Spending more than what you planned? Well this is for you.

Money is an important part of our lives. In fact it is a very huge part of it and that’s why we as Millennials must use it wisely and sometimes sparingly.

We have all at certain points been at a position where we walked into the supermarket intending to buy one item and came out with four more. Then when we arrived at home, we were overwhelmed by guilt and promised ourselves not to repeat this. 

The next time, we walk in with a well written list but yet we still manage to come out with unnecessary things.

Hi, let’s talk about why you’re spending more and how to stick to only buying what you intended.

  1. Not having a shopping list

Society has long since identified lists with women and some men believe carrying one to be feminine so most men decide to freestyle it. 

What if I told you there is a way in which you could save face and get the maximum benefits of a shopping list?

This is by jotting it down on your phone’s notepad. 

Most phones come with an inbuilt notepad and it is so sad that some have never even opened it, well the time for its use has come. If your phone doesn’t have this feature, you can as well type the list down and send it as a text to someone who wouldn’t mind.

For the ones who don’t really mind, jot the list down on a piece of paper and tick the items off one by one as you shop. 

  1. Shopping while hungry

This is a common mistake most people make without realising it. When we shop while hungry one is never enough.

We find ourselves reaching out for all the colorful food, designed to entice and seduce our eyes and we keep adding more and more into our shopping cart ,eagerly waiting to devour them when we reach home but what happens once we do? 

We take a few bites and realize that we bought more than necessary. Well a solution to this is just storing the excess in the fridge for a later time but saving the extra spent money would have been a better option.

Next time you go shopping, make sure you grab something before you step into the supermarket. You can thank me later. (wink wink) 

  1. Spending too much time in the supermarket.

You have been walking around the supermarket for a while. The soft tunes playing in the background relaxes you and your pace slows down. Taking out  your phone to check the time, you realise it’s been ten minutes since you’ve been on that aisle. You look down to find your trolley still empty and you can’t quite decide what to get, they’re all pretty similar right?

This over here is nothing other than decision fatigue.

A study conducted by Tonya Hansel, a PhD and director of the Doctorate of Social Work at Tulane University revealed that when humans are overstressed, they become hasty or shut down altogether. 

When you are forced to make multiple decisions at the same time, your mental energy inevitably runs low and once it does one out of two outcomes occur.

  • Decision avoidance.

When you result to this, you pick nothing at all and walk out sans what you came in for. Would you look at that!

  • Risky decision-making!

The more graver one between the two. After a long mental battle, you give in and pick the closest one you can or you pick anything at all just so you can move away from the aisle.

There are two things that have contributed to this, one is the slow tunes. Yes. You didn’t think that was to entertain you as you shop right? 

Studies reveal that customers spend more time in supermarkets where soft music is played. Spending more time results in looking at more options, which result in decision fatigue. Also spending more time there inevitably gives you time for ‘window shopping’ and before you know it, you’ve added the item to your cart.

This is why having a well detailed list before walking in is top-tier, it also prevents decision fatigue since you know exactly what you want. Also don’t stick around for your favorite song, you can as well as play it on your phone once you are out.

  1. Not wanting to break your back

Remember how in P.E session we would be told to stretch and touch our toes? Well we have finally found a use for that. Not touching your toes but the bending part.

Just like any business, the supermarkets have a marketing strategy, the more expensive items are put on the eye-level part and the higher shelves where it’s the easiest to access. On the other hand, the least expensive ones are put on the lower shelves of the aisle. 

Better yet do some stretching and make sure to check out the lower shelves. #lowershelvesmatter

Millie ♥️♥️♥️