Accountability

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Two Years Later: 2014 Purchase Update

I have done quite a few purchase updates on this blog over the years. I feel it’s helpful to look back at what we bought to see which items were successes and which were failures.  When I first started doing such reviews, I did them a few months down the line.  However, I’ve come to understand that such a time interval is not long enough for a true analysis in most cases. Thus, I started to review my purchases a year later beginning this year (see HERE and HERE).  A full year gives us enough time to see what we are and aren’t wearing and how it’s working out for us.

Since I didn’t do too many purchase updates in the early days of the blog, I thought it would be fun and interesting to look back at some of my earlier purchases. I probably should have started with 2013 (the year I started “Recovering Shopaholic”), but I opted to look back at what I bought in 2014 for this post. I will share my shopping wins, failures, and a few pieces for which it’s not an easy call.  I’ll also point out some patterns and lessons among the hits and misses that will help to guide my future purchases.

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Still a Shopaholic?

I have been writing this blog for almost 3.5 years now (here’s my very first post, from January 2, 2013).  When I started, I thought it was perhaps a one-year endeavor or maybe two years at the most.  I believed that through setting goals and rules and writing about my motivations and behavior, I would overcome my compulsive shopping problem in relatively short order.  I never expected to attract as many readers as I have or continue the blog for as long as I have.  But the readers came (for which I’m very thankful) and it hasn’t been as easy for me to recover as I thought it would be.

shopaholic behavior

This was a typical scene for me before I started this blog…

Earlier this year, I published two posts on the topic of recovery, both my own and in general:

I also shared insights from my private Facebook group on the causes of members’ shopaholic behavior.  These are all great posts that I’m quite proud of, but I’d like to further the discussion today and get more personal about the state of my recovery.

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A Year Later: April 2015 Purchase Update

Anyone who has been reading this blog for a while knows that I publish monthly accountability updates. These posts (see the most recent one here) include what came into and left my closet in a given month -and why, as well as how I’m doing with my clothing budget and item limit for the year.  It’s been very helpful for me to do these updates, as they help me to stay honest and on track with my wardrobe and shopping goals.

Last month, I started a new feature in which I review my purchases a year later to see how well (or not) they have worked out for me.  Although I periodically reviewed past purchases previously, I got the idea to review things from a year ago from Mette of “The Yogastic Shopping Planner” (see her most recent edition HERE).   Since I started this new series a few months into the year, I began with an update on my first quarter 2015 purchases.  Most of my purchase reviews will look back on just one month’s purchases to see whether these items have become wardrobe workhorses or closet benchwarmers.  Occasionally, if I bought very few items in a given month, I will combine two months into one update.

Good or bad purchases Continue reading →

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March 2016 Accountability Update

I was a bit delayed in posting my January and February accountability updates, so I thought I’d be timelier with the one for March.   Also, I don’t have as much to share this time around, so this won’t be as epic a post to write (or read).

For those who are new to the blog, these monthly reports are where I share what came into and left my closet, what I wore, and how I did with my shopping budget and item limit.  Sharing what I bought, what I culled, and how much I spent helps me to stay honest and on track with my wardrobe and shopping goals.  I’m also going to update you on how I’m doing with my theme for the year, “balance.”  I want to make sure to at least check in on my 2016 theme each month, but I also plan to share more in-depth thoughts from time to time.  I think it’s important to keep our goals “top of mind” as much as possible.

Full Honesty and Accountability

Being accountable to others can help you stick to your goals.

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February 2016 Accountability Update

March is well under way, so it’s time for my February accountability update.  For those who are new to the blog, these monthly reports are where I share what came into and left my closet, what I wore, and how I did with my shopping budget and item limit.  Sharing what I bought, what I culled, and how much I spent helps me to stay honest and on track with my wardrobe and shopping goals.

Although I did a full post on this topic not long ago, I’m also going to update you on how I’m doing with my theme for the year, “balance.”  I want to make sure to at least check in on my 2016 theme each month, but I also plan to share more in-depth thoughts from time to time.  I think it’s important to keep our goals “top of mind” as much as possible.  Last year, I didn’t reflect on my “deliberate” theme often enough (final update here), which led to my feeling that I didn’t do as much with it as I could have.  While my 2015 theme was helpful in both my wardrobe and my life, it definitely could have had more of an impact.  I intend to be far more deliberate with my balance theme this year (see what I did there?).

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