I am a big believer in the “Contingent Yes.”
Rather than telling yourself “I can’t have this thing” or “I don’t need this thing”, try the following mental exercise:
Say:
What steps would have to be taken for me to have that thing?
How would my life be different once I have it?
If you picture your way to the outcome, then you can determine a set of contingencies (or goals) that will get you that thing. It will be entirely up to you whether or not you obtain the thing.
You can use these things as motivations toward other goals – for example, you can say:
In order for me to get “Z”, I will need to do “A” through “Y”.
And you can make those things the ones that you actually “need” or find meaningful. Each task you accomplish gets you closer to the thing you are obsessing about – which in turn actually gives that meaning.
Originally Posted: https://www.quora.com/I-cant-stop-thinking-about-my-list-of-things-I-want-to-buy-but-dont-actually-need-What-are-some-mental-tricks-to-help-me-move-on-from-obsessing-about-these-meaningless-things
Originally Posted On: 2015-04-28