A new pair of shoes thrills you for a week. Then they’re just shoes. Notice that before buying the next thing.

Excitement about a new thing has a short half-life, and it fades at roughly the same rate every time regardless of price. A week or two in, the object joins the background and the feeling you were buying has gone, which is exactly when the next purchase starts to look appealing. Knowing the pattern does not make wanting things wrong. It makes the pull easier to see.

Before the next thing you want, think of the last one and how long the thrill lasted. Wait two weeks. If you still want it, buy it knowing what you are getting.