What You Can Learn From a Cheap Pair of Shoes: How to Get Anything You Want

Shoes have always been expensive – I remember being a kid, y’know, back when the economy was good – people used to kill each other in bad neighborhoods over a pair of $100 sneakers. So, getting 4 pairs of shoes for $35 – downright amazing.

What Kind of Shoes Did We Buy?

We bought Crocs. Now, are Crocs the best shoes in the whole wide world? Not really. I mean, they ARE comfortable, and I do love they can get wet and dry out really fast and are super easy to clean…but there are some issues with the tred on the shoes – there isn’t much there after you wear them every day for a year – I was starting to slip on wet floors. Shoes should last longer than a year with normal everyday wear – I mean, that is what shoes are for, right? Little kids tend to trip when wearing them a lot (some schools have even banned them), and they even come with a warning label not to wear them on escalators due to a hefty 7 million dollar Crocs lawsuit. So, I can’t say I bought the world’s best shoes or anything like that.

But, this a lawsuit happy world – and escalators in general are dangerous, no matter what kind of shoe you wear and especially if kids are involved. If I was on an escalator with my kids (which I avoid completely if possible) – and one of them got hurt, I would say, well of course they got hurt! Escalators are death traps! But, so are cars. So are airplanes, roller coasters, and bath tubs. Everything is dangerous. Risk is everywhere. My kids trip and get hurt even when they don’t wear shoes.

So, I refuse to live in fear that the wrong pair of shoes will cause any travesty for our family any more so than the millions of other threats lurking out there. What I do know, is a pair of comfortable shoes will make you a much happier person in life! (They have been accepted by the American Podiatric Medical Association and many others as recommended footwear because of how they mold to one’s feet – so while they certainly don’t make any fashion statements, they are comfy!)

So, how did I get 4 pairs of Crocs for $35?

Crocs are not really all that expensive if you pay full retail price for them (about $30 or so) – but, when you multiply that times 4 and consider that three of those pairs of feet will outgrow them within 6 months or so – you really don’t want to pay more than $10 per pair.

So, first, we went to the Outlet Mall about an hour and a half away from our house. Outlet malls are supposed to be cheaper than regular retail stores (they tend to sell out of season/unpopular stuff no one wants) – so when we got there we complained were loudly vocal to each other in conversation that none of their shoes were any cheaper than the ones sold at regular Crocs stores. (Oh sure, they had some winter boots for $20 and a bin of factory mistake crocs for $10) but really, all the prices were pretty much the same. It defeated the whole purpose of driving all the way out there, because most of the shoes were the exact same price as the shoes at the Croc’s stores closer to our house. Finding sizes, that actually fit us in a style we liked at a price we wanted, was also a challenge.

But, determined the trip not be a waste, we looked around for some good deals. When we checked out I found out the shoes the girls were getting (marked at $10) were only $5. Awesome. My son’s shoes were $10 – not too shabby for a growing 8 year old boy. My shoes were the expensive ones at $24.99 – but the really nice surprise was they gave us a $9 coupon when we checked out, which technically knocked it down to $15. When the guy checking us out told me the total was only $35 I double checked with him to make sure he got everything!  I even looked at the receipt in total awe as well because everything was accounted for.

Now, most people, they buy shoes, get a good deal, don’t really think anything of it. But me, well, I always read deeper into everything. I like to learn and teach things from my experiences, so there IS a lesson to this whole thing. Actually there are a lot of lessons.

When You Know What You Want, You Will Get It

When we embarked on our journey to the Crocs store, I knew in my heart I wanted everyone in our family to get a pair of shoes for $10 each or less today. There was no doubt about that. I don’t believe in owning expensive shoes.  So, against all odds of the long drive to buy them and the disappointment we felt when we first walked into the store, it happened anyways!

Some will say all of this is just a wacky coincidence, that I am reading too much into this, but it’s not. Because stuff like this happens to me every single day. Because I know what I want, and I get what I want. And I know, that when I know what I want I WILL get what I want. And, ironically, I was explaining this to my husband on the way to the store today.

Why haven’t I won the lottery then? Why do I still live in a house I’m not 100% happy with? Why is my life not completely perfect?

Because I don’t want to win the lottery. Not really. I have a fear that if I win the lottery, I will feel like getting money that way will cause more problems than it could ever solve. (I am not fearful about that in regards to earning the money however, because when you earn money, you earn it!)  And, I don’t know where I want to live. Not at all. I am still searching for that place with the perfect climate, good economy, and I feel would be a good fit for our family’s needs.

And, it is also true that nobody always gets what they want, because if that happened, it wouldn’t be a good thing. (The kids want to eat ice cream and candy and garbage food all day long – that would not be good for them at all!) So no, it’s not just about the wanting.

The Rolling Stones say it the best: “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you’ll find you get what you need.”

You’ll always get what you need. Most times, you don’t even need to try.

I really needed the shoes. Mine were worn bare, Emma’s were getting too tight, Ethan had no beach shoes, and Erin was always stealing Emma’s shoes which were too big for her to even wear. Spending $35 to buy shoes for the whole family just saved me from a lot of headaches! All I had to drive to the outlet store. Had we stayed home tonight, I would have saved $35, but sure would have a lot of grief still!

Now, no one will just miraculously give you what you want/need. It does not usually appear out of thin air. You do have to do something – but for the things you truly need and want, usually it falls into the “Law of Least Effort” – which means you can be successful at it without even really trying.

To get anything you want:

1. Identify what you want and why you want it. (IE: shoes – because ours are wearing out)

2. Identify why that want is a need, and not just a want. (I am going to fall on my ass the next  time I walk on a wet, slippery surface – which will likely be within the next 24 hours because it is rainy season…and the girls fighting over shoes is driving me nuts)

3. Figure out what must be done to get it. (Drive to the outlet store because it is usually cheaper)

4. Do it! Send the message to the universe that it needs to happen! (Miracles, like 20% off coupons at the store, will appear like magic)

5. If it fails – it means you don’t need it or you have an unrecognized fear associated with it – so look for a different solution for the problem. (I have no neurotic fears about buying Crocs)

Seek and Ye Shall Find

What you want and need is not always obvious. What you want, may not be what you need. What you need, is not always what you want.

I could have walked out of the store, mad and angry and empty handed. But, we spent about an hour there. We looked at every shoe on the rack. We tried out every shoe until we found ones that fit perfectly, and were a style we liked, and a price we liked. We got what we needed.

Speaking of things like shoes, the girls and I have been watching a lot of the movie Cinderella lately. Fairy tale you say? The prince knew he wanted Cinderella, and he went out and got her! She didn’t just show up out of nowhere, in fact, she had even been locked up in her room.

One of the reasons people struggle in getting what they really want, is because they don’t know what they really want, or need, or where to look. Or, some people, they just don’t want to look because they think it will be too hard. Too impossible. Take too much time. But, when it’s what you want and need, then it’s usually worth it.

You might be tempted to think that I am reading into this much deeper than it really is, and this is all about shoes, and shoes are so simple, so mundane – but trust me, you can apply it to many other bigger things in life too. You can’t buy 4 pairs of shoes for $35. You just can’t – it is impossible. Yet, I just did. When you know what you want, and what you want is what you need – all things fall perfectly into place.

Do you know what you want? Do you know how to get it? And is what you want what you need?

Then you can have it! Go get it!