We all know consumerism is the engine of our economy. You need to sell more to produce more to hire more people (ideally to pay them more too) so they can buy more. We are the generation of consumerists that manifests not only through our shopping habits (that’s GenX) but also through the way we consume information. Facebook and Instagram feeds are overflooding but we constantly want more. In the kaleidoscope of random goods, photos, and stories, that is falling on us as a landslide every day, our brains keep jumping from one thing to another creating the wave of anxiety that I can confidently say is one of the biggest problems of our generation.
I don’t have a solution to it. As I am very much a victim myself. But something that helped me is decluttering my physical space. Being a fellow means knowing that you are here temporary. It means you are always aware of the weight (and dollars) of those suitcases you’ll have to bring back. So instead of dealing with it by the end of the fellowship, I decided to instead keep things rotated. Every time I bought something new I made sure to get rid of something old I had in my wardrobe – by donating or giving away. Another way was swapping things with my friends. It made me so much more mindful of what I actually need and the functionality of my wardrobe and my space.
My experience was partly inspired by the blog called Becoming Minimalist.
Here are a few words of wisdom from its author (and my thoughts in brackets):
- Fill your life with stories to tell, not stuff to show. (they will make you richer)
- ‘FOMO Spending’ is a Real Problem for Young People (try catching yourself when you buy something because other people have it. Think about what this something would bring to your life)
- Cleaning your mind starts with cleaning your house (have you ever found yourself organizing your room before taking on an important project in life? Our external and internal are connected more than we think)
There are more valuable thoughts on his blog. So check it out! And happy dehoarding your house and your soul.