How to control the desire to "collect" more and more and more

[JHCC]

As tempting as it is to simply GET EVERYTHING, almost all of us have some limits on how much we can realistically collect. It's also important to distinguish between how getting something makes you feel in the moment (the ol' dopamine boost that we've inherited from our hunter-gatherer ancestors triumphantly securing their next meal) and the actual value of an acquisition to our smithing operation.

I'm therefore going to suggest approaching the question from a slightly different angle. Since desire is an emotion that you cannot actually control, I would recommend thinking rather about how you control your actions, how you approach the manner in which you indulge that desire.

When I'm considering whether or not to add something to my collection of tools, materials, and books, there are a few questions I ask myself:

1. How can I use this? Does it have a very specific use, or can I use it in a number of different ways? 
2. Specifically for tools, how does this expand the capacity of my shop, add new functionality, and/or improve efficiency?
3. How will I store this?
4. What is the opportunity cost of acquiring this? That is, what other tools and supplies will I now be unable to acquire with this money or trading stock?
5. If I do not acquire this right now, will I be able to acquire it in the future? If so, will there be a difference from the present availability and/or price?
6. If I acquire this and am not able to use it within a reasonable amount of time, will I be able to recoup some or all of its value through resale or trade?

Some things are no-brainers, like an incredible deal on tools or materials that you simply can't pass up. For everything else, giving some degree of thought to these questions will give you some perspective on how best to proceed.

[ThomasPowers]

Incurable brain cancer can help with hoarding instincts.  I don't recommend it though.

[Will Brouwers]

Yeah, I'm sure it would.

I have been keeping up with the developments on the prayer request page and have kept you in my prayers. It is definitely good to see you back on here!

[Scott NC]

  Grandpa's garage had so much iron, steel and junk in it it started leaning and he tried to save it with long sections of all thread and turnbuckles.  He had it leaning against the walls and started storing it in the rafters.  Somebody once said it's like eating potato chips or something like that... . It's probably a genetic trait.

[Gazz]

Growing up, my dad had a workshop in the basement where he did wood working and other fix it home repair stuff.  He had inherited much of his fathers stuff who was a watchmaker, jeweler and model train builder.  I would spend hours in the basement picking through that stuff for my own model making interests and other "scientific" experiments.  There was lots of little bits of all kinds of stuff for me paw through.  We would also visit my grandparents on the farm, and I was always interested in the scrap iron pile that was as big as a small garage.  When I first started making stuff in steel at 18, I asked if I could root through the pile for interesting bits to make sculptures with and was told go ahead but I need to see what you're taking was the reply.  After a few hours of picking I summoned gramps to show him my small pile I had selected.  He looked it over and then one by one picked each piece up and throwing it back in the pile saying that this stuff still had potential use for him.  I ended up with nothing!  So my hoarding of interesting scrap stuff must be hereditary as I don't farm.

Much later in life, actually about 15 years ago, I had to get new homeowners insurance.  I made the deal over the phone and a month or two later, an agent showed up at my house with a camera to take pictures for their records.  I knew I was in trouble when he spent a fair amount of time at the resource pile which was a bit sprawling then and two days later I got the cancellation notice in the mail.  I cleaned up a bit scraping some and moving the rest to a more concentrated pile and then built a stockade fence around it.  It has sprawled past the fence since then.  It has been quite useful over the years both for me and friends who share some metal working interests with me but as noted it can be a liability.

I found a picture of the sculpture I made from selecting stuff from the pile.  The top piece does rotate with the wind but its up to the viewer to know what direction its pointing.

[Frosty]

That's a good practical check list John, I wish I'd used something like it when I was younger I wouldn't have wasted so much money and space. 

 I agree Thomas, permanent solutions to temporary problems isn't desirable. Keep u[ the fight, we're all pulling for you.

Frosty The Lucky.

[Scott NC]

  I guess I am a lost cause.  If I see a 1/2" nut laying on the ground in a parking lot, I will bend over to pick it up. 

  Gazz, you should have taken a video of it moving around.  I love kinetic sculptures.

[ThomasPowers]

I love it at the scrapyard when folks "clean out" grandpa's garage.  Since going to town to buy a nut or washer is a trip out here I am happy to buy other people's collections...Much cheaper than  spending and hour and gas to town and back!