Why Black Friday Still Pulls Me In Even When I Pretend to Hate It

And what I bought...

Photo by Shutter Speed on Unsplash

Black Friday is one of those things I pretend to dislike, a bit like small talk or cardio.

Well… I do dislike all those often…

But sometimes I give in.

First, I complain, shake my head at the chaos, act like I’m above it. I am not.

Then I open Amazon during black week, and suddenly I’ve become a completely different person.

Sounds familiar?

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Black deals

It’s messy. And honestly, I’m tired of pretending I don’t enjoy at least some tiny part of this circus.

The truth is that Black Friday annoys me a little bit. It probably does to anybody.

Yet, it also scratches a very specific itch in my brain. The one that loves getting a good deal and finally crossing something off a list I’ve had forever.

That list is the trick though. Without the list I’d be lost.

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Wishlist

I keep a long-running list of everything I want to buy (or think I need).

The list is slow. Some items have been sitting there for years.

This is intentional. If something survives the “waiting period,” it probably deserves to be bought.

And if something falls off the list after a few weeks, it was damn good marketing…

Black Friday works for me only because of that list. I don’t browse. I don’t “check what’s out there.” Randomly.

I treat the whole week like a strategic upgrade window. I open my list, I check the items, and if one of them drops to a price that makes sense, I buy it.

Simple. A little boring maybe. But it saves me money and space.

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Purchases

This year was pretty textbook.

I finally got the stretch denim I’ve been wanting from that Stockholm brand called Nothing Something. They’re expensive. They cost €140 for me in Germany.

That’s a lot. Now, during black week, I got them for €85. Still not dirt-cheap, but a good deal.

Those jeans had lived on my list long enough that I didn’t even read the entry anymore. It looked like part of the reminders UI.

And yes, there’s something satisfying about getting something I’ve wanted for ages, not because an ad told us to want it, but because we actually do.

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Mistakes

I did buy something else earlier this year. Could have waited for black week. Didn’t.

It’s my Walking Pad*.

But (and this is key to me) this was one of the best purchases I’ve ever made.* And it was on discount as well. I maybe could have gotten it even cheaper now, but I am not mad about it.

Normally this would annoy me for at least two days, maybe longer. Yet this time it felt fine.

The Walking Pad has already become part of my day, part of my workflow. It works. It helps. It was worth the price I paid. That’s the thing with good purchases.

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The deal with deals

Black Friday only feels toxic when we buy things we don’t want or need. At least, that’s how I feel.

The pressure is real, and honestly, the whole cultural vibe around this week is a bit exhausting. Everything screams at us. Limited time. Last chance. Prices will never be this low. It feels like a high-speed auction that nobody asked for.

And for many, many items, the “deal” is actually not really a deal. The item will be priced the same any other week, or it will be on discount every other.

If we make the week serve us instead of the other way around, the whole thing is not too bad.

Black Friday is my week to check in with my long-term wants.

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Two sides

Either we love Black Friday or we hate it.

Either we’re rational or we’re impulsive. But real life is a lot more gray. Most of us sit in the middle. We want to save money, but not lose our minds. We want to buy things we care about.

It’s a reasonable angle.

But it took me longer than I want to admit to get to this point.

I just want to buy the things that have room and purpose in my life. And if Black Friday lets me do that a little cheaper, that’s fine.

P.S.: If you’re looking for a walking pad*, now is a pretty good time!

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*this is an affiliate or SparkLoop* partner link. I’ll get a commission if you decide to sign up.