8 Ways to Live a Meaningful Life and No Longer be Impressed by Shallow ‘Success’
Minimalism has fundamentally changed the way I view my world and the way I live my life. What initially started as physically decluttering my stuff, quickly moved into my thoughts, beliefs and actions in other aspects of my internal life. In many ways, it brought me back to the laws of nature. I have moved further away from the traps of human manufacturing for the sake of profit and also from the influence of the media selling an ever-changing image of how we should live our lives to give the impression of ‘success.’
It seems to me that the wealthiest, leisure-seeking, attention-seeking, entertainment-providing people are promoted as the ‘successes’ in life. They make their money from an image of an unrealistic and unhelpful lifestyle for the rest of us to try and imitate, and as a result, many people now admit feeling depressed, unhappy or resentful when they compare themselves to this ideal. A lower quality of mental health has become a more acknowledged experience in modern life.
Yet, the greatest people I have met in my life have been humble in their lifestyles but large in their warmth, positivity, helpfulness and connection with others. They have been kind, fair and giving of their time and natural ability to listen. They have been human and have admitted their flaws too, and they have come from all walks of life.
We all recognise the façade of celebrity, popular leadership and an image of success, yet it continues to be promoted as the be all and end all through constant social media streams.
You get hooked by the entertaining stories that supposed ‘successful’ people live. However, did you ever stop to consider that celebrity is simply promoted as another brand by media and corporations to profit from?
When I was managing a private school in London, one parent I would greet in the morning looked me up and down in concern and said, “You know you shouldn’t wear branded logos on your clothes. This brand is known to exploit poorer people in its factories.” I looked into this particular brand and found that it had been accused of using child labour as young as 6 in its factories and here I was leading a school!
I didn’t want to become a walking advertisement for a company to impress peers at the expense of those in poorer countries, so I made the decision to consciously choose brands for their ethical manufacture and function and not to impress. I also joined a charity organisation to help fund children from this particular country out of factories and back into schools.
Why success and branding no longer impresses me:
Because People matter more: We all have our own interesting stories and we don’t need money or status be positive, confident, friendly, warm, giving, happy or comfortable with ourselves. The way we feel is a personal choice and is not bought or earned by success. We are social beings and connection is a priority.
How much money you have: It is not how much you have that is important, it is what you do with it that counts. With money comes power and responsibility and we shouldn’t be impressed by those who buy big from their ego alone. We must recognise that all money that one holds has come from other people. Those who find ways to give back and improve the lives of others are more impressive than those who hold onto it for their own benefit and indulgence alone.
Social Media: Most of us post images of our lives or promote our beliefs and preferences on social media; however, we need to be aware of the time we spend looking at ideal images and comparing our lives to those of others. We have one life to live on this planet and need to re-learn how to appreciate our present lives; otherwise, we lose ourselves in ideal illusions presented in still images, impressions and short videos about ‘cat fails,’ and our life drifts away.
The latest gadget: Keeping up with technology by swapping it out every year means that you are being controlled by a brand and its promise of usually only a few improvements. If we learn to hold on longer to our mobile phones, gaming machines, laptops, music devices etc. we slow the never-ending manufacturing supply and the environmental consequences of mining precious metals and creating more plastics. Eventually, most manufactured goods end up in landfill. Don’t be a sucker for the ‘very next best thing.’ We tend not to use even half of the features anyway.
The size and branding of your car: Vehicles are often bought as an extension of an image we wish to present, regardless of the cost to the environment. Currently, people attach prestige to large engine cars of certain brands. Although I am quite mechanical and have always loved working on classic cars, I welcome the day when combustion engines are obsolete, and wars are no longer fought over fuel. The environmental and health cost of refining and shipping fuel around the world only to be turned into further carbon emissions from our exhausts is another staggering statistic that we seem ignorant of. With the advent of cleaner electric vehicles, we are in a better period of change.
The size of your house: Large houses have led to the ruin of many families financially. They are they less energy efficient and cost more in electricity, gas, water and maintenance, plus we have the tendency to fill them with more purchased stuff. When you have a larger house, your family members tend to disappear into one of the many rooms and you see them less. A smaller home is more intimate, cheaper to maintain, easier to clean and forces you to consider what possessions are the most important to own and value.
Your fashions or wealth that you wear: If one person wears a ring or other piece of jewellery that cost thousands to impress others, it will pale in comparison to a much cheaper jewellery item that has a story and history behind it. A truly precious piece will have been earned by someone who worked hard and saved for a long time and gave it out of genuine love.
You are unique and special: We all have our strengths and also our weaknesses. You do not need to be defined by society as to whether you are a ‘success’ or not. One person’s view of success is different to the view of another. Success ultimately comes from the inside. Someone may appear externally ‘successful’ on the outside but are feeling empty on the inside. Life is about living, and living is a doing word. We do not need to nominalise our life by turning it into a static brand, label or image.
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