The Pre-Printed Shopping List

Using a pre-printed shopping list can save you time, help you avoid running out of things, and reduce the energy and effort put into shopping. Here is how my family uses one.

We have a Word document with multiple columns with a section for every store we routinely go to (Costco, Trader Joes, Target, etc). Under each store's heading we list the things we routinely buy there, in the order they occur in the store when we are shopping, plus a number of blank lines to write in unusual purchases. We print this list out and keep it on a clipboard on the fridge, and whenever we notice that we are running low on something we immediately circle it on the list or write it in. Then, when its time for the weekly shopping run we review the routinely purchased items for each store to see if we need to circle any of them, and then head off to the store. At the store we just walk the aisles and grab the circled items as we come to them.

For me, the main advantage of this system is that you don't have to struggle to remember what you need when you are out shopping, and you don't even have to struggle to remember things when you are putting your shopping list together.

Another big advantage is that it cuts down on shopping trips. Because everything is so organized, we only make one shopping trip a week, and never have to run out to the store on short notice to pick something up. I find this saves a lot of time over the course of weeks and months.

A few people we know who have seen us using this list at the store have acted a little shocked by our level of organization. I admit that not many people are this organized about shopping, but then again many households spend a lot more time and energy on shopping than we do. There is only so much time each week to do the things we like to do, so to me it makes sense to streamline the routine tasks as much as possible to free up more time for other things.

Don't send an email to a group asking them to do something

I am constantly amazed how often I see otherwise intelligent people send out emails asking a group of people to do something. For example:

To: John, Susie, Bill
From: Braindead
Re: Annual report

Who is going to prepare the first draft of the annual report? Please let me know.

Thanks,

Braindead

It just can't end well when you ask a group to do a single task. Chances are all the people you sent the email to will assume that someone else is going to respond and ignore it. Or, two or three people will respond with different answers, which will trigger a cascade of follow-up emails to straighten out the inconsistencies. Either way, you are not moving forward. Asking a group to do something without identifying an individual to take the lead is a recipe for delay and confusion.

Instead, always send your email to a single person asking them to respond to your question or request, and copy the other people who need to know about it. For example:

To: Susie
Cc: John, Bill
From: Smartypants
Re: Annual Report

Susie, please let me know who will be preparing the first draft of the annual report. You should confer with John and Bill about who would be best to do this.

Smartypants

Now Susie knows she is expected to respond and your request doesn't fall through the cracks.