By Joshua Fields Millburn

Nothing you buy is a one-time purchase.

Thanks to so-called Buy Now, Pay Later services like Klarna and Afterpay, we now have the ability to keep paying for our possessions long after the point of purchase.

But I’d argue we’ve been doing this for a while.

Consumer debt isn’t new—Americans spend $1.2 trillion each year on nonessential goods, much of it purchased with credit cards.

What’s new is the ease of going into debt—and the distance these newfangled installment plans create between impulse and consequence.

But debt isn’t the only way we keep paying.

Every item you acquire is a responsibility you accept.

That new shirt needs washing, ironing, and closet space.
That new car comes with insurance, maintenance, and worry.
That extra piece of furniture contains surfaces you now have to clean and organize.

After the sale, you continue to pay for your things—with your time, your attention, your energy, your peace.

If you’re not careful, a simple purchase becomes something else entirely: an invitation to punish your future self tomorrow just to gratify your cravings today.

Buy now.
Pay forever.

The price tag is just the beginning.

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