Admitting that you’ve failed can be one of the most difficult things to do.

Honestly, I fail quite often. But I feel that true failure only happens when things don’t go the way you planned and you don’t learn from the experience.

My 2025 No Buy started off strong- I got through January with ease, and then February, and March. Then my printer died and I needed to replace it, so I did. Then my iPad’s screen cracked and I decided to replace it with a new one (the iPad I had was 5 years old).

Around the beginning of June is when cracks started forming in my plan. I got a bit sloppy and let a few small purchases slide. I bought new running shoes (I needed them, I told myself). I bought another pair of shoes (I needed them, I told myself). I bought workout clothes. Regular clothes.

And of course at that point you feel so off course that you give up and go with the easy path (which was to shop like I normally would).

To be fair, I didn’t go crazy, I just broke my No Buy rules.

What did this do to me? Well, my mental health suffered. I found the absence of mindless shopping to once again be the ‘cure’ for a lot of my issues with discipline and being productive; if I wasn’t at the thrift store every Saturday just imagine what I could accomplish!

And buying more stuff means I had more stuff in my house.

Although I got off track, I decided that I would learn from my mistakes and give a No Buy year another try. After all, I made it six months and I’m proud of that. And if I can make it six months, I can make a year.

2026 No Buy has already started for me. I’m tracking all my expenses in a notebook of essentials like food, housing, etc. And I’ll be tracking any other purchases that I just can’t stop thinking about that I don’t need (IE: look at that awesome coat! I need it).

If you’re considering a No Buy year or month this year, I wish you the best! We can do this.