It's a hunt. It's therapy. It's a way of life. But has it gotten out of control? Aimee Lee Ball investigates why we spend the way we do.

Alas, our romance with shopping seems to be coming to an end—or at least it's up for careful reevaluation. According to research from Stanford University, more than one in 20 adults are compulsive shoppers, purchasing things they don't need, use, or even want. That's because shopping, once devoted to procuring necessities, has come to fill multiple emotional needs—it's entertainment, a bonding activity, a sport, a form of self-expression, and, quite often, a means of solace. "These days what you buy is a way to connect to others and showcase your personality and values," says Kit Yarrow, PhD, professor of psychology and marketing at Golden Gate University in San Francisco. So what happens now when more than five million people have lost their jobs since December 2007, and many of us are trying to curb our enthusiasm? Ironically, "when people feel economically insecure, they tend to reassure themselves by shopping," says George Loewenstein, PhD, professor of economics and psychology at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. The thinking is: "If I were economically secure, I would go shopping, so if I'm shopping, I must be economically secure." And that's just one thing to be aware of as you head for the mall. Here are a few others:  

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"Frugality means we are to enjoy what we have.  If you have ten dresses but still feel you have nothing to wear, you are probably a spendthrift.  But if you have ten dresses and have enjoyed wearing all of them for years, you are frugal.  Waste lies not in the number of possessions but in the failure to enjoy them.  Your success at being frugal is measured not by your penny-pinching but by your degree of enjoyment of the material world."

From Your Money or Your Life by Robin & Dominguez

"Clutter is anything that is excess--for you.  It's whatever you have that doesn't serve you, yet takes up space in your world.  To let go of clutter, then, is not deprivation; it's lightening up and opening up space for something new to happen." 

From Your Money or Your Life by Robin & Dominguez

"Our economy depends on growth to survive--and many of us have absorbed that growth ethic into our own aspirations for our lives. If we have one car, we need two. If we have one pair of pants, we need two; if we have two, we need three. We ignore intellectual, emotional and spiritual growth, having gotten stuck trying to continue to grow physically by adding more and more possessions."

From Your Money or Your Life by Robin & Dominguez

Frugality is not a quaint pastime from the pre-credit card era, but it is something of a lost art for some people.

Though frugal living can conjure an image of a Dickensian miser grimly squeezing every penny for all it’s worth, it doesn't have to be like that.

"Being frugal to me is about valuing your life energy," says Mark Zaifman, owner of Spiritus Financial Planning in Windsor, Calif., and a contributor to an updated version of "Your Money or Your Life."

A central tenet of the book is that most people must expend their energy to make money during their finite time on earth. Frivolous purchases waste that time and energy.

That concept is a lynchpin in the voluntary simplicity movement.

For the full article and steps (I personally love Step 4: Clean House) Click Here

Instead of buying small mountains of books check them out of your neighborhood library. Over time, you can save a ton of cash. 

"Decluttering and organizing your space inevitably makes you look at how you spend your time. How much of it has been spent acquiring belongings you never use? Recreational shopping-shopping for fun- is a national habit. It makes us feel productive ("We're buying things we need to live life"), successful ("We can afford this-we're doing well"), and in control of our destinies ("If I buy this, my home will be prettier, my wardrobe will be more stylish, I'll finally be happy"). Shopping can easily become a substitute for all kinds of emotional satisfaction. "Retail therapy" may seem like it will ward off loneliness, fear, and dissatisfaction, but it usually leads to credit card bills and more stuff than you have room for. Retail therapy = clutter. There's so much to do beyond spending your life at the mall. Instead of acquiring possessions, we can accumulate life experiences-experiences that breed love and affection." Peter Walsh in It's All Too Much

The systems which are in place today seem to be set up to make us debtors. We hold personal accountability for the things we do financially (and otherwise), but between student loans and credit card debt, a person coming out of college can very well have a difficult "fresh start".  Remember, student loans are one of the only loan not forgiven in a bankruptcy. 

I don't know about you, but when I was in college, hand me down/goodwill furniture and I ate hamburger helper.  Trying to keep up the standard of living of your parents and/or friends will never allow you to live within your financial truth.

The following quote was an excerpt from Peter Walsh's book It's All Too Much

"It may not seem obvious, but there is a connection between debt and clutter. I'm not talking about home, school, or car loans. Those loans tend to have resonable interest rates, but credit card debt is a real devil, and it is always the result of inappropriate acquisition of goods. The average American family owes $9,200 in credit card debt. Some of us get sucked into credit card debt when we're youn, unemployed, and/or vulnerable. Who can blame us when companies are aggressively marketing credit cards to college students and bankruptcy filers? With credit cards at their disposal in college, kids try to duplicate the standard of living they had with their families. They develop a sense that they can acquire whatever they want. Kids come out of school and instead of starting from scratch, they are starting out with debt, and the worst kind: credit card debt. And once you've got a little debt, it's a hard habit to break.

When it comes to managing your credit cards, you need to establish routines and set limits. Sound familiar? It's the same thing I told you to teach you children. Limited space equals limited toys. Limited funds equals limited spending. Trust me, no matter how much you want that stereo or that new car, excess spending will bring you more grief in the long run."

I find financial inspiration in many books I read.  This quote comes from It's All Too Much by Peter Walsh. Such a great read and there are tips for even the most organized person.

"How did we get here?

We live in one of the most prosperous nations on earth, and we measure our success by material accumulation.  Everywhere we look we are encouraged to buy more.  Love your kids? Prove it by giving them the best clothes, games, sports paraphernalia, or the latest video game system.  Just got a raise or a better job?  Time to show it off with a bigger TV or a flashy new car or more (and expensive) clothes.  In two-income families where there's barely time to relax, we try to find happiness by buying more stuff. Everywhere we turn, we're told that more is better.  We supersize our food.  We buy two for the price of one instead of buying one at half price. But for many, it has become clear that instead of bringing happiness and peace of mind, all this stuff is stressing us out and alienating us from our families, our partners, our dreams.  Sure, some stuff does improve your life.  Of course it does.  Who can argue with a comfortable home and a nice car? But where do you draw the line?  Did you know that the size of the average new house in this country has grown almost 50 percent in the last thirty years?  And all this while the average family size has declined. 

With more space has come the urge to fill it with more stuff.  Unfortunately, more stuff doesn't guarantee greater happiness.  And when happiness doesn't come, you buy more, thinking that's the answer.  Instead of bringing you closer to the life you want to live, your stuff starts getting in the way.

Disposable Income

What is all this stuff we keep acquiring?  A lot of it comes down to discretionary spending-those things we choose to buy with the money we have sitting in our purses, pockets, or wallets.  You might be surprised to learn where most Americans spend their disposable income.

In any year, more than two-thirds of households in this country spend a sizable portion of their disposable income on videos and DVDs, music and CDs, books and magazines, specialized personal care products, and candles.  More than one-third of households buy collectibles, craft supplies, and sporting goods.  Not surprisingly, the way we spend our money breaks down along gender lines. Men buy more technology (videos, TV's) and sporting goods, while women buy more books magazines, personal care products, and crafting supplies.

There is nothing wrong or bad about these purchases-some of them are educational or entertaining-but how many of them have lasting value? What do you have to show at the end of any one year for the money you have spent? Is it a home equipped with valuable and useful items or just more clutter? No matter how you break it down, there's no getting around the truth of the matter: This is the stuff that causes many people's clutter issues.  Stuff we don't need.  Stuff we buy for our own pleasure, often on impulse, that has little long-term usefulness and adds little to our long-term quality of life.

The new town square

Who can blame us for all this consumerism?  All accross the country the mall has become the new town square.  We spend our leisure and recreation time at the mall. Walking clubs go to the mall for excercise. You can even have an overnight campout at the Mall of America! As we grow up, for many, the mall brings our first taste of freedom-the first place our parents might send us off on our own, telling us to meet up with them in an hour.  This is how we-to our children-come to associate social freedom with a retail environment.  No wonder we're drawn back there as adults.

It's not just childhood experiences that draw us to malls. Hands down, shopping is the most accessible form of stimulation. When you're bored and looking for something to do on a Saturday afternoon, shopping is a whole lot easier than planning a picnic. And it's not weather dependent. Plus, there's so much to look at. In the 1950's, a typical corner store stocked one thousand items. Now a Wal-Mart superstore holds about 130,000 items, offering hours of exploration and potential purchasing for the whole family.  And retail therapy is no joke. Having new things is exciting  and makes you feel like you're changing your life for the better.  Your skin will be softer, ore you'll have something better to watch on TV, or a new coat will impress your colleagues. Ever left a superstore or a mall without making a single purchase? It's very, very hard to do.

Saying goodbye....forever

I've already told you you're not alone. America has a problem with overaccumulation. It's abundantly clear if you spend one minute noticing how many self-storage facilities have sprung up in your neighborhood.

Now what's so bad about renting storage space, you ask? It's a way of not dealing with your clutter. You're saving things you don't need or want by dumping them in a black hole you'll probably never unpack, and you're spending extra money every month to store them.

Think about it from a money standpoint.  You're increasing your housing costs without increasing your standard of living. Is it worth it? Think about it from a psychological perspective. You're hiding away stuff you really should deal with, postponing the issue to some undetermined future date. Is that how you deal with all your problems? I sure hope not. Look, if you have a sudden change of situation, okay, I'll definitely cut you some slack. But as soon as you've rented the space for longer than a year, you have to accept that your situation isn't temporary. Your life has actually changed. You need to deal with the change head-on."