But have you ever stopped and really thought about your own practices? Why you do what you do when you do it?

Take, for example, the regular grocery shopping expedition. How many of us go to the same place, on the same day of the week at roughly the same time?

And then once we’re there, take a trolley and start at the same aisle and go the same route to get roughly the same purchases as the time before?

Of course, that probably means we also spend the same amount of money each time.

Don’t you just hate it when the supermarket decides to shake things up a bit and change the aisles around?

No longer is the toothpaste in the same place and the bread has changed spots with the cereal. It can be downright confusing and certainly makes this chore less than enjoyable.

But have you ever stopped to wonder why they do this? Do you think it’s all about getting you to actually see what they have for sale, in the hope you’ll buy more?

Do you think that they’re also trying to shake up a few habits?

Have you ever noticed how the things they’d really like you to buy are at your eye-level?

And the things that they’d like your kids to pester you to buy are at the junior shoppers’ eye-level.

It’s part of their marketing strategy but if you look above or below these levels you’re sure to find lots of other bargains.

For so many of us, the whole hunting and gathering of food for our families is based on habit.

And rather than trying to change too many habits all in one day, let me ask this question — do you really have to buy your food at the same time every week?

Now, lots of times I hear the cry: “there’ll be nothing in the house to eat.”

But I am yet to find a house where the cupboards really do look as bare as that infamous Mrs Hubbard from the nursery tale.

There is always something in there, even if it is just an old tin of chickpeas from the school fete.