Life by Choice

Why I Hate the Word “Should” - 29.04.10

In life, many different people will purposely stop what they’re doing and turn to you, admonishing your decision - or lack thereof - and tell you that you should be doing something else. It’s quite astonishing really how often this word is used when the idea behind it, however well-intentioned it may be, is completely flawed. This happened to me a few days ago when someone suggested that I should have thought ahead of time before going to Best Buy when it was closed, therefore crippling my chances of buying a phone charger from them. Naturally, this piece of advice seems obvious in hindsight, but in actuality I am very glad I didn’t take this piece of advice.

My phone charger was broken, and I did not have the patience/expertise to fix it. Going to the nearby Best Buy seemed like a good option at the time, so I brought around $27 to buy a replacement. Little did I know that the cheapest alternative for my charger was a ridiculous $28.99 + tax. Grumbling on my way home and back, it never occurred to me that I didn’t check the store hours. To keep myself company, I called some old friends on my walk back to the store, armed with an extra $5.

Lo and behold, the store closed half an hour after I arrived the second time. At this moment my friend shared their words of wisdom and again, grumbling. I wasn’t in the mood to be sociable anymore, so we traded goodbyes and I started walking across the street to the mall. Of course, it was virtually empty besides 2 custodians (it was a Sunday) and I almost fell in to despair. Chugging on, hoping that the Target would still be open.

Luck finally was on my side while I was stepping into the brightly-lit, red store. Charging with focused intent towards the electronics department, I found an alternative charger that had a longer cable, more compact size, and was only $24! Nearly jumping right then and there, I quickly remembered I was being monitored by the million+ anti-theft cameras. I jumped anyway. Cruising to the front of the store, there were some attractive girls eyeing me while I eye’d on $1 boxes of pasta. Cheap, healthy dinner + brand-new charger? Right on.

The point of this narrative isn’t that everything turned out good in the end, nor is it about how time-honored wisdom should be reevaluated. Both are good points, but the “moral” of the story is that being resourceful is a strong component toward success. The only reason things turned out well is because I actively looked for a separate answer. There are many paths in life, if one simply isn’t working, why settle for a lesser answer? If you keep yourself flexible, sticking to Plan A is the best way to go.