Generosity benefits you!

Yesterday, I went shopping for black pants. I had store credits, so I went there. The sales are great this time of year, unless you tend to buy things you wouldn't otherwise buy . . . I went in determined not to spend beyond the credits I already had. Usually, I'm quite good about that discipline when I predetermine my plan. Yesterday, however, I ended up being able to get more than I thought for the money and had a hard time making decisions at the register.

Anyone else have the ridiculous urge to get every last penny out of a store credit, so you buy more than you should and inevitably spend some money beyond the store credit? The stores count on that . . . and the fact that many people lose them and/or hold onto them until they expire . . . I digress. Anyway, I ended up added some pricey (and yummy) candy bars to my purchase to squeeze every last penny out of those store credits. It was ridiculous and is not likely to help me stay comfortable in my new black pants, either. I did it anyway.

On my drive home, I remembered an instance where I did better in the past and wanted to smack myself in the forehead. On to the success story. A better day, I went to a store, picked up some things I needed with store credits, ended up just shy of my gift card balance and handed it to the person behind me in line on my way out. I've done this more than once, and you'll never see someone so happy for less than a dollar in any other circumstance! The best part is that I didn't spend anything those days, either. The person behind me in line had already made their decisions, so it was instant savings (and not temptation) for them, as well.

Next time I go out, I'll try to add another success story, rather than another aggravating afterthought :) Maybe you want to try this technique - it becomes like a game and can be very fun!