Thursday, July 1, 2010

Thought Provoking Thursday

Every once in a while, I like to spend a little time reflecting on my personal strategy for spending coupons. I need to keep my time and cupboard space in check just as much as I need to keep our finances in check!

I believe that there is a sliding scale for coupon spenders, a scale that 'measures' WHY you spend your wad of coupons.

RECREATION <------------------> APPRECIATION

When I first discovered the coupon clipping world of grand savings, I was totally addicted to the rush of savings! I filled my pantry (and seriously, I also filled the shelves at a local food pantry too) with an unbelievable amount of loot.

I was a two fisted giver... but, I just couldn't justify the time I spend shopping, so I began to scale back. And as the thrill of the rush began to be less of a need for my shopping adventures to feel successful, a deep sense of appreciation began to sink in.

I am so thankful that stores and manufacturer's allow ways for savvy consumers to save!

I still love to find a great deal- but especially for the items that my family actually uses! And giving seems to much more rewarding when its from items that I actually intended to use for my family... instead of just stuff I had laying around!

Where are YOU at on the scale of Recreation and Appreciation?

2 comments:

Coley

My journey is very similar to yours. In the beginning, I would get so excited over every deal I saw. I felt like I needed to rush out and purchase enough to last my family for a year, even on items we didn't use. I think once I began to see how the sales cycle and learned what my family uses it helped me cut down on a lot of my purchases. I still like to shop frequently, mostly because I like my little quick trips out of the house, but the amount I spend has been cut back drastically. I appreciate how much I can save, but still find the "hobby" part of it fun.

Ellen

As Coley has expressed, my 'journey, too, has been similar. I'm scaling back & being more selective and having more time for other things. Plus, wanting to eat more healthy & organically & locally is becoming more important to us as a family. Just yesterday, I had coupons that would have allowed me to buy some BBQ sauce for free but after I looked at the sodium content & realized that the ingredients included MSG (!) AND HFCS (!), I thought we'd be better off in the long-run without it. Pay a tad more and/or make my own versions of items/make from scratch is more the way we want to focus for the future. (That said, my heavy stockpiling when I first began has really helped us get to this spot!)