I counted the steps once this spring, mostly out of spite: about 740 from my parking spot to my desk. That's a third of a mile across a big surface lot, through a lobby, up an elevator and down a carpeted hallway that seems to get longer in August. The close rows are full by 7:45 and I usually pull in around 8:10, so the far end of the lot is my spot. I've made peace with it. My shoes had to as well.
When I started this job in January 2024, I came from a hospital where I parked in a garage and walked maybe 200 feet. My shoes were chosen for that life. The first week of the new commute taught me a lot, most of it through my heels.
The four pairs I wear
| Shoe | Where | Paid | Wearing since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Edelman black leather loafers | Nordstrom Rack | $69 | Jan 2024 |
| Naturalizer black block-heel pumps, about 2 inches | Belk, on sale | $79 | Oct 2024 |
| Vionic flats in navy | Amazon | $89 | Mar 2025 |
| Clarks low-wedge sandals | Nordstrom Rack | $65 | May 2025 |
The loafers are my most-worn shoes by a mile. Nineteen months in, the heels are worn down at the outside edge and there's a crease across the toe, but they still look fine under trousers and I can walk the lot in them without thinking about it. If they gave out tomorrow, I'd buy the same pair again.
The block heels are for client meetings and anything where I'll be standing at the front of a room. A low, wide heel is the most I'll do now. I can make the walk in them, a little slower, and I've worn them through a full day of back-to-back meetings without counting the minutes until I could take them off.
The flats cost the most of the four, and I hesitated. The footbed is firmer and more shaped than the flats I used to buy, and it happens to suit my feet. Five months in, they look almost new, and they're what I grab on Thursdays when I know I'll be up and down all day.
The sandals are summer-only. Our office is business casual, and plenty of people wear sandals once it's hot. A low wedge with a back strap is as casual as I go, and they've handled the lot on 95-degree days just fine.
The two pairs I gave away
The first was a pair of pointed-toe heels, about three inches, from TJ Maxx for $40. They were fine in the hospital years. They were not fine for a third of a mile of asphalt. I wore them twice at the new job, got a blister the size of a quarter the second time, and they went in the donation bag that weekend.
The second was a pair of suede ankle booties from Kohl's, $45, that looked great and had smooth soles. On a rainy Wednesday that first winter, I took a slide across the wet lobby floor that I can still picture. Nobody saw. They went in the donation bag too.
What I tried and quit
For about two months I wore sneakers across the lot and changed into work shoes at my desk. Plenty of people do this and it works for them. For me it turned into a second commute: change shoes, keep a pair under the desk, remember which pair is where. The week I left my pumps at home and ran a client meeting in white sneakers, I gave it up.
From the HR side, I'd tell every new hire the same thing: don't start a job in brand-new shoes. I watched a lot of people limp through orientation day. Wear them around the house for a week first.
The four pairs cost $302 together, spread over about a year and a half, and none of them has needed replacing yet. Meanwhile Harper started fifth grade this month in sneakers that cost $64, and she has already informed me they're "kind of old." Mine have to last a lot longer than hers.
