Doing Without: How to Save Money in a Commercialized World

Are you poor or have you ever been poor? Are you just trying to save some money or find a way to afford a new payment? Saving money is the "weight loss diet" of the financial world. Just like a real diet, saving money can be difficult. Here's how to make it easier.

As Americans, we are taught to love two things: food and shopping. We are the fattest country in the world and, not surprisingly, we are also the biggest economic consumers. Americans have almost as much trouble controlling their diets as they do controlling their spending. Once you learn the reasons, however, you can begin to make the changes necessary to help end your spending addiction.

As someone who studied commercial art, advertising, and media in college, I can tell you that the largest cause of addiction is television. Television and other advertisement media such as magazines are designed to look pretty and to make you receptive to buying by affecting your view of reality.

One example is television show sets. Did you ever notice that the sets of the characters' homes are always gorgeous, spotlessly clean, decorated by a professional designer, and filled with completely brand new things? Nothing is ever old, used, untidy, or dirty and the homes are always large and beautiful, even when the characters themselves have a job that could not possibly allow them to afford it.

Seeing these beautiful and often unrealistic sets creates a desire in us by setting the standard for what we accept as normal. We see these people on TV and we associate with them. Their life standards automatically become our own and the bar is raised on what we find to be acceptable in our daily lives. This false reality becomes our norm and what we think we rightfully deserve and should have. If you are poor, this can spell trouble.

The bad news is that watching television makes it almost impossible to curb the desire to spend. The good news is that you can stop it simply by unplugging your TV for good. If this idea scares you a little, never fear. Millions of Americans are discovering how much their lives have improved without television.

I was once one of those people who could not function if I didn't come home from a hard day at work or school and plop down in front of the TV for a few hours. It was how I believed I relaxed and unwound. What I didn't realize, however, is that TV isn't relaxing and doesn't actually help reduce stress. In fact, the high speed of information that comes to you from the television can be a bit stressful in itself. If you really want to relax and wind down after work or school, keep the TV off and do something quiet and relaxing such as reading a book, taking a nap, sewing, or practicing a hobby.

I really enjoy how productive my life has become since we got rid of our TV years ago. I can make the most beautiful things by hand and it is so relaxing. I can draw or paint or bake or cook delicious meals. I can garden, write, and do photography. I can spend all of my time making memories with my family and mothering my baby. Life is so fulfilling and has slown down so much more since turning the television off for good. Instead, I enjoy other types of entertainment while working on projects. I listen to music or talk radio. My very favorite pastime is listening to audio books that I have checked out for free from the library. They have hundreds of them and I find it's a great way to read books that have purely entertainment value as well as reading self improvement books and classic novels.

Avoid going shopping for new things. What you have now is probably all you will need for a very, very long time. You don't need new clothes and you rarely need new shoes. All together as a family, we buy fewer than two new pairs of shoes a year. We get our clothes second hand either for free or from the thrift store. We do not replace our clothes unless they are too worn out to be acceptable in public. One shirt should last five years or more. If you are buying new clothes every year, you are wasting money on an addiction that is not healthy. Buying is something that should be done because it is an absolute necessity, not because you need to do it in order to feel good. Staying out of the stores entirely will help curb your desire to spend. Don't go anywhere where you will be tempted.

Like dieting or trying to quit smoking, trying to quit shopping will not be easy at first. It may take a while before you are able to go through life without the desire to spend money. It took me about two to three years before it was completely gone. Before you know it, however, you'll be on the road to recovery and you'll be feeling much better about yourself and the way you live. It will be easy to save money because you won't feel the need to buy new things in order to make yourself feel good. You will find that a simple, uncluttered lifestyle is relaxing and less stressful and you will have more money for the things that are really important.