Guest Blogger with Author, Diane Osgood! Do You Have a Shopping Superpower?

In June 2020, Diane Osgood and I met in Seth Godin's Writing in Community 1 (WIC). We were smack in the middle of the early part of the pandemic, and a new cadre of writers met and wrote almost daily. We held Zoom calls, wrote together (we still do most mornings!) with prompts at the top of the hour, and read our words out loud to each other. It was a great time to write with very little distraction, unless housework or cooking could be considered a distraction. For us, meeting up with a worldwide cohort of budding authors was quite joyful. I remember Diane writing about shopping, fast fashion, and buying a whole host of stuff, but not all is good for our world. Now, a few days before her book is ready to launch on April 22, 2025, I could not be more proud of Diane and her new book with tips and insights you will find fascinating, Your Shopping Superpower!

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Blog for Manufacturing Sunshine

Guest blogger, Diane Osgood, PhD

Shop with your values to boost your happiness.

Money can’t buy happiness. But making purchases that align with your values can.

Most of us don’t want clothes stitched by slaves, their families exposed to toxins, or their food choices exacerbating climate change. Yet, many of our shopping choices lead to these outcomes. While shoppers are increasingly interested in buying green, ethical, and sustainable products, the majority don’t make regular purchases that reflect these values.

Yet, you have a superpower to make shopping choices that help protect the planet, create better jobs for more people, and foster community. When you unleash this power and start shopping consistently with your values, profound rewards await you.

Happiness comes from feeling connected to what you know is essential and what you hold dear. Right now, it may feel that’s a bit much to consider when buying carrots or a t-shirt. Yet, as shopping with your values becomes integrated into your life, it becomes a part of your daily flow.

First, your internal sense of your role in the world changes from bystander to empowered citizen in the economy. Choose products that support your wellness, create better jobs, and restore the environment. Reject what’s bad for you, your family, the planet, and the people who make it. You’re not a consumer who accepts whatever companies thrust onto the market. You know what you expect from a company, and what is a deal killer. Shopping becomes an exercise in active and conscious choice. This frees you.

You also get to support people who do what they love. Your purchases can support entrepreneurs following their dreams. For example, a baker gets to continue making small-batch bagels because enough people value her work. Farmers get to continue farming the land their families have held for generations because of their loyal customers. A woman can grow her hair-care company from side hustle to a full-time job and provide excellent employment for other women in her community.

Being part of an economy that supports people and the environment makes me happy. I bet it will make you happy, too.

Here are three steps you can take the next time you shop:

1. Love nature? Don’t want your food or furniture to exacerbate climate change and tropical deforestation? Look for products with environmental certifications such as:

* Coffee, tea, and chocolate with the Rainforest Alliance’s Green Frog logo,

* Paper goods and furniture with the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) mark,

* Fashion with the Butterfly Mark

* Appliances with high Energy Star ratings.

2. Break up with fast fashion. According to Remake, 93% of fashion brands don’t pay garment workers enough to live on, while most face unsafe working conditions. It’s easy to learn to identify brands that treat all workers with respect and pay them fairly. Look for certified Fair Trade USA jeans, t-shirts, and sports clothes. Use Remake’s annual brand ratings to find brands that treat workers with dignity and fair wages.

3. Buy local. My local coffee shop sponsors our annual river clean-up, and that matters to me. But they do more than support school sports and civic events. They help our local economy thrive. In a local shop, about 48 cents out of every dollar of revenue recirculate in your community. “Recirculate” means wages, benefits, and taxes stay local, creating a virtuous cycle of more good local jobs and a good tax base for your town. This compares with less than 14 cents per dollar from a chain store. If you shop online, only about 8 cents per dollar of revenue remains in your community.

Consider ordering my book, Your Shopping Superpower, Follow Your Values and Better Your World (April 22, 2025, HCI Books) to learn more. It’s a pragmatic guidebook to shopping for sustainable and ethical products. Buy from an independent bookstore (you determine which store earns the commission), Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Target, or Amazon.

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Thank you, Diane! I'm hoping this book will fly off the shelves!

bSoleille!

Terri