I spent March saying yes

Walking the talk on spending without guilt.

Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Last month, I did something that doesn’t come naturally to me.

I spent more money than I usually allow myself to — and I did it on purpose. Not because I lost control. Not because circumstances forced me.

I did it because I said I would.

Before writing about learning to spend a little, I knew there was only one way to make that message honest: I had to live it. I had to step out of the comfort zone that discipline has built for me over the years and actually practice the mindset I’ve been talking about.

So in March, I walked it like I talked it.

Most of my purchases go on a credit card so I can rack up airline points. A few essentials — like rent, gas for my vehicle and apartment, electricity and my $10 monthly gym membership — are paid separately. Tracking expenses this way lets me monitor spending in real time, and each month I share my progress, for better or worse.

If you compare my March 2026 spending to March 2025, the difference is clear. I spent more this year. Not dramatically or irresponsibly, but enough that the old version of me would’ve paused or talked himself out of some of these decisions. This version didn’t.

Instead, I leaned into something unfamiliar: permission.

I bought new pillows — the kind you don’t think twice about until you finally upgrade and realize what you’ve been missing every single night. I replaced towels that were perfectly functional but far from enjoyable.

For years, “good enough” has been my standard. March was about raising it, even in the smallest areas of my life.

I added in things that serve no purpose other than making life feel better in the moment — scented candles, scented lotion, a new fragrance. These purchases won’t change my financial future, but they improve my daily experience.

I can’t remember the last time I spent this much in one month on shopping.

I also booked two getaways for April. Nothing over the top, nothing designed to impress anyone. Just intentional breaks from the rat race — something to anticipate, something to experience fully.

That’s what March gave me: small, tangible reminders of what the money is for in the first place.

Because I’m realizing the purchase matters less than the practice behind it.

March wasn’t about pillows or candles or even booking trips. It was about shifting a mindset that defaulted to “nah, I’m good” for most of my life.

No has served me well. It helped me build. It kept me disciplined. It protected me from many of the financial traps that catch people off guard.

But “no,” over time, can also become a limitation.

So March became an exercise in learning how to say yes — carefully and intentionally but consistently.

Yes to comfort. Yes to enjoyment. Yes to choosing what I actually want instead of settling for what simply works.

Yes to myself.

And maybe the timing of that lesson wasn’t a coincidence.

While I was loosening up in March, a financial storm was brewing in the background. By April, it arrived, but that’s for another day. What matters is that I’m prepared.

The years I’ve spent being disciplined — the long stretches of saying no — already positioned me to handle what’s on the horizon. I’m not scrambling. I’m relying on what I’ve built.

I still have the discipline. I still know how to go without. That hasn’t changed — and it’s still my greatest advantage.

But now it’s balanced by the understanding that life can’t only be about restraint. It also has to include allowance.

March didn’t change my finances in any dramatic way. It did, however, change my relationship with spending.

I didn’t go overboard. I simply gave myself permission.

After years of saving, stacking and saying no, March reminded me that the whole point of this journey is having the freedom to say yes.