤷🏻♂️
I highly recommend the documentary Seduction in the City. It's not about black Friday, but it goes through the history of the department store and how they lure people in (sales, atmosphere, etc.). Although, it is hard to find on streaming services. If it ever comes back I'll definitely be watching it again
i’m a bath and body works employee and i regularly see people going for the buy 3 get 3 free body care sale because it seems so good and spend 60 dollars. A week later there will always be a better sale of body care being 5 dollars a piece. Yet during major sales like that i watch people buy 10 lotions and say “i don’t even need that much the sale is just too good!”
Also keep in mind - sellers will normally only put on sale: 1) things that they cannot sell on regular prices 2) things that do sell on normal prices, but not fast enough because they got too much of it, so they need to clear out the storage. Which makes you wonder - do you REALLY NEED that product? Probably not. The most healthy things for me is to skip the Black Friday. I don't like pushing with people for a set of plates that went from 10 to 8,99$!
for us in the uk it’s the January sales that r the big thing. Shops have started to open 5am on Boxing Day ruining shop workers whole Xmas. I worked in a shop in Xmas sales once. We shut the fitting rooms coz a) full of sale and b) big day for shop lifting. I walked on the floor at 7.15 am to find a middle aged woman stripping down to her underwear in the middle of the shop in front of a lad young enough to b her own son (as mentioned we had to keep an eye out for lifting, he was uncomfortable but on duty). Just to get £2 off an ugly pair of trousers no one wanted! I just thought “is this really worth your dignity?” you could go somewhere else or a charity shop get it cheaper and with your dignity in tacked!
My best friend has ADHD and is a regular impulse shopper, and it can be really challenging to resist repeating the same habits. I try to buy as little as possible for financial reasons, but she makes more money than me and doesn't see the harm in casual window shopping. For me it's way too exhausting to resist all of the 'good deals' all the time, especially at this time of year. I avoid going to physical And online stores as much as possible.
Being a minimalist is like having a superpower this time of the year. I'm saving cash for a 10 year old car, so I'm focused on my goal. Update: I bought the car 3 months ago and now I'm back at saving for my emergency fund.
I can think of a sales meeting somewhere in a company watching this video and the CEO screaming to the giant screen projector "You're not helping Nicole!"
that would be great to watch! but it’s 100% the free to play model. every game now is free to play with a million micro transactions that you buy 2 cosmetics and already get to the $60 standard price of a game
My HS Econ teacher had a great and very similar argument on discounts and sales. A sale makes you think you are "saving" by spending. However, a sale makes you shift your 0 spending to more than 0. You become included in their market that wasn't captured before the sale. Any increase in your spending, with your income remaining the same, always means a decrease in your savings. Man, I miss her. She's a good prof who taught us how to manage our resources wisely and helped us apply concepts in real life. I just wanted to share.
Dang I really needed to hear this. I've got a big rubbermaid container full of clothing essentials that I bought on clearance and I need to start using them before I buy more. I think the general uneasiness with inflation right now is driving it in me. I've seen the price of clothes go up 20-30% in the last 4 years and I get the feeling that if I don't buy something at a good price today, when I need it next year it'll be much more expensive.
Buy it now before it becomes more expensive in the future, it makes sense given the price trends as of last 4-5 years but it's not always the case, that all will be surely more expensive on mid/long term, as prices for most goods are cyclical, and some of them i.e. consumer electronics, non-luxury cars, do depreciate a lot over time.
I also eat the green part of the strawberries when I can't pull it out with the leaves. Also concerning discounts: I usually wait for a while when I get the urge to buy something. I think you already explained this in one of your many videos. Sometimes I also plan ahead for black friday, noting what I actually need so I will try to get a discount on those items. My shoes won't last me much longer so I'm going to get another pair for the time when my current ones fall apart.
Giiirl, you just reminded me of the earbuds that I bought. It's Samsung's galaxy buds2 and when I saw that it was on sale for literally 50%, I ALMOST boguth it, but what sealed the deal was that there was only ONE left in stock. So even though I didn't like the color, I still bought it. Lo and behold, the next day, LITERALLY THE DAY AFTER BUYING THE SUPPOSED ONE LAST STOCK, 50% OFF EARBUDS... IT WAS RESTOCKED, AND THEY WOULDN'T EVEN LET ME EXCHANGE THE BUDS FOR A DIFFERENT COLOR
Writing letters to ourselves sounds like a fantastic idea. It holds us accountable and makes us want to treat our future selves with care so “future self” can look back at those particular points of change and say “thank you”.
I think a budget is relative to all of this. A budget gives you permission to spend while also holding you accountable for said spending. It’s also a lot harder to justify your spending when you look at your budget and think “is this really worth it?” Great content, by the way
there are a lot of times when i think “i want these two things, im not sure about this one, but if i get them both ill save on shipping.” but then i remind myself “if i REALLY wanted this second thing, i literally wouldn’t care to spend shipping twice. if both of these things were REALLY things i needed in my routine, i would be happy to buy it on its own and spend the shipping on both of them.”
I feel like another nudging tactic that we can fall into is the "spend X amount for free shipping," because we don't want to pay for shipping. I know I don't. If we're close to reaching the minimum, we'd find something to add. More often, it just ends up being wasteful either to the wallet and/or space. I also learned the "would I buy it without the discount?" trick within this past year and that one is the best thing to helping with my decision-making with things I want just for the sake of wanting vs. truly wanting it.
this one always gets me!! i was going to buy a new pair of earrings but to get free shipping i had to spend $75. i went to check how much shipping was since i had a discount code and to my surprise shipping was less than 5 dollars. If I hadn’t checked first I would have paid 45 dollars more in jewelry for free shipping smh. I haven’t purchased the earrings yet and after watching this video i feel like i shouldn’t 😅
I know when my mom worked at JCPenney's, she would tell me that they would Mark certain items up a week before they would go on sale so the discount looks more than it was, and then they would drop the price down the original price when the sale. So instead of looking like you're getting a 50% off sale, you're getting 20 or 10%.
One thing that really helped me is unsubscribing to a lot of news letters from brands and stores about sales and generally not watching the type of content that constantly shows off new stuff.
I worked 15 years in retail. I do not shop for gifts after Labor day. Flat out. Holiday things are intentionally low quality and WILL break in a year. It's intentional.
I wrote a whole Costco research report about this!! Costco claims to target bargain-hunters who want great deals, but they also pressure you to buy expensive specialty items (from air fryers to diamond rings) that are only around for a few weeks. You can, indeed, go broke buying a "discounted" $100K ring.
I love the way you explained how you reflect on what your 80 yr old self would want for you right now, and how they would reflect on your past life. Such a direct way of shifting to long term thought and out of that instant gratification mindset. And I can't believe I never came across the idea of writing letters to your past/present self! So insightful!
i try to refrain from shopping on black friday and put my money toward small business saturday instead, but that's not always possible when my family wants very specific gifts.
I was an impulsive buyer before, I was thinking items were on sale and I can afford it so why not, now I consider using up all the items I bought first or at least tried to
This is a timely video, right before black Friday, Cyber Monday, and so much more. I enjoy window shopping but rarely buy anything. In that way, I'm glad I can plan out exactly what I tend to buy, get it and be done. Curb side pickup is such a blessing, lol.
I shop mainly online I only buy 3 things offline - makeup (if i decide to go for a different brand, otherwise i'd buy what i need online) - shoes (i gotta touch it and also walk in it, so) - outerwear (especially since i live in a cold climate and i need to determine physically if its gonna keep me warm) Otherwise i shop online and just keep an eye on discounts Got a hoodie i really wanted for a quarter of a price Can't say that all i buy is a needed purchase, but my rule of thumb is if i see an item i like, i can add it to favourites and if i keep thinking about it after like a couple of weeks than it might be an actually good purchase
I really love this video. I’m so glad I found this channel. Everything you said really resonated with me. I will say I am a black Friday shopper, but I shop enough to know when a deal is really a deal and when it’s not and definitely the last few years have taught me to really only buy what I need, but that if I don’t get that today is real
I was already starting to work on more intentional money management but it’s always nice to hear someone else talk about it. It also helps that you’re well spoken and have a really calming voice.
The chapter Looking Out For Future Us hit me really hard. I'll have to look up that VICE article, and explore more. Having not read it/looked into the theory much: I think part of it is how many people in our society are living paycheck to paycheck - or, are in some other way living life in "survival mode" (psychologically/emotionally). I know you sort of touched on this in Existential Dread Is Ruining Your Personal Finance, but I feel like there might be a whole video in exploring that phenomenon.
I’m really enjoying sustainable videos which show different ways to wear what you already own. I love ideas! I’m a thrifter now and this helps with spending coz when I see the shop price I’m like “that’s so dear! I could get for £3 I’m not spending that!”.
Great video Cara! This Holiday season I am - not being impulsive buyer ✅ not falling for sale, discounts and savings ✅ paying no attention to urgent shopping deadlines ✅ not worried about unnecessary fomo✅ instead doing practicing mindfulness, spending quality time with friends/family, volunteering ✅✅✅
Loved this video! I recently found your channel and I find most of your financial advice to be spot on. This video truly gives much to think about when it comes to how discounts are really just ploys to get you to buy. Please keep up the great content Cara!👍
I’d never heard of the decoy method. I’m the person who always gets the medium and has cashiers try to pressure me to upgrade to large by saying it’s ‘only 50 cents more’. These marketing methods are really brilliant if you think about it!
I’ve often had to fight the urge to tell family and friends that they didn’t save 50% on their impulse buy but they spent 50% more A lot of great awareness points especially as we approach the holidays (where people blow out their annual budget the most) btw I see 👀 your test on scarcity lol I downloaded the endel app but resisted the subscription for now.
I always know what I want to buy and waiting for a discount/good deal can take months, in some cases even years. We really don't need things right now most of the time.
the only thing i buy on sale is home cleaning supplier or groceries, but most of the time they have been in my to buy list and I just get what i needed
One thing I realized, if it's on sale and you don't need it, don't buy it. I learned from my experiences, I bought different lipsticks which were on 80% sale and I only realized that I still spent too much than I should. Not repeating again😊❤
Excellent video! I am such a sucker for a discount that I KNOW I've spent a ton of money I probably wouldn't have spent if not for the supposed discount. I appreciate you breaking down the psychology behind that and the decoy item. I hope to use this information to my benefit going forward so I can be better with my money in the longterm!
about the strawberry thing, in my country (Portugal) we don't really have that habit of cutting fruits leaves and ripping the seeds, especially if it's as small as a strawberry. we just pull out the leaves and thats it. in general, from what ive seen, americans waste a lot of food by cutting it and not using certain parts of the food (i mean vegetables, fruits, etc). 2 minutes a go i didnt even know or imagine there was a strawberry ripper. so yeah, dont worry and keep eating the strawberry stem/stick. as we say in Portuguese "what doesnt kill makes you fatter"
What helped me a lot is figuring out what do i value in a product and what "implications" are included in it For example yesterday i bought a turtleneck for €3 at a local NPO and while i'm going to use it even if i didn't i would still be happy to have given money to charity On the counterpart i straight up don't buy from Amazon because they certainly have enough money already
one thing that's a bit easier to practice is: pay cash or write down your holiday hopping spendings. The numbers (without the discount tag) will confront you more directly on how much you are paying for the products.
I grew up in a pretty frugal household and the I have had money saving techniques ingrained in my being since birth. When I asked my mom why we always head to the clearance section of a clothing store first, she said: "if a shop makes a profit from sales that halve their products' prices, there's no need to voluntarily give them more than you have to." If you miss out on a piece of clothing on clearance and you're only a little disappointed? You never needed it to begin with. It's freeing, since you learn to keep a list of what to look out for and to take advantage of sales when they impact the products you're eyeing.
I’ll have to show this video to my husband because he is a sale and discount fiend. As a matter of fact, I’m returning a $100 worth of pokemon cards today that he brought home last night. Love him but boy does fomo and value marketing get him.
I'm free from such a compulsion, but as my wife would say, you should tell him "you're blessed I'm in your life" ^_^ Greetings to you both from Switzerland.
I remember going to Black Friday sale at the mall. The things I wanted weren’t on sale and the stuff that were on sale I didn’t want or didn’t have my right size. And it felt like too much work for such small gain. Sometimes you feel like you only save 10-20%
I’ve learned to tune out a lot of things. I rarely go shopping for anything. I get only what we need for food. I also do my hair in a style than only needs a trim every 6 months. Most of my clothes are timeless from many decades.
Also, as a former retail manager and worker, know the difference between sale and clearance when shopping in store. Clearance is usually yellow in big stores and actually means “clearing” the product out to make room for something new.
I'm definitely more cautious when spending money. Intentional living is definitely my priority and I ask myself "do I really need this?" "Will this item help me reach my $ goals?" "Is it reusuable?" These questions help me assess the value. Then I wait about a week and if I still think about it, then I buy it. I dont buy things on a whim unless I feel it can enhance my future in someway. So when I shop rather than short term gratification I'm always thinking if ill still have this thing in a few years or if it'll be of any benefit to me
Sharing my personal practice - Decide a budget on what I need (I define need as I will die without it or I will not be happy for the rest of the year without it) - Keep myself strict to the budget, if is over 1 dollar, is over, anything over the budget I won't look at it - Start my shopping research, which actually the phase that I am more enjoying than owning the thing itself - By research, I am checking the availability, the brand, the quality etc. (like I do comprehensive marketing research for anything that cost me 20 dollar or more😂) - I decide on the thing that I actually wanna buy, like the specific type of jeans or a model range of car or just anything - I take time to try it, visit a flagship store, touch the item, think about how I will use it, does it fit my style and everything else (mostly aesthetic and experience concern at this point) - I will check the lowest price from those price monitoring tool and if is a particular date (usually Europe you get sale in Easter, Black Friday, Christmas or their owm membership day, I will pay attention on the timing and see how urgent I would need it) - Fix a happy price that I will want to pay for it (which means I am happy even though I might find it cheaper someday in the future) - Patiently wait until that price and buy it immediately I can't say is 100% worth all those efforts, because is actually consumed a lot of attention and time, but for me personally the whole shopping experience not just handling out the card, but also everything else It works for me but not everyone so good luck and have fun in shopping
Electronics stores here in Finland started "Black Week" last Sunday. That's right, they're doing fifteen days of a sale with the word "week" in its name. Also, the whole thing doesn't make sense since Thanksgiving doesn't exist in this country. Chain stores in Northern Europe just copied "Black Friday" in the early 2010s and almost immediately turned it into Black Week because they want to have a sale ongoing at all times and a nonsense theme is better than no theme. Idk why I shared that but yeah, the best deal is saving 100%. You save 100% when you don't buy the thing.
Got the t shirt on this one. Since I stopped that BS I have savings. More then a years salary. Every penny spend on items that aren’t it, but just because their cheap is a penny spent. Buy a lot of stuff that you don’t really needed/ or don’t fit right but cheap is a lot of pennys at the end of the year
I spent a lot of money on coffee grounds this month. I live alone and only drink coffee once a day, rarely have friends come over. Just because of the discount and bonuses. I got a french press and a water bottle for free. And now I ended up with a lot of coffee grounds that maybe I can't even finish.
Another great essay, Cara. Picking apart the psychology that drives impulse buys based on discounts is fascinating, I think there's also a hoarding dimension to it. I try to steer clear from sales & discounts, I mostly shop 2nd hand so the items I buy are ones I do need & have been on my mental list for a while. Couldn't care less about black friday or black month, personally 😅
3:07 I cut off the top of strawberries when I do eat them, yes it takes away more flesh BUT strawberries are notorious for the amount of pesticides on them, and if you think about it, the top is where the pesticides might pool and collect a little bit more, and it’s hard to wash it out as it is, I’m not taking any chances.❤
I live in argentina, we have around 10% inflation per month. Yes. Things get 10% more expensive each month. I always buy with urgency! :( And learned to only buy what I need. I wonder what kind of consumer I would be somewhere else
i find it really helpful against over-consumption to imagine someone gifting me either the item or its value in cash, or hours of my life (aka hours I would have to exchange in work, in order to make the money to buy this item). Usually you 'll find it's much more appealing to skip and save the money for something you want/need more.
I always try to buy stuff second hand, but this is the first year I plan to shop Black Friday. I'm broke, but I only buy high quality things, so that they last me forever Work shoes, hygeine + cleaning products, socks + underwear are so exciting 😮💨
I always remember that one post on Tumblr, about how she always look back at her younger self and be so proud of her. She's young and inexperienced but she's doing her damned best with what she's given. Right now, I plan and budget for my future self and hope somewhere along the line she's so damned proud of me making the best of what I'm given right now.
I think a lot of people know about the decoy effect but with the movie theater example, I feel a lot of people just don't care. But, With that example, you are getting more product even though it's 50 cents more. And yes you spent more money but you're getting significantly more...usually.
I only go into stores when I need something and I buy things as I need them, not when I see them on sale. I keep a tight budget as well, so if I'm under I can treat myself. It's worked this way and saved me a ton of money over the last few years. It also helps that I don't follow trends and I don't like to spend money on things I won't immediately use and use frequently.
I eat the whole strawberry and the leafy green part works well in salads 😅. You also can't taste the difference if you throw the whole strawberry in with the green part in smoothies
I used to be really weak with sales and discounts and buy so much I didn't need, but as I've gotten older and become a uni student, I've had to become a lot more frugal. One thing I find really helps is unsubscribing from everything that would hit me with Black Friday discounts - if they had to email me to tell me I need something, I probably don't need it, but if I'm searching for it, there's a higher chance I do and am being more intentional about it.
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Girl... What a hypocrite you are for this sentence.
@@sharkeishatwerks1731 well she did say she doesn't blame companies for doing it. Just that we should be aware of obvious fomo like this
@@sharkeishatwerks1731idk if I'd call her that but yeah, pretty disappointing
@@sharkeishatwerks1731agree. This is tacky, distasteful, not a very classy move for someone who warns against influencers advertising.
@@sharkeishatwerks1731 Can you expand on how you believe this is hyporcritical?
I don't understand this sentiment; it seems driven from a place that seeks to be reactionary and emotional rather than genuinely listening to the message of my videos.
I am not against consumerism, nor discount culture, nor marketing. I think all of these things play an important and interesting role in our economy, and I don't feel contradictory by promoting brands with discounts on my channel.
What my videos focus on is becoming a conscious consumer who can identify marketing and consumption so that you can decide as an individual if you want to purchase something. It's about equipping people with the tools to reflect with intention, not rejecting any forms of consumerism.
This video is basically a reminder for me not to get sucked in the influencer shopping culture
seriously, like I'm getting all the notifications from apps, like pink friday, and this video literally saved me from pressing the order now button haha
Yeah, we'd all be doing ourselves a favor if we just stop listening to influencers in general.
This is why I just deleted the shopping apps around the holidays. It does you a world of favor if you don’t have them on your phone in the first place. Out of sight out of mind.
"If you weren't going to get it either way, you're not saving anything - you're just spending, loosing and keeping yourself poor." I think that's a helpful thing to keep telling yourself in situations like that. And don't go to the movies, they're over.
Agree with you and Cara on first part, totally, realized the false lure of "special offers" long time ago, though not soon enough, regrettably - Would have loved for any of my relatives to explain it to me when I was a little kid.
As for the movies, I maybe go to the theater once every 2 years, there are still some shows that are worth the ticket on the big screen rather than at home, but only those few ones and if budget permits, of course.
@@vbrotherita Ditto on the movie thing. There are some movies visually stunning enough that a little screen at home doesn't do it justice.
@mmmnahfam I agree with you mostly, however, personally, at the beginning of every year, and throughout the year, add things as needed, I make a list of the things I need, but are a little out of my budget at that moment. Then, I patiently wait every year for the BF/CM sale because I always get the things on my shopping list for 50% to 70% discount with things like household goods, vitamins, clothes that typically throughout the year are out of my price range. The vast majority of clothes I buy are pre-owned (with the exception of sanitary items like bras, underwear, and socks) and I never buy things like new clothes or accessories unless they’re on sale. This is the difference I was going to buy them anyway because things like home goods, clothes, and food are necessities, it’s actually extremely smart and financially responsible to wait until sales like Black Friday / Cyber Monday to buy what you **need.** Overspending is the problem, not using sales strategically to buy what you were already going to buy anyway 💁🏽♀️
I will go to the movies regardless
Going to the movies is ultimately just an experience. It's not just about seeing the movie - it's about getting out of the house, going to the theater, whatever else you make of it. It isn't inherently a waste of money. It's just a matter of deciding whether or not it is personally worth spending your discretionary money on, which is ofc going to vary from person to person depending on how much money they have and how much enjoyment they get out of the experience.
My roommate's dad taught me "two indian elephants for a quarter is only a good deal if you have a quarter and you need two indian elephants" and that stuck with me...
Writing that down for later
Your dad is a wise man!
@@Bookcity300her roommate’s dad!!!!!!
@@Bookcity300roommates dad*. her dad may very well think that’s a good deal 🤣
That sounds like a pretty good deal, ngl
The first time Black Friday really hit the UK, I was in the market for a simple digital camera. My mum had been keeping an eye on the price (I was working full time) and she told me it had gone up from £179 to £249 in the weeks prior to Black Friday. So she went in on Black Friday and... it was marked as a GREAT DEAL! at £199.
We waited another month and it dropped to £159 before Christmas.
Take from that what you will, but I just ignore Black Friday deals now, unless it's an essential and I know what the price was beforehand. You're not fooling me lol
Great point!
Oh this happens ALOT at most stores! I was also keeping an eye on a coat, and it went up in price for the Black Friday sale with some additional 30% off that didn’t even make a difference in price 🤷♀️
I don't shop Black Friday for deals. I shop it because it's nice to get all of my shopping done in one day.
AAA games have had a mostly consistent price of $60, so if I see a game that looks like it was from a AAA studio that was on discount at $50, then I can be sure that it was a $10 discount.
@@VictoriaAlexeevaI don't mean this in a snarky way (it's a genuine question) but I'm curious why you can't get all your shopping done on one other day (i.e. not on Black Friday)? That way you'd be saving money too!
What I found useful is looking for what I need when it's being sold at a normal price, and then waiting until it's on sale. By the time it's on sale, I'll know if I really needed it or not. And if they ran out, honestly, there's always options, other versions, etc. Nothing that you truly need is unique, and basics are basics for a reason.
such a good strategy!
I do the same!
This is exactly what I do!! :)
And if it sells out I find something similar, usually better, a month later 😭
Exactly!
Very good points!
I really don't think temus clothing prices are even that great tbh. When you consider you basically can't return it and there is almost no quality control.
@ElizabethSanto22Sorry for being a nerd, but aluminum doesnt rust it corrodes. So if its actually rusty it was made from carbon steel. Prob the cheapest steel they could get their hands on (China is notorious for their low quality 'pig iron' just watch some of the construction video from china about the crumbling rebar in their buildings)
@ElizabethSanto22 I got something similar from Shein a while ago and it doesn’t even cut through the veggies lol. I have to press REALLY hard to get it to, and often I still can’t do it. When I do manage to, the fruit or veg usually turns to mush. Learned my lesson 😭 (and yes I now know all of the issues with Shein. I didn’t at the time so I’m just commenting on the quality of the item). Temu seems just as sketchy if not more, so I’ll be avoiding them.
@@weird-guyexactly my thought when people act shocked after doing just a mere grain if research. like you really couldnt be that stupid, all the signs of a garbage company were there. you just didnt wanna see it.
Whats a Temu
@@pinkesthibiscus I guess I got lucky. I got a potato peeler for a dollar...it is my favorite peeler. It also has a side to cut veggies Julienne style. My mom loved it so much I got her one too. Best dollar ever I've ever spent. But I do hate their press on nails. They don't last as long as the ones from Ulta. I am going back to buying my press on nails at Ulta.
I'm surprised nothing was mentioned about the business model of marking the items price up just so it can be given a "discount" that brings it back down to its original cost
yes i was reading about this, in certain places this is actually illegal as well.
or just lying about the original cost. there are some places that have items that are never not “on sale”
@@wolftownesque Where it's illegal, I've noticed that companies just circumvent that by inflating then deflating *juuust* outside of the mandatory period. E.g. if it's illegal to inflate then deflate within 3 months, you'll see them do it over 3 months & a day instead. Lol 😑
The sale prices tend to be a little more than what it originally was when it was put on the shelf. Normalising the upmarked price until the next holiday comes along (adding to inflation)
There's a furniture/carpet store near me that has been GOING OUT OF BUSINESS for a decade now.
i love how understanding and kind you are to people who fall victim to predatory marketing like this. it's never "they're taking advantage of idiots who seriously think they need an xyz and actually believe stuff on sale is FREE!!" you're very gentle and validating. i have friends who struggle with impulse purchasing, and i know they'd never react well to aggression towards their problem, so you're doing a great job here and making change. wonderful video!
thank you so much for your kind words! I really appreciate it :) I think progress and the changing of attitudes rarely comes from a place of aggression & defensiveness, so I'm certainly hoping that my approach helps reach more people!
maybe we should be kind and gentle to the people that ostracized, isolated and threatened those who saw very early on that v@ccines didn’t protect against covid and neither lockdowns nor firing us for not taking it doesn’t actually help anyone. esp those who’ve since been diagnosed with turbo cancer after their 2nd booster
The biggest struggle for me is the “add $ more for free shipping” you always see shopping online. I recently ended up with a pair of $10 disco ball earrings that I’ll probably wear once and then forget about, just because I wanted to eliminate the $7 shipping fee on winter boots that I actually need. In that case I was purchasing something I needed and researched ahead of time, but getting to free shipping gets me every time.
This is my problem too. I am not sure whether I am still stuck in the trap or not, but what I am trying to do is to buy a "filler" item that I definitely will use like coconut milk to even up the purchase for free shipping.
If you spend more than shipping to get free shipping, that’s just bad math.
But I do understand the “why not get SOMETHING instead of just paying for shipping”. I’ve done it too.
The way I try to deal with this is:
If it's not something I need right now, I'll put in on my list and buy it later once the list grew big enough to get free shipping.
If it is something I want now, and "free shipping" isn't too far off then I'll just add something small that can find a use for,
i.e. soap, printerpaper, socks, stuff you'll buy either way eventually, you're just changing the timeframe when you'll next have to buy those item.
In that case I usually end up getting either an item to cross over that threshold, or I find the boots elsewhere lol. I refuse to pay for shipping bc it's sometimes dumb expensive, and I don't want more of my money going to FedEx or UPS. (USPS is a case by case since the Post Office needs the money)
I'll buy your earrings for $5 😜
I’m working as a cashier at a makeup store right now and every time a customer buys a lot while saying, “I don’t need it but it’s a lot cheaper this way,” I gently ask them if they would’ve bought it full price. The answer is almost always no, since it’s never an essential item. It’s kind of heartbreaking how consumerism is keeping people down like this.
I always say to my daughter when she wants something she really doesn't need, "You know what's cheaper than 25% off? Not buying it at all."
someone once said "when you spend money on things you don't need, you rob yourself" and I took it personally.
now I'll treat myself to a new item (like jewelry) to celebrate milestones, but most of my money goes to rent, groceries, gas & travel every now and again. when I buy clothes, it's when my old clothes have gone through their life cycle, & I buy timeless pieces. it's great.
I wish you never said this! I am now never going to be the same shopping queen again lmaoo. This quote will haunt me forever
Same. Also buying quality items prevents from over spending
Amen.. 🙌
@@Amina-cw1emwe'll be saving queens instead! Investing queens! ❤
The fact that people can beat the system by buying things YOU NEED during sales instead of spending money on unnecessary things. I literally have a tracker for all of my skincare staples and have a “striking price”, as in if I don’t have anymore in stock and it’s on sale with THIS price, then I’m getting it.
I ❤️ this idea!
I do that too. I do it with my favorite cereal too
I have eBay searches that include price thresholds too, eventually they get triggered, but most (80%) of the time I have changed my mind
I used to feel the same with thrift stores whole “but theres only one”. It is a real tough mentality to get out of. Me and my mom were awful when we first started thrifting but after a year of experience & having stuff with Goodwill tags still laying around that have never been worn; I think we learned our lesson, if we are not in love with the piece and we got the smallest doubt on it, we simply don’t get it
I used the have this problem when I thrifted! I just started thinking “if I was 12 and walking in here with my mom id be stoked to find this” and then I try to leave it for another teen who might feel the same :)
I’ve started to think “is it something I need? (at the moment plain coloured tops) “Or something very special”. If so I can buy it. Sometimes I’ll walk away and leave it and if Im still thinking about it and it’s still there next time then it’s a blessing from the thrift gods of evermore!
@@Acehigh-Jenkinsyyeeeesss exactly. Out of sight out of mind. So if you’re still thinking about it it’s very telling!
Agreed! It is really hard when you can get a super deal at thrifts. It has taken me a year too to “just say no”.
One thing I've heard that's stuck with me is that 'the amount that you like an item is always going to decline from the point of purchase'. In other words, you're going to like the item the most when you're deciding to buy it - so if you're only 'meh' about it at the time of sale, you're going to feel less enthused about it by the time you get it home. So if you're a perennial sales shopper, it's no wonder you feel like you have 'nothing to wear' if everything you have in your closet was motivated by price rather than whether you well & truly love it enough to give it a spot in your wardrobe!
TL;DR If in doubt, leave it out (on the rack)!
Discounts never caught my attention because of the pressure they make me feel when I see them. Especially, those online flashy ones where there’s a timer for the discounted price. I just immediately leave the store or close the app. I don’t like being pressured into anything whether buying, school, work etc sooo I guess that’s keeping my money intact lmfaoo
im the exact same,, seeing all those flashing pop ups makes me feel like im being scammed lol
those timers are mostly fake or the store will “extend” the deal
I'd call myself a naturally skeptical person so every time I see "This is on sale" my mind goes to "That price was probably marked up before the discount wasn't it?" and "If I buy something I didn't need is it really saving money?"
i've never understood black friday as a holiday. i'm not from the states, but when black friday came to my home country i was so confused what made it so special to people. to me, the concept of a "shopping holiday" is insane, one of the most useless things to ever exist. i grew up in a very low-income household, my parents were in a lot of debt and we didn't have anything else but the essentials, sometimes we even had to cut on those too. spending money just for the sake of spending it is so foreign to me, such a distant idea that i can't understand it.
Don't try to understand it. It's nonsense as you said.
It doesn't make sense, it deprives people of a day off. I avoid shopping on it.
When you call it a shopping holiday, it made me realize just how deep the USA is in consumerism.
I mostly like it because it's one easy day for me to get a ton of shopping done, then I'm done for the month. It saves money in the sense that I can use up most of my holiday budget in one go.
@@rosesweetcharlottei think if you genuinely just buy some discounted stuff (and check online to see what other prices for the same thing are like) that you have been wanting/need then these shopping events are fine. my family isn't poor but my grandpa did grow up VERY poor, oranges in your stocking for christmas and your older sibling's shoes that are too big kind of deal, and really the only black friday things he's gotten have been small tvs for the house when old ones wore out or he got a heater for me. this past black friday he got me a small 20 dollar airfryer since i asked for one for christmas. you just have to be intentional and measured about what you buy, i guess
Overtime I realized that discounts occur all the time..over and over again..sometimes in the same cycle..I noticed this a lot more by deciding to be more aware of my shopping and taking a step back. I feel this is easier for me because I am a retail employee, so I started to notice these cycles at my own work. Definitely helped me buy less!
What about dying young?
I don’t agree live in the present.
I only buy when I want it, never on black friday
Boy math is me watching this video at 2x with full attention and subtitles, just to continue passively watching reaction videos for 2 hours while playing videogames
I am now indeed more conscious. Imo your best video. Concise, actionable and well presented.
love me some 1.5x-2x speed haha
and thank you so much! I really appreciate you saying that :)
Boy math is opening cs:go cases and thinking you can win money on them and or buying 20 games on steam because they are on discount and only playing 5-10 of them
We needed to replace our vacuum cleaner, and we decided to buy a Dyson v12, they are rather expensive. My husband uses a website that tracks prices and a couple weeks after looking up the Dyson he got an alert that the price had dropped. That is when we bought it, it actually was at a store that I have a loyalty card with so we also got cash back on my card, which has been used to buy gifts for birthday parties 😊👍. Definitely worthwhile watching and waiting for a better price. We are loving the Dyson v12 😊 worth the money 💰
My strategy for avoiding 99% of impulse purchases:
I just tell myself I will buy it in 1 week. I do not write it down or give myself any reminders. Most often, after 1 week, I have completely forgotten about what I was thinking of buying, and that shows me I never even needed it. If I do remember it 1 week later, I just ask myself if its still something I really need/want, and the answer is almost always no.
I do the exact opposite because I always believe I don't need stuff. I put off buying a belt for over a year. I have 5 pants and in 3 of 5 I actually need a belt. When I finally thought about actually buying one, I immediately did and it is a life changer. No more pulling up pants the whole day haha. If it conveniences my life in a drastic way, I try to just buy it before I put it off for way too long. 😂
Last time I went into a clearance store I saw a sweater I really wanted for 25 dollars and I decided to just take a photo of it to decide if I wanted it later, when I looked at the photo later I was less interested in it so I was happy I left it there for somebody else. So I think taking a photo of it while in the store also helps.
I do this too! I also put things in the shopping cart when I'm on Amazon but dontcheck out right away I find 99% of the time I end up deleting the item once I've had a chance to "cool down."
I work retail and always take photos of things I want to buy then like a week later realise I don't like it as much, and even with the incredible discount it isn't worth it !!
"Leaving it there for somebody else" is a really important way to think about spending (or adopting items) for me. I often fall into the emotional trap of "It's so cute and I don't want to leave it here alone" etc etc, when I really don't need it. Reminding myself that someone else is likely to come along who will actually adore it, instead of getting it because of the sense of obligation I feel, is essential to keeping my house uncluttered...it's still cluttered tho 😅
I like how Cara points out all the psychology, it makes sense. Black Friday is no longer just that Friday, it already started, it’s all month. Same with most stores putting up Xmas decor early, they want you feel them holiday feels. As for the future self, perhaps the pandemic has shown you can be here today, gone tomorrow. If all you did was plan and save, when do you live? Some people I meet just want that lifestyle, lots of debt but every weekend they’ve been somewhere. My weekends, “eh not much, just chilled.” 😂🤷🏻♂️
I highly recommend the documentary Seduction in the City. It's not about black Friday, but it goes through the history of the department store and how they lure people in (sales, atmosphere, etc.). Although, it is hard to find on streaming services. If it ever comes back I'll definitely be watching it again
i’m a bath and body works employee and i regularly see people going for the buy 3 get 3 free body care sale because it seems so good and spend 60 dollars. A week later there will always be a better sale of body care being 5 dollars a piece. Yet during major sales like that i watch people buy 10 lotions and say “i don’t even need that much the sale is just too good!”
Also keep in mind - sellers will normally only put on sale:
1) things that they cannot sell on regular prices
2) things that do sell on normal prices, but not fast enough because they got too much of it, so they need to clear out the storage.
Which makes you wonder - do you REALLY NEED that product?
Probably not.
The most healthy things for me is to skip the Black Friday. I don't like pushing with people for a set of plates that went from 10 to 8,99$!
for us in the uk it’s the January sales that r the big thing. Shops have started to open 5am on Boxing Day ruining shop workers whole Xmas. I worked in a shop in Xmas sales once. We shut the fitting rooms coz a) full of sale and b) big day for shop lifting. I walked on the floor at 7.15 am to find a middle aged woman stripping down to her underwear in the middle of the shop in front of a lad young enough to b her own son (as mentioned we had to keep an eye out for lifting, he was uncomfortable but on duty). Just to get £2 off an ugly pair of trousers no one wanted! I just thought “is this really worth your dignity?” you could go somewhere else or a charity shop get it cheaper and with your dignity in tacked!
My best friend has ADHD and is a regular impulse shopper, and it can be really challenging to resist repeating the same habits. I try to buy as little as possible for financial reasons, but she makes more money than me and doesn't see the harm in casual window shopping. For me it's way too exhausting to resist all of the 'good deals' all the time, especially at this time of year. I avoid going to physical And online stores as much as possible.
The dopamine hit and hyperfixation on it just makes it so hard to resist a deal when you have ADHD.
As a recovering shopaholic, this video was REALLY helpful!
Being a minimalist is like having a superpower this time of the year. I'm saving cash for a 10 year old car, so I'm focused on my goal.
Update: I bought the car 3 months ago and now I'm back at saving for my emergency fund.
Good for you. Stay focused!
@@bbcross1836 Thank you!
I can think of a sales meeting somewhere in a company watching this video and the CEO screaming to the giant screen projector "You're not helping Nicole!"
Would it be possible to do a video on how in-game (video games, apps, etc,) micro transactions keep you poor? I would love to watch that! Great vid :)
Yes thatd be great!
that would be great to watch! but it’s 100% the free to play model. every game now is free to play with a million micro transactions that you buy 2 cosmetics and already get to the $60 standard price of a game
me grinding the fuck out of red dead online because i refuse to pay for gold in the game
@@imdva The Sims 4 does this with the now free base game but you have to pay for everything else lol.
@@JBUHJBUH thankfully the modding community is a god send and you can download a lot of cool stuff for free to better the game
My HS Econ teacher had a great and very similar argument on discounts and sales.
A sale makes you think you are "saving" by spending. However, a sale makes you shift your 0 spending to more than 0. You become included in their market that wasn't captured before the sale.
Any increase in your spending, with your income remaining the same, always means a decrease in your savings.
Man, I miss her. She's a good prof who taught us how to manage our resources wisely and helped us apply concepts in real life. I just wanted to share.
Dang I really needed to hear this. I've got a big rubbermaid container full of clothing essentials that I bought on clearance and I need to start using them before I buy more. I think the general uneasiness with inflation right now is driving it in me. I've seen the price of clothes go up 20-30% in the last 4 years and I get the feeling that if I don't buy something at a good price today, when I need it next year it'll be much more expensive.
Buy it now before it becomes more expensive in the future, it makes sense given the price trends as of last 4-5 years but it's not always the case, that all will be surely more expensive on mid/long term, as prices for most goods are cyclical, and some of them i.e. consumer electronics, non-luxury cars, do depreciate a lot over time.
I also eat the green part of the strawberries when I can't pull it out with the leaves.
Also concerning discounts: I usually wait for a while when I get the urge to buy something. I think you already explained this in one of your many videos. Sometimes I also plan ahead for black friday, noting what I actually need so I will try to get a discount on those items. My shoes won't last me much longer so I'm going to get another pair for the time when my current ones fall apart.
Giiirl, you just reminded me of the earbuds that I bought. It's Samsung's galaxy buds2 and when I saw that it was on sale for literally 50%, I ALMOST boguth it, but what sealed the deal was that there was only ONE left in stock. So even though I didn't like the color, I still bought it.
Lo and behold, the next day, LITERALLY THE DAY AFTER BUYING THE SUPPOSED ONE LAST STOCK, 50% OFF EARBUDS...
IT WAS RESTOCKED, AND THEY WOULDN'T EVEN LET ME EXCHANGE THE BUDS FOR A DIFFERENT COLOR
Writing letters to ourselves sounds like a fantastic idea. It holds us accountable and makes us want to treat our future selves with care so “future self” can look back at those particular points of change and say “thank you”.
I think a budget is relative to all of this. A budget gives you permission to spend while also holding you accountable for said spending. It’s also a lot harder to justify your spending when you look at your budget and think “is this really worth it?”
Great content, by the way
there are a lot of times when i think “i want these two things, im not sure about this one, but if i get them both ill save on shipping.” but then i remind myself “if i REALLY wanted this second thing, i literally wouldn’t care to spend shipping twice. if both of these things were REALLY things i needed in my routine, i would be happy to buy it on its own and spend the shipping on both of them.”
This is also exactly why I like watching other people spending the money so i don’t have to.
I feel like another nudging tactic that we can fall into is the "spend X amount for free shipping," because we don't want to pay for shipping. I know I don't. If we're close to reaching the minimum, we'd find something to add. More often, it just ends up being wasteful either to the wallet and/or space.
I also learned the "would I buy it without the discount?" trick within this past year and that one is the best thing to helping with my decision-making with things I want just for the sake of wanting vs. truly wanting it.
this one always gets me!! i was going to buy a new pair of earrings but to get free shipping i had to spend $75. i went to check how much shipping was since i had a discount code and to my surprise shipping was less than 5 dollars. If I hadn’t checked first I would have paid 45 dollars more in jewelry for free shipping smh. I haven’t purchased the earrings yet and after watching this video i feel like i shouldn’t 😅
I know when my mom worked at JCPenney's, she would tell me that they would Mark certain items up a week before they would go on sale so the discount looks more than it was, and then they would drop the price down the original price when the sale. So instead of looking like you're getting a 50% off sale, you're getting 20 or 10%.
I’m really lucky that I hate clutter and seeing stuff on sale just makes me think it’s junk. Like “why is it on sale??🤔”
One thing that really helped me is unsubscribing to a lot of news letters from brands and stores about sales and generally not watching the type of content that constantly shows off new stuff.
I worked 15 years in retail. I do not shop for gifts after Labor day. Flat out. Holiday things are intentionally low quality and WILL break in a year. It's intentional.
“Future self” blew my mind. Well done
I wrote a whole Costco research report about this!! Costco claims to target bargain-hunters who want great deals, but they also pressure you to buy expensive specialty items (from air fryers to diamond rings) that are only around for a few weeks. You can, indeed, go broke buying a "discounted" $100K ring.
I love the way you explained how you reflect on what your 80 yr old self would want for you right now, and how they would reflect on your past life. Such a direct way of shifting to long term thought and out of that instant gratification mindset. And I can't believe I never came across the idea of writing letters to your past/present self! So insightful!
This channel is such a breath of fresh air and SO relevant to the most pressing issues currently. You deserve 10 million subscribers!
i try to refrain from shopping on black friday and put my money toward small business saturday instead, but that's not always possible when my family wants very specific gifts.
I was an impulsive buyer before, I was thinking items were on sale and I can afford it so why not, now I consider using up all the items I bought first or at least tried to
I swear, when I want to learn something I watch Cara's videos.
Another issue of dupes is that they're usually lower quality, so you spend the same amount if you have to replace it.
This is a timely video, right before black Friday, Cyber Monday, and so much more. I enjoy window shopping but rarely buy anything. In that way, I'm glad I can plan out exactly what I tend to buy, get it and be done. Curb side pickup is such a blessing, lol.
Great video Cara. There is no such thing as saving money when shopping, you are spending, just maybe not spending as much.
i love these vids. overconsumption has really been grossing me out recently and i feel like nobody is paying attention
I shop mainly online
I only buy 3 things offline
- makeup (if i decide to go for a different brand, otherwise i'd buy what i need online)
- shoes (i gotta touch it and also walk in it, so)
- outerwear (especially since i live in a cold climate and i need to determine physically if its gonna keep me warm)
Otherwise i shop online and just keep an eye on discounts
Got a hoodie i really wanted for a quarter of a price
Can't say that all i buy is a needed purchase, but my rule of thumb is if i see an item i like, i can add it to favourites and if i keep thinking about it after like a couple of weeks than it might be an actually good purchase
I really love this video. I’m so glad I found this channel. Everything you said really resonated with me. I will say I am a black Friday shopper, but I shop enough to know when a deal is really a deal and when it’s not and definitely the last few years have taught me to really only buy what I need, but that if I don’t get that today is real
I was already starting to work on more intentional money management but it’s always nice to hear someone else talk about it. It also helps that you’re well spoken and have a really calming voice.
The chapter Looking Out For Future Us hit me really hard. I'll have to look up that VICE article, and explore more.
Having not read it/looked into the theory much: I think part of it is how many people in our society are living paycheck to paycheck - or, are in some other way living life in "survival mode" (psychologically/emotionally).
I know you sort of touched on this in Existential Dread Is Ruining Your Personal Finance, but I feel like there might be a whole video in exploring that phenomenon.
I’m really enjoying sustainable videos which show different ways to wear what you already own. I love ideas! I’m a thrifter now and this helps with spending coz when I see the shop price I’m like “that’s so dear! I could get for £3 I’m not spending that!”.
Great video Cara! This Holiday season I am - not being impulsive buyer ✅ not falling for sale, discounts and savings ✅ paying no attention to urgent shopping deadlines ✅ not worried about unnecessary fomo✅ instead doing practicing mindfulness, spending quality time with friends/family, volunteering ✅✅✅
Loved this video! I recently found your channel and I find most of your financial advice to be spot on. This video truly gives much to think about when it comes to how discounts are really just ploys to get you to buy. Please keep up the great content Cara!👍
thank you so much!! so glad you liked the video and found it useful! :)
I’d never heard of the decoy method. I’m the person who always gets the medium and has cashiers try to pressure me to upgrade to large by saying it’s ‘only 50 cents more’. These marketing methods are really brilliant if you think about it!
I’ve often had to fight the urge to tell family and friends that they didn’t save 50% on their impulse buy but they spent 50% more
A lot of great awareness points especially as we approach the holidays (where people blow out their annual budget the most)
btw I see 👀 your test on scarcity lol I downloaded the endel app but resisted the subscription for now.
I always know what I want to buy and waiting for a discount/good deal can take months, in some cases even years.
We really don't need things right now most of the time.
the only thing i buy on sale is home cleaning supplier or groceries, but most of the time they have been in my to buy list and I just get what i needed
One thing I realized, if it's on sale and you don't need it, don't buy it. I learned from my experiences, I bought different lipsticks which were on 80% sale and I only realized that I still spent too much than I should. Not repeating again😊❤
Excellent video! I am such a sucker for a discount that I KNOW I've spent a ton of money I probably wouldn't have spent if not for the supposed discount. I appreciate you breaking down the psychology behind that and the decoy item. I hope to use this information to my benefit going forward so I can be better with my money in the longterm!
im a 21 year old dude in the Philippines and your content has been helpful in changing my perspectives to save money. thank you.
about the strawberry thing, in my country (Portugal) we don't really have that habit of cutting fruits leaves and ripping the seeds, especially if it's as small as a strawberry. we just pull out the leaves and thats it. in general, from what ive seen, americans waste a lot of food by cutting it and not using certain parts of the food (i mean vegetables, fruits, etc). 2 minutes a go i didnt even know or imagine there was a strawberry ripper. so yeah, dont worry and keep eating the strawberry stem/stick. as we say in Portuguese "what doesnt kill makes you fatter"
What helped me a lot is figuring out what do i value in a product and what "implications" are included in it
For example yesterday i bought a turtleneck for €3 at a local NPO and while i'm going to use it even if i didn't i would still be happy to have given money to charity
On the counterpart i straight up don't buy from Amazon because they certainly have enough money already
one thing that's a bit easier to practice is: pay cash or write down your holiday hopping spendings. The numbers (without the discount tag) will confront you more directly on how much you are paying for the products.
I also eat the stems of strawberries 🍓. It’s really not bad and yeah, a little extra nutrition to boot.
seeing in these comments that others are eating the strawberry stems is making me so happy woot woot
I grew up in a pretty frugal household and the I have had money saving techniques ingrained in my being since birth. When I asked my mom why we always head to the clearance section of a clothing store first, she said: "if a shop makes a profit from sales that halve their products' prices, there's no need to voluntarily give them more than you have to." If you miss out on a piece of clothing on clearance and you're only a little disappointed? You never needed it to begin with.
It's freeing, since you learn to keep a list of what to look out for and to take advantage of sales when they impact the products you're eyeing.
I’ll have to show this video to my husband because he is a sale and discount fiend. As a matter of fact, I’m returning a $100 worth of pokemon cards today that he brought home last night. Love him but boy does fomo and value marketing get him.
My boyfriend is also a collectionist... I completely understand you
I'm free from such a compulsion, but as my wife would say, you should tell him "you're blessed I'm in your life" ^_^ Greetings to you both from Switzerland.
I remember going to Black Friday sale at the mall. The things I wanted weren’t on sale and the stuff that were on sale I didn’t want or didn’t have my right size. And it felt like too much work for such small gain. Sometimes you feel like you only save 10-20%
Stumbled upon this video and I'm instantly impressed with level of information and honesty ❤ Subscribed!
I’ve learned to tune out a lot of things. I rarely go shopping for anything. I get only what we need for food. I also do my hair in a style than only needs a trim every 6 months. Most of my clothes are timeless from many decades.
Also, as a former retail manager and worker, know the difference between sale and clearance when shopping in store. Clearance is usually yellow in big stores and actually means “clearing” the product out to make room for something new.
I'm definitely more cautious when spending money. Intentional living is definitely my priority and I ask myself "do I really need this?" "Will this item help me reach my $ goals?" "Is it reusuable?" These questions help me assess the value. Then I wait about a week and if I still think about it, then I buy it. I dont buy things on a whim unless I feel it can enhance my future in someway. So when I shop rather than short term gratification I'm always thinking if ill still have this thing in a few years or if it'll be of any benefit to me
Sharing my personal practice
- Decide a budget on what I need (I define need as I will die without it or I will not be happy for the rest of the year without it)
- Keep myself strict to the budget, if is over 1 dollar, is over, anything over the budget I won't look at it
- Start my shopping research, which actually the phase that I am more enjoying than owning the thing itself
- By research, I am checking the availability, the brand, the quality etc. (like I do comprehensive marketing research for anything that cost me 20 dollar or more😂)
- I decide on the thing that I actually wanna buy, like the specific type of jeans or a model range of car or just anything
- I take time to try it, visit a flagship store, touch the item, think about how I will use it, does it fit my style and everything else (mostly aesthetic and experience concern at this point)
- I will check the lowest price from those price monitoring tool and if is a particular date (usually Europe you get sale in Easter, Black Friday, Christmas or their owm membership day, I will pay attention on the timing and see how urgent I would need it)
- Fix a happy price that I will want to pay for it (which means I am happy even though I might find it cheaper someday in the future)
- Patiently wait until that price and buy it immediately
I can't say is 100% worth all those efforts, because is actually consumed a lot of attention and time, but for me personally the whole shopping experience not just handling out the card, but also everything else
It works for me but not everyone so good luck and have fun in shopping
Electronics stores here in Finland started "Black Week" last Sunday. That's right, they're doing fifteen days of a sale with the word "week" in its name. Also, the whole thing doesn't make sense since Thanksgiving doesn't exist in this country. Chain stores in Northern Europe just copied "Black Friday" in the early 2010s and almost immediately turned it into Black Week because they want to have a sale ongoing at all times and a nonsense theme is better than no theme.
Idk why I shared that but yeah, the best deal is saving 100%. You save 100% when you don't buy the thing.
I'm in New Zealand and over last couple of years have 'black friday' sales which is insane as is based on a US holiday..thats consumerism for you
Got the t shirt on this one. Since I stopped that BS I have savings. More then a years salary.
Every penny spend on items that aren’t it, but just because their cheap is a penny spent. Buy a lot of stuff that you don’t really needed/ or don’t fit right but cheap is a lot of pennys at the end of the year
I spent a lot of money on coffee grounds this month. I live alone and only drink coffee once a day, rarely have friends come over. Just because of the discount and bonuses. I got a french press and a water bottle for free. And now I ended up with a lot of coffee grounds that maybe I can't even finish.
love your input! I've been trying to be more shopping conscious and your explanations helped a lot
Another great essay, Cara. Picking apart the psychology that drives impulse buys based on discounts is fascinating, I think there's also a hoarding dimension to it.
I try to steer clear from sales & discounts, I mostly shop 2nd hand so the items I buy are ones I do need & have been on my mental list for a while. Couldn't care less about black friday or black month, personally 😅
3:07 I cut off the top of strawberries when I do eat them, yes it takes away more flesh BUT strawberries are notorious for the amount of pesticides on them, and if you think about it, the top is where the pesticides might pool and collect a little bit more, and it’s hard to wash it out as it is, I’m not taking any chances.❤
I live in argentina, we have around 10% inflation per month. Yes. Things get 10% more expensive each month. I always buy with urgency! :( And learned to only buy what I need.
I wonder what kind of consumer I would be somewhere else
i find it really helpful against over-consumption to imagine someone gifting me either the item or its value in cash, or hours of my life (aka hours I would have to exchange in work, in order to make the money to buy this item). Usually you 'll find it's much more appealing to skip and save the money for something you want/need more.
I always try to buy stuff second hand, but this is the first year I plan to shop Black Friday. I'm broke, but I only buy high quality things, so that they last me forever
Work shoes, hygeine + cleaning products, socks + underwear are so exciting 😮💨
eat the whole strawberry, have no fear
I always remember that one post on Tumblr, about how she always look back at her younger self and be so proud of her. She's young and inexperienced but she's doing her damned best with what she's given. Right now, I plan and budget for my future self and hope somewhere along the line she's so damned proud of me making the best of what I'm given right now.
You can also add that impulse control is a huge part of this as well
The sponsored ad at the beginning and the context of the video gave me a good chuckle
I think a lot of people know about the decoy effect but with the movie theater example, I feel a lot of people just don't care. But, With that example, you are getting more product even though it's 50 cents more. And yes you spent more money but you're getting significantly more...usually.
I always eat the little green stem on a strawberry but once I also ate the leafs themselves as a garnish
I only go into stores when I need something and I buy things as I need them, not when I see them on sale. I keep a tight budget as well, so if I'm under I can treat myself. It's worked this way and saved me a ton of money over the last few years. It also helps that I don't follow trends and I don't like to spend money on things I won't immediately use and use frequently.
I eat the whole strawberry and the leafy green part works well in salads 😅. You also can't taste the difference if you throw the whole strawberry in with the green part in smoothies
ooh great point about adding it to smoothies! glad i'm not crazy here haha
I used to be really weak with sales and discounts and buy so much I didn't need, but as I've gotten older and become a uni student, I've had to become a lot more frugal. One thing I find really helps is unsubscribing from everything that would hit me with Black Friday discounts - if they had to email me to tell me I need something, I probably don't need it, but if I'm searching for it, there's a higher chance I do and am being more intentional about it.