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Are you a fashion satisficer or a fashion maximizer?

MsMary

Veteran

Anne's thread about over-buyers and under-buyers reminded me of something else interesting I read on Gretchen Rubin's blog a while back, about how we make our buying decisions.

Turns out there are two kinds of shoppers: Satisficers and maximizers. Let's say you (me) are looking for a pair of white shoes. If you are a satisficer, you keep looking until you find a pair that meets your requirements (comfortable enough, acceptable price, reasonable heel height, acceptable toe shap), and you buy that pair. But if you are a maximizer, you don't buy that pair -- at least not yet. You keep looking because you want to make sure you have found the very best (however you define "best") pair of white shoes that are out there. Maybe you can get 'em cheaper! Maybe you can find a pointy toe instead of an almond toe! So you don't buy until you are sure you have explored all the options.

I'm a satisficer all the way. If I see something (shoes, house, car...) that fits the bill, I'll jump and I almost never look back. It mostly works for me (I bought the almond-toed white pumps because I really needed white pumps and didn't want to have that gaping wardrobe hole all summer while I searched in vain for the perfect pointy pair), but sometimes it backfires. I think when it backfires, I'm not being honest about what my priorities are -- like the time I bought not one but two pair of cheap leopard shoes because I thought I didn't want to spend the money on the more expensive ones I really wanted. I ended up buying them in the end anyway! So now I am careful to be honest about what my requirements are.

Which one are you? Satisficer or maximizer? And does that hold true for other areas of your life as well?

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Shopping

48 replies

Latest reply was from Lisa

Suzanne (ambergreen)

Veteran

Hee. I'm a fashion under-buyer and satisficer, but I do research to find the thing that satisfies. However, more of my buys are out of opportunity, not research.

In other words, I buy when I see something I like a lot--I am usually not looking for anything in particular. It's so frustrating to go looking for things with a certain set of characteristics and not find them, so I do a lot less of that kind of thing than I used to.

Maybe I should have said--to make a long story short--I let fashion find me rather than the other way around more often these days.

LACeleste

Veteran

Hi!

Interesting article. I am extremely decisive and all about efficiency. Satisficer for sure in all areas: husbands, rescue cats, houses, etc. It works for me.

ETA: I am a researcher by trade so I do check things out and also have a cautious nature. Although quests are fun, endless quests are not (for me) and I realize that there is quite probably always something better out there. It's always a push/pull struggle with my perfectionist personality and my pragmatic side that says a little compromise is OK. I value time more than perfection.

MsMary

Veteran

Heh. I used to be a satisficer in husbands. If I'm gonna continue to do that I'm gonna need to really work on my requirements...

LACeleste

Veteran

You deserve someone incredible.

My requirements for character were rigid---height not so much. Hus and I are eye to eye.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Interesting. Can we be both? For me, it depends on the type of thing I'm buying. If it's something that's absolutely necessary and I need it in a hurry, I'm a satisficer. So, for example, if I have no casual summer sandal, I might buy one that meets my main requirements (comfort.) even if it has one or another feature that is less than ideal. I won't compromise on the comfort, but I would compromise (maybe) on the colour, shape of the heel, etc. -- within reason, that is.

But if it's not, strictly speaking, necessary, yet it IS something I truly want, I will play PPP until I find it. Recent example: I went the winter with only ONE fabric blazer. And I am a jacket lover. I had purged my less-than-fab options and had no others. Eventually I bought my Reiss jacket, which is perfect for me. I tried many, many others.

cinnamon fern

Veteran

I tend towards maximizing in shopping, although probably less so than in other domains.

In general: I am a maximizer, but married a satisficer. I think this is a good combination - we balance each other out.

ironkurtin

Veteran

I am extremely decisive as well. I see it! It's good! Let's go!

I've ditched countless shoes, but the boy and I have been together for 20 years so I guess sometimes it works.

Day Vies

Veteran

I used to be a maximizer -- then I learned with somethings (particularly those that call my name and stay on my mind) you just need to go with the moment and buy it or you will regret it. I would pass things up because I wanted the best price. Well I've learned that best price doesn't matter if the item doesn't exist anymore for you to buy. So now I am a satisficer. I have requirements and if they are met and the price is within range I pull the trigger and I don't look back. I have regretted NOT buying more than I've regretted buying.

cheryl

Veteran

I think I am both depending on what the item is. Very interesting though.

amiable

Veteran

Can I be a maximizer in need of recovery? I'm maximizing right now over comfortable walking black sandals, and driving myself nuts.

ManidipaM

Veteran

maximiser tendencies. overall in life too. but then I have lived with no closet for half a dozen years. so in recovery and heading into satisficer territory cautiously.

partly it is champagne tastes on teetoller budget though.

MsMaven

Veteran

Generally I'm a satisfier, but I tend to keep looking for something maximum. If I have a big occasion I either find "it" right away, and stop looking, but if I don't find exactly "it" I'll buy a decent one that satisfies, just in case, but I'll keep looking. And looking. And yes, I do buy way too many shoes.

Firecracker (Sharan)

Veteran

I think I'm like Ambergreen: a lot of what I buy finds me. And like Suz, sometimes I'm a satisficer. But if I'm really out to get something specific, I'm more of a maximizer. The thing is, sometimes those items that I buy rather quickly (satisficing) are ones that I get tons and tons of wear out of.

Right now I'm maximizing over a toaster, now that ours of 15 or more years is giving out. . . .

ETA: okay, I just read the web page that you linked to, MaryK, and I think I'm much more of a satisficer. I can take a while to find just what I'm looking for (as in, my criteria can be pretty specific and hard to find) but once I do, I'm generally pretty set with the decision. I don't have to see every single thing out there to be confident of what I got.

always trying

Veteran

Mary K you really stated ME exactly, at least until recently. since I realized I had too many shoes that were not working for me I did the big purge, and am really sticking to getting the ones I really want-and really analyzing what I really wnat -what will truly fill a "need" and now that is flowing into my clothes purchases too.

rachylou

Veteran

Hmm. I don't think I'm a maximizer. I don't do much searching for the holy grail. On the other hand, I put a lot of work into my satisficing... I will go to every store within a 90 mile radius to get the thing.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Well, I definitely relate to the maximizer mindset! My husband and I joke about how we can go to a restaurant and he immediately picks something off the menu -- he is very decisive and very impulsive. Frequently, something will catch my eye right off the bat, but I almost always have to look at every. single. option on the menu, just in case there is something better! I'd hate to overlook an opportunity!

But depending on the item, when I'm shopping, I can be a satisficer too. Especially if we're talking about an item with a low price point.

As someone who did not get married until the age of almost 38, I suppose you could say I was a maximizer when it came to choosing a husband, too.

rae

(website)

Veteran

Total maximizer! I will even buy and return and rebuy for "research" before I finally settle...

celia

Veteran

Maximizer all the way
For example, I need a pair of ankle strap sandals/shoes and some pointy toe low heel shoes. In my mind the options swim joyfully:
"Maybe I will buy some nude pointy heels because they are more elongating and buy the strap sandals in a darker color for ankle pants"
" But nude ankle strap sandals would be more versatile for skirts"
"What about if I buy peeptoe wedge nude sandals and navy slingback pointy shoes?"
"I could buy wedge navy ankle strap shoes"
"But I really need some pointy shoes in black or navy for my navy dress pants."
"What about caged black wedge sandals?"
"Nude pointy toe kitten heels would look so good with some of my dresses"
and so on
and so on
Basically my mind is like a duck glidding on a lake: serene on the outside, kicking like crazy underneath the surface

rabbit

Veteran

With clothes? I think I'm a maximizer now although I started as a satisficer when I woke up to the fact that all I had to wear were ratty t shirts and a faded pair of jeans -- then for a few weeks I just bought basics that were on deep discount and the right color - they weren't bad and are useful, but how excited can I get about a long-sleeved marled gray tee? Now I have enough clothes so something usually has to go if something else comes in so I'll agonize and look at several shops when trying to find cheap sunglasses for example.

With everything else it's generally a love at first sight or don't bother thing for me: husband, kittens, car, couch, house, career, spiritual path. Huh, for all that I think of myself as a very reluctant decider who is forever weighing variables I do trust my gut heavily for the big stuff and am willing to leap.

Thistle

Veteran

Satisficer for the most part. I try to have very solid an well defined requirements at the front end, so I know what I am purchasing works for me. It is harder to define with clothing other than comfort and at least a modicum of style.

For example, when we bought our house (which we will be in for 11 years this August!), both DH and I made a list of Must Haves and Would Like to Haves in order of would like to have. The house we bought had all of the Must Haves. We still like our house and our neighborhood. The only reason we are even contemplating a move is the number of people in our house is about to be twice as many as when we bought it

Vildy

Veteran

This is so useful! I've been familiar with the concepts but didn't connect them to clothes shopping. Weird, huh. I remember Dennis Prager, radio host, explaining how he shopped for a house: buys the first one that meets his requirements and therefore could see himself living there plus he can afford that one. Realtor wants to show him more than one house, say, but why, this one will do. My mouth dropped open listening to that but actually I operate that way in most things. It often works but sometimes I find that I focused on some features I really wanted but should have put in more thought and come up with a few more features that I discover I wanted too late.

I hate shopping. I love having the convenience of something or other and I love clothes but I hate the hunt. I haven't yet read the thread on overshopping or undershopping but it occurs to me that if I find shoes that seem comfortable and I like them well enough and I get them and wear them, that won't stop me from being satisfied to find other pairs that fill the same needs. Therefore I can accumulate too many. Since I mostly shop thrifts, it doesn't dent my budget to be fickle and experimental and purge continually. But I do realize now that if I were a maximizer I would indeed have very few shoes and very few pieces of clothing.

Sometimes, accidentally, I hit upon exactly what I had in mind to wear: one year I wanted ankle booties and spotted some ultra comfortable ones in brown and in black. Possibly I would have bought even more pairs had they had even more colors. I wore them all the time, ignoring other shoes, even in the summer! I started to wear them out. Found almost the same style and size in the same store 2 years later, bought them, and they just didn't end up as comfortable or my feet changed. You'd think, though, that at my age with my long years of experience at selecting clothing that I could have already arrived at some narrower definition of what would suit me best. Why do I seem to have a coat for every few degrees the weather changes?

Helena

Veteran

What a terrific question - I am a total satisficer, to a fault I would say. It holds true in any area of consumption in my life actually ... I always remember Gretchen Rubin saying she was the type to say, why buy tissues, just use a paper towel ha! That is me to a T!

Aziraphale

Veteran

Oh goodness I'm absolutely a satisficer -- although my computer insists that's not a word! Took me three tries to convince it not to change it to something else, lol.

I grew up with a mother who would, when shopping for an item (clothing or otherwise), look at every damn option in the city. She'd waste weeks of her precious time, not to mention loads of gasoline, driving all over the place to compare. When she finally bought something and brought it home, she'd still waffle. Is it the very best one? Can I get it cheaper somewhere else? Maybe I can drive across the border and find something in the States! She was constantly returning things, bringing us along. It was always "just do one quick stop". It was very tiresome.

As a result, I've been conditioned to make quick decisions, and I almost never return what I buy. I just try not to buy very much, and I buy the best I can afford in many cases.

I do make mistakes, though. But oddly, I don't seem to make more mistakes than my mom did, after all that agonizing decision-making process!

Marley

Veteran

Satificer all the way! Absolutely cannot stand doing research - never have. I have much more fun things to do than research.

When I was in graduate school, I hated having to do research before I started writing my papers. I loved the actual writing of the paper - but not the "prep", (i.e. research) that needed to be done prior to the writing.

I'm the same way with my shopping. I have a relative who is a serious maximizer all the way - and I have learned (the hard way) that I should never, ever shop with her. Just buying a couple of tank-tops is an all-day shopping experience. She not only has to look at every single tank top in every single store - but she many times has to go back and look at them several times before she makes her decision. She also always has her phone or iPad with her - and so while she is B&M shopping, she is also looking on-line for the best deal on a stinkin' tank top!

I must admit however, that at times I have taken advantage of the YLF maximizers sharing their knowledge with us satificers on the forum (as well as Angie.) I appreciate them doing the research for me - but if they didn't, I still wouldn't feel a need to do it myself before buying something for my wardrobe! I just don't have the time or desire to spend my time that way!

Janet

(website)

Veteran

So funny! Not many researchers/maximizers so far.

I LOVE research. I spend longer planning some of my trips than the actual time I'll spend traveling, but for me that's part of the fun.

rabbit

Veteran

I think maybe a component is what is fun for you. For me shopping when there isn't a time crunch is generally fun, it's a chance to get out of the house and studio, see people, drink in the sunshine, observe life. I'm in a small compact city so while time use is a factor, driving or walking to a couple of different stores isn't (so the gas cost might be pennies while the difference in price for two tee shirts is several dollars). Also finding a bargain is fun for me. I love the print out on the bottom of the receipt whether I'm buying frozen pizza or razors that says 'you saved X' amount. Money saved on necessities means more money for joyful things.

The flip side for me is dining out, one of those occasional joyful things. My husband gets very picky and wants to drive around for what seems like hours while I'm hungry and just want to stop at one of the many reasonably priced great local places we are passing....

ETA: or what Janet said, we cross-posted.

Glory

Veteran

My first thought was can we be both but I suspect that one really tends to be more on one side than the other. I am completely a satisfier - especially with clothing. It usually works out for me but like MaryK it does sometimes backfire. I buy the cheaper version and then pine for the other one that I really wanted. Interesting - for my kids I am a maximizer.

fuzzylogic

Veteran

What an interesting question!
I have maximiser tendencies. This was particularly obvious when my budget was very, very lean. These days I am happy to make a purchase if it I love it and it completes the ensemble/makes the capsule more versatile; I don't remember any major disappointments.......but I still lean towards maximising.

KikiG

Veteran

I used to be a maximizer, in my teens and 20s. I had more time than money, and shopping was an outlet and a way I explored my own identity.

Then I got over it. A full time job and some kids will do that for you! I'm a clothing satificer, but a good deal of thought and dithering goes into the process of identifying the targets. I say that I shop like a man. Money isn't the point, mostly, it is satisfying the need and being able to go home and get on with life. I am especially like this with shoes, given that I have certain needs for work and picky feet. YLF helps me avoid frump, or worse, dressing too trendy for my life.

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