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Consumerism is a religion. Practiced mostly by woman
I found that to be true when I worked retail..., but I worked retail in very girly departments. In my life among friends and family I've only seen in it the men.
Twenty years ago, I was doing a research assignment for one of the Baby Bells. We were trying to decide which demographics to target for all their additional services such as Call Waiting, etc. Mind you, this was back when people actually had land lines as their primary phone.
Almost without exception, we found that the households with the lowest incomes were most likely to buy. It was really depressing.
And, of course, I had several employees living hand to mouth. Mind you, I paid pretty much the standard salary in my area and then some. But, as an example, I had one employee whom I hired at the salary he requested. Two months later he comes back to me and claims I'm not paying him enough. As it turns out, he was going out to eat and drink every night, had a health club membership that he never used, and liked a movie so much that he went to see it five times in a weekend. So, duh, he didn't have enough money at the end of every month.
I'm so far off this, that I have a hard time understanding it at all. But then again, I worked in retail and saw retail therapy in full force. As a "drug of choice" shopping is really poor at medicating. The glee wears off on the way to the car in the lot.
I had one lady who would eat breakfast at our coffee shop (it was called the Tick Tock Room) shop till lunch, eat lunch there, shop some more and then head over to the mall.
The next day she would bring her purchases back....
The one year I worked in the Christmas store (Glitter and Glow) she decided to have a real tree and a fake tree -- which she bought from us. She wanted the fake tree all in blue. Lights ornaments garland.... the whoel magilla.
Next day -- the blue all came back, she wanted white. The next day white came back for pink.... and Ithink after about 6 days she settled on gold.
And because she did keep an boatload of stuff, we let her keep doing this.
And was probably one of the major factors in her divorce. She told me it was happening and one day she stopped coming.
Retail Therapy- huh. It's so prevalent there's a name for it. Good thing I caught myself in time. I wasn't into "purchase & return", probably because returning merchandise is agony. I should become a Retail Therapy Intervention Specialist. Having "been there, done that", I could qualify. I could have my own TV show, back to back with hoarders. Nah, too much work.
yea real shocker that a store that sells things in bulk has large shopping carts
they dont have baskets because almost nobody goes in there to buy 1 or 2 things and if you're only buying 1 thing you can just carry it. Much more than that wouldnt fit in a basket anyway.
This Christmas season, COSTCO is breaking out the big guns. They're introducing forklifts for all customers and for each customer/forklift, the store will provide a spotter/safety person. Then to world will end.
As far as the extreme thinking of not wanting to die with any money in the bank I have to ask is it really all that enjoyable to just spend it all as soon as you get it? Like the example I gave earlier of my friend that spent all of every bonus filling up carts at Walmart, for people that do that is the happiness in just the spending? If you are finding it there that is only a few seconds of your time. I can't help but think that much of the things you bring home don't really keep you happy for very long. You walk into a store not knowing what you are going to walk out with. How often do you figure out later that you never really wanted the stuff in the first place?
Yes it can be. I was once of those people who put everything the bank and never touch it. The more I get, the less I want to take out even if I need something. You have to spend money to look good and feel confident in clothes and other things.
I always need to go shopping, but I stop myself because I feel like I will be spending money and I am draining my account.
But then I do not end up going out because I do not have the right clothes. To attract someone, you need to the right outfit and look as men are visual creatures and there is a lot of competition out there.
So yes, you do need to spend the money sometimes to socialize even if it makes a person more broke. You wont meet anyone looking dumpy especially in certain high end areas in Chicago
you can still buy the stuff that makes you happy yet be conservative/save money at the same time. it's called delaying gratification.
That kind of is not possible. You can be delaying gratification keeping all your money in account even though you need to spend it or if you spend you won't be putting as much up as for me saving tons of money is just as gratifying as spending it on an outfit.
So which do you chose, you will be unhappy now matter the outcome.
Yes it can be. I was once of those people who put everything the bank and never touch it. The more I get, the less I want to take out even if I need something. You have to spend money to look good and feel confident in clothes and other things.
I always need to go shopping, but I stop myself because I feel like I will be spending money and I am draining my account.
But then I do not end up going out because I do not have the right clothes. To attract someone, you need to the right outfit and look as men are visual creatures and there is a lot of competition out there.
So yes, you do need to spend the money sometimes to socialize even if it makes a person more broke. You wont meet anyone looking dumpy especially in certain high end areas in Chicago
Not saying you should spend nothing, just not every cent.
This chronic poverty tends to be handed down from one generation to the next, and children grow up with that as a lifestyle and a mindset. Our society can only break the chain one way, and it is essentially the way Sweden did it. Sweden has dismantled most of its welfare programs, because there is no longer a target demographic. Their population has been lifted out of it, by a couple of generations of Swedes who were not proud of their chronic poverty and repaired it, rather than just saying "Serves them right"..
In one sense I agree with you. But the thing you had in Sweden was a culture of low corruption. In the U.S. and most other countries, we don't have that. Most countries in the world are like Greece (in varying degrees), and eventually make themselves broke with ever more perks and social programs. Few are like Sweden and the other Nordic countries. Once again, it still goes back to the mindset of the people.
I would add that now that Sweden has admitted a lot of immigrants from other countries, they are having similar kinds of problems with their welfare state as other countries do. Most of the new immigrants don't have the same value system as native born Swedes do.
Reminds me of an old joke, updated for inflation:
A man was talking about his problems to his psychiatrist, saying he has a duplex in Manhattan along with a summer place in the Hamptons, drives a Jaguar, and sends his daughter to the best private school in the city. His family also goes to Europe every year. Dr. says "what are you complaining about, those things are wonderful!" "I was just getting to that, Doctor. I only make $800 a week!"
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