My wife and I are in the process of going green with Our Green Year, and one of the things we are trying to do is reduce our possessions. While we are making great progress with that, we also have to keep from buying products we do not need, which add to our consumption and possession count. As a result, when we go out now we ask ourselves the possession questions so that we can determine if we really need the product, and whether or not it is good for the environment to buy it.

Asking yourself purchase questions is very important. Too often people will buy a product without thinking because they act on the impulse of it. The reason they do this is because when we buy something, we feel an instant gratification. We feel as though nothing in the world matters except for this purchase. We fall under the foolish belief that buying the item will make us happier. It does make us happier, but the elation of buying the product soon passes when we get home, or within a few weeks of buying it.

To keep out of that situation, you need to ask yourself the following questions before you purchase something:

Does the cost of the item warrant the benefit we may receive from it? This means that if the benefit is just an immediate gratification (shoes we don't need) then it is not worth the long-term cost.

How much will this product be used after its initial 'neatness' wears off? Buying one of those dancing electric animals is a perfect example of this. It may seem neat now, but it will end up in the closet soon enough.

Can it be recycled or given away later? If it can, it makes buying it easier because someone else can get use out of it after we no longer use it.

Where could this money be better spent? If it could go to bills, mortgage, charity or anything else instead of the product, maybe it should.

Why are we buying this product? If the only reason is because we just saw it, then it is not a good buy. Impulse buys are not something we want to do. As well, if we buy it because we saw it on television, then maybe its not a good buy.

Those are the purchase questions and they can help you reduce consumption. Reducing your consumption will reduce the amount of consumption on the environment. In that case, it can only help us in the long run.