Buy One Buy Small

Use it up! This is my favorite concept because I am a finisher. I get a weird satisfaction from using the last of something and being able to dispose of the container. I hate opening a new package, because I like to finish things and opening a new package means I have a lot of “using it up” to do until I finish it.

Some people are starters they enjoy opening something new, it invigorates them and excites them. A telltale sign of this is when you have 5 different packages open in various states of use. This drives me insane! Right now there are 4 different types of shampoo open in my shower and I cannot wait for them to be done.

Neither of these approaches are wrong, you just must know how to harness these habits and not allow them to control your life.

Buy one and buy small.

The trap of stocking up is just that a trap. You buy that massive container of salad dressing, because you know everyone will use it, it is cheaper per ounce and you won’t have to buy salad dressing for a while. You are being efficient and cost-effective, right? Not so fast… if you are a starter, a week later you will probably feel the urge to buy another type of salad dressing. If you act on this urge, both salad dressings will most likely not be finished and you will eventually throw them out. If you are a finisher, you may anguish over the thought that it will never run out, so you start over using the salad dressing. You may start drenching your kid’s salads in ranch dressing just to finish it (gross).

Neither feeling the need to open all your products or finishing it up as fast as possible will save you time or money. Buying one and buying small creates a solution to both approaches. When you buy one or buy small, you get the satisfaction of starting something new (for the starters) and are more likely to finish it prior to buying another product. For a finisher, you can get the satisfaction of finishing a product in a shorter amount of time. This will help you clear the clutter by eliminating multiples of the same product, producing less waste, and creating more joy in your life by allowing you to finish or start more often.

A silly side note, I can often take my need to finish something too far… When we were kids I was responsible for cleaning up after dinner, which often included putting away leftovers. I really hate leftovers. So instead of putting them away I would force my sister to eat the last little bits of whatever was left, why I couldn’t do this myself, I don’t know but it seemed better to make her. She would cry about being full, but I wouldn’t let her get up until everything was gone. This was pure torture for my sister, so much so that as an adult she refuses to finish her food(much to my annoyance). Some times I am shocked she still talks to me.

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