October 2013

Are you an intentional shopper?

Do you know how you can save money by being organized? Become an intentional shopper!

An intentional shopper is someone who shops for the items they need, when they need them. An intentional shopper is aware of what they already own and therefore know exactly what they need to purchase. An intentional shopper uses a list to make sure they are buying only what is needed and not just anything that looks interesting.

So how do you become an intentional shopper?

The first step in the process is to take an inventory of what you already have. If you are feeling overwhelmed already, then remember you can always break it down into smaller steps and tackle one area at a time.

Let’s start in the bathroom. Go through all your cabinets, drawers, closets, etc. and take note of what you already own. How many half used bottles of hair product do you have? How many of those products do you never intend on using again? Throw them away! If you do intend on using them, then pick one product and use it up until it is gone. Any products that you find in the bathroom that have a crust growing on them is an automatic throw away – no questions asked! Once you have used up what you already own, then put what you need on your list for the next shopping trip.

Next stop is the pantry. If you go to the grocery store without a list then I’m guessing you are purchasing items that you may or may not already have on hand. If you go through the pantry and organize it into sections then it will be easy to see what you already have and what you need. If you don’t have a grasp on what you already own then I would guess there are some quite out of date items lurking in the WAY back of your pantry. Clean it all out, dispose of the expired items, and take note of what you have. As you use something up then add it to your list for the next shopping trip.

Once you have done this in both your bathroom and your pantry take a look at what you threw away – how much did all that cost you? When you become an intentional shopper and only buy what you need and use up everything you already have you save LOTS of money!

That’s just one way to get organized to save money! Come to one of my presentations to learn more ways!