Do You Have the Time to Shop?
Do You Have the Time to Shop?
The average woman spends 8 years of her life shopping.
Are you above or below average?
Do you consider shopping a time-waster? What would happen if you limited all your shopping to one day of the week? Even internet shopping. Would you save money? save time? What would you do with your extra time?
Try logging the time you spend shopping for one week. Write down on your calendar when you are shopping and for how long. Also, note how you feel while shopping. Are you escaping your busy life? Is shopping a stress reliever for you? or does it cause stress? Once you connect with the feelings you have while shopping, consider what activity you could do instead. Would some physical activity (like taking a walk) or a quiet activity (like meditating or reading) be a better alternative than spending time and money shopping?
Just something to think about.
Read more of our posts on this subject.
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Janet Schiesl
Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.
She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.
Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.
Janet Schiesl
Janet has been organizing since 2005. She is a Certified Professional Organizer and the owner of Basic Organization.
She loves using her background as a space planner to challenge her clients to look at their space differently. She leads the team in large projects and works one-on-one with clients to help the process move quickly and comfortably. Call her crazy, but she loves to work with paper, to purge what is not needed and to create filing systems that work for each individual client.
Janet is a Past Board Member of the National Association of Productivity and Organizing Professionals and a Past President of the Washington DC Chapter of NAPO were she has been named Organizer of the Year and Volunteer of the Year.
I think my daughter spends a lot more than this LOL! I used to enjoy shopping more, but since clothing has gotten larger, I find the whole process frustrating. I see so many cute shoes, but they never have my size. I do love grocery shopping… does that count? I do think internet shopping has saved me a lot of time. Amazon Prime is kind of dangerous:)
Hi Seana. I love grocery shopping too. Don’t really like shopping for anything else. Internet shopping can be dangerous! I love Amazon Prime as well, but try to only buy wants needed.
That’s a frightening statistic! I like shopping as a practical activity when I need something. I also enjoy browsing from a visual/design perspective. It’s not necessarily to buy something, but looking at things sometimes sparks ideas for me that have nothing to do with purchasing stuff. I might see a funny phrase or a color combination, or enjoy feeling my way (as in touching the stuff) as I look in a store. It’s a tactile, visual experience. Internet shopping is a time and money saver for purchasing regular products that I need to replenish. Amazon Prime lets me do that and save on shipping costs, time, and gas. I don’t think I’d save time if I shopped on one day for everything. For me, that kind of structure isn’t necessary. I try to group similar activities. So if I need to run a shopping errand, I try to do it on a day when I know I’ll be near that particular store.
I also love shopping at stores that are well mechandised, mean beautifully set up. I get caught up in the visual, but usually don’t by anything. I was also surprised at the statistics. Someone is shopping a lot more than me or you.
I think I’m probably below average, but my shopping routine dropped when I went from working for the government (where I had a scheduled lunch hour every day and easy access to shops) to a non-profit (where I didn’t get a scheduled lunch break) and later working at home. Now I tend to only go when I need something in particular, which isn’t as fun, but does save me lots of money (and time).
I’m pretty scheduled with shopping as well. I don’t know if that saves me money thought.
You don’t think you’re less likely to impulse shop if you’re out for a specific reason, rather than just killing time?
Wow, that’s an interesting statistic. I might have been headed to the 8 year mark once upon a time, but it feels like the older I get the more I go into shopping “stealth” mode. I like to be really strategic about it – I plan times when crowds are likely low, I usually research items online before I’ll head into the store so I don’t waste time making decisions, and I limit the number of places locally I’ll go to (so I really know the stores, their layout, and sometimes even the clerks really well). I’m not sure what flipped the switch on this, but I even found I really didn’t enjoy browsing stores much on a recent vacation. I guess I just have more I want to do with my time now (read, write, hang with family, watch movies).
Love the look of the video!
Sara, you bring up something I’ve been thinking about. When you eliminate something that takes up a lot of time (shopping for entertainment, watching too much TV, etc) you have so much more time for more important things.
That’s an interesting statistic. I am probably below average, as my only routine shopping is grocery shopping. I hate shopping for clothes because it takes so much time to try on everything, and I’m hesitant to buy most clothing online because it often doesn’t fit properly. When I do shop, I almost always bring a list with me so I can save time.
Thanks Nancy. I think a lot of people mindlessly shop. That is will the stat is so high.