We all have regrets. It’s human to regret something we’ve either done or didn’t do, said or didn’t say and so on. If you ever meet someone who says, “I have no regrets”, they are lying to you. Regretting doesn’t have to be something earth shattering or life changing, it can be small and simple. Just something you’d go back and change, if you could.
I happened to recently have done something that I now regret. Actually, it’s what I didn’t do that I wish I could go back and change.
After seeing a movie with a friend, I went for a walk down Lincoln Road which is filled with shops, restaurants and tons of consumers. I looked in the windows of the stores, admiring all the displays and fighting back the urge to spend what little money I had. As I walked, I became aware of the people around me. One group of twenty-somethings, males and females were approaching me, eating ice cream and talking amongst themselves about one of their friends.
And then it happened… abruptly one of the girls stopped, ran over to the window of an Anthropologie store and was wildly pointing at a belt. A single belt on a foam model and a small, miniscule part of a detailed window display. The girl’s eyes were wide and full of excitement as she exclaimed to her small group of friends “Oh my God I love this belt, I’m obsessed with it!!”
It was a rushed emotional expression that had left just as fast as it had came. Everyone smiled, a few girls said, “Oh I love that too” and then they moved on. No one went in the store and looked at the belt, inquired about the price or tried it on. They didn’t even buy the belt.
When the girl said “I’m obsessed with it!” I chuckled a little. If I had a nickel for every time I’ve said, “I love that… it’s so fabulous!” and never actually owned it. But WAIT… Why? Why didn’t I buy that item or even look into buying it if I thought it was so fabulous and worthy of my attention?
More importantly, why didn’t that girl… the girl who was in love and “obsessed” with this belt not own it or buy it right there on the spot? She stopped her whole group of friends to let them know how she felt about this accessory in the window of a store and didn’t even own the thing! Proposterous!!
My regret? I wish I would have asked that girl why she loved the belt and how she could be so passionate and vocal about this item that she didn’t own. Was it the store name that had drawn her to the item? Or was it the way it was displayed? Did she know someone else that had it?
Why didn’t she just BUY IT????
If… er… When I solve the belt mystery, I think I’ll be one step closer to being a good planner.
