How Consumerism Ruins Our Planet and Finances

In the 70s you could buy a refrigerator that would run 20 years without service and a lawn mower than could go 10 without repairs... nowadays you are lucky if either makes it just 2-4 years. If companies REALLY cared about the environment like they constantly claim they do on social media... they would make stuff that cost a bit more and last 4x longer. The fashion industry is one of the most hypocritical, self-righteous and egregious offenders.

Honestly it’s exhausting that everyone is always trying to sell you something. It feels like it has become our only purpose, to work so we can consume.

I had a friend who told me along time ago 'Its hard to look rich and be rich at the same time" this turned out to be correct.. it was the best advice I ever got.

30 year old millennial here. Been a minimalist since 2015 but much more so since 2019. I remember reading an article years ago about how owning a lot of material possesions is hard on the mind because one is constantly thinking about all their posessions, where they are stored, maintenance and upkeep, etc. Once you finally let go of all the crap it not only declutters your life but also declutters the mind. It makes me feel like very lightweight and not weighed down by anything and I can just get up and go whenever I please

My mom needs to watch this. She is cheap so she thinks she is getting good deals but just ends up cluttering up her house with clothes and shit she doesn’t need

I feel like I am at the point where I'm sick of consumerism. I'm sick of shopping in person and online. I'm sick of feeling like I need more. I feel like the true price of materialism and consumerism isn't the money, but the clutter and chaos it brings to your life. That's what I've realised. I simply just don't have the space to keep buying more stuff and I feel like I constantly am cleaning and organising to upkeep my stuff. The past year I got a better paying job and with that extra money I just got addicted to buying things that I couldn't afford before. I used to want to be a minimalist for the economical benefits, but to be honest I feel like now I want to consume less for peace of mind. I don't think hardcore minimalism is for me because it's too strict, but just buying things I don't need is something I need to do.

I'm Italian, my wife and I made friends with an American couple who lives in our neighborhood in Rome, one evening they had dinner with us and kept complimenting us on our "minimalist style" after a while I asked what they meant and explained to me, I laughed, and I explained that our style is just about not spending money unnecessarily, if the sofa, even if it is 20 years old and works for what it is supposed to do, I don't change it, if my car is 12 years old but it works I don't understand why change it and spend money that I can use for holidays, trips, dinners, culture, in short, ours is not minimalism but rather anti-consumerism. the dildo metaphor is wonderful

At 42, I've come to realize that money is a tool. I’ve worked so hard over the years to realize that if you don’t make money work for you, you can’t experience true freedom. I’m glad I found that out although it was later in life, but that marked the turning point in my finance.

How social media keeps us poor would be an amazing video

My grandfather advocated the idea of stewardship: that we should be taking care of what we have for those who come next. He applied that to his farm, home, tools, and his work in government. I try to live that and pass it onto my own kids. I miss him.

Working retail for almost 20 years really made me resist consumerism. The biggest scam is Christmas.

I have furnished and decorated my whole house with things from thrift stores. I sanded, painted, repaired, stained, sewed, replaced hardware, and even repurposed some items. My house is beautiful and people are always amazed and envious. They ask me, "where do you buy your furniture, window treatments, and art?" I'm proud of all my hard work, and it has MEANING because I did it with my own hands. Old furniture is made of solid wood.

What baffles me is the minimalist trend of throwing away everything, and then buying a bunch of matched new stuff (always in white or blonde wood). The old artwork and family photos gets tossed for a few trite "inspirational" sayings in rustic wood frames. An isolated little potted plant is always in the background- I guess someone's older overgrown potos would look too leggy and out of place. I find all that so dreary and pretentious and dishonest. I've been spending less and less on new stuff, but I am equally careful about what I choose to get rid of.

Deleting Instagram has been one of the best things I've done for my personal finances. I was getting ads for things I likes and even better! From small businesses and independent creators, so you feel even more justified to buy like "It's not Target, it's Betty who makes handmade bags!", But in the end it is the same consummerism and things you don't really need

I'm glad I got my "consumerism phase" out in my late teens/early 20s. I was constantly in competition with my peers on who has what. Then when I went to work started living on my own and paying all my bills by myself, I realized how much money I was wasting on a consumerist lifestyle. So I started saving and living more minimal. Now I'm debt free and getting ready to buy a house while my peers that went to college and stayed caught up in that consumerism popularity contest are drowning in debt living paycheck to paycheck wasting money on door dash and Gucci. Even though in some cases they make more money than me, they still spend it all on pointless "consumerism" living paycheck to paycheck and their finances are in shambles. It's a disease

So much easier not to consume when you're poor

My Auntie has recently just stopped buying me and my family Christmas and birthday presents and has decided to spend it on days out with me and the family. She came to realise during Covid that the days out and the experiences make us more happy than the rubbish we can buy at the Metrocentre (Massive shopping place near Newcastle). I have been more happy after Me and my Auntie have taken this way of thinking. I also think that consumerism is just a big waste of money and it just leaves unneeded clutter around the house.

I must say it is wonderful to see someone so young embracing such common sense wisdom and attempting to alert others.

The way I put an end to consumerism and got myself into a different mindset was when I came out of my depression. My house was literally a dump and when hit rock bottom I literally went to the store and bought a huge push broom and huge dust pan and rented a dump trailer. I worked 2 days straight throwing everything out. I could not believe how much garbage I accumulated and held on to for years. I had reached hoarder status but I literally was able to put years and dollar amounts to everything I threw away. Wasted labor and cash. I was able to cure myself and once I had a clean slate I never went back. I'm debt free now and own my home and am a minimalist. I love having the extra money and investments and I no longer work as hard to buy nonsense. I love my life.

I love browsing from time to time through local trash. It often amazes me what others can just throw away. Repairing and refreshing old things give me huge pleasure and feeling of accomplishment. I learned how to sew and repair clothes. I only buy clothes that have best ratio of value to quality. I don't eat in restaurants because I worked in few during my students years and I just know to much about quality checks in this business. I use every ad blocker that is possible and I never buy under the impulse. I always give myself a few days to think do I really need or enjoy item I wish to buy. High fashion and luxury products make no impression on me. I truly believe they are for people that need to compensate some deep issues. When it's possible I always choose local producers.