January 1st marks the beginning of a new year. It also marks the start of New Year's resolutions. People the world over make half-hearted promises to themselves to make a personal change, with less than 10% of them sticking with their goal throughout the year. However, there are some that take on their resolution as a personal challenge and create better lives for themselves out of it. The most historically flamboyant resolutionist, Mark Zuckerberg, once resolved to only eat meat he butchered himself for an entire year. For a young billionaire, working in technology, that's quite a feat.
Although we may not see ourselves out in the pasture with a knife chasing after goats, we sneaker enthusiasts, likely also have our own personal resolution to change either our spending habits, our collection size, our sneaker focus, style, or something of the sort. The key to a resolution of any type is all in the details. You must be specific about your goals and what the outcome of your resolution will look like. Here are some easy three step methods to help you accomplish your sneaker resolution.
Resolution Type: Limiting Collection Size
One resolution that is very popular amongst sneaker enthusiasts is that they want to keep their collection at the same number of pairs they started the New Year with. This is difficult because you always seem to run across those months where there's a ton of sneakers dropping that you want, and you really don't want to get rid of. Or, you find some super cheap kicks that look "alright," and you end up picking them up for 50 bucks or less. What do you do then?
Step One: Determine a Specific Goal
Is your goal to maintain the same amount that you have now? Is it is get down to a certain number? Is it to only add a certain number of sneakers this year? Whatever you're trying to do to limit your collection size, be specific. If you're trying to maintain the size, you need to know how many sneakers you have right now. If it's to get down to a certain number then what's that specific number? Write it down. Put a Post-It on your sneaker stash to remind you what that number is. And if you're only adding a certain number of shoes be sure to make the number concrete. You can't fluctuate from the number.
Step Two: Identify Pairs
If you're limiting your collection size you're probably going to have to make some cuts at some point, but luckily you don't have to worry about feelings or angry parents. You only need to worry about figuring out which pairs you can live without. If you have a larger collection this will probably be easier than if you have a smaller collection, but either way it won't be fun. You have to understand why you're making these tough choices and be all-in. If you aren't all-in during this process then you don't really want a change. Once you've determined what pairs you're most willing to part with, you just have to figure out how the hell you're going to purge them.
Step Three: Purge
There are essentially only two ways to purge: selling or donating. When selling, be sure to give yourself ample time to do so. You don't want to make a habit of buying shoes then trying to sell to make room for them. That just makes the likelihood of you keeping both pairs even greater. Determine which shoes you're most willing to get rid of and purge those first. If they have no value, or you are feeling generous, then go the donation route.
When donating, be sure to give to a non-profit organization. A lot of people don't realize that there are a ton of for-profit thrift stores that are more than willing to take your donations but have the look and feel of a charitable organization. Also, these types of "donations" are not tax-deductible, so keep that in mind. The safest bet is to just use Soles for Souls. They have drop-off locations throughout the United States and are sure to get your unnecessary shoes into grateful hands. Find a drop-off location or buy a shipping label here.
Resolution Type: Limiting Spending
The other major category of sneaker resolutions is to limit your sneaker spending throughout the year. Although this can go hand-in-hand with some collection limiting as well, limiting your spending doesn't revolve around the number of pairs you pick-up but rather how much you spend on those pickups. For some, there are shoes that they plain and simply just have to have, even if the resale price is the only way to get them. That would count as only one pair, but if you're limiting spending, that could take down a large part of your budget.
Step One: Determine a Specific Goal
Much like the process above, you must start with a specific goal. For a sneaker-spending resolution that goal is the amount of money you're willing to spend of sneakers. However, it is not just that simple. You need to determine if that includes money you may make over the course of the year by purging some of your collection (see Step three above). Are you willing to spend $250 total a month, or are you willing to spend $3,000 a year plus allow yourself to use money made from selling off pairs as well?
Step Two: Save
Is there a reason you're limiting yourself? Are there bills that need to be paid down or a vacation you want to save for? Make sure your sneaker spending goal coincides with those goals. If you're used to just using whatever money is in your account to buy whatever you want, be sure to take that money out of the account by transferring it into a savings account, an IRA, or just withdraw cash and stash it somewhere safe. It's typically easier to save money when you don't have it sitting there ready to be used at a moment's notice, and once you start doing this the money will quickly add up.
Step Three: The Hunt
Some sneaker enthusiasts spend $500 a month on two or three pairs. By limiting yourself to only $300 a month it not only forces you to save the $200 but also start a new hunt; the hunt for low prices. For some, the hunt for sneakers is the adrenaline rush, so by replacing the rush with another (to find great deals) you won't feel the withdrawals. Plus, you'll have saved $2,400 over the course of the year. This type of behavior often also leads to other unintended outcomes such as discovering new types of shoes that you like and diminishing your inner-hypebeast.
No matter what your sneaker resolution may be, or even if you don't have a sneaker resolution, consider this: according to Campless survey data, the average "sneakerhead" has 34 pairs of shoes in their collection. With an average Jordan price of $190 retail, each collection, at retail value, is worth nearly $6,500. If you were to decrease that spending by 25%, the average collector would still have 26 sneakers in their collection, but also more than $1,600 in their bank account. Can you go find 8 pairs of shoes you'd be willing to give up?
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