Ever hear of the dog walk of shame?
I’ve managed to take it several times in my pup life. I’m not ashamed. Because, I’m sure every pup has taken it too at some point in their pup-dulting career. In fact, it happened to me just last week.
There I was in Woof Foods. Yes. Woof Foods. Walking through the aisles. I went in for some flour and applesauce to try out a new pupcake recipe. However, the more I roamed around each aisle, the more stuff I started to grab. Before I knew it, my paws were full of items and with the items slipping I could barely manage everything.
So, off I went. Humbly taking that dog walk of shame back to the front of the store to grab a cart to put all of the food in. You see, I told you we’ve all done it before. What dog walk of shame did you think I was referring to?
Anyway, the one caveat to this dog walk of shame, other than the feeling of total embarrassment as I tried to avoid those judgy pups watching me dumping all of my items in the cart, is that I ended up spending more nudges than I intended on groceries.
Budgets are pretty tight in the beginning of the pup business owner phase. And in the words of my pup financial planner…
More nudges can’t fix bad spending habits.
So, I decided to get really strategic with my grocery store visits. I can take the judgy stairs of the pups watching me grab a cart. However, I’m not willing to risk the judgy stares from my pup bank account when I try to purchase things I can’t afford. Here are a few of my tips to avoid the dog walk of shame altogether.
PICK A DAY FOR SHOPPING
Running back and forth to the store every day for one or two items can get to be a waste. Especially, when you’ve got a limited time before your human gets home. Not only am I spending precious time waiting in line at the store, but I end up nickeling and diming myself with all the extra expenses. So, I pick a day every week or two to designate as a day for grocery shopping and put it on my calendar.
MAKE A LIST
I always make a list of the things I need. This way I’ll know whether to grab a cart or not. I also decrease my time once I get in the store. Making a list also helps with my grocery budget and makes it easier to watch for deals. The one trick is to make your list over a certain amount of time. This way you can plan for the items you need.
NEVER SHOP WHILE HUNGRY (OR HANGRY)
Ever notice when you’re hungry, you end up with more items in your cart. So, to avoid those extra “hangry/hungry” purchases, try to go to the store with a not so empty stomach. It’s hard to stick to a list when you’re stomach starts growling in harmony as you pass by your favorite foods in the grocery store. If you need a little something to nosh on, these Apple Peanut Butter Pupcakes are a perfect light snack to settle your stomach.
PLAN FOR LAST MINUTE PURCHASES
We’ve all gotten to the store and realized we needed something that wasn’t on the list. Or, we’ve all had the sudden urge to treat ourselves to some food item we want to indulge in. Peanut butter anyone?! So, build that item on the list by adding “treat” or “forgot to put on the list.” This way, you can budget for it and literally stick to your list as well.
And if you still have to do the dog walk of shame, at least it wasn’t because of poor planning. So, those judgy pups can feel free to kick rocks. But, I’d love to hear from you.
How do you avoid the dog walk of shame?
Please share in the comment box below.
