Comparison Shopping

Shopping can be a tricky business when you’re trying to get the best value for your dollar. When you are, however, willing to cast all budgetary concerns aside, you’ll find that it suddenly becomes a whole lot simpler. In case I haven’t been clear, what I’m trying to say is this. If you’re not worried about the cost of an item, and you’re willing to pay any price to get what you want, you can streamline the whole process and end up happier in the long run.

You think I’m wrong? Hardly. As someone who has made a habit, a lifetime habit, of never purchasing anything until I was sure I had found the very best deal possible, I know whereof I speak. “Compare and Save” was my motto. I almost made a game of it, and it didn’t matter if it was a can of green beans or an automobile. I was not going to fork over the money until I was satisfied that I was not paying one penny more than I had to, and I didn’t.

I shopped as though I was down to my last nickel, and there were times I may have taken it too far. I very vividly recall the day years ago when I was bringing groceries into the house. As I was setting them down on the kitchen counter one of my children walked in. He scanned the contents of the bags and said, “Mom, everything here is generic.” Then he turned and walked away shaking his head. I didn’t care. I had saved a fair amount of money, and I was feeling good about it.

The one problem I ran into, and you probably know what I am about to say, is that I frequently sacrificed on quality. Instead of getting what I wanted, I often bought something that was not quite as good because it was cheaper. Not smart. I ended up regretting it almost every time, so I’m not doing that anymore. If I can find a better deal on the exact item I want, I’ll certainly take it, but if I can’t I’ll just cough up the asking price and not look back. No regrets. You should try it. Pay that extra 49 cents. Then step back and take a deep breath. Let it go. That wasn’t so hard, was it?