Pandemic constraints taught me how to be a real user.

Reverse Consumerism

The forgotten part of our economy: USING what we buy.

Photos by PackShot, courtesy of adobestock.com

The pandemic has taught me so much, not least of which is how rich I am. Ironically, I had to pinch pennies to find that out.

At first, staying home didn’t curb my consumerism. What I would have bought at the mall, I just bought online instead. The cognitive dissonance from my stasis at home while the world around me roiled with chaos — that seemed to jump start a kind of unconsciousness digital activity that resulted in packages arriving almost every day.

I was ashamed of myself — thinking of the resources needed to get these items to my house. The stuff I was ordering wasn’t exactly ‘frivolous’, but neither was it what I would call ‘essential’.

In addition to the cavalier expenditure of our planet’s resources, I started feeling it in my bank account. So I stopped shopping. But I did it in a way that felt really good. And that’s what I want to share with you today.

Here are some things to think about before your index finger clicks on the “Buy NOW, and SAVE!” button:

1. Ask yourself if you already have this in your house.