What are you grateful for about this business?

I am grateful for self-scheduling, trying on different jobs (and liking some of them), and discovering potentials for myself as a shopper.

What are you grateful for in this business?

[this may have to be moved to 'general chat'.]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/17/2015 10:41PM by Shop-et-al.

I like being able to set my own schedule.

I appreciate being able to wait until the last minute to decide if I feel like working that day, then finding the job(s) and heading out on the spur of the moment.

The travel

That I can make my day..

If I want my day full or maybe light, because I have other things to do....

I like trying restaurants, clothing stores, department stores, almost anything can be shopped out there... and I like the different locations and the diversity. I think shoppers are lucky to be able to do so many unique things, from hotels to urine testing shops

I don't think we should be grateful. We're independent contractors doing a job. I'm more inclined to be concerned at how low the pay is.

I'm grateful that if I have to drive somewhere far away I can usually find a shop or two to do there to pay for the gas I had to use anyway. Where else can you get paid to do something you had to do anyway?

x



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/29/2015 11:19PM by MDavisnowell.

So many things, but at the top has to be getting paid to pretend.

I'm inclined to agree with mistry. But then again, I abhor mystery shopping and never have found it fun. It's a means to an end, nothing more. As soon as I come up with another viable business idea I'll be waving goodbye to this one in my rear view mirror.

To me it's the flexibility to set my own schedule, and those days when I feel like I'm making decent money. Oh; and the travel. Working with MSCs who truly appreciate my work.

I am more grateful for audits than mystery shopping. I enjoy making my own schedule and deciding how much I get paid. I really love going different locations each day. This job is rarely boring.

I'm grateful that there even is such a thing as mystery shopping!

I'm grateful for the subsidized meals I score as a mystery shopper at The Cheesecake Factory, where I take my Mom every time I do one - she loves Cheesecake Factory. I'm grateful for the lawn and leaf bag I scored free with a reimbursement from a hardware store chain, and from the same store a solar light set for my backyard - free with the reimbursement. I'm grateful for the money I have saved in a separate account from doing this. I'm grateful for the last shop I did where I sat in an ergonomically correct chair that cost $1795 (I know what I want if I win the lottery!) that was incredibly comfortable. $20 for this shop that was quite easy and I learned something about posture and minimizing stress on my back. I could go on for some time here but I'm sure the general idea is clear. I don't do this F/T so I'm grateful for whatever side income I can make mystery shopping, for whatever useful freebies I can score, and for whatever interesting experiences I have through mystery shopping. I'm grateful this exists!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/19/2015 01:58AM by squireparty.

That if I don't feel like working one day I don't. I may have to work 7 days in a row to catch up but at least it is my own choice. I punched a timecard for so much of my life I never want to see one again.

I like being able to learn new things, when I do a banking, investment or insurance shop, even a music store the other day when I went in with the scenario that I wanted to learn to play an instrument. That kid knew his stuff and it was really interesting. No matter how much we think we know there are always new things out there to learn.

I'm grateful for the opportunities that allow me to try new restaurants, stores, etc. Before mystery shopping I'd never been to Five Guys, Curritos, Final Cut (a fancy steakhouse in my area), Pandora, Lego Store, Aveda, etc. When we went on vacation I was able to score a bunch of Ripley's shops (aquarium, hall of mirrors, moving movie theater, etc) and we had a blast.

Self scheduling, ability to reschedule, bonuses, good relationships with schedulers, but most of all, being self employed on my own time and schedule.

Everything positive mentioned above. In addition, I like getting little things for my family and taking family members out to nice dining experiences. I like helping my kids out, (getting oil changes), hair cuts/dyes/washes.

I like something that semi-forces me to get up and move, so I don't sit around in sulking in pain. I like the part that challenges my mind, ok it's not a challenge, but it makes me exercise my mind.

And I like the fairy tale. Tomorrow I will be a network engineering troubleshooter.

For myself, it is discovering the little things along a route. It might be the sweet corn at an "honour" stand in northern Illinois or perhaps a small town in Wisconsin. It could be the small shop and their owners who are so gracious.
Other times, it is the shrine to St Benedict where i promise to stop each time I pass (and I do - to say a small prayer of thanks).
It is to visit with small town people in those smal;l towns - to trade stories and just good conversation. A good cup of coffee at a Starbucks. It could be the wood smoke hovering over the small town where the gas station is located. It might be the old man and his equally old Lab sitting at the counter. The wink of his eye and his easy smile.
It's the local police (to whom I am not so afraid as in the old days).
The magnificent church I visited whilst awaiting my appointment nearby. The chat with the minister.
It could be revelling in the early day's sun upon fresh hay rolled into huge wheels, whilst inhaling their aroma. The exhiliration of listening to a new audiobook purchased at the Salvation Army store. The bitter, bitter cold and the wind chill of a winter's day. The expectation and bonhommie one feels as Christmas approaches.

I could go on.

Quite simply, it is the freedom as James Herriot felt of being able to stop and enjoy the day's adventure whilst out and about.

Cheers!

I am grateful for the opportunity to start a new business after opting out of my last one.

x



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/29/2015 11:18PM by MDavisnowell.

Discovering places I haven't been before...and generating ideas for a travel book. Also, the thrill of getting to test drive high performance and ultra luxury automobiles that I would never have even thought about test driving otherwise.

I'm grateful that it's providing me with the ability to at least pay the bills while searching for full-time work. When I was still employed full-time it was a wonderful to build savings - much more quickly than I ever thought possible. I'm grateful that when I move, I can "take the job along with me". There have been times I've been really scrambling and didn't have much booked when suddenly, out of nowhere it seems, a few good jobs all came through at once. I love the miracle factor in that and (IMHO) know who I give the credit to. And if you don't want to see it in a spiritual light, you can at least appreciate the vagaries of the job boards!

I find I am grateful for nearly every aspect aforementioned in this thread. And at the risk of sounding like a brown-noser, I am truly grateful that I am in the position to shine a light on the areas of a companies' strengths, and help alert them to areas possibly in need of improvement. I have been working in customer service and in the retail industry for over thirty years. And I have been on the receiving end of a mystery shop. I thoroughly enjoyed being acknowledged for doing things right! (And I got awarded a certificate and $5!) I have been successfully conducting mystery shops since 2002. It's not a job that is right for everybody ~ but I love it!

I love the flexibility, meeting new people and having new experiences. I did a gift shop the other day, and while being given a tour of the store by the owner, found out that they sell a brand of shoes that I have been looking for the past year. They have now a new customer!! It was a reveal shop and I had a ball doing it. These people were so nice to me and I found my shoes that I can now buy without ordering on internet. Most of my shops have been fun and enjoyable. I've only had one shop rejected and that was because the quality control people could not believe the time I reported was accurate. It was too fast, even considering that I was the only person there to be waited on by three employees doing my order. Go figure. Anyhow, I do love MS and glad I found out about it. I am retired, and this gets me off the couch and gives me something to look forward to as I plan my two vacations I am taking this summer. I work for about seven different companies. I find a lot of diversity and love it.

I agree with things mentioned above. I am retired from years in a medical office and at times miss having the responsibility of a "real job" but I love having the flexibility to decide if I want to work a little or a lot in a given week. I have only been doing this not quite 3 years and have really enjoyed all the diverse jobs I have done. Only have a couple that I really hated, and guess what......I can choose not to do those again! I love the extra money and find it challenging, entertaining, fun, as well as profitable. Love having rapport with schedulers that call me offering bonus because they know I will do a good job and follow through for them.

We're retired and all shop fees go into our vacation fund. We have had some awesome vacations and have several more planned. I'm grateful for that!

I'm grateful for for finally getting "interest" on my bank accounts, and for being paid to find out about things I might even actually buy at a later date. Lastly it allows me to scope out potential employers, and to receive a certain level of pre on the job training.

It gave my family and I many vacations and trips to places that I would not being able to pay for. Free hotel and meal in exchange of a report, with gas station on the way. Last summer, I was with my 4 years old daughter ( she is now 5 ) in Banff, Alberta, in a very nice and expensive restaurant. She was my guest and behave very well. She is very good at details and remembering names.