My shopping stop

Everyone is shopping like crazy. All except one.

I'm not buying anything at the moment.  

The reason: I'm fasting from shopping for a month. 

Almost every Lent, I decide on one thing that I want to give up. This can be food or ingredients, e.g. chocolate or sugar.

Occasionally I also fast inner attitudes and actions, e.g. 7 weeks without multitasking (phew, that was hardcore). That and Sieve Weeks Without Doubt were two of my experiments so far. 

So now fasting from shopping.

Because I have a coaching guest on board at the beginning of April, the shopping fast is limited to the month of March.

The rules for shopping fasts:  

1. I don't spend money on things. So no money for food, clothes, not for coffee to go, no new books, webinars (even if, strictly speaking, these are not things). 

Exception: fresh fruit and vegetables. That comes with the organic box anyway.

2 I visualise and consume what I already have

• Food, spices and sauces 
• Drinks
• Cleaning kit 

The idea of doing it this way came to me when I was praying. But when I thought about it, I thought: this fits in with my values.

I think it makes a lot of sense for three reasons

• to keep stocks up to date
• to promote creativity and
• Save money. 

Keep your emergency stock up to date with a shopping stop

Even before Corona, I always had 2-3 weeks' worth of supplies in stock: crispbread, rice, pasta, fish and some tinned food.

Firstly, because something unforeseen can always happen, like the flu, and I don't necessarily want to involve my friends who live 30-40 minutes away in the shopping. 

A few years ago, I even had 100 rolls of toilet paper because a colleague bought 10 packs instead of 10 rolls. I stored them in the cellar and found it very practical. I didn't have to buy any more for a year.  

I even have a Checklist for sensible stockpiling written by me. It is based on the Swiss emergency checklists and I have added a few vital extras such as chocolate. 

But it still happens that things accumulate in the pantry: through bad purchases, gifts, leftovers from parties or because you simply forget them.

For me, for example, that's 1 tube and a 1 litre pack of curry ketchup. And mint sauce. Pasta made from obscure ingredients that I haven't dared to try before. And a whole load of sparkling wine.

Also some of those cosmetic samples that you quickly pick up and then keep in the drawer until they go bad. Mountain pine foot care, for example.

It makes sense to do a tabula rasa and use everything up. So that nothing is forgotten at the back of the cupboard and goes to waste.

I've now packed all the old food into boxes and baskets and put them in the kitchen - I'll only be cooking with them until the end of March. 

DPromote creativity with a shopping stop 

If you have everything you need to cook, then you always eat the same dishes. At least that's the case for me.

If the choice of ingredients is limited, things get exciting. We've already had Brussels sprouts with rice and sesame sprinkles. And how do tofu burgers with mint sauce taste? And green spelt patties with pesto?

The same applies to cleaning products. I now use some special cleaning agents because some of the special cleaners for plastic surfaces only take up space anyway and you can also get them clean with conventional cleaners.

Save money with a shopping stop

I am spontaneous. Even when it comes to spending money. I see an exciting book on the Internet and click it is bought.

For now, the things are going on my Wish list. At the beginning of April I will then see whether Marketing made simple or 52 things you can do during your lunch break really still wants (I suspect so). But maybe a nice person has already fulfilled my wishes in the meantime (receiving gifts is not against the rules). 

I still have a five-figure debt from building my boat. That's not that much when you think about the size of the project, but being in debt is a burden. 

That's why I've set myself a target for when I want to have paid off my debts. To do this, I have to pay back 1000 euros every month. The only way to do that is to save up.

Not spending any money on food for a month will definitely make it easier. The German average for food expenditure is 355 euros a month. I try to get by on 200 plus an organic box. It will be nice if I can save that amount for a month. 

Now that many events and coaching sessions have been cancelled due to Corona (I also coach on the phone) and revenue is lost as a result, it is doubly helpful.

Your shopping stop: What things do you have far too much of?

Now I'm looking forward to hearing about my experiences. And yours!

Feel free to write me comments.

What's your situation? Do you have any food, spirits, spices or sauces that you want to finally use up? 

 Or shampoos, cosmetics, cleaning products.... 

My recommendation is to simply give it a try. Use the time to use up old things before new things come back into the house or flat.

If you have a lot of stuff that you could actually use up, why not join in? 

This is how it works:

1. Move the things you want to use to a place where you can see them. 
2. Come up with something to use them up.
3. Reduce superfluous items step by step. 

What do you think of the idea? 
I look forward to your comment. You can find a checklist for a sensible emergency supply here.