About this quote

Walking past shelves of fresh paper triggers an immediate slip in self-control. We buy for the person we wish we were, not the person who actually has to sit down and read. It is an easy trap. How many unread paperbacks are gathering dust on your nightstand right now? Real change requires you to actually open the cover and do the hard work.

When to use it

• You promise yourself you will stick to a strict monthly budget, but then you spend fifty dollars on three hardbacks you know you won't touch until next winter.
• A student walks into a campus shop for one required textbook and walks out with four extra self-help guides they do not have time to read.
• Your partner looks at the sagging wooden shelves in the living room and asks why you just brought home another bag of thick history books.
• You buy a complex programming manual to look prepared at your new office job, only to let it sit unopened on your desk for months.