What is a consumer?
A thought provoker? A money spender? A faith believer in unending resource?
How about all of the above?
Whatever it may be, the definition becomes a personal revelation. It makes me wonder, "Do we really buy what we need or most times are our purchases based on impulse?" I can admit that most of my buying decisions are impulsive, but why? Why do we succumb to the psychology of consumerism? We need to take in to consideration whether the items we purchase daily hold value to our well-being or if it simply takes us into a black-hole.
Consumerism is an open gate and requires sober thinking before applying to join it's associate.
What do you think? Are most of your purchases made on impulse? Leave a comment below letting me know your views.
Stay tuned for more on Consumerism...
The basic premise of economics is that men have needs which are unlimited, but the means to address those needs are limited.
ReplyDeleteWith the development of civilizations and urban living, portability and accessibility became a requisite for access to goods and services. The hunter gatherer was replaced by providers for which a common medium of exchange became acceptable.
The natural resources of the earth was exploited to generate added value and drive consumption patterns. The wealth derived from these activities triggered a thirst for wealth growth propositions which changed values and the metrics of success and achievement. The monetary standard became king.
It was not enough to provide for the basic and some higher order needs, captains of commerce drove paradigms of influencing the sense of needs, even if not real but perceived. Thus, the response to the triggers and influences is consumerism.
7-billion population - planet earth. 2/3rds living in survival market, existing on US$2, per day, and having to spend it all to survive each day. 4.6-billion spending US$2 per day approximates US$ 9.2 billion per day, approximates US$3-trillion per month. Consumerism the energy of wealth creation for a minority and the driver of many economic engines. Time for a return to the selfless economy." It is time for all men to be friends with each other" Our Lady of the Roses, Trinidad & Tobago.
Pastor Gill & Wife wrote:
ReplyDeleteIncredibly awesome!! Breath taking!! This well structured and thought provoking piece,really compels a person to sit down and begin to priorities what they invest in,in terms of the question,"Is this what i REALLY NEED to have??? Or,"Is this just something i WANT to satisfy a senseless craving???"
The first contributor in his wisdom was truly on spot. Examining origins the classical and the contemporary. in giving my two cents, I posit thw following. .. consumerism, inded has its virtues, can even be seen as the hallmark of democracy for some. But consumerism is a microcosm of a much larger architecture designed to entrap and enslave man. It provides a false sense of status, when status itself is a social construct. It forces 'consumers' to sacrifice the truly meaningful things in life for the attainment of a false ideal. We have been programmed from birth to nourish the system, like cattle. Consumerism is an elegantly and efficiently designed system to guarantee your slavery and debt.
ReplyDeleteFirstly I must inject the comment that consumerism is the brain Child of Capitalism. All this effort to further exploit the bottom of the pyramid! Being a male and classified as very need specific. I always thought that my unwavering shopping activity was a sign of thrift. However, based on your analysis I can see that advertisers really take the time to plug into our subconscious and manipulate or even reprogram our actions.
ReplyDeleteI must say that this topic is really interesting. We are all consumers. Some are impulsive; others are premeditated shoppers; and there is the mixture of the two opposites (Me). Consumerism may be classified as capitalism etc., but will it stop? No. Advertisers have entered the household in unconventional ways e.g. recently I received a State Farm pan scraper (great strategy). It is really up to the consumers to take a step back and walk out of that store (without purchasing) or log out of that shopping site (without purchasing). Take ten minutes to rethink your purchase and do not be lured by the flashing sale sign (which is a rip-off by the way). Consumerism is a psychological game which you can only defeat when you first understand your needs versus your wants. At the end of the day, designers etc. have one WANT; your money, you do not NEED to give them it. Take your power back.
ReplyDeleteThought provoking; lessons taken has been to be a master and not a slave to consumerism.
ReplyDeleteThought provoking; lessons taken has been to be a master and not a slave to consumerism.
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