Tag: Consumerism

Money off

Posted on by philipdodson

Money off could be useful if you actually needed something.

However, most of the Black Friday spending will be on items we as humans don’t really need and often we’re replacing a slightly outdated version of the same thing, perhaps purchased a year previously via a ‘too good to be missed’ Black Friday deal.

When we sit an analyse our life, it is unlikely that we will cherish the often dubious savings we made on items of no real use other than to satisfy our egos and to give us something to exchange the trinkets we were so lucky to receive for working for the industrialised corporate machine.

We could choose to stop looking for money off and savings. Perhaps we could spend our time instead actually giving to others who really do need something.

Money off stuff we do not need so that we can buy more of it with the savings we make – it’s insanity when you stop to analyse it.

Looking for the bigger Lego set

Posted on by philipdodson

lego

Yesterday evening I sat talking with my brother and we were reminiscing about our childhood, where we would rush on a Saturday morning armed with our pocket money to the local newsagents, Hewitt’s, and spend the lot on multi-coloured sugar treats like Black Jacks and Tutti-Fruitis.

Then hurry home for a morning of children’s TV programmes, that were occasionally interrupted by commercials.

We’d look on in awe at all the stuff advertised, clearly aimed at us, so that we would pressure our parents into why we needed an ‘Evel Knievel’ stunt bike.

The thing was we were living through the growing and ever worsening consumerism, whereby we were all being brainwashed into thinking happiness came from buying bigger stuff.

My brother and I loved Lego, each time we saw the ads for Lego sets we had that feeling of WOW!! shortly followed by a wash of disappointment we felt when we remembered how inadequate our small biscuit tins of Lego pieces were, not a set in sight.

So we were always looking for a bigger Lego set and trying to convince our parents, well normally trying to guilt them into purchasing one.

The problem in life is once you get the bigger set, you find out that happiness is always drained when you discover that there is always a bigger one that you don’t have.

Be happy with what you have already, bigger isn’t better and it will never enhance your happiness.

Focus on people, activities and meaningful things, not on stuff.