Why do we, the urban Indian youth, feel like buying a new smartphone every year? Or a new trendy t-shirt every now and then?
We know very well that any new features in these products are not going to affect us in any major way. That the phone we already have is sufficient for all our current needs. Our clothes are fairly good to last at least a year more.
Yet a new smartphone and new clothes seem like necessities.
The reason lies in the system in which we all happily live in.
We live in a society that forces us to stay updated with the latest trends, gadgets, etc. Anyone who doesn’t conform to these ever-changing ‘standards’ is looked down upon. To avoid this, we give in to these societal needs because that’s the only way to stay relevant and get validation.
This constant need for validation is what gets exploited by multinational companies trying to sell us their new products. They know that the moment they launch a product with a new feature, people are going to jump all over it. And hence, they fuel this need of ours, all the time.
Businesses thrive on human desires. Every want of ours gives us a high and makes us want more. Businesses simply need to exploit this, and so they do. Our desires make for a very profitable business and it’s high time we all realize this.
In this revolutionary TEDx talk shared here and titled, “Social Ransom”, Captain Yogiraj Khanwelkar talks about the social phenomenon that has successfully plagued our lives and pushed us into this bottomless pit of materialism and consumption. Through research and statistics, through direct comparisons between the essence of the “Bhagavad Gita” and the picture of today, he explains how our desires are systematically used to bait us into an unending vicious circle of craving, acquiring, consuming and craving again, ultimately leading us to spend yet again. All for happiness and validation, of which we sadly get none.
Do share this talk if you agree with it. Awareness is the only way this disease can be cured.