A significant price increase notice from Adobe started me down the “subscriptions” rabbit hole. As a teacher, I received a substantial educator discount from Adobe, which continued into retirement. I’ve consistently used some of the applications, but not InDesign and Illustrator – the two primary reasons I continued to pay the fee each month. My rate would double at the September renewal. I canceled. For how I use the applications, the juice was simply no longer worth the squeeze. Other, more affordable, options are available.
Next, I addressed the other item bothering me – our dental insurance (not!). After 15 months of dental and vision insurance through my alumni association, I canceled the dental coverage, but kept the vision plan. Why? I view optional individual insurance like this as a prepaid plan for services. My expectation is that premiums paid in and benefits paid out should be about the same at the end of the year. The math didn’t math. Our dental plan paid out in benefits about 25% of the premium amount received, whereas the vision plan actually paid for itself.
I didn’t cancel everything. I actually switched my Cricut Design Space subscription to an annual one to take advantage of a 30% discount. It made “cents” as I frequently use the service.
Lastly, I set my Craft Industry Alliance membership to non-renew at the end of the current term. While not expensive, I don’t really do anything other than read the email newsletters (which are free). I can always rejoin, if FOMO strikes.
The unexpected surprise? I let my Spotify premium membership (which I’d had for YEARS) return to the free plan when my annual subscription ended in April. Why? They allowed ads in the podcasts, which weren’t removable, even with a paid plan. I primarily use Spotify to listen to podcasts. Why would I pay to listen to ads? Know what? All is well. Absolutely zero FOMO.
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