The old adage that has if it looks too good to be true, it probably is holds true almost every time. I have come to realize that you really do get what you pay for. Let me give share wit you how I learned apt his very valuable lesson. .
Just a couple of days ago I made a dreadful decision that would prove to be the lesson I learned that prompted this very blog post. My son's birthday is this Friday. As usual he gave us his list weeks ago as to what he wanted. He decided that this year he wanted a tape recorder. He was very specific on what kind of tape recorder. It had to be digital. It also needed to be big enough to fit in his hand. He wanted it to the size of a phone. Ok I thought, this is going to be a challenge. We happened to go to Kmart shortly thereafter and I thought, let me check if they have this tape recorder. Willa, I found it. And it was only like 30 bucks. I thought I was a winner. It had buttons just like he wanted, it fit in my hand and it looked like the old school recorders. My son loves old school so I didn't hesitate and I purchased this recorder and checked off in my mind his biggest present was bought and I had to save at least a hundred dollars over what I thought I would have to spend. The item was put away to later wrap and get ready for his big day. After all he was turning 17 and we had to make his day special. A couple weeks go by and I overhear my son say that we is going to start a podcast as soon as he got his recorder. Immediately I felt a panic come over me. I asked myself, did I buy a recorder that could be transferred to a computer? Was it an MP3 recorder? That's what you need if you are going create a podcast. Where did I put that darn thing? I needed to check to make sure it was the right thing he needed. I had trouble sleeping that night because I left it in my office so I could hide it and also wrap it there. The nest day I check it closely and it is totally the wrong thing. Now what? His Birthday is less then a week away and I have the absolute wrong thing. I can't pass that off. So the panic turns to my adrenalin pumping way to fast. I start to look online for the one he needs. Two hundred dollars later and some missed sleep and a whole lot of stress later, oh and some fifty dollars in shipping costs to make sure it reaches us in time, I now had my son's birthday gift. Where did I go wrong?
Two things come to mind right away as I look back over this dreadful experience. First thing is I didn't do my homework to assure I was looking for the right thing. Secondly, I let my frugal gene take over. Well that cost me in the long run. I knew it was too good to be true but I bragged and bought it anyway. I hope I learned a lesson. I had wasted precious time, more money then I had to because of the rush fees and not to mention the list sleep and stress. This may sound ridiculous to you but what is your tape recorder, in what area have you done almost the same thing and paid dearly in the end.
If I could help you all learn a lesson from this fiasco then I will feel like it was not in vain. It's always important to do your homework before you jump in and especially before you waste a bunch of time and money doing it the hard way.
Until next time,
Tammy Rodriguez
www.aaarealtyllc.com
www.flpaintcontractor.com
www.alwaysclearwater.com
No comments:
Post a Comment