What Stuff Can't You Live Without?
So many people in the Western world are surrounded by *STUFF.* Big stuff, little stuff, stuff to sit on, stuff that looks good, stuff to play with, and tons of stuff they forgot they even owned. All this stuff cost them a fortune. Look around at all your stuff! Ok, I'm kinda sounding like a clearance rack Dr. Seuss, but I hope you get the idea.
Companies spend billions of dollars to get you to buy THEIR stuff. We just had the holiday of consumerism, black Friday. People waiting in line for hours and then stampeding to get cheap stuff! Target sold 3200 TV's per minute in the first hour of the day, that's 192,000 TV's in one hour. How many of those people had no working TV in their home before that purchase?
The power of an apparent deal prompts people to open their wallets, even if the actual utility of the item is questionable.
It's rather ironic that black Friday comes the day after we (supposedly) celebrate being thankful for what we have.
There are extreme people called hoarders that have way too much stuff that it has turned into piles of crap. They can’t seem to part with any of their stuff. On the opposite end of the spectrum are people who live life with just a backpack full of stuff.
What is the correct amount of stuff to own?
I can’t answer that for you, you have to decide for yourself.
One of my favorite shows to watch is American Pickers. I love digging through other people’s stuff at yard sales or thrift stores to find things to resell for a profit. Since that is what the show is basically all about, I find it entertaining.
What really gets me is when the pickers are in some old barn and they pull out a piece of ‘rusty gold’ from underneath a huge pile of stuff and offer the guy $300 for it, but the guy wants to keep it! The person probably hasn’t seen the stuff in 30 years and forgot they even owned it until just then. Sell it and take the cash man! You aren’t ever going to use it!
Ok, so it’s just a TV show and might be a little staged – but I still like it.
While you probably don’t own a barn full of old rusty stuff, most of us have stuff in the closet or garage that we can sell.
How can you really decide what matters to you? A good starting point is to examine your priorities. What stuff is useful and that you use often enough to keep it with you?
Now I’m talking about materialistic stuff here, not food-water-air-connection-meaning.
Here was the top 10 list:
- Personal Computer
- Internet Access
- Smart Phones
- Education
- Movies
- TV
- Music
- Pets
- Alcohol
- Coffee
I have been living away from home for the past five months, so I have a somewhat unique viewpoint on the subject. Other than the items I needed to have for work, clothes, and whatnot, the stuff I had to pack along was as follows.
- Laptop
- Kindle
- Smart Phone
That’s it! On my laptop was a plethora of TV shows, movies, and PC games to entertain me – so it acted as an all-in-one entertainment system. I had prepared for the worst in my location, no internet, but luckily my room does receive some (weak) signal. If I was at home, internet would be on the list. Internet access allows me to educate myself as it hold the combined knowledge of the human race. Plus cat pics.
While I prefer paper books, the kindle is great for traveling. I have only ever spent 99 cents as so many classic novels are free, as well as special promotions that enable you to grab a book for free, or sometimes an author releases some older works to try to expand their readership. My first generation kindle works for me!
A side story for the kindle is that before I packed it I went to charge it up and found that it wouldn’t charge. I wondered what was wrong with it and popped it open to discover that the battery had bubbled. Luckily my wife has the same model of kindle and I took her battery to fix mine. I ordered a replacement off of eBay for about $10, which she replaced when it arrived. I am sure that some people would have thought their kindle ruined, thrown it away and bought a new one for $80.
My smart phone is the least important here as I do not have service, but still rather useful. I pretty much use it as a watch, alarm clock and camera.
This time away from home just reinforces what little stuff I want to make my life more pleasurable. Most of what I own is actually stuff I purchased with the only intention to resell to people that don’t believe in this philosophy. That is to say about 90% of people alive today.
It is important to note that besides Air, Water, Food, Clothes, Shelter and what you need to own to have an income to be able to purchase those things, everything else is a want. Even within our basic needs is plenty of ways to cut costs, buying a smaller or less fancy home for example.
There is nothing wrong with having better stuff or more wants covered. These things make life pleasant. The key is to realize what stuff really increases your happiness and forgo the rest. You need to have priorities. You can become rich by living well below your income, but not if you live at or above your means.
When you realize that you are trading your future freedom for all this stuff you will understand that more doesn’t mean better. You will weigh the pros and cons of the things you buy. When this happens you will find out that this stuff is just a distraction on your path to true happiness.
With Christmas approaching it is a good idea to think about your relationship with your stuff.
Decide that maybe it is time to buy less and sell what you no longer have any use for. Sell the smaller stuff online and the larger stuff locally. If you don’t want to be hassled with that, have a yard sale (when the weather is better). If that is not your style, donate to charity or give away to friends, family, or strangers. Don’t be the guy on American Pickers that can’t sell that stuff they haven’t used in decades (and we all know they never will).
Are books "stuff"?
That they are @ocrdu.
Having stuff is fine, if it truly brings you more happiness or helps you more than the cost of it.
I think I would get by with my books, a computer with internet access, my electronics lab and my camera. Plus some personal stuff, like old photos, my grandfather's fountain pen and my father's watch.
That's a very good list @ocrdu.
What do you build/fix in your electronics lab?
I design and build what I can't buy off-the-shelf to my exact specs. Solar SLA chargers, small, portable solar applications, helicopter stabilsations, 6V car electronics, battery powered USB chargers, whatever is needed or comes to mind.
Oh man, that is some good knowledge. I work with a few people that have your skill and it is something I just can't wrap my head around. Awesome!
It's not my job, mind, I'm an IT engineer. I just like to get away from that from time to time and make some hardware and do embedded programming.
Excellent post - I hope that people grasp what you're putting down - BRAVO!
Much thanks @steemtruth! Where you been, I've been missing your 'stuff' lately. ;D
I've had a lot on including my Dad in hospital for a month, now at home recovering. Family visiting from overseas and I snuck in a couple of trips. I'll be posting soon, it's nice to be appreciated. Thanks Champ!
SNORT! Good thing I wasn't drinking my coffee.
I see the point of minimalism...especially when traveling...but material objects can be seen as a tie to home. They provide comfort and a sense of belonging.
Who wouldn't want a comfy library stuffed with our favorite books and a big fat chair?
Nice follow through from your last post.
Finally, what could I live without? Probably all of it. I'd rather not, but I can just sit and think if there is nothing else to do.
As long as the stuff benefits to your happiness (at a level more than its cost) there is nothing wrong with having it.
You don't have to live with the bare bones basics, just be aware of what you truly want and enjoy it. if a comfy chair and books is your thing, wonderful! :D
I love American Pickers too but I haven't seen it on the channel line up in a while. I saw a lady on the news last night who spent $0 on christmas - she used an exchange system - I forget where she advertised, but she traded things for a great guitar and case, some homemade sweaters, etc....quality "stuff" without adding to her already loaded closets.
I just had this conversation w my husband the other day - about what we could do without - we have way too much. I would like to do an electronics fast and live....I feel like I waste too much time watching tv, surfing the net and I don't use my phone for much more than a daytimer to be honest.
I love the item exchange idea! Good old barter system in its beauty.
Stuff has a way of entering your life bit by bit until you wake up surrounded by it. It is there calling out to be used, or cleaned, or put away, or looked at. It's there sucking up your life energy.
Some of the stuff is great, it brings enjoyment and usefulness. Much of it, though, can end up owning you. You have to decide which is which, as it is different for each of us.
The fact that we have "storage" bins or full garages and basements to house it all, is a huge tell. My stuff isn't there for any reason except that I don't need it or use it. So it's time to pack it up, purge, and give it to people who need it.
It used to be my laptop but right now I think it is my cup of coffee in the morning!
Haha, any new word about the mac? My laptop died recently and I had to buy a replacement :(
I don't like coffee, but if you really want to get me going mountain dew and gummy worms will do the trick ;D
Not yet. I have an appointment to take it to the Apple store. I know what's wrong with it because the same thing happened about 18 months ago. It is the internal fusion drive that needs to be replaced.
I've lived pretty minimalist for a long time.. My computer/camera gear would rank up there at the top, especially cause they are part of my business so it makes it even more essential.
I dunno.. Can't think of much. Books maybe. Though I read mostly on the internet these days..
I used to actively throw away or give away almost everything, unless it was really important. And I'm still like that. The only thing I can think of to give away right now really is the old playstation that's been sitting in my closet for a long time. I thought maybe I'd use it again some day, but I probably won't.. I think I'll give that away soon.
Sounds like you are doing well keeping your stuff level low if all you can think of is an old playstation.
I love books too, but even that can be reduced by using the library to obtain most of what you want to read.
There might be some things I'm forgetting.. But yeah.. I think it's important to not get to attached to physical objects.. Physical people on the other hand.. Not so easy, and not healthy in my opinion.. Though one might disagree.. I think it is important to try to hold on to people, less so onto physical stuff.