Happy BuyNothing Day • Hacker News Board

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#41

Post by woutr_be » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 4:18 AM UTC

redhale wrote: post #9

I have found that adding things to a todo (Todist) list called "want-to-buy" gives me the little endorphin boost / anxiety relief without spending any money. I periodically go through and delete stuff from this list after time has passed, and I'm always glad I didn't go through with the purchases. Rarely I will come across something I truly do still want, and will purchase it.

I've been thinking about setting up a small website that lets you input what you wanted to buy, and after 24 hours sends you an email asking if you really wanted to buy/needed this.

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#42

Post by re » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:18 AM UTC

abhinai wrote: post #13

I'd heavily expand on the selection. Maybe even make them AI generated with beautiful designs so people can go through an endless catalogue. Dream. You may be on to something and this may be bigger than your original idea. You could help people dream about stuff that does not exist.

> Maybe even make them AI generated

Pretty sure they already are--just ahead of time, not on-the-fly.

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#43

Post by re » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:22 AM UTC

coffeecoders wrote: post #11

I think this could work if it was more than just a static site with no description page. Give it description pages with gallery, reviews etc.

Unless it's changed in the few hours since you've commented, there already are detail pages and reviews. You have to scroll down below "Limited Time Offers" to the complete category list/gallery, and those products are clickable. e.g. https://justbuynothing.com/product/6086

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#44

Post by mgraczyk » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:25 AM UTC

I have spent my whole life mostly buying nothing and I realized recently that I am probably pretty far from optimal on that tradeoff. Outside of food, rent, and travel I've been spending around 5k/year my entire life (mostly laptops and phones)

Recently I realized I'd probably get old with money better spent while I'm young, so I started spending a lot more. It's felt great overall, for example I bought a sleep tracker, new bedding (had been using the same pillows for 12 years), humidifiers, air filters, CO2 monitor, and a few other things to sleep better. It made a noticable difference on my sleep.

Probably many people reading this site actually buy too little.

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#45

Post by whilenot-dev » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:28 AM UTC

steanne wrote: post #28

rs186 wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know people who live in an apartment resist purchases by thinking "it's going to be a liability for my next move" which works quite well.

especially with art, "how hard is this going to be to clean?" helps too

Maintainance in general, excludes all IoT electronics right off the bat for me.

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#46

Post by re » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:29 AM UTC

> The dopamine-free shopping experience.

This doesn't seem like an accurate description, since it's designed to trigger the same dopamine release as shopping, just without the real-world consequences.

I'm confused by the NoBucks Rewards ("Need $xx.xx more NoBucks; Complete anti-consumption tasks to earn more"; https://justbuynothing.com/rewards>). Obviously no real products are getting shipped. I'm not going to make an account on this site but can NoBucks actually be earned? What happens when you've earned enough to actually "checkout"?

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#47

Post by integralid » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:33 AM UTC

mgraczyk wrote: post #44

I have spent my whole life mostly buying nothing and I realized recently that I am probably pretty far from optimal on that tradeoff. Outside of food, rent, and travel I've been spending around 5k/year my entire life (mostly laptops and phones) Recently I realized I'd probably get old with money better spent while I'm young, so I started spending a lot more. It's felt great overall, for example I bought a sleep track…

Did it make your sleep actually better? I always considered these a needles luxury (other than maybe humidifier, but I don't think it's useful in my climate).

I'm not trying to downplay you, I'm actually probably underspending and you seem to come from the same background as I do. I'm certain that interesting in one's sleep is worth it.

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#48

Post by mgraczyk » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:36 AM UTC

integralid wrote: post #47

mgraczyk wrote: post #44

I have spent my whole life mostly buying nothing and I realized recently that I am probably pretty far from optimal on that tradeoff. Outside of food, rent, and travel I've been spending around 5k/year my entire life (mostly laptops and phones) Recently I realized I'd probably get old with money better spent while I'm young, so I started spending a lot more. It's felt great overall, for example I bought a sleep track…

Did it make your sleep actually better? I always considered these a needles luxury (other than maybe humidifier, but I don't think it's useful in my climate). I'm not trying to downplay you, I'm actually probably underspending and you seem to come from the same background as I do. I'm certain that interesting in one's sleep is worth it.

Yes I've been measuring it and I sleep more as a fraction of the time I spend in bed. Part of this is paying more attention to things like how late I work out and drink water, but without the tracker it would be hard to pay close enough attention

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#49

Post by Retr0id » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 5:44 AM UTC

Maybe I'm thinking about it too hard, but this seems to imply that the "fun" part of online shopping is somewhere in adding things to your cart, or maybe even the act of spending money.

But for me the dopamine hit comes from receiving and opening a physical package. Ship me a box of air instead!

Re: Happy BuyNothing Day

#50

Post by [deleted] » Sun, Aug 10, 2025, 6:12 AM UTC

integralid wrote: post #47

mgraczyk wrote: post #44

I have spent my whole life mostly buying nothing and I realized recently that I am probably pretty far from optimal on that tradeoff. Outside of food, rent, and travel I've been spending around 5k/year my entire life (mostly laptops and phones) Recently I realized I'd probably get old with money better spent while I'm young, so I started spending a lot more. It's felt great overall, for example I bought a sleep track…

Did it make your sleep actually better? I always considered these a needles luxury (other than maybe humidifier, but I don't think it's useful in my climate). I'm not trying to downplay you, I'm actually probably underspending and you seem to come from the same background as I do. I'm certain that interesting in one's sleep is worth it.

[deleted]