The Empty Cart Mindset!

It was a crowded Saturday evening at the supermarket. Shoppers rushed around, baskets overflowing, children tugging at their parents’ sleeves, and the faint hum of conversations filling the air. You were there too, slowly pushing your cart, moving mindfully through the aisles.

For a brief moment, it almost felt peaceful. You paused near the cereal section, comparing boxes, when suddenly—bam! Something crashes into the back of your cart. The jolt breaks your calm, and irritation sparks.

“Really? Can’t people watch where they’re going? How rude. How careless.”

Your heart beats faster, your shoulders stiffen, and you turn around, ready to shoot a glare at the person who dared disturb your peace.

But to your surprise, there is no one. Just a runaway cart that had somehow slipped loose and rolled down the aisle on its own. No driver. No intent. Just an empty cart on wheels, mindlessly bumping into you.

And in that instant, the anger evaporates. Because how can you stay mad at something that has no intention, no malice? You smile to yourself, maybe even chuckle a little, and carry on with your shopping.

Life is full of these collisions. They come in the form of a colleague’s harsh remark, a stranger cutting you off in traffic, or a friend forgetting to return a call. Each collision shakes us, threatens to throw us off balance, and stirs up emotions like anger, resentment, or frustration.

But here’s the truth: the real sting doesn’t come from the collision itself. It comes from the story we attach to it. We tell ourselves, “They disrespected me. They wanted to hurt me. They don’t care about me.” We assign intention where there may be none.

What if we treated these moments as bumps from empty carts? What if we reminded ourselves that most of the time, people’s actions aren’t about us at all? Maybe they’re lost in their own struggles. Maybe they didn’t even notice. Maybe, like the cart in the supermarket, they were simply carried by forces we can’t see.

When you embrace the Empty Cart Mindset, you reclaim your peace. You stop letting small collisions rob you of calm. You learn to smile at life’s bumps, knowing they’re not always personal attacks but simply the random roll of events.

Practicing the Empty Cart Mindset

Here are three simple steps to carry this mindset into daily life:

1. Pause before reacting – When something jolts you, take a breath. Don’t let your first emotional wave decide your response.
2. Question the intent – Ask yourself: “Is this truly personal? Or just an empty cart rolling by?”
3. Choose peace over poison – Let go of stories that make you bitter. Protect your calm instead of fueling your anger.

The next time you feel anger rising after an unexpected collision, pause and smile. More often than not, it’s just another empty cart rolling your way.