Aptus summer intern Marla Amarsaikhan co-authored this post.
Why do we spend money we don’t have on things we don’t need?
The Algorithm. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to beat the algorithm.
Do you want to know what the algorithm looked like? Just follow me down the street. I was wearing the algorithm.
What does it mean to have taste anymore? Is it really about what we like, or is it about what we have been trained to want? As I sorted through my clothes to pack for college, I realized I had not made choices. I had followed suggestions. Ever searched for one product online, and suddenly your entire social media feed turned into an infomercial? One pair of jeans. A skincare serum. A “top 10 Amazon must-haves!” video. That is all it takes. Within an hour, your phone becomes a personal sales representative. Each post seems to know you a little too well, and somehow, what was once curiosity turns into a purchase.
I did not realize how often I had given into that cycle until I packed up for college. While sorting through my clothes, I found myself drowning in piles of items I had not touched in months. My “donate” pile was embarrassingly large: trending accessories, oddly patterned pieces, all bought during micro-trend waves I barely remembered. It was clear that I had not been shopping with intention. I had been reacting over and over again.
This is not just a personal habit. It is part of a system designed to keep us scrolling and spending. Social media platforms know exactly how to hold our attention and know what to sell us once they have it. They have made billions doing it. In 2022 alone, U.S. children aged 0 to 17 accounted for $11 billion in advertising revenue for major social media platforms (De et al. 2). These platforms have quickly become full-blown marketing machines powered by AI capable of learning everything about you, from your likes to your search history to your next purchase. The longer you scroll, the more data the algorithm gathers, and the more tailored and influential the content becomes.
The effect is especially intense for young people, but it spans generations. A close friend (41) recently fell into the “clean living” trend cycle. A few casual searches turned into a stream of content, promising a better life through green powders, daily supplements, and overpriced juices. The wellness aesthetic made it feel empowering, but the result was still the same. Buy more, consume more, repeat.
Eventually, if you are not careful, you wake up with a pile of things you do not use, beliefs you do not question, and a mind that feels more influenced than in control. However, the solution can start with stepping outside the algorithm. Give yourself space to think clearly before clicking “buy now.” Learn to recognize what is your choice, and what has been fed to you.
So, how can we beat the algorithm in our No-Spend Challenge? Below, I’ll detail some practical ways to remove yourself from the cycle of spending, giving both easy and more advanced options.
Tame Social Media
There’s no question that screen time consumes most of our waking hours. According to the New York Post, the average American spends about 10 hours a day in front of a screen. 5.4 of these hours are spent on leisure activities, like gaming, browsing, and using social media. And how often do those hours of social media time turn into shopping time? For most, too often.
Easy mode: Let’s take a baby step. Set a time limit on your social media apps. Maybe you will only allow yourself to spend 15 minutes every day on Instagram. Another 15 on TikTok. When you drastically decrease the amount of time you spend on social media, you also drastically decrease the number of ads and new products you are exposed to. You will break the cycle of desire by slowly removing yourself from it.
Beat Social Media: Like teaching a dog to sit, let’s rewire the brain to reward your savings rather than your spending. Create a designated page in your notes app. Every time you open a social media app, go back to your notes app and make a tally. Each tally will represent $1.00. At the end of the week, add up how many tallies you have, and transfer that balance into your savings account. How much did you earn? Does the number surprise you? Was it more or less than you would have been willing to spend on keeping up with the trend cycle?
Conquer Social Media: Delete social media. Write down your passwords somewhere and take yourself out of the social media circus. This may be hard, but it will also cut you off from the recommended products, the ad placements, and the spending of money on frivolous things. Your friends will still be there when you decide to return, with a healthier account balance.
Cool Off Spending by Using the Handy Cart
Getting off social media will be immensely helpful in eliminating the pull for online shopping, but if you find yourself still browsing through your favorite online stores, then try the option of giving yourself a “cooling off period.”
One of the best ways to do this is to leave things in your cart for a determined amount of time. Maybe you leave your options in your cart for 1 day, 1 week, or 1 month. The length of time is up to you and could also depend on the price of the purchase (bigger purchases might stay in the cart much longer than something small). However you choose to structure this limit for yourself, the biggest thing to remember is: you must walk away from it. When you come back to your cart, look at the purchases again. As you review your cart, ask yourself some questions. Do you still want it? Does it still excite you to make the purchase? Do you have the money to buy it?
Chances are, you probably don’t want that item anymore. And if you do, then the purchase clearly means more to you than something made in the heat of the moment. As you continue this process of cooling off periods, you may also start to find the room in your budget to save up for these items, making it both affordable and a reward.
Beating the algorithm will take time. Recognizing where your habits lead you and breaking those habits will take a concerted amount of effort. But the result? A “you” that is spending less, making more thoughtful purchases, and getting yourself out of the cycle of social media.
Work Cited
De, Debasmita et al. “Social Media Algorithms and Teen Addiction: Neurophysiological Impact and Ethical Considerations.” Cureus vol. 17, no. 1, 2025, pp. 1-7. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.77145.