When I describe myself, when I’m asked about my favorite quote or whatever, I always come up with this statement: “Trying to do more instead of have more”, to which I usually receive the question “What do you mean?”

What do I mean?

It all started since I was very young, I started noticing that when I wanted to buy something (some physical stuff), I used to work hard, save money, and then buy it. Then, at the end, days after buying this “new thing”, always happened the same: the excitement about the “new thing” was totally gone. Why was that? I started to wonder.

The urge of having things we don’t really need is produced by the great work of the marketing industry, industry that works on all levels of our society.

A short story

I have a friend; he saved 30% of his paycheck for 3 years with one goal: Buy a Mercedes Benz (and not the most expensive one).  I asked him: “Why did you want a Mercedes?” His answer: “Dude, it represents you, besides, it’s a Mercedes!” To which I answered: “ok”.

He paid US$ 72,000 for his Mercedes, a luxury car (as you know) and hence he also pays expensive insurance, expensive maintenance, top quality expensive gas… (You continue)

And what’s the best part? 3 months later, the Mercedes was just feeling like a car that could have cost 1/3 of that price.  He got used to it, as we humans get used to everything. Do you have any idea of how many interesting things he could have done with US$ 48,000 (72,000 – 1/3)?

The story of my friend and his Mercedes happens to all of us, with anything, everyday. Happens with that watch that you want so badly, those new shoes, that big new house, those new sun glasses… And all of it, all of it just gives us a short-term pleasure. It’s simple, “things” are not goals nor source of happiness, things are tools.

People usually make “things” their goal. We think that if we buy that Porsche we’re going to laugh like the guy in the commercial, we think that we’re going to have the blonde woman in the commercial, and we also think that we’re going to be so cool and happy that people will admire us.

So I changed my strategy. I started to search for things that can give me a longer term pleasure: travel, restaurants, learn languages, learn any new thing, sky-diving… Whatever that produces experiences, emotions and good.

Don’t misunderstand me. It’s not that I don’t like an Audi; I just don’t make it my goal or my source of happiness.  If an Audi will cost me US$ 50,000 and another option will cost me US$ 20,000 and I have US$ 100,000 be sure I will buy the other option, no matter how more I like the Audi over the basic car.

Every time I have to buy something I ask to myself: “Do I really need this?”

Ask yourself, do you really need that? And if you do, do you really need the most expensive one? Will a cheaper option do the job? Who do you want to impress? What for?

Let’s start to impress people for the value that we can create, for the persons that we can become, and not for the things that we possess.

This is my philosophy, what is yours?

Please see this documentary, which explains the origins and science of consumerism and how we buy things we don’t need.