What was the GREATEST invention ever created?
The lightbulb? Nope.
The microwave? Nuh uh.
The computer? Ehh…
The hair straightener?
Ding, ding, ding.
Life. Changer.
So…you sense my dilemma when my beloved Chi hair straightener (of 4 years) bit the bullet the other night.
(MAY DAY! MAY DAY!)
I’ve been using a hair straightener most days for half my life now, ever since my mind and life was enlightened at the age of 14, in the 8th grade.
I’ll never forget that church camp retreat where my cool high-school camp counselors broke out their beloved Helen of Troy (i.e. cheapo) straighteners for our girls’ night in the cabin…and wowed me and my middle school friends of the ways of the world—outside our frizz ball and pony-tail bound hair.
Finally! An answer to my go-to (necessary) scrunchie style (i.e. really no style at all)!
Call me ‘dependent’ on my straightener nowadays—the death of my hair straightener for over 72-hours left me feeling like ‘Castaway’ (stranded, deserted).
It did not take me 3-hours to be back on the streets: finding myself wandering the aisles of Target, looking for my replacement.
Regardless of being at least $100 down in unplanned expenses for the month—I really didn’t question the extra expense…after all, I use the darn thing every day.
My dilemma got me thinking though…where our hearts (and priorities) are…our actions (and often times finances) will easily follow.
In a time of need, or even BIG want, we often will do ‘whatever it takes’ to get it.
$100-$200 for a hair straightener?
No problem!
After all, when we need something, or really want something (ahem, priorities), the expenses (i.e. monetary; sacrifices; or action-steps) are often a side factor.
Consider these other scenarios:
- You’re on a cross-country road trip and realize…you are out of gas! In the middle of nowhere Idaho, you see a gas station on your GPS—with no other station in sight for the next 40-50 miles. The dilemma? Gas is surcharged in the middle of nowhere—this station is selling it for $5/gallon. What do you do? Pull over and fill up the gas tank of course! You neeeeed it, and the ‘sacrifice’ of paying $5 per gallon is the least of your worries.
- You’re in the airport, traveling on vacation. You are HUNGRY. You forgot to pack your go-to snacks in your bag as you rushed out the door that morning and have one choice: airport food. Despite the over-priced, and under-delicious salads and sandwiches served throughout the terminal, you settle that it doesn’t have to be a gourmet meal, and you fork over $12 for mixed greens with some measly chicken and dressing on top.
- You’re cheering on your alma mater at your college’s homecoming football game. It’s 99-degrees outside. You are THIRSTY! $6 water bottle? Heck yes!
- Desperate for a life change? Fitness…nutrition….health…mental clarity and health…emotional well-being? You search high and low for the “right” professional, book, advice or program to help you “get the job done.”
- Stuck in traffic? You start Googling alternate routes on your GPS and will take whatever side street it tells you, if anything, to keep moving and refrain from going crazy, sitting at a standstill.
- You have vices. We all have vices. For some it’s coffee (spending upwards of $4-8 every day at Starbucks)…for others it’s a CrossFit gym or yoga studio membership ($200/month on fitness? No problem)….Lululemon or Anthropologie is your daily wardrobe? The cost is secondary to the amazing fit and feel of the clothes!…Cigarettes are a “hard habit to break” (you’ve been going through a pack a day for as long as you can remember)…A cleaning, laundry or cooking service makes your life THAT MUCH EASIER? (it just becomes part of your monthly expenses—no second thoughts)…Would rather have someone else do your grocery shopping (InstaCart) or mow your lawn? Hired!…Value learning? Continuing education and paying for school and courses has never been something you’ve second guessed…
Priorities people, priorities!
As you can see…in all these scenarios, where our hearts are…our actions (and often times money) will follow.
And often times, when and if we want something badly enough, we will do “whatever it takes” to get it.
(Fight or flight mode).
Ever heard the saying, “How a person spends their time or money is key insight into the things they most value?”
It’s true.
In my case here…I valued straight hair—and no matter the cost, I was going to find that perfect straightener for my wavy-hair woes.
Initially, that same day, I purchased a CHI—the ‘mothership’ (so I thought) of all straighteners. Unfortunately, they don’t make things like they used to, and upon one use of it, my hair was no more straight than when I had blow-dried it with my round brush.
Hmph.
Taking it back for my refund…my search continued—laser focused—as I searched high and low for the PERFECT straightener that would deliver REAL results (not just hype, packaging, and marketing).
My 3-hour hunt turned into an all-weekend-long extravaganza…as my next mission led me to my salon in town, where the stylists ranted and raved about the ERGO salon-grade straightener—a model they had upcharged from the originally listed $215 online to $260 in store….
Then to Sephora, where the salesgirls sweared by their $200 GHD straightener—“Everyone loves it,” they boasted…
Then finally Nordstrom, where two more salesgirls gave me some heart-to-heart advice: “You HAVE to find the Babybliss straightener…”
With so many options, and just needing a darn straightener (as my wavy locks had begun to resemble those of my former middle-school youth…ahhhh!!!)…I lastly, resolved to see what Google had to say about all three models.
The winner?
Hands down: The Babybliss straightener—a model I had never heard about before.
(It’s amazing what you can learn when life leads you down paths you’d never thought of beforehand—from buying a car…to a health condition you’ve recently been diagnosed with…remodeling a house…picking out a dog breed…getting eye lash extensions….to buying a straightener).
By Sunday evening…72 hours later…I made my way to JCPenny where I found “the” holy grail of straighteners, and purchased the Babybliss Titanium Nano Straightener (ON SALE!).
Ahhh….sighhh…
Peace washed over me as my journey to solving my dilemma had finally come to a close…
Yes, hands down: I personally do recommend you try the Babybliss if you too are on the look out for a great straightener.
Through my experience, I realized…yes…where our hearts are…our actions, our thoughts and/or money often follows.
I was “all in” to find “the perfect straightener” solution to my wavy-hair woes…and also realized, in other areas of my life, my actions and thoughts and finances most often align with what I truly value.
In what areas of your life are your actions, your thoughts and finances paving way to your ‘successes’, reaching your goals or finding what it is you really want?
Straighteners aside, often times, in the ‘bigger’ areas of our life, a look at our check book, our daily actions and ways we spend our time are KEY insights as to whether or not what we say is actually what we really want…or what we want is actually what we really do.
People will…
- Pay for anything they really value
- Do whatever is required when they really want it
- Find a way to make things happen
It can be far too easy to say:
“It’s hard.”
Or, “I can’t help my ____ (cravings, my habits, my old ways).”
Or, “I can’t afford it.”
But if and when we REALLY WANT SOMETHING…We will go get it (whatever ‘it’ is: be it a straightener, strength gains in the gym, to pass a test, weight or body change, improved health markers, a job we love, etc.).
So what do you want?
Best I have ever used is the Karmin :)
Definitely Karmin :)