Inconspicuous Consumption: the Aspirational Class

We all heard of “Conspicuous Consumption” (the use of particular goods through which the status is revealed e.g. luxurious cars)….there is now a brand new phrase known as “Inconspicuous Consumption” (status through prizing knowledge and building cultural capital), signifying a shift in values system or trans-valuation, resulting in a new elite class different from the leisure class, called “aspirational class” by Elizabeth Currid-Halkett in her new book “ The Sum of Small Things: A Theory of the Aspirational Class”.

“More profoundly, investment in education, healthcare and retirement has a notable impact on consumers’ quality of life, and also on the future life chances of the next generation. Today’s inconspicuous consumption is a far more pernicious form of status spending than the conspicuous consumption of Veblen’s time. Inconspicuous consumption – whether breastfeeding or education – is a means to a better quality of life and improved social mobility for one’s own children, whereas conspicuous consumption is merely an end in itself – simply ostentation. For today’s aspirational class, inconspicuous consumption choices secure and preserve social status, even if they do not necessarily display it.”

I have some hilarious personal experience with such Inconspicuous Consumption. Over the years, I have been hosting hundreds of backpackers from all over the world via a web-site called “Couch-Surfing” (www.couchsurfing.com ). By hosting such travelers using my spare room or even couch in the lounge, I have been perceived to be rich and influential in my neighborhood, even though I do not display any ostentation of outward wealth (which I do not really need). I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, interacting with people from diverse background in culture, age and racial composition etc., greatly enhancing my “quality of life” in retirement and health, in addition to able to do “Life-Long-Learning” PLUS always having beautiful birds as company!. I thus become unknowingly the “Aspirational Class”, the new elite, prizing knowledge and building cultural capital.

In fact, such Inconspicuous Consumption can form the basis for a paradigm shift in social equality by shifting emphasis from material consumption to immaterial consumption----- a typical case of “Skilling-up” (acquiring new skills) and “Powering Down” (cutting down material and energy consumption), something the world urgently need to do.

The required skilling up obviously has to enable us to tackle the expected hardship brought about by the convergence of many crises such as fuel, food and finance etc. The essence is toward self-sufficiency, sustainability and voluntary simplicity.

The solution places heavy demand for new skill-sets (Skill-up) and lifestyle changes (Power-down), covering the physical, financial, emotional, social, intellectual and spiritual aspects of our life. This sounds like a wholistic approach….. like many intentional communities or eco-villages practicing Permaculture.

Back to the case of my personal experience: Climbing your Property Ladder is not just for house ownership. In our context, House should not be treated as a mere Noun. It should be a powerful Verb….. carrying out meaningful and impactful activities, using the house as a combination of First Place / Second Place / Third Place as defined by American urban sociologist Professor Ray Oldenburg: First Place (Home), Second Place (Place-of-work), Third Place (Place for Social Optimization): http://bit.ly/2iC84Wl so you will have the Most Powerful Personal Space (5-fold better than any BMW, Benz?!) in your locality, whether locally, regionally or globally.

This is a shining example of Inconspicuous Consumption.... skilling up and powering down!

References:
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/inconspicuous-consumption/306845/
http://www.economist.com/node/5323772
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/perry-garfinkel/the-7-laws-of-inconspicuo_b_381954.html