So how did you do rethinking an old habit? Was anyone able to think through a habit and decide it either needed changing or was worth keeping?  Ready for another challenge?

Another habit we need to consider is routinely buying something because Mom or Dad did. This is a subtle one. When one leaves home, sometimes still in their teens, how do they decide which laundry soap to buy? Do they just not do any laundry while researching additives, colorants, scents, effectiveness and cost efficiency? Chances are they either buy whatever is cheapest or choose what their parents bought. Generational brand loyalties were a very, very powerful thing before the internet and social media. For those of you under 30 years of age, buying the same laundry detergent your mom bought was as emotionally powerful as creating a trending Twitter hashtag.

And the companies that create and advertise brands bank on this knowledge. Images of Mommies hanging laundry out to dry on a clothesline while a little curly-haired girl dances among the flowers nearby is selling the image of freedom and love as much as clean clothes. To my generation, a ring around the collar equaled a laundry-doer who just didn’t care. Stains on children’s clothing were unacceptable. Any scent wafting from a closet other than “April Fresh” was a disgrace.

And it’s not just laundry. Spaghetti sauce, ketchup, hairspray, shampoo, toenail clippers—everything we purchase has the potential of being chosen because of generational loyalty. Have you tried other brands lately?

A big bruhaha came of the sudden change of formulation last summer when Silk Soymilk stopped using organic soy beans, but adjusted their label in a way to look so similar that many consumers were tricked into believing the product was the same.

So, ‘fess up. What do you buy because your Mom did? Why do you stick to it? Are you willing to give other brands a shot? How about forsaking the “brands” altogether in favor of a homemade alternative? Is there one purchase you make over and over without really thinking through they “why” of that particular brand? Come back Thursday for my story. But today, leave a comment or link to your blog where you discuss this topic. Let’s encourage each other out of the trap of automaton shopping!

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