The 14 Pound Rule

When I belonged to a train club over ten years ago, I was amazed at how some fellows were constantly buying new trains and selling old ones. There were few pieces they wanted to keep. The problem for some was that they bought on the spur of the moment. Later, they realized they bought something that they did not want to keep. Reselling often meant a loss. Few items grew in value over the period of a couple of months.

I found many a good bargain from them. Of course, my way of buying was a little different.

Many years ago, my wife and I came up with the 14-pound rule. It is simple: unless an item hits you like a 14-pound maul on the bridge of the nose, don’t buy it.

Ask yourself when confronted with an item that looks appealing: does it pass the 14 pound rule?

We have avoided spending a lot of money on things that were marginal. We have also eliminated buyer’s remorse.

Sometimes the fellow club members who had buyer’s remorse would want to sell their disappointments at a very nice discount. If what they had passed my 14 pound rule, the I got something worthwhile at a bargain price. Money that may have been wasted on impulse buys was saved for things worth keeping.

And what goes for hobbies also goes for clothes, housewares and everything else. The end result is having things that satisfy rather than things to regret. Try it! You will appreciate the results.