The Human Herd

Life in retail can be extremely tough and at times insightful. When you have worked in retail, you gain a greater appreciation for the person behind the counter and a better understanding of life. Life in retail is repetitive and people working retail are underappreciated. As a cashier finds out quickly, humans are animals and they follow a herd mentality. From my observations as a cashier, we are not any different than any other animal on this planet. We tend to be more alike each other than we like to think we are and our shopping habits are proof.

When we go to the store with our shopping list, we buy what we need for our homes. What we don't realize is the fact that everyone makes that same shopping list. As a cashier, I would ring up the same items over and over again everyday. It was the same list every time and not just in the commonly bought items like bread and milk, but also in the brands of cookies and cereal people would buy. Everyone bought the same kinds of produce. Things like celery, bell peppers, onions, and bananas found their way into every home in town. The herd mentality found it way not only into how we prepare our list, but also in what we were cooking for dinner. If one family in town was having spaghetti then everyone in town was having spaghetti. I would watch as the town would have Mexican dinners, Italian dinners, and even hamburgers together without even realizing it. The herd was having dinner and they all wanted the same things.

At the end of each transaction, I would realize that we are not as different as we think we are. The routine of living links us together in a herd fashion. Even in our small habits, can a cashier see exactly how herd like we are. When we buy a candy bar at the store, we want it handed back to us. Snacking is always a part of our shopping experience. We always have to eat something on the way home. In each and every order I tendered, I found a candy bar and a soda would be handed to the customer. Like animals grazing on grass, the human herd grazes on sugar and caffeine.

I also discovered in my years as a cashier that we all complain about the same things. The price of food and gas and the availability of the products we wanted were and still are the most common complaints. Our herd wants low prices and the items they want to be available at all times. As easy as our herd is to satisfy, selling to us should be easy. We think alike in what we want and need. Why is it that retail is so hard and stocking the shelves for us is difficult?

We are after all common in our thoughts and product consumption. The human herd wants the same things at the same time. As a cashier, I realized this early on. How hard can it be to provide us with what we want? If you are having spaghetti stock the noodles and the sauce and if your having hamburgers make sure that there is enough mayo and hamburger buns out. don't expect us to change, give me my snack, make sure the prices are low and the products are there, because this herd knows what it wants.