Qui totum vult totum perdit
Publilius Syrus
(He who wants everything loses everything)
Consumerism Doesn’t Like You
Consumerism doesn’t like you. Consumerism doesn’t hate you. Consumerism doesn’t even care about you. It can’t, it’s not a person. It can be rather risky to personify things as the illustration can quickly break down and can lead us into false securities or unnecessary fears, forgetting the thing is just that, a thing, not a person.
As animals, there are certain things we need to be consumers of in order to survive; food, water, clothing, housing, etc. As humans, there are additional things to consume that add value and meaning to our lives. In may ways we are destined to consume which makes it such a steep and slippery slope. I would imagine that as long as we have existed we have struggled with over-consumption when left to our own devices. As modern humans with much less scarcity than our ancestors experience, our consumerism often doesn’t serve any survival purpose anymore. In some cases it may not even serve entertainment purposes. It serves the purpose of something else; corporations, companies, and organizations.
Mostly, with the exception of things like non-profits, these groups exist with the singular purpose of generating money. They are another oft-personified thing that’s not appropriate for us to love or demonize. Companies making profits are not inherently bad, they just are. However, when run with unchecked influence in our lives these things can quickly drive us out of balance and obfuscate most if not all of the benefits they could bring to our lives.
Not All Tools Are Good
Of course everyone wants to put their best foot forward. No one introduces you to something new they want you to buy in to by outlining how terrible it is. Basic marketing sense says you should minimize your flaws and maximize your benefits. This leaves you, the “consumer”, with the responsibility of determining what is true, what is false, what is misleading, and what’s being left out of any (and all?) of the thousands of pitches that you’re exposed to everyday.
Caveat emptor. Maximus.
Not All Tools Are Bad
But remember that personification can be risky. Not all tools are good, but that doesn’t mean they are bad either. I feel so fortunate to live in an era that has such medical advancements, creature comforts, agricultural technologies, amongst many other advancements and tools. I would even argue that it’s not realistic to live in our modern culture without heavy use of current tools largely due to them being so ubiquitous.
Technology is a Tool
I’m a life-long techno-file. I love exploring it, tinkering with it, bending it to my needs, inventing things with it. It can be a large source of enjoyment and personal benefit, but like all tools it can also be applied without balance and upset the life we originally thought it would enhance.
It is exceedingly tempting to overlook technology as a tool. I will often forget that it is a tool to bring entertainment and instead think of it as entertainment itself. This may be true at some level, yet the risk this obfuscation brings can short-circuit any critical evaluation of it’s true benefits. Additionally, this approach is directly involved in the removal of balance of technology in our lives.
Where Does This Leave Us?
I want to make a concerted effort to think a bit more purposefully about the things I interact with in my daily life. I’m sure I will have to modify this quick checklist (most likely numerous times) but this is where I’ll start:
- What benefit does this bring to my life?
- What am I giving up to gain this benefit?
- Is this truly better, or just shinier?
To be clear I do not intend to make a blanket removal of technology from my life. This is about viewing all things, including technology, as tools that can bring value to my life. I want to ensure the value it brings doesn’t cost me more than it delivers, and leaves room for me to leverage other tools to bring value to my life as well.
I also want to exercise caution so that if I do generate shifts in my life they are manageable and sustainable. I don’t want to become overwhelmed or allow perfectionist tendencies to sneak in and grind any forward motion to a halt. My intent is that by recording my thinking here I can slow myself down to make room for meaningful contemplation and evaluation, bring more conscious thought to areas that may otherwise be automatic or reactionary, and give myself a record to see what progress I’ve made for future reflection. It also just feels like a fun project that has the promise of creating something of value for others as well.
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