Week 3: Opting In/Out of Black Friday

Hello and welcome to week three of the cultivating a minimalist holiday online course. This week, we are discussing opting in or out of Black Friday. I'll be covering how you make the decision to participate thoughtfully in Black Friday or su or Cyber Monday sales Maybe you make the decision to opt outside instead and we're going to touch on some newer quote unquote holidays, small business Saturday and giving Tuesday. Back in November of 2017, my family and I had recently acquired a new sofa. We had saved up for a while to purchase a beautiful sectional from West Elm. It was custom made and white glove delivered to us in October and we were so excited to get it. But it also meant that the sofa that we had been using previously was now going to need to find a new home. To call it a sofa doesn't really accurately describe what it was It was a futon that we had purchased online from Walmart.com in 2011 when we had moved in together. It had been precariously carried up the stairs to our third floor apartment unwrapped and It was maybe $300 It was not very comfortable and it was a very ugly sage color that was not reflected on the website. But we used it diligently and it moved with us from our Florida apartment to our Alabama apartment and then to our Alabama home. But over the years, the bottom of the futon started to rip apart and all of the stuffing was filling. and all of the stuffing was falling out. We ended up having to do some sort of a fix where we put a piece of plywood on the inside of the futon so that all of this stuffing wouldn't fall out onto the floor. It was as you can hear from my description. It really was quite a mess. There wasn't really any repairing this futon. We didn't have a use for it and we weren't just going to put it on the side of the road. So we decided the next day that my husband had off of work. We was loaded up in the back of his pickup truck and take it to the municipal waste center in Huntsville. And it just so happened that the next day that he had available was Black Friday of 2007. So we loaded up the old futon in the back of his truck. We loaded up the kids in the car, who were relatively young at this time, and we drove to Huntsville to drop off this futon. So I had never been to a municipal waste center before. I had to look up the directions to how to get there. I dis some research. I did some research about the fact that it was going to cost us some money to, you know, drop off this item, which I didn't mind at all. I figured that was the most responsible way for us to dispose of it. But when we arrived and we went through the initial area where the item was weighed and then we paid, I learned that we would then be responsible for bringing it all the way into the municipal Way Center and dropping it off. which we didn't mind doing, but as we drove in, I got the full understanding of how massive this place was. I had only ever seen places like this from afar. And so being up close and personal and seeing the scale of how much trash was there was sobering. And honestly, as we drove further up, we actually had to drive the truck up to the top of one of the active dump areaas, which was like a small mountain of trash. And it felt kind of scary and unsafe to be there and we were in the car with the kids and we get to the top and there's huge, you know, equipment that's moving everything around and we're up very, very high. and we recognize, you know, we are we have just driven our vehicle just into the biggest pile of trash that we had ever seen. And it really didn't feel like a safe place to be, especially with the kids. My husband made the decision since he was wearing really sturdy boots that he would get out of the vehicle and I would stay put because of how sort of unsafe and precarious and scary it was. And we, you know, got the sofa out and dumped it and unloaded it and drove away and I cannot think of a better place to have been on a Black Friday than the dump than a massive, massive trash center because all that I was thinking about as we were there as we were driving away, especially as I was still kind of just getting over how much trash there was there. And we drove past the shopping mall and it was absolutely packed. And I was thinking about how this dump is just full of things that people purchased last Black Friday. There was money, there was resources, there were time that were lost forever and cannot be recouped that are just sitting in this municipal waste center forever. And it really changed how I thought about Black Friday. I was already a minimalist at that point self-proclaimed since 2015 I had decided that I was a minimalist. But I still was taking part in purchasing things and I had put some thought into Black Friday shopping. I was never a real big participant in Black Friday. I didn't like the crowds I didn't understand why people would go wait in line overnight on Thanksgiving evening at Best Buy just to save $200 on a television. That didn't all quite make sense to me, but I felt even more sure that the decisions that I was making about how I was going to live my life, about the things that I was going to teach my children. were the way to go after having that experience of being in this giant dump and seeing all of the trash that I am responsible for, that obviously is not all me, but it is all of us. And having that experience on a Black Friday is something that really has forever changed me. One of the lessons that I have learned is that there is nothing that I have ever purchased on a Black Friday or a cyber Monday that I couldn't have done without or that I couldn't have afforded at full price. Never, ever have I been able to purchase something on a Black Friday or a cyber Monday that truly was a need that truly was worth me going out and going into the world when everything was crazy and taking part in this, you know, very American experience. When I think back on the things that I've purchased, even this pair of fry boots that I bought for 50% off in college that I was so excited about. I mean, I already had one pair of boots and I maybe wore this new pair 25 times before I decided to donate them a few later. You before I decided to donate them a few years later. Even the dice and vacuum that I bought on Cyber Monday, a few years ago for $300 less than it was retail, I use it every day and it does provide considerate value, but I could have bought a cheaper vacuum or I could have afforded to pay a full price. There has never been anything that I have purchased on a Black Friday or a cyber Monday that I couldn't have done without or afford it at full price. Are you like me? Do you have this same experience? This is where I invite you to open up your workbook and start to reflect on your past experiences of making purchases on Black Friday and on Cyber Monday. Now, the argument can always be made that for some one somewhere, they're benefiting from those lower prices. But the number of people that are benefiting from the lower cost are nowhere near the majority of people who are shopping. The marketing dollars that are being spent on Black Friday alone could go towards locating and assisting the individuals and families who are in need of these lower prices every year. If this is a scenario that's really accurate. In 2015, REI, the United States largest co-op and outdoor specialty retailer announced that their 143 retail stores would be closed on Black Friday and they would instead be encouraging employees and customers to opt outside. The president and CEO of REI is quoted as saying, Black Friday is the perfect time to remind ourselves of the essential truth that life is richer, more connected and complete when you choose to spend it outside. We're closing our doors, paying our employees to get out there and inviting America to opt outside with us because we love great gear, but we are even more passionate about the experiences. It unlocks. Since 2015, other retailers have followed suit and followed REI in being closed on Black Friday. as a little bit of a rebel myself and someone who loves to do the opposite of what everybody else is doing and doesn't necessarily like it when I am being told to do something. I am all for this decision by REI and other retailers to opt out and opt outside for Black Friday. My family personally does something similar. As I mentioned in 2017, we started our morning by going to the municipal Way Center to drop off that sofa. But after that, we headed to the Christmas tree farm so that we could cut down a locally grown Christmas tree to bring back to our house. This is a tradition that we have followed since we purchased our house in 2016. Every year, we go to a local lot that grows Leland cypress trees, which require very little water and not a lot of space and are something that is very low maintenance for the growers in the area. And we cut down our own tree to bring home. We usually spend the rest of the day at home decorating, listening to Christmas music, and if the weather permits, we'll definitely spend a bit more time outside. We're not big hikers or campers or kayakers or those traditional things that you think of when people are saying that they should opt outside. But I don't believe that you have to necessarily be that person who is driving, traveling somewhere hours away from their home with lots of gear and lots of expertise to take advantage of being outside. You're a Black Friday opt outside could look like time spent walking around your neighborhood hanging out on the back porch just walking a local trail I promise you it will feel so much more peaceful than heading to a store or heading onto your computer. Now there are two new quoteunquote sales holidays that have come along since Black Friday. Cyber Monday, of course, as we have all begun to spend more time shopping and projections are that at least one-third of shopping that is done over that Black Friday holiday weekend, this upcoming year is going to be done online. But I'm sure that you have already noticed that the moment Halloween ended in November 1st hit, we were in Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. You're inbox. I'm sure was already full and I guarantee that you will be getting so many text messages and emails the day after Thanksgiving from every retailer that you have ever stepped foot into or purchased something from. So we know that this is really manufactured scarcity that these sales are not really that special and we have plenty of time to make a decision as to if we want to take part in them as well. Going back to those new sales that have been added, I can't say that I don't love the concept of small business Saturday. That is the idea of spending your Saturday after Thanksgiving, doing more shopping at small businesses. I love this. I love the movement, but I wish it was something that people would just do automatically. And it is important to note that small business Saturday was a marketing campaign from American Express. The credit card company I don't think that there are motivations were particularly noble giving Tuesday is another new edition to this string of shopping and spending holidays in the United States. Online, it is toted as a global generosity movement unleashing the power of people and organizations to transform their communities and the world. Giving Tuesday is actually a 501 C three nonprofit that exists and was created in 2002. And going along with this global movement, the giving Tuesday organization promotes the concept of generosity, not as a benevolence that the hal show to the have- nots, but rather an expression of mutuality, solidarity, and reciprocity. I absolutely love that. And so I will say that now that we are starting to think about if we want to take part in Blackf Friday, you can flip back to week two to see if your spending plan allows for that. And if it allows for you to bring some generosity into your holiday spending making one time or setting up automatic donations to the organizations that support the things that you value is a really great way to take part in this global movement of giving on Tuesday. Now that you've taken a moment to visit your workbook, you know that a lot of that action that's going to go into this week is going to come from the decisions that you made in week two as to if you're going to decide to take part in any of those sales, if it is something that fits within your budget or if you feel like it is going to be a good way for you to spend your time I hope you have a lovely Thanksgiving. I hope that your shopping holiday weekends are peaceful and I will see you next week, where we will be talking about ethical and sustainable decor and ambiance. See you then.