This has happened to me. Maybe it’s because I don’t normally do the grocery shopping. I’ve gone into the supermarket or drug store for a tube of toothpaste and found myself confronted with three or four dozen varieties of toothpaste. Why? It’s a fairly simple substance. We use it every day, hopefully twice. So why are there so many to choose from? We’ve got cream paste, gel, gel with sparkles, whitening toothpaste, some with baking soda, others for sensitive gums. There’s toothpastes for kids, natural toothpastes, and all come in various flavors. Once we figure out what brand and flavor we want, then we have to figure out what size we need. Travel? Economy? Family sized?
Some of us can choose in seconds–we buy what our parents bought. Or we buy what we require for a specific condition (i.e. sensitive gums). Some people stay brand loyal, some experiment. Of course, when our parents were growing up, there weren’t even a quarter as many of pastes to choose from.
Toothpaste is a fairly minor decision and yet, it illustrates how many choices we’re confronted with every day. What car we drive, which cell phone...