Uh-oh: Americans are addicted to THIS

Guess what newly published research has unveiled Americans are addicted to.

No, it isn't junk food, Netflix, or mere smartphone use, though I'm sure a case can be made for those!

Americans are addicted to tracking packages.

Indeed, people have developed an acute obsession for tracking the status of their packages. So much so, that is has become an addiction.

According to a new study, 60% of people who make purchases online check their delivery status daily, if not multiple times in a single day.

The study even found that over 80% of online shoppers have experienced anxiety when packages fail to arrive on time.

Two in three online shoppers look out their window to watch out for deliveries, and 65% of study participants feel delivery tracking has become an addiction, stating that they expect packages to be delivered within three days of ordering.

In addition, 57% said package tracking is “very important” to them, while 29% refuse to purchase something online if they can’t track its status.

I can attribute this to a number of factors:

1. Unmitigated consumerism: Americans seem bent on acquiring as much stuff as they can possibly fit into their homes (and then some) -- and they want it yesterday.

2. The pandemic: Social distancing and quarantine have become an inexorable part of our lives (and vocabulary). Spending the better part of the last year to 18 months at home, in fact, gave people an excuse to shop online at full throttle.

3. Competition for your money: Have you noticed an Amazon Prime van in your neighborhood lately? If you're like me, you likely spot at least one per day. With Amazon getting packages to consumers in two days or less, companies like Walmart have scrambled to play copycat.

4. Technology: This tracking craze isn't just limited to packages. For years now, consumers have been able to track everything from their Dominoes Pizza order (from the moment they begin preparing your meal to when it's at your door) to the status of the Chevrolet vehicle they just purchased.

As I've noted in earlier posts, people get a bigger "high" from the anticipation of receiving or experiencing something than, well, actually receiving or experiencing it. It's why many people, for example, get more pleasure out of planning a vacation than actually being on that sun-dappled beach.

While I understand being on the lookout for one's package and tracking the status every so often (especially if delayed), obsessing over where it could be isn't going to hasten its arrival.

Rest assured that whether the items arrive via USPS, UPS, or FedEx, your stuff is in good hands, and there's no need to stress about it.

Though the fact of the matter is that as technology continues to expand, people's appetite for getting their orders in the least amount of time will only grow larger.

And it goes without saying that no one should be checking up on their orders while driving, at the dinner table, or right before bed.

Tracking can be fun, but there's no reason to let it become an obsession that interferes with daily life!

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