The rapid advancement in technology has the potential to make us more experience-oriented and invest more time and energies in trying out new experiences.
Imagine this scenario … you get a windfall of $200,000. So, what are you going to spend the money on?
A house? Probability not. Financially savvy people now understand that a house is one of the biggest liabilities and not an asset.
Your favorite car or bike? The traffic jams and congestions around the city have made owning a vehicle a lot less attractive proposition.
A vacation??? Probably yes!! Especially to the places that you have always wanted to explore.
Moreover, with the boom in sharing economy where people can lease everything from a room, vehicles, furniture, music instruments, and many more commodities, the charm of owning things has ceased to exist.
This was not the case a few decades back. Owning a house was seen as the most important investment and buyers considered it to be their most important asset. Owning a car was more of a style statement and a status symbol than a mode of transportation.
With the advent of sharing economy model and proliferation of apps such as Airbnb, Uber, BlaBlaCar, Lyft, to name just a few, people are choosing to own less material things and gain more experiences out of their lives.
Sharing economy focuses on the sharing of the underused assets in ways that enhance effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and community and the concept is gaining popularity among people who are looking for new ways to optimize product utilization.
Also, the lower tariffs, cheaper airfares, relaxed visa regulations have made it easier for people to get more experiences in forms of vacations to distant locations and the access of a wide range of information about new cultures and people has piqued our interests and curiosity to know more about those.
It is also true that the rapid technological advancements have made us hedonistic people who seek for instant gratification. The availability of food, beverages, products, music, videos, and many more with just a click of a button has shot up the consumption levels to a record level.
People are consuming way more than ever before and are in a race to “keep up with the Joneses” and impress others by consuming more … With a majority of people are remaining more active on their social media platforms than ever before, the competition in social media platforms and out-glitz their ‘friends’ and ‘followers’ is becoming more intense.
More often than not, they blindly follow the lifestyles and choices of their favorite celebrities and indulge in a conspicuous display of wealth and consumption that results in the loss of their self-identities.
Also, technology has made the mass production of goods and commodities possible and lowered the costs of products. This has made it easier for people to get more products and commodities at a lower price and this increased the rate of consumption.
However, technology has the potential to simplify people’s lives and provide them with more resources and more time to try out novel experiences that were unimaginable few years back.
As we head to an era where technology is making it easier to share resources and de-clutter our living space and lifestyle, it is the right time to live a life that is less materialistically-oriented and make more room for people and experiences in our lives. Share
