Cure for excessive LEGO Mania?

[Kliq]

I know that we can all joke about how when a new line is released or a sweet new set hits the shelves that "There goes my food budget" or "My wallet's going to hate me for this", but what happens when it's not a joke? There is counseling for alcoholism, gambling, and drugs, but what about for buying Lego? With sites like eBay and Bricklink, there are so many resources for the shopaholic to get their fill, and not feeling buyers remorse until days later gets me worried. With a bank account linked to Paypal, just a few clicks is all it takes before the money starts draining away. I think to myself, "Man, I'm sure in a Castle mood right now, I wonder what kind of deals I can find on eBay" and before I know it, bids are placed across the board. And 'Buy It Now'? Oh don't get me started. First it was classic Pirates, then Castle, and just within the last couple of days old school Space has lurked it's way into my mind. It's scary when you see the little green total of money spent on eBay on the left-hand side of the screen, and it's nearly 4 digits from recent purchases alone. Every time I feel as though I'm satisfied, another theme temps me and I can't stop myself. The boxes and boxes of packaging lay torn across the floor. I have more packing peanuts than grains of sand on a beach. I tell myself, "Okay no more, you've got enough, think about the future" but somehow I forget all of that when I realize a Bricklink seller has four sets that I want all at reasonable prices. Let me tell you, enough reasonable prices get not so reasonable real fast.

All jokes aside, I can honestly say I've bought nearly as much Lego as I've spent on this semester's worth of University tuition. From the BSB and SES in the pirate line, to Black Knight's Castle and multiple Black Monarch's (yes multiple because I placed bids on a few and ended up winning more than one) to several large classic Space ships, I continue wanting more. The idea of just 'watching' an item on eBay seemed to be the last thing on my mind. Thankfully I'm content with Used instead of MIB, or I'd be out on the street.

I don't want to scare anyone, I'm simply asking for advice. Has anyone else spent so much that they've had to switch their college's meal plan from 7 day to 5, and then wish they'd be able to go even lower than that? How do you all cope with excessive LEGO Mania? Thanks in advance for any replies!

Edit: I've totaled up Bricklink purchases since the last date it would let me (around April) and added in eBay purchases in the last 31 days. This leaves out all of the Pirate sets I bought and many Castle sets, and the total still comes to around $3,250.86. I have a post in the 'What did you buy today' thread with my Castle buys. 11th post on the 197th page, if anyone's curious.

Edited November 13, 2008 by Kliq

[Captain Zuloo]

This is the first case I have heard of excessive LEGO mania, but I'll lend a hand if I can.

Depending on how serious your situation is, I wouldn't worry about it and you should just tell yourself to stop. However, if this is actually becoming a living hazzard, then the best thing to do is get a general social worker. I really can't help because I don't know how to get into your head especially over the internet. And many people won't have the foggiest idea what to say, so don't be dissapointed from a lack of replies. So I would see someone.

But for my input, just ask yourself, "where am I going to put it all and where will it end up?"

[Kliq]

This is the first case I have heard of excessive LEGO mania, but I'll lend a hand if I can.

Depending on how serious your situation is, I wouldn't worry about it and you should just tell yourself to stop. However, if this is actually becoming a living hazzard, then the best thing to do is get a general social worker. I really can't help because I don't know how to get into your head especially over the internet. And many people won't have the foggiest idea what to say, so don't be dissapointed from a lack of replies. So I would see someone.

But for my input, just ask yourself, "where am I going to put it all and where will it end up?"

Yes, that's very true. Storage is a big dilemma. Actually, posting this thread and reading it over sorta helps. It lets me see that (at least right now) I've recognized a problem. I've actually thought about cancelling my Paypal account, but I don't know if I'm willing to take that step yet.

[Alldarker]

It sounds like your addiction is less lego based, than it is based on the excitement and uncertainty of e-Bay auctions. What I mean to say is, for you the thrill is in the chase; the getting and probably not actually in the having. You're probably finding that once you have received these sets they don't give you the fulfilment you thought they'd give you.

To be honest, I've had periods like this, especially with Transformers and GI Joe: you see a figure you want, and during the hunt for the most attractive offer, you come across other very attractive offers.

I am usually able to snap out of these periods after a while, realizing that what I bought didn't really make me that happy. And yes, lack of storage is also a

And when that happens, I sell everything again! I try to make a profit, but I find that the excitement of selling is usually just a great or even greater than the hunting and buying.

I'd suggest that you also start selling some of the objects you have bought. Even if you break even, that's not too bad: you've had the objects in your hand, and I find that is sometimes all I need (although I have bought and resold Transformers that never left their MISB inbetween).

[Captain Green Hair]

I know what you mean, i seriously need to keep my hand on my wallet sometimes as well.

But there's bricklink, ebay and what not....

You should try and make up a budget for lego on a monthly basis and keep that budget, that might work.

As some others said it might also be the excitement of winning ebay auctions, perhaps you should stay off ebay, or block it if it's too hard.

Selling doubles can also make you funds wich you then can invest in new sets.

I've also had periods were i was spending way too much on lego, but nowadays i have a budget and i stick to it.

Good luck with it!

[Guss]

that's a sad problem you have :/

I don't have this problem, even when I have a lot of money, I watch carefully what I'm doing before buying anything, sometimes there is a set I really want and I buy it without thinking, but it's rare... I know my limits.

as example, right now I have 400CHF ( approximately ) that I can spent On lego for the end of the year ( including Christmas present ) , I m surely going to save some to the pirate line, 250 CHF, It remains 150 chf, I'm going to buy 2 aquaraider sets, It remains 50CHF.. with these last 50 chf I'm going to try to get an old BSB or SES on ebay, If I can't , then I'll keep these until I have some money to buy big sets, or maybe buy a little set that I like, that's all, I know my limits, what you have to do is Just planning the future set you're going to buy, including the Ebay's one!

If you want to restrain yourself on ebay , just follow these simple rules :

1/ Never bid on more than ONE set, there is NO unique lego set, you'll have other way to buy a "OMG that's a rare set at low price"

2/when you Bid on a set, just watch your bank account to see if you can buy it, don't forget to think about what you need to live!

3/not more than 1set / week ! that's enough!

4/If you buy a set that you already have by mistake and don't want to keep it, sell it on Ebay!

that's the rules I followed when I had a job, worked well^^ ( was not with lego but that's the same thing ) , now that I don't have a job I just DON't buy on Ebay ( I'll just buy the BSB or SES ^^ )

hope it helped, sorry if that's not very understandable

Edited November 13, 2008 by Guss

[SWMAN]

No offense, but they are just toys. When you are a kid and you like to spend your allowance on Legos, that's cool. When you are 50 years old with a solid job and can afford to spend that much on Legos, that's cool. But when you are a college kid who needs every dime, it is time to take a break and worry about more important stuff. This about all the extra money you will have if you stop buying Legos? The last resort would be selling all of it. From your post, it sounds like you have a ton and could get a good hunk of change from all of those. If you get rid of all of them, you won't want more.

[baby]

Hmmm, I got a same problem too but mine is more of insufficient fund to buy new sets. I was like you, I bring my meal a bread with peanuts butter spread.from home to school everyday just to save up money for my LEGO collection. But as time passes by, my money won't be enough so I start a LEGO bussiness, sell my old set and get a new sets or even get a pre-order list from people to earn extra income just to cope up with it. But sometimes I will stress out as I always need to do calculation after another calculation and so some budget for my LEGO.

Well, there's a way for you, you can always put your set up in Ebay especially the sets you have duplicate like 3 sets, sell one of them, it won't hurt you as you still have 2 with you one new box at the back of the display while the assemble one in front. I got storage problem too and also dust problem as a result I kept them all back in the box after I done playing with them to try to make my LEGO dust free. But seriously you have to think about your health as without health there will be no LEGO for you. Eat when you should. brainstorm ways to get extra income instead just depends on pocket money as it will not be sufficient for a LEGO addict like you.

My advice:

1.Sell some of your LEGO collection especially the one with duplication.

2.Part time job.

3.Always search for the best deal before purchase (saving extra can buy more sets)

[skaldcrow]

I would suggest finding other things to do with your free time, which are free and healthy. Go for a walk or a hike, ride a bike, visit museums, create art, go on dates (okay, that's not free), etc. Maybe you'll find something more fulfilling than lego.

[Nyundi]

Yeah I definitely have this issue from time to time. It can be very satisfying, and dangerous, to by addicted to any sort of shopping. Personally, I tend to buy lots of new lego on serious sales (like TRUs buy 2 get 1) and then shove it all in the closet. Then, one day, when I really really really have a jonesing for a new set I can go "shopping" in the closet. I actually have so much in there at the moment that I couldn't even list it all from memory.

This tactic serves me well in that I am getting everything as cheap as is reasonable to find, and I do so when I have the extra cash for it (again, to use the TRU sale as an example, I know that it comes up twice a year or so; I can save up for it intentionally so I can get the most out of it). This makes the spending substantially more controlled, and still allows me that fix whenever I want as there is a store full of unopened stuff in the closet waiting for me at a moments notice.

This, however, may not be remotely helpful to you, as it seems that you're more inclined to target older sets (luckily I still have all of mine, and the collection is fairly complete so there are only a few that I keep an eye out for on ebay). This being the case for you, I'd recommend taking a look at some consumer friendly websites that have real advice on how to reign in spending in general. A blog that I read daily, The Consumerist has had many articles that talk about how to resist the urge to spend money when you don't have it. And some of the advice is really creative, and certainly can be extreme.

If you are real serious about wanting to stop spending, and places like ebay and bricklink are genuine problems I'd recommend adapting the advice that you'll find around about curbing credit card spending. Basically, the advice is usually something like "freeze the card inside a block of ice, so that if you really really really want/need it, you have to wait a few hours to get it out, which give you time to reflect on its use". You could do a similar thing, by "freezing" (ie. blocking) ebay, paypal, bricklink, and other websites from your computer. This block surely wouldn't be permanent, but you can make it just inconvenient enough that you'd have to have more than an impulsive reason to go to the website. Tactics like this can be very effective.

Basically, every chance you can give yourself to pause for a moment and realize what you are about to do is another chance you have to change your mind.

Best of luck!

[Buttons]

I'm going to buy 2 aquaraider sets

Don't do it Guss !...

[Kliq]

First off, thank you all for your thoughtout and helpful replies. I'll try to respond to some of the main points of each.

It sounds like your addiction is less lego based, than it is based on the excitement and uncertainty of e-Bay auctions. What I mean to say is, for you the thrill is in the chase; the getting and probably not actually in the having. You're probably finding that once you have received these sets they don't give you the fulfilment you thought they'd give you.

To be honest, I've had periods like this, especially with Transformers and GI Joe: you see a figure you want, and during the hunt for the most attractive offer, you come across other very attractive offers.

I am usually able to snap out of these periods after a while, realizing that what I bought didn't really make me that happy. And yes, lack of storage is also a

And when that happens, I sell everything again! I try to make a profit, but I find that the excitement of selling is usually just a great or even greater than the hunting and buying.

I'd suggest that you also start selling some of the objects you have bought. Even if you break even, that's not too bad: you've had the objects in your hand, and I find that is sometimes all I need (although I have bought and resold Transformers that never left their MISB inbetween).

It's true that Lego isn't the only product where I've acted this way. I was going crazy buying up old Pro-Wrestling figures. In that case, just holding them in my hand for awhile was just enough, and I haven't really even looked at them since. Selling those back wouldn't be too hard. The problem here is that I actually do love all of these sets. I build them, display them, and feel that they look so good. Part of the issue is that I have this attachment, otherwise selling them would be no trouble at all. Thanks again for your reply!

I know what you mean, i seriously need to keep my hand on my wallet sometimes as well.

But there's bricklink, ebay and what not....

You should try and make up a budget for lego on a monthly basis and keep that budget, that might work.

As some others said it might also be the excitement of winning ebay auctions, perhaps you should stay off ebay, or block it if it's too hard.

Selling doubles can also make you funds wich you then can invest in new sets.

I've also had periods were i was spending way too much on lego, but nowadays i have a budget and i stick to it.

Good luck with it!

Thanks! Yes, a budget would be extremely helpful. Luckily I haven't dug into my savings yet, so there is still time to slow it down and hopefully even stop for a while. A budget would also give me something to look forward to at the beginning of the next month.

that's a sad problem you have :/

I don't have this problem, even when I have a lot of money, I watch carefully what I'm doing before buying anything, sometimes there is a set I really want and I buy it without thinking, but it's rare... I know my limits.

as example, right now I have 400CHF ( approximately ) that I can spent On lego for the end of the year ( including Christmas present ) , I m surely going to save some to the pirate line, 250 CHF, It remains 150 chf, I'm going to buy 2 aquaraider sets, It remains 50CHF.. with these last 50 chf I'm going to try to get an old BSB or SES on ebay, If I can't , then I'll keep these until I have some money to buy big sets, or maybe buy a little set that I like, that's all, I know my limits, what you have to do is Just planning the future set you're going to buy, including the Ebay's one!

If you want to restrain yourself on ebay , just follow these simple rules :

1/ Never bid on more than ONE set, there is NO unique lego set, you'll have other way to buy a "OMG that's a rare set at low price"

2/when you Bid on a set, just watch your bank account to see if you can buy it, don't forget to think about what you need to live!

3/not more than 1set / week ! that's enough!

4/If you buy a set that you already have by mistake and don't want to keep it, sell it on Ebay!

that's the rules I followed when I had a job, worked well^^ ( was not with lego but that's the same thing ) , now that I don't have a job I just DON't buy on Ebay ( I'll just buy the BSB or SES ^^ )

hope it helped, sorry if that's not very understandable

Thanks, and yes it helped a lot. Not bidding on more than one set is something that I could see myself embracing. I can almost never see myself ever selling Lego unless I was in debt or at least close to it. I just love them so much. Some people are extreme gamers with their expensive consol games, but that money goes to Lego for me. Watching my bank account is another good point that I'm going to use with my new budget idea.

No offense, but they are just toys. When you are a kid and you like to spend your allowance on Legos, that's cool. When you are 50 years old with a solid job and can afford to spend that much on Legos, that's cool. But when you are a college kid who needs every dime, it is time to take a break and worry about more important stuff. This about all the extra money you will have if you stop buying Legos? The last resort would be selling all of it. From your post, it sounds like you have a ton and could get a good hunk of change from all of those. If you get rid of all of them, you won't want more.

Yea, if I stopped buying Lego, there would be some nice extra money. There usually are in between periods when I don't buy Lego and I have a nice surplus. Luckily I have never really spent more than I could handle, but I agree I still need some restraint. Thanks!

Hmmm, I got a same problem too but mine is more of insufficient fund to buy new sets. I was like you, I bring my meal a bread with peanuts butter spread.from home to school everyday just to save up money for my LEGO collection. But as time passes by, my money won't be enough so I start a LEGO bussiness, sell my old set and get a new sets or even get a pre-order list from people to earn extra income just to cope up with it. But sometimes I will stress out as I always need to do calculation after another calculation and so some budget for my LEGO.

Well, there's a way for you, you can always put your set up in Ebay especially the sets you have duplicate like 3 sets, sell one of them, it won't hurt you as you still have 2 with you one new box at the back of the display while the assemble one in front. I got storage problem too and also dust problem as a result I kept them all back in the box after I done playing with them to try to make my LEGO dust free. But seriously you have to think about your health as without health there will be no LEGO for you. Eat when you should. brainstorm ways to get extra income instead just depends on pocket money as it will not be sufficient for a LEGO addict like you.

My advice:

1.Sell some of your LEGO collection especially the one with duplication.

2.Part time job.

3.Always search for the best deal before purchase (saving extra can buy more sets)

Thanks for the advice! Luckily it hasn't come to the point where my health has been effected, as I wanted to stop the problem before I got there. I know what you mean about dust. With so many built sets out in the open, it's hard to take care of them all. As for duplicates, I can understand selling an extra abstract set, but among the doubles I have are classic modular castles that look so great while displayed. Job! Good answer. I had thought that while I was in school I would focus on classes rather than work, but a part time job would be something I could handle. Thanks again.

I would suggest finding other things to do with your free time, which are free and healthy. Go for a walk or a hike, ride a bike, visit museums, create art, go on dates (okay, that's not free), etc. Maybe you'll find something more fulfilling than lego.

While I am horrible with art, I agree doing other things can help take your mind off the problem-causer. The thing with this is, I'm able to go to class, study, hang out with friends, ect. because it only takes 5 seconds to place a bid or buy up something on Bricklink. Building is the only thing that takes time, and to be honest, it's a real stress reliever.

Yeah I definitely have this issue from time to time. It can be very satisfying, and dangerous, to by addicted to any sort of shopping. Personally, I tend to buy lots of new lego on serious sales (like TRUs buy 2 get 1) and then shove it all in the closet. Then, one day, when I really really really have a jonesing for a new set I can go "shopping" in the closet. I actually have so much in there at the moment that I couldn't even list it all from memory.

Haha, that's not a bad idea. I remember as a little kid wanting to put a couple of my Christmas presents in the closet so I'd forget about them and one day find them to a great surprise.

This, however, may not be remotely helpful to you, as it seems that you're more inclined to target older sets (luckily I still have all of mine, and the collection is fairly complete so there are only a few that I keep an eye out for on ebay). This being the case for you, I'd recommend taking a look at some consumer friendly websites that have real advice on how to reign in spending in general. A blog that I read daily, The Consumerist has had many articles that talk about how to resist the urge to spend money when you don't have it. And some of the advice is really creative, and certainly can be extreme.

Thanks! I will certainly give that a look.

If you are real serious about wanting to stop spending, and places like ebay and bricklink are genuine problems I'd recommend adapting the advice that you'll find around about curbing credit card spending. Basically, the advice is usually something like "freeze the card inside a block of ice, so that if you really really really want/need it, you have to wait a few hours to get it out, which give you time to reflect on its use". You could do a similar thing, by "freezing" (ie. blocking) ebay, paypal, bricklink, and other websites from your computer. This block surely wouldn't be permanent, but you can make it just inconvenient enough that you'd have to have more than an impulsive reason to go to the website. Tactics like this can be very effective.

Basically, every chance you can give yourself to pause for a moment and realize what you are about to do is another chance you have to change your mind.

Best of luck!

Very good advice, because I can certainly say I feel different after awhile if I wait. I've been inside of Target carrying around a Lego set for awhile, and then actually put it back because I felt I didn't need it. Thanks for reminding me of that.

Edited November 13, 2008 by Kliq

[Guss]

I'm glad it helped you a little^^ I Hope that you'll never get in trouble because of lego, That would be sad!

Don't do it Guss !... pirate_tong.gif

I didn't, I only bought one ( was a promotion on the lego site) , then I bought the 7784 on a shop , half the normal price! I love christmas for it^^

It makes me think , Kliq, there is another thing I usually do, I always try to buy sets when there is a special offer on it, or wait for your favourite shop to makes some offers on toys ^^ ( I bought the Castle chess set, my 2 aquaraiders sets, my batmobile ( 7784 ) , my creator house ( 4954 ), the sandcrawler (10144) and a castle set I don't remember the name while there were a special offer on it, I wanted to buy these before but I was short on money, so I waited until I found the good occasion, and It worked well! I saved a lot of money thanks to it^^)

Edited November 13, 2008 by Guss

[Zepher]

I'm a kid, so this issue doesn't apply to me.

I'd say though, lock it up and give someone else the key. If you try to claw through the locked area within 24 hours you have a problem. Get help.

[Kliq]

I'm glad it helped you a little^^ I Hope that you'll never get in trouble because of lego, That would be sad!

I didn't, I only bought one ( was a promotion on the lego site) , then I bought the 7784 on a shop , half the normal price! I love christmas for it^^

It makes me think , Kliq, there is another thing I usually do, I always try to buy sets when there is a special offer on it, or wait for your favourite shop to makes some offers on toys ^^ ( I bought the Castle chess set, my 2 aquaraiders sets, my batmobile ( 7784 ) , my creator house ( 4954 ), the sandcrawler (10144) and a castle set I don't remember the name while there were a special offer on it, I wanted to buy these before but I was short on money, so I waited until I found the good occasion, and It worked well! I saved a lot of money thanks to it^^)

Thanks for the further advice, Guss! The problem here is, there really aren't any shops around that sell the type of sets I find myself going for. I'll occasionally pick up a newer set from Target, but for the most part my problem stems from the ease of finding great buys online.

I'm a kid, so this issue doesn't apply to me.

I'd say though, lock it up and give someone else the key. If you try to claw through the locked area within 24 hours you have a problem. Get help.

Well, as I'm buying Lego online, I assume you mean lock my computer up? In that case, I need it for school. (Oh, and for posting on Eurobricks ) As for getting help, that's exactly what I'm trying to do with this thread right now. lol.

[darkrebellion]

I have something like this too but its not the same. I don´t spend so much money on lego because I don´t want to spend all on it actually, I like the videogames and the movies also and the gadgets too so here is my dilema: I am a complatist collector so actually I don´t have enough money to spend in lego because it is not my only hobby in my life . I want to own every set but I don´t like the fact that I would only spend my cash in lego, it is something that for some reason scares me . I will suggest you the next:

1- Stop buying so much stuff and you can always spend in your favorites keeping some cash for other things .

That my suggestion .

[Kliq]

I have something like this too but its not the same. I don´t spend so much money on lego because I don´t want to spend all on it actually, I like the videogames and the movies also and the gadgets too so here is my dilema: I am a complatist collector so actually I don´t have enough money to spend in lego because it is not my only hobby in my life . I want to own every set but I don´t like the fact that I would only spend my cash in lego, it is something that for some reason scares me . I will suggest you the next:

1- Stop buying so much stuff and you can always spend in your favorites keeping some cash for other things .

That my suggestion .

And I thank you for it! Hopefully I can come up with a great solution. Thanks to all of these great replies, I'm sure I'll figure out something.