Mar 31 2008
No Consumption for a YEAR?!
Is that even possible?! - one brilliant soul is experimenting to see if it is.
I’ve just spent the better half of the morning going through every single post of Gaurav Mishra’s ‘Off Consumption’ blog (which is also going to be a book soon!) on his experiments thus far with a year off consumption.
While I surfed through his 2 week journey so far (yeah, it’s still a baby blog, you can catch up) I found myself laughing at his washing bucketfuls of clothes, amazed that people were getting so into the whole thing that they want to turn it into a reality TV show and in general, enjoying (to quote a commenter) his funny “Wodehouse like” posts on his dates off consumption.
His latest post (on his insatiable craving for a McDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap) makes me wonder whether he’ll actually make it through the year?!
I found myself also wondering if I too could give up consumption for a year - that thought quickly perished when I glanced at the sexy new Guess shoes I’ve just bought (one really can’t have too many shoes, right?). I’m not crazy about buying things, but how does one live in Mumbai, for a year and not buy any new clothes or shoes, not go to any restaurants or movies or any paid entertainment?! Seriously!!!!
I know I have enough of resilience in me to do it for a cause - I did after all live in an Ashram for two years - but to stay in the world and completely be off consumption, just to “see” if it’s possible - gee, I don’t know..!
Anyway, I’m wishing G the best of luck & will be following the entire experiment closely!
Meanwhile, what are your thoughts on the matter? Do you think you’d make it through a year? Would you want to?!
Related thought - if you had to do this (don’t ask me why, just assume someone put a gun to your head or something), what do you think would be the main thing you’d miss being able to do/buy? - I think mine would be giving up restaurants / coffee shops - basically would cut off my social life, I think!
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Thanks, Mel, for going through the book and writing the post.
By the way, I will last the year, in spite of my insatiable craving for MacDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap.
Not sure how my employer feels about me spending the whole morning on your book however, addictive! lol
“Going off consumption” is an exercise in self discipline too. And I’ve heard that self discipline is more important than IQ for long term success.
Now I’m thinking of being off “sweets” for an year. Sweets is a weakness and I’ll look for motivation to be off sweets on Gaurav’s blog.
If you’re satisfied with what you have and don’t want to change/acquire new stuff, then that person is an advertiser/marketer’s worst nightmare
Hope Gaurav is successful in his experiment, for whatever reason he’s doing it.
Hmm. Interesting. An American Family recently tried to live one whole year without using anything made in China. The book A Year Without “Made In China”, by Sara Bongiorni, documents their experience
That said, on being off-consumption, I did not buy any clothes for nearly 8 years. I have just broken that spell. I also no longer eat chocolate although for 1 year, when I lived in Zurich, I ate chocolate every day. I love chips and I never buy or eat any. I can look at shop windows’ merchandising for hours but I never go inside and spend any money. I do not feel deprived enough to feel having something right now might somehow make me happier or more satisfied.
Richard Branson says he got to where he did by saying ‘yes’. He should be glad that nobody ever asked him to snort cocaine or hashish. As Indians, I think we all need to learn to say ‘no’ forcefully and not just rarely, and mean it. ‘No’ is ‘No’ and not ‘may be’ or as many think, ‘yes’.
In particular, it will be an interesting experiment for sure, amid the booming consumerist India.
i can’t.. i need so many stuff to see through the day that i have to buy around!! i can’t.. and if i was forced to.. i wud miss being able to the stuff that i want to at the drop of a hat!!
Whether Gaurav, would be able to last for a year, is any one’s GUESS!!
, Lovely shoes!
@Ranjan: If the book motivates you to go off sweets, I’ll consider that at least some good has come out of it. All the best!
@Swaroop: I think I’m unique because I’m both a marketer’s nightmare and a marketer myself!
@Shefaly: You did not buy clothes for 8 years! Wow!
@Sam: Well, all I can say is that I have been there myself. It’s all about marginal utility, my friend.
@Manoj: Nice pun! I will last the year, by the way (and we shall prevail etc.)
@ Gaurav: Didn’t need any new ones. I keep things in a good state of repair, so I still have clothes from 15 years ago and luckily they still fit me
I remember from our marketing classes way back in IIMA, if we totally messed up a case discussion, Professor AK Jain used to say - What is this animal called ‘need’? And I still ask myself that question on every occasion possible!
well, I guess now a days “need” has metamorphosised or rather deflated into a huge pervading sphere which takes into account the most uneccessary items(like your shoes)…which I man do without..also it’s a never-ending affair.
I came here looking for you as you said good night on twitter two days ago and no good morning since. Saw this post so thought I’d leave a comment too. You lived for two years in an ashram? That must have been something.
2 weeks, two months, but two years! Have you written about it/ blogged it. I’d love to read if you have.
P.S : I’ve been trying and succeeded so far fairly well with my “No buying books, Cds, music etc’ target for past few years. But that is not a good example as it does not stop me from borrowing/asking/getting gifts. And I do buy an occasional odd one.
Yeah, the Ashram was something indeed. The 2 years flew by faster than I realized
Official first-timers welcome to TVIMH, cya around!