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Zen Friday: 8 Tips on How to Shop Relaxed, This Black Friday
Historically, Black Friday is one of the biggest days for the retail industry, and it has become known for being the formal kick off for the Christmas holiday season. The biggest shopping holiday of the year, it has now become customary for stores to mark down their merchandise, with insane discounts. If you are a bargain beast, then you are probably already more than familiar with this concept and have been marking your days down on your calendar all year to this epic day of deals, but you have probably also seen how shopping on this particular day can awaken an crazy side of typically civilized people. What should be a totally normal day, manages to always erupt into unnecessary chaos.
After an evening of relaxing and binging on turkey, my dad would always take my sisters and I out on Black Friday, to the nearby upscale mall, because who doesn’t love a great deal on designer labels? Yes, the crowd volume could be overwhelming at times, and I definitely witnessed plenty of people losing their cool over missing out on grabbing the last “light blue Ralph Lauren oxford in a size eight”, but everyone in my family unit always managed to keep our composure, not allowing the pressures of shopping to get to us. Perhaps it is because my father and personal shopping mentor always had a Zen approach to shopping mayhem. Whenever things in the store would seem to get a little out of hand, his calming energy and wise words would instantly disuse the situation, even with strangers. He was like a bargain Buddha, and his ability to subdue and rationalize with even the most aggressive and stressed customers, made him a favorite amongst all the retail staff.
So for all of you planning to brave the Black Friday shopping, I will share with you the Willard secrets to enjoying your Black Friday, and how to avoid getting sucked into the crazy:
1. Thanksgiving is the eating holiday of the year, and after a day of sedentary gorging, think of Black Friday as an opportunity to squeeze in some much needed exercise. Take the stairs, instead of the elevator. Have a lot of heavy bags? Do some arm curls! Sure, standing in line is obnoxious, but standing in itself burns calories. This isn’t about shedding pounds; exercise is the best way to releases endorphins to the brain, which will subsequently make you experience feelings of happiness, in spite of whatever is going on around you.
When the last of what you want is gone, don’t kick yourself for missing out, or kick the customer who was lucky enough to snag that last item. Instead, remember what the holiday season is really about. What was your initial intention when you decided to shop on this day? To do for someone else and show how much you care, and fortunately material items are not the only way to show love. If you have to get your man a red sweater, because the store is out of the blue one he’s been eying, he will understand and just appreciate you were sweet enough to add him to your list.
4. Karma is real- even while shopping. If you intentionally trip someone while running to get the last of the Girlfriends DVD Box Set or are rude to the sales people brave enough to work on this day, then you can expect something foul to come back your way. If you see someone struggling to reach an item on the top shelf, help them get it down. Also always let the salespeople know how much you appreciate their service. These kinds of little maneuvers may seem like they would not make difference during the Black Friday shopping experience, but stores have awarded my father personal discounts on top of the already marked down prices because they admired the kindness he exhibited, amongst all the chaos. Being thoughtful is always valued, and a little bit of kindness can go a long way.
If the store is completely out of the item you are looking for, come up with a story that blames Santa; like though Santa tried, the elves ran out of materials too soon, and because of the shortage, Santa gave all the scooters to less privileged kids first. You may be met with some initial fussing, but just shift their attention to all the fun stuff they did get, and they will soon forget it was even missing. When people look back at past holiday memories, they don’t remember what they didn’t get- they remember the laughter, warmth, love, and effort made my parents to make the day a special one.
Lights Please?
*All photos were sourced from Pinterest
