Have you noticed how, in the pandemic era, people have been panic buying, stockpiling, and hoarding more than usual? Panic buying is when consumers buy unusually large amounts of a product in any of these scenarios: In anticipation of a disaster or perceived disaster following a disaster  in anticipation of an incredibly large price increase or shortage The irony of it all is that there tends to be no shortage to begin with; the panic buying itself precipitates the very shortage people fear. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy of sorts. That, in turn, causes prices to soar and, in the worst cases, price gouging. Talk about a terrible domino effect! Here are four things people have bought in droves at some point within the past 14 months: 1. Toilet Paper and Hand Sanitizer. We witnessed both of these fly off the shelves like hotcakes almost immediately after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. My wife and I ventured far and wide to snag toilet paper, to no avail. It says a lot that we ha...

There's no question we've been living in a different world the last couple of weeks -- one that has upended our routines and made Zoom meetings, food delivery, and shopping for virtually everything through Amazon our new, sometimes unpleasant reality. No event has felt this disruptive and widespread since the global recession of 2008. While back then we were dealing with a global financial crisis, this time, as President Donald Trump put it, we are grappling with an invisible enemy. So just how will the world be different once this pandemic is behind us? As was the case with the Great Recession, people are going to retrench for a while. From souped-up cars and big vacations to fancy clothes, consumers are going to put the kibosh on high-end purchases until they feel that (1) the economy is mending (2) their financial affairs are in order. The first order of business for many will be finding a job. Those who have been fortunate enough to still have jobs may be contem...

According to the latest job report, the economy added 161,000 in October, effectively dropping the unemployment rate to 4.9%. Taken together with the fact that jobs added during the previous month were revised up considerably by the Labor Department, this suggests that the economy is keeping a steady pace. Though the drop to 4.9% is only a slight one on a month-to-month basis, we've come a long way since 2009, when the unemployment hit a whopping 10.2%. What's more, October's gains signaled the 73rd consecutive month of job gains for the U.S. economy. The September job gains were revised upward to 191,000 jobs from the initial tally of 156,000. Moreover, wage growth, which has been anemic for the better part of the post-recession years, continued to show signs of improvement. Wages increased 2.8% in October compared to a year ago, the fastest growth since June 2009. Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, isn't buying it. He has repeatedly called ...

Going through a funk right now in your life? Don't fret -- we've all been there. The beauty of it all is that we can always start anew the next day. Each day is a clean slate -- it gives us the opportunity to cancel out whatever hardship we confronted the day before and work toward reversing our fortunes. With a positive mindset, it can happen. Tomorrow offers limitless possibilities. I remember sinking into a deep depression during the throes of the Great Recession in 2008. News of widespread layoffs dominated the headlines, and I found myself hard-pressed to even find good jobs to apply for.  But I never gave up. Rather, I constantly reminded myself that tomorrow could be better. The promise of a better tomorrow was my glimmer of hope -- my light at the end of a seemingly endless tunnel. And indeed, after much hard work and persistence, I wound up getting a job. Each day offers a fresh opportunity to rewrite your life's story. Just because things aren't...

Some people like Toyota Corollas, while others will settle for nothing "less" than a BMW. Some people can do with a Casio watch, while others swear by more high-end brands like Movado. Some people must have a "10" for a partner; others are perfectly content with a "4"  as long as the person has a great personality. People often use words like "simple," "non-materialistic" and "low-maintenance" to describe me. As I've stated in earlier posts, I'm almost completely impervious to the avalanche of advertising appeals that most people fall prey to. (It also helped that I majored in marketing and minored in psychology.) I'm not saying it's bad to splurge on an item here and there, but I've found that far too many consumers have no concept of what it's like to live within their means. An urge to splurge will suddenly come over them at the mall, leading them to rack up ever-increasing heaps of credit ca...

We all know at least one person (and it could be ourselves) who is prone to frivolous spending. He or she forks over hundreds of dollars during each visit to a mall or restaurant, adding to an already massive heap of credit card debt. What's worse, the person makes a habit of asking friends or relatives for money. What, then, causes this seemingly uncontrollable compulsion to spend? For a lot of us, it's tied to our self-image and self-esteem. Many people depend on shopping and consumer products for a "pick-me-up" -- much like getting their afternoon coffee fix. Consumers use material possessions to enhance their image -- walking around with that Coach purse or in those Jimmy Choos can greatly boost feelings of self-worth and self-confidence. There's nothing wrong with this if done in moderation -- we all deserve to spoil ourselves every once in a while. But once wasteful spending becomes a weekly -- let alone daily -- occurrence, it creates the potential fo...