Episode 178

full
Published on:

10th Sep 2025

Why Buying Less Might Be the Next Step in Your FI Journey | E178 Ashlee Piper

I was reviewing my spending for the first half of 2025 and noticed something interesting: excluding routine bills, groceries, and experiences, I only bought 25 new things this year, totaling about $1,400. For six months, that felt pretty solid. But it also got me wondering… could I go even further?

That curiosity came to a head when the nozzle on my garden hose started leaking. My first instinct was to hop on Amazon and buy a new one. It was only $20. But then I paused. I looked up what might cause the leak and found out it’s usually a worn-out rubber washer. I took the thing apart, and sure enough, that was it. I hopped back on Amazon to order a new washer…until I remembered I had another broken nozzle in the garage. I swear I have the worst luck with these—but this one wasn’t leaking. I had just dropped it and snapped the trigger handle. I took the rubber washer from that one and used it to fix the current nozzle.

And it worked! No money spent. Nothing added to a landfill. And honestly, I felt proud of myself.

I share that story because it’s easy to assume we’re already frugal or intentional enough—especially in the FI community. But that moment made me realize how often I default to “buy new” without even questioning it. And I want to become more intentional, especially when it comes to physical things.

That’s why I invited Ashlee Piper on the show today. Ashlee is a sustainability expert and author of the new book No New Things: A Radically Simple 30-Day Guide to Saving Money, the Planet, and Your Sanity. She’s also the creator of the #NoNewThings Challenge, which she personally followed for two years, which is just insanely impressive.

In this conversation, we dig into how to creatively meet your needs without always reaching for your wallet. Ashlee shares her SUPER system for thoughtfully navigating purchases, and we run through a few real-life scenarios like getting ready for a wedding or gearing up for Halloween.

If you want to bring more intentionality into how you consume, this episode will leave you feeling inspired.

I hope you enjoy my conversation with the always resourceful, wildly entertaining, and sustainability-driven…Ashlee Piper.

Key Takeaways:

  • How to skip buying new without giving up what you love
  • A system to make smarter, more intentional buying choices
  • Find practical ways to fix, borrow, or swap before buying something new
  • How consumer culture encourages excess (and how to resist it)
  • Balancing intentional spending and restriction

More of Ashlee:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashleepiper/

Newsletter: https://substack.com/@theethicaledit


More of FI Minded:

Email Justin at Justin@FIMinded.com

Connect with Justin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinleepeters/

Next Episode All Episodes Previous Episode

Listen for free

Show artwork for FI Minded - Financial Independence, Early Retirement & Lifestyle Design

About the Podcast

FI Minded - Financial Independence, Early Retirement & Lifestyle Design
Achieve Financial Independence & Have Fun Doing It
Pursuing financial independence, financial freedom, or early retirement often leads to the same questions: How do I become financially independent? How much should I save? What happens after I reach FI?

FI Minded helps you use money to create more freedom, without turning your entire life into a financial optimization project.

Host Justin Peters explores the decisions behind building a flexible, work-optional life, from reaching financial independence and navigating Coast FI and Slow FI to spending your money, changing careers, stepping away from work, and figuring out what comes after FI.

Each episode combines practical personal finance with conversations about early retirement, lifestyle design, work, spending, healthcare, self-employment, and life after financial independence. The goal isn't simply to reach FI as quickly as possible. It's to make progress toward financial freedom while actually enjoying your life along the way.

On FI Minded, you'll learn how to:
- Reach financial independence without burning out
- Build a flexible, work-optional lifestyle
- Navigate Coast FI, Slow FI, and other paths to FI
- Make smarter decisions about spending and saving
- Prepare financially and emotionally for early retirement
- Figure out what life can look like after financial independence
- Think through the tradeoffs behind major money and lifestyle decisions
- Make progress toward financial independence while actually living your life.

Some of our past guests include Carl Jensen (1500 Days), Jeremy Schneider (Personal Finance Club), Nick Loper (Side Hustle Show), Andrew Giancola (The Personal Finance Podcast), Jordan Grumet (Earn & Invest), Rachael Camp (Work Optional), Jillian Johnsrud (Retire Often), Sean Mullaney (FI Tax Guy), Jill Sirianni (Frugal Friends), Jackie Cummings-Koski (Catching Up to FI), Joel Larsgaard (How to Money), Cody Garrett (Measure Twice), Jesse Cramer (Personal Finance for Long-Term Investors), Jess (The Fioneers), Chris Hutchins (All The Hacks), Diania Merriam (EconoMe), Andy Hill (Marriage Kids Money), Fritz Gilbert (Retirement Manifesto), Maggie Tucker (Inside Out Money), Cody Berman (The Financial Independence Show), Joe Saul-Sehy (Stacking Benjamins), Doug Cunnington (Mile High FI), and and others helping you rethink how to approach financial independence.
Support This Show