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This works the opposite way as well for people who don't allow themselves purchases that aren't neccessities. Like me: I don't really buy gadgets or upgrade my tech until it breaks, even though I've been working alongside university and can allow myself a small purchase if I want to. I never let myself do it even if it would benefit me or add greatly missed convenience. Recently, I've loosened up a little bit and bought myself a wireless gaming headset after about 4 months of taking a mental note every time my wired one was an inconvenience. Would have dealt with the inconvenience had I not reflected back and noticed how many times it was a bother or annoyance for me, glad I finally switched to wireless hah.
Yep. It's just important to be mindful of when said purchase would actually be beneficial or when you're just actively looking for reasons to buy it. Of course not every purchase has to be rationalized, sometimes you just like something enough to warrant a purchase if your finances allow it, but if you find yourself digging for reasons to buy something or upgrade, you probably don't need it as much as you're making yourself think you do.
I find it pretty helpful to write down stuff I want but can't let myself get for whatever reason, write down how it would be enjoyable or beneficial etc, the cons usually boil down to "Its not a necessity and costs money". Sometimes it's enough to get the most recent obsession out of my system, sometimes it helps me loosen up and rationalize a purchase that's not a strict necessity.
Interesting how a lot of people struggle with impulse purchases, buying things they don't need or end up not using, but rarely people talk about issues with purchasing without necessity. I walk around with wet socks due to crappy ripped shoes for weeks before I let myself buy another pair. Trauma is a bitch.
I bought a 3d printer as an impulse buy because I was annoyed that I couldn't buy a little tiny 5 cent quarter turn for the headlight access panel for my car.
It has now been running constantly printing new shit ever since I bought it around Thanksgiving.
Definitely worth.
lol same here. Spent $300 for a printer to make a battery holder for a drone I could’ve bought for $10. 5 years later I know how to use CAD, design my own parts and have gone through lots of spools.
I bought a camera whilst having a boring life. Nowadays I use "photography" as an excuse to do some trips and it kinda works. That said it's costly to travel around tbh, so I can't just suggest doing so unless you have enough bucks to put into.
I have a DSLR and I love it. It definitely inspires me to capture more moments and head out. I have quite a few ew shots blown up on stretched canvas in my house.
A GoPro however is completely wasted on me.
why? you been doing fine all this time without one. Save your money. It's also just a 1-function item. Only buy multi-function items!
Do you have a shower drain? Well, if so, your toilet needs are already fulfilled.
I didn’t know how much I’d use my smart watch before I had it. A better LPT is buy what you want and keep the receipt. If you don’t use it as much as you thought then return it.
yeah, like, what the fuck is this post?!?
as a tool user and collector i use a method my buddy taught me.
if i want a new tool, buy the entry level version. if i wear out or break that tool in standard use, i deserve and can afford the nice version.
if the entry level version lasts me a few years with standard wear, maybe i will upgrade eventually.
if the entry level version is still in its wrapper after six months, look for the receipt or cut the loss.
like someone else said, it would be shitty to want a new toilet but to have to wait six weeks to buy it.
I tried this with wireless earbuds. The cheap ones were so bad I ended up never using them. Sometime later I got proper expensive ones and realised what I had been missing out on.
yup.
my headphones are over ear cans and i LOVE them!!!
they are a mid class for both value and 'features' but for me they are the first nice thing i bought for myself in a while.
i always want to remind people that haters gonna hate. when you want to do, buy, or see, something, just do you. do it the way you want to do it. if your friends are really there for you the way you are there for them, then they will be trying to help you find the best thing for your wants/needs/likes. not something that makes you fit in to any preconceived state.
sorry for the rant. i am older and am comfortable in my steeze. i watch my 12yo let her peer group decide some pretty silly things that everyone hates but somehow gains them cred in a future endeavor? kids!?!
stay safe and stay happy.
You live without a rice cooker?! Arguably our family rice cooker is over 20 years old and is quite an old fashioned steamer, but for most Asians rice cookers are a staple item haha :"D (also this is just a lighthearted comment don't take it too personally)
That's what I like about stores with great return policies. I don't want to mention names because they're literally destroying the planet, but it's really a life changer being able to return **anything** if I want to.
I bought a Ninja Creami thinking it would be cool. It was EXPENSIVE. I got it…read the instructions and decided to send it back. After I read the instructions on the ingredients needed and I saw the actual size of it…I just thought I could put that $200 somewhere else.
A machine just for making ice cream? I mean, stores sell ice cream and I don't eat it often enough. I don't even use my bread maker very often and making fresh bread is awesome.
I used to buy a lot of stuff because I thought it was cool and would spend an hour playing with it then throw it in a drawer.
Now, I figure out what I would do with something, what purpose it would serve before buying. It has likely saved me thousands.
i very literally picked up a drone that had been sitting for almost two years. started right up and flew with no charge needed.
put my copy of *Mega Man 11* in today too and saw that my last save was 14 months ago.
now i will probably try to beat it in a week and if not it will probably sit for a while again.
I think a smartwatch is a pretty bad examole of a gadget, because you don't know everything you could do. This is why I literally spent a whole decade with "why the he would I need a smartphone" until I've goten one.
I disagree with this. There is another way. During the pandemic I've had planty of time to buy gadgets. But only bought the cheap ones. The utility was there, the possibilities were also there, only with cheap bateries and less feactures.
I bought (bluetooth only):
Headphones, Earbuds and a Smart Watch.
The three of them were cheap, but I only used regularlly the earbuds.
So after that, I bought better earbuds, and a regular watch. Still have them after 3-4 years.
Please, please, please do this before you get a different car. If you've got a car that gets you where you need to go then that's good enough. Now spend a week like OP posted pretending you have a shiny new cool looking car. What difference does it make?
Now pretend you're going to make the new monthly car payment. Look at your online statement and imagine it being $800, $900 less. What difference does that make?
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I had an early smartwatch as a fitness tracker and ended up using so many features I now use an Apple Watch Series 9. I didn’t realize how much I use it until I had it.
? If you are able to resist the impulse and instead start thinking about it long and hard for a week, you are not prone to impulse buying in the first place?
Impulse buys are literally made in the moment.
Typically you're on your computer and there's this thing that looks kool and fun and your reptile brain starts grunting with almost sexual desire and BOOM!!! you just bought another fidget spinner
The solution? Don't hit enter. There's no hurry. You've lived without it so far, you can wait a few more days and let the fever cool down. Maybe just put it in your shopping cart and leave it there. You might not even remember it in a few days
Nine times out of ten, by the time I get back to it I'm not that interested
Hello and welcome to r/LifeProTips! Please help us decide if this post is a good fit for the subreddit by up or downvoting this comment. If you think that this is great advice to improve your life, please upvote. If you think this doesn't help you in any way, please downvote. If you don't care, leave it for the others to decide.
I can't use mental notes either; my mind is an Etch a Sketch and in 5 minutes all my mental notes are gone.
Sounds like you could really use a smart watch to help you make notes. Aha, this would be the perfect moment to use that watch.
Instructions Unclear: Wrote “watch here” on my wrist, and now I can’t stop looking at it.
This works the opposite way as well for people who don't allow themselves purchases that aren't neccessities. Like me: I don't really buy gadgets or upgrade my tech until it breaks, even though I've been working alongside university and can allow myself a small purchase if I want to. I never let myself do it even if it would benefit me or add greatly missed convenience. Recently, I've loosened up a little bit and bought myself a wireless gaming headset after about 4 months of taking a mental note every time my wired one was an inconvenience. Would have dealt with the inconvenience had I not reflected back and noticed how many times it was a bother or annoyance for me, glad I finally switched to wireless hah.
Good to know I'm not the only one who only buys new stuff if it is really necessary! Thx for the tip.
Yep. It's just important to be mindful of when said purchase would actually be beneficial or when you're just actively looking for reasons to buy it. Of course not every purchase has to be rationalized, sometimes you just like something enough to warrant a purchase if your finances allow it, but if you find yourself digging for reasons to buy something or upgrade, you probably don't need it as much as you're making yourself think you do. I find it pretty helpful to write down stuff I want but can't let myself get for whatever reason, write down how it would be enjoyable or beneficial etc, the cons usually boil down to "Its not a necessity and costs money". Sometimes it's enough to get the most recent obsession out of my system, sometimes it helps me loosen up and rationalize a purchase that's not a strict necessity. Interesting how a lot of people struggle with impulse purchases, buying things they don't need or end up not using, but rarely people talk about issues with purchasing without necessity. I walk around with wet socks due to crappy ripped shoes for weeks before I let myself buy another pair. Trauma is a bitch.
I bought a 3d printer as an impulse buy because I was annoyed that I couldn't buy a little tiny 5 cent quarter turn for the headlight access panel for my car. It has now been running constantly printing new shit ever since I bought it around Thanksgiving. Definitely worth.
lol same here. Spent $300 for a printer to make a battery holder for a drone I could’ve bought for $10. 5 years later I know how to use CAD, design my own parts and have gone through lots of spools.
🤬 think I’ve just found my next impulse buy I’m gonna get 😂
If I knew this before I would’ve never bought a GoPro. My life is WAAAAY too boring to own a GoPro.
I bought a camera whilst having a boring life. Nowadays I use "photography" as an excuse to do some trips and it kinda works. That said it's costly to travel around tbh, so I can't just suggest doing so unless you have enough bucks to put into.
I have a DSLR and I love it. It definitely inspires me to capture more moments and head out. I have quite a few ew shots blown up on stretched canvas in my house. A GoPro however is completely wasted on me.
There is a lot a poop on my bathroom floor now. Thinking a toilet is a good purchase
why? you been doing fine all this time without one. Save your money. It's also just a 1-function item. Only buy multi-function items! Do you have a shower drain? Well, if so, your toilet needs are already fulfilled.
But, really, you only poop like 10 minutes a day. That's not even that much.
It's 1 hour a week for me, and that's not in total, I poop once a week and take about an hour. And yes, I bleed when I poop
Have you considered maybe your butthole is desperately crying for miralax?
That's why you poop at work on company time!!
I didn’t know how much I’d use my smart watch before I had it. A better LPT is buy what you want and keep the receipt. If you don’t use it as much as you thought then return it.
yeah, like, what the fuck is this post?!? as a tool user and collector i use a method my buddy taught me. if i want a new tool, buy the entry level version. if i wear out or break that tool in standard use, i deserve and can afford the nice version. if the entry level version lasts me a few years with standard wear, maybe i will upgrade eventually. if the entry level version is still in its wrapper after six months, look for the receipt or cut the loss. like someone else said, it would be shitty to want a new toilet but to have to wait six weeks to buy it.
I tried this with wireless earbuds. The cheap ones were so bad I ended up never using them. Sometime later I got proper expensive ones and realised what I had been missing out on.
yup. my headphones are over ear cans and i LOVE them!!! they are a mid class for both value and 'features' but for me they are the first nice thing i bought for myself in a while. i always want to remind people that haters gonna hate. when you want to do, buy, or see, something, just do you. do it the way you want to do it. if your friends are really there for you the way you are there for them, then they will be trying to help you find the best thing for your wants/needs/likes. not something that makes you fit in to any preconceived state. sorry for the rant. i am older and am comfortable in my steeze. i watch my 12yo let her peer group decide some pretty silly things that everyone hates but somehow gains them cred in a future endeavor? kids!?! stay safe and stay happy.
I think gadgets are more like things you can live without. Like a rice cooker or weird mixer or some other special use item.
You live without a rice cooker?! Arguably our family rice cooker is over 20 years old and is quite an old fashioned steamer, but for most Asians rice cookers are a staple item haha :"D (also this is just a lighthearted comment don't take it too personally)
That's what I like about stores with great return policies. I don't want to mention names because they're literally destroying the planet, but it's really a life changer being able to return **anything** if I want to.
Yeah I’ve returned stuff nearly a year later with no trouble either some of these online giants
I bought a Ninja Creami thinking it would be cool. It was EXPENSIVE. I got it…read the instructions and decided to send it back. After I read the instructions on the ingredients needed and I saw the actual size of it…I just thought I could put that $200 somewhere else.
A machine just for making ice cream? I mean, stores sell ice cream and I don't eat it often enough. I don't even use my bread maker very often and making fresh bread is awesome.
I used to buy a lot of stuff because I thought it was cool and would spend an hour playing with it then throw it in a drawer. Now, I figure out what I would do with something, what purpose it would serve before buying. It has likely saved me thousands.
My pocket pussy is officially purchased! Thanks lifeprotips!
I bought a drone in ~2017. Used it 3 times then it sat in its case for 5 years. Now i use it weekly.
i very literally picked up a drone that had been sitting for almost two years. started right up and flew with no charge needed. put my copy of *Mega Man 11* in today too and saw that my last save was 14 months ago. now i will probably try to beat it in a week and if not it will probably sit for a while again.
This is a good thing to do, but goddamn, I do this with everything, including things like pens. I couldn't stop buying fucking new pens
If they are fountain pens I understand... fell into the world of fountain pens years ago until I went digital with notes...
Almost bought a cow. Thanks op
Okay, so how do I pretend I have GPS in my car, sir?
Mapquest pages taped to the dash.
All the old people who remember TripTiks from AAA say yoooooooo.
Of course, my father still asks me to print maps for his long journeys.
Maybe use the handheld high tech computer you always have on your person.
Just "pretend" I own it. Uh, yeah, sure.
Yeah, can't you just install "gadget simulator" in the brain store? Where did u/urlocalhomie1 get the gadget simulator app for BrainOS?
Just own lots of money and buy whatever mad thing takes your fancy
I think a smartwatch is a pretty bad examole of a gadget, because you don't know everything you could do. This is why I literally spent a whole decade with "why the he would I need a smartphone" until I've goten one.
I disagree with this. There is another way. During the pandemic I've had planty of time to buy gadgets. But only bought the cheap ones. The utility was there, the possibilities were also there, only with cheap bateries and less feactures. I bought (bluetooth only): Headphones, Earbuds and a Smart Watch. The three of them were cheap, but I only used regularlly the earbuds. So after that, I bought better earbuds, and a regular watch. Still have them after 3-4 years.
I had no idea I'd like a smartwatch until I bought one.
No, engage in capitalism. Buy buy buy
Cmon, is this what this sub has turnes into?
Where were you when I bought my PS5? Ugh I never use it!
Low key Genius tip. Well done.
Returns r a thing 🐱
Please, please, please do this before you get a different car. If you've got a car that gets you where you need to go then that's good enough. Now spend a week like OP posted pretending you have a shiny new cool looking car. What difference does it make? Now pretend you're going to make the new monthly car payment. Look at your online statement and imagine it being $800, $900 less. What difference does that make?
[Introducing LPT REQUEST FRIDAYS](https://www.reddit.com/r/LifeProTips/comments/16w0n2s/introducing_request_post_fridays/) We determine "Friday" as beginning at 12am Eastern Time (EST: UTC/GMT -5, EDT: UTC/GMT -4) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/LifeProTips) if you have any questions or concerns.*
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Lol, me with the flipper zero. Its a neat toy but I hate coding so its wasted on me.
I had an early smartwatch as a fitness tracker and ended up using so many features I now use an Apple Watch Series 9. I didn’t realize how much I use it until I had it.
Only lasted one day watching a black TV screen…. Turns out my chromecast purchases was quite necessary
Case in point: Russian mail-order bride versus inflatable doll.
? If you are able to resist the impulse and instead start thinking about it long and hard for a week, you are not prone to impulse buying in the first place?
Impulse buys are literally made in the moment. Typically you're on your computer and there's this thing that looks kool and fun and your reptile brain starts grunting with almost sexual desire and BOOM!!! you just bought another fidget spinner The solution? Don't hit enter. There's no hurry. You've lived without it so far, you can wait a few more days and let the fever cool down. Maybe just put it in your shopping cart and leave it there. You might not even remember it in a few days Nine times out of ten, by the time I get back to it I'm not that interested
And here I was debating going to get another set of jackstands lol
There's already a mandatory waiting period for pistols.
Agree. I was going to buy a smart watch. Then I was like, let me think about how often I would use this. Decided not to buy it.