As we continue to pursue our goal of no credit card debt and increasing our savings, Trish has questioned some of our choices. After a recent trip to the butcher, she asked, “Do we really need to buy rib eye steaks?” (We could buy a cheaper cut such as sirloin.) In fact, we don’t need to buy steak at all. We also don’t need to drink coffee, tea, wine or anything other than water. (If that sounds sensible, try drinking only water for a month and let me know how it goes.)

I suggested that judging things against whether we need them seems like too low a bar. If we eliminated everything we don’t need, we would not have much left. (Some people may say that’s a worthy goal.)

I’ve embraced minimalism and still believe it’s more than just our needs to consider. I have happily given away and disposed of lots of stuff. I’ve also learned to make more thoughtful decisions about buying new things. The standard I use is to consider whether something gives me joy and is worth the cost.

We have way more than we need and a lot less than we could have. This seems like a good balance and it’s something I keep in mind before I buy new things. To give some perspective, I have two cars (summer and winter), both of which are more than 10 years old and have a combined 300,000 miles. My phone is nearly 5 years old and has had the battery and the screen replaced to avoid buying a new phone.

What standard do you use in deciding when to have more than you need?