3415: The Power of Choice by Emily Rose Barr with No Sidebar on Mindful Consumption

[00:00:00] Study and Play! Come together on a Windows 11 PC! And for a limited time, college students get the best of both worlds! Get the Unreal College Deal. Everything you need to study and play with select Windows 11 PCs. Eligible students get a year of Microsoft 365 Premium and a year of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate with a custom color Xbox Wireless Controller. Learn more at windows.com slash student offer. While supplies last, ends June 30th. Terms at aka.ms slash college PC.

[00:00:30] From athletic stuff like a full-court pickup game, swish, to athletic-ish stuff like a half-mile stroll. Get those steps in! Head to Sierra or Sierra.com for the brands you want at the prices that let you do it all. From athletic to athletic-ish, Sierra's got it! This is Optimal Health Daily, The Power of Choice by Emily Rose Barr with Nosidebar.com. And I'm Dr. Neal Malik, your host.

[00:00:55] Hey there, welcome back to Optimal Health Daily or welcome for the first time if you're new here. This is the podcast where I act as your very own personal narrator and read to you from some of the most popular health and fitness blogs online. Alright, and with that, let's get right to our next article as we optimize your life. The Power of Choice by Emily Rose Barr with NoSidebar.com.

[00:01:22] As someone who seeks joy from simplicity and is no stranger to the rewards of owning less, I often find purchase decisions overwhelming. Take the grocery store, for example. It's not uncommon to spot me agonizing over ice cream flavors, chocolate chip varieties, or tea blends. Do I want pistachio or salted caramel? Mini or semi-sweet? Mint medley or pure peppermint?

[00:01:48] Don't get me started on deciphering among toothpaste brands or picking out the perfect greeting card. It's not just grocery stores either. It's clothing stores, communication stores, app stores, and home goods stores. I can barely decide what book to read next, let alone what color socks to buy. It can be challenging to sift through the number of options we have at our fingertips, whether we're browsing for bedsheets or baking soda.

[00:02:14] In many ways, variety on our supermarket shelves and in our shopping centers is a blessing. It allows us to personalize our homes and wardrobes and transform our gadgets into personal assistants. It lets us exercise freedom in deciding what enters our lives and what doesn't, and experiment with new ways of being. It fosters creativity, connection, brand loyalty, and innovation.

[00:02:39] There's something comforting in knowing that self-expression can be sought from a number of shades, textures, shapes, and sizes. Apple's trademark phrase, there's an app for that, is no longer just a figment of our imagination, but a rapidly evolving reality. I was reminded of this recently by the influx of apps being offered for free or at a discounted rate. Developers of health and fitness, meditation, and education platforms are taking note

[00:03:09] and doing their part in hopes of easing the suffering many are experiencing. As an avid meditator, I was initially tempted to take advantage of each new offer coming my way. Like a kid in a candy store, it was hard to resist that which was now so easily accessible and free. But I soon found myself feeling a bit panicked. How was I going to keep up with all of these programs? Would I find each of them useful? What would happen when the promotion period ended?

[00:03:38] Would I be inclined to subscribe? And if not, would I miss what I once had? Our values can be so easily compromised when temptation arises. I don't typically fall for flash sales, one-time only offers, seasonal promotions, or drastic discounts. But I briefly entertained the idea of opting in because I worried that if I didn't, I might be missing out. If you find yourself struggling with similar thoughts, I encourage you to be mindful of what you're saying yes to.

[00:04:08] When I asked myself what I'd be committing to, I realized I was pretty happy with the meditation practice I already had. I knew that I'd likely get overwhelmed by trying to keep up with all the new content being rolled out and didn't want to create stress around a ritual that was meant to be relaxing. In the end, I realized that it wasn't realistic or useful to increase my meditation practice tenfold.

[00:04:33] I recognized that I was more excited about the idea of a premium product being made available at little or no cost than I was about many of the products themselves. I made a conscious decision to limit my use to one app, and I'm so glad I did. Perhaps you prefer having two or three apps to choose from, and that's okay too. Understand what you're needing during this time and be deliberate in how you go about obtaining it.

[00:04:59] If you feel that familiar urge rise up to say yes to something simply because it's free, ask yourself how it might serve you, and if it fills a need that isn't currently being met elsewhere. Sometimes giving yourself a day or two to decide can help you connect with the feelings beneath the surface that might be driving your impulses. We can't always limit the number of options from which we have to choose, but we can remind ourselves of the deep joy to be found from owning less.

[00:05:27] We can maintain the routines and rituals that ground us, and recognize that their simplicity is part of what makes them soothing. We can challenge ourselves to say yes with conviction to that which makes us feel whole, and connected, and no to that which leaves us feeling empty and in a state of longing. We can remember, today and every day, that the strength and calm we seek resides within.

[00:05:56] You just listened to the post titled, The Power of Choice by Emily Rose Barr with NoSidebar.com, and I'll be right back with my commentary. If you're a small business, the right hire can be make or break. Hoping the right people see your job posting isn't the best growth strategy. When the pressure's on and you need the right hire, this is a job for sponsored jobs. Join the 3.3 million employers worldwide that use Indeed to connect with quality talent that fits their needs.

[00:06:25] Spend less time searching and more time actually interviewing candidates who check all your boxes. Less stress, less time, more results. When you need the right person to cut through the chaos, this is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs. And listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit to help get your job the premium status it deserves at Indeed.com slash podcast. Just go to Indeed.com slash podcast right now

[00:06:55] and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.com slash podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire? This is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs. Expedia and Visit Scotland

[00:07:23] Dr. Neal Malik here with my commentary. Today's author, Emily, mentions something I want to go back to. Emily said, if you feel like saying yes to something simply because it's free, ask yourself how it might serve you.

[00:07:52] This reminded me of something else I had heard when I was attending a nutrition conference of all places. The speaker at this nutrition conference was questioning the value of so-called value meals at fast food restaurants. They also brought up those on-sale items at the impulse buy sections in stores and supermarkets. The speaker said, is it a value to get more of something you didn't need in the first place? So I really loved Emily's suggestion to take a moment,

[00:08:21] maybe a day or two, before making a purchasing decision. There are apps now that have this buy now feature. You hit that button and within hours, that product is sitting at your doorstep. All of that removes the thinking out of whether you need that purchase or not. If we add a product to our cart and think about it for a day or two, we're probably less likely to purchase that product. We'll think about it and realize, maybe I don't need that after all.

[00:08:49] But if after a day or two or even a few days, you're still thinking you need that product, well then by all means, if you can afford it, go for it. But again, I encourage you to think about this line. Is it a value to get more of something you didn't need in the first place? And then decide whether or not you actually need that item. All right, that'll do it for another edition of Optimal Health Daily. Thank you so much for listening. And of course, I'll be back here with you again tomorrow. So I'll see you there

[00:09:17] where your optimal life awaits. You're welcome.