I kept a spreadsheet of every deal I almost bought for 90 days and the total was $2,847

William Henderson · 2026-10-02T06:25:04.778421+00:00

I started this back in March because I had a feeling I was being dumb with money but I had no proof. Every time I got that itch to buy something, mostly stuff from deal sites and those flash sale emails, I wrote it down in a Google Sheet with the price and the date. Three columns, nothing fancy. Last week I hit the 90 day mark and ran the sum and it came out to $2,847 worth of stuff I talked myself out of. The weird part is I can only remember wanting maybe four of those things now. There was a $180 espresso maker I was sure I needed, a $60 knife, some $40 desk lamp, and I honestly cannot tell you what the rest was. Seeing that number hit me harder than any budget app ever did. My cousin in Tampa does the same thing but he puts the money in a jar instead, and he pulled $900 out after a year. I am thinking about switching to his way so I can actually feel it. Does anyone else here keep a list like this, and if so what number did you hit before it changed how you shop?

Vivisector

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I kept a spreadsheet of every deal I almost bought for 90 days and the total was $2,847 | Buy It or Cry Later - Vivisector