Jul 7, 2008

Drugstore Game Burnout

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago over at CFO Reviews that I had gone to CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid in one week, prompting Gina to caution me against doing too much and burning out on The Drugstore Game. She definitely has a point.

The Drugstore Game is a lot of fun, but it can also be a lot of work organizing coupons, studying the circulars, and reading deals online. And of course, after everything is planned, you still have to get to the stores. If they don't have what you planned to buy, you have to re-work your deals, get a rain check, or head to a different store.

For me, though, all of this is still loads of fun. It really is a game to see how much I can buy for the smallest amount of money possible. I get a real kick out of it. And as I've mentioned before, time isn't that big an issue with me. I clip and organize coupons while the kids are playing, I skim the deals when I'm on the computer anyway, and I usually hit the drugstores on the way to or from somewhere or when the kids and I need to get out of the house and go somewhere.

One of the many wonderful things about The Drugstore Game is that you can pick and choose how and when you want to play. You can focus on just the one or two stores closest to you, you don't have to go every week, and you can even take a break for a couple of weeks or months if you've built up a nice stash.

The key to avoiding burnout in The Drugstore Game is making it work for you.

Do you agree?

7 comments:

Mercedes said...

For me the best way to avoid drug store burnt out is recognizing that you don't have to chase every deal. Like you said, once you have built a nice stash then you don't have to be thinking about getting the free/very cheap "X" at the durgstore of your choice. Because you know that you already have that item in your stockpile. So you can save the energy that takes chasing that deal. In the past month I hit my walgreens twice. that's a far cry from how many times I used to do it at the beginning.

Kacie said...

I totally agree! When I first got into drugstoring, I got a bit burnt out because I hit the deals really hard, and it was just taking up too much time.

Now, I make the game work for me. I don't always get the absolute best deals, but I spend less time shopping and it works much better for me!

Deepa said...

For me the best way to avoid burn out is to realize that its OK to make mistakes once in a while.

When I started drugstoring, I used to get stressed when I walked into a Walgreens/CVS because I had too many deals & too many scenarios in my head. Then my husband asked me to ease up (wise man!) and asked me to just focus on saving some money instead of trying to get most of our household stuff for free.

Chief Family Officer said...

@Mercedes - I think I've reached exactly the point you've described, where I'm not getting every deal because I don't need to. I'm totally in awe of your Walgreens prowess, though!

@Kacie - I love that you've found your balance!

@Deepa - Your hubby does indeed sound very wise :) That's some great perspective!

marci lambert said...

i agree completely. i love doing the grocery game with my grocery store and drug store lists. but because i have a good stockpile i don't feel the need to try to get every deal anymore. and i have saved money overall (even though i've had some big bills at walgreens at times). still, it's kind of thrilling when i save 50% at the grocery store. and i've already looked ahead to next week's walgreen's flyer and have planned a shopping trip for school supplies. it's a bit addicting.

JusFrugal said...

I totally agree... I LOVE getting deals and stretching the dollar at both the drugstores and the grocery stores... but overdoing it takes the fun out of the game!! Mercedes love your Walgreens posts!!

http://jusgrocerybrags.blogspot.com/

At Last said...

I definitely agree! I have reached that point of drugstore burnout even though I have another eight ECB dollars in my vacation pouch [yes, we did go to CVS on vacation, lol!!]. Thanks for posting this - I was beginning to think I was the only one feeling this way.