Consumerism Quotes

“The unrestricted person, who has in hand what they will in all events, is free. But anyone who can be restricted, coerced, or pushed into something against what they will is a slave.”
Epictetus, Discourses, via The Daily Stoic (Page 81)

“Poverty is not the absence of goods, but rather the overabundance of desire.”
Plato, via Sunbeams (Page 53)

“Remember: even what we get for free has a cost, if only in what we pay to store it—in our garages and in our minds. As you walk past your possessions today, ask yourself: Do I need this? Is it superfluous? What’s this actually worth? What is it costing me?”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 75)

“‘Sought’ is from the verb to seek; I have always been looking for something. I see that now, for as long as I can recall I harboured fantasies of how some object or experience would heal me, would make me whole. Sometimes before Christmas I would be so euphoric at the prospect of the following day’s gifts that I’d vibrate until it felt like I might shape-shift. What was I imagining the millennium Falcon or whatever it was would bring? What was the inherent drive that was so fiercely engaged? I always felt these artefacts would bring completion. It was like I was born with the yearning to be whole and continually felt that each new object or encounter, particularly if enthusiastically heralded, would bring redemption.”
Russell Brand, Recovery (Page 194)

50 Materialism Quotes to WAKE YOU UP From The Nightmare of More

Excerpt: Consumer culture is so good at making us want more. Read our 50 materialism quotes to WAKE UP from that nightmare and learn to live better.

“Our possessions possess us. All the things I owned kept the back of my mind activated. I used to sit around and feel weighted down by all the stuff in my life. I’d worry about everything I had, thinking ‘I’ve got this much, so now I need more – I need to level it out: I have the TV, so I need the DVD player; I have the garage, so I need a nice car to fill it; I have this, so I need that.’ It’s a never-ending cycle, a cold war with yourself.”
Colin Wright, via Everything That Remains

Beyond the Quote (333/365)

You know that feeling you get when you’re too excited to focus on anything else except for the thing that you’re excited about? Yeah, that was me a few days ago as I rushed home to unbox the new phone that had finally been delivered. I knew that I had responsibilities that needed responding to, but I decided to let the excitement sweep me away instead. Or maybe it just swept me away and I like to pretend that I “let” it. None-the-less, right as I was unboxing my new phone and getting everything set up, lo and behold, what happens next? My computer breaks down.

“When you realize that all your material achievements are of value only in comparison with those who don’t have them, this is joy that springs from another’s deprivation. Can you really call this joy? Isn’t it actually a kind of sickness? It is time everyone addressed this. If you were alone on this planet, what would you want for yourself? Ask yourself this question and see where it takes you.”
Sadhguru, Inner Engineering (Page 221)

“There is something within every human being that dislikes boundaries, that is longing to become boundless. Human nature is such that we always yearn to be something more than what we are right now. No matter how much we achieve, we still want to be something more. If we just looked at this closely, we would realize that this longing is not for more; this longing is for all. We are all seeking to become infinite. The only problem is that we are seeking it in installments.”
Sadhguru, Inner Engineering (Page 23)

Naval Ravikant Quote on Desire and How It Works Against Your Pursuit of Happiness

“Desire is a contract that you make with yourself to be unhappy until you get what you want.”
Naval Ravikant, Medium

Beyond the Quote (272/365)

How many contracts of unhappiness have you signed? And how lengthy are the terms for each? Is the contract of your desire going to take you a week to obtain? A month? 12 months? 48 months? 72 months? Or is the contract you signed more like a 30 year mortgage? Are you really okay with being unhappy for that amount of time? …For any amount of time? And for what? A fancy car? A luxury watch? A playboy mansion? How much of your life are you willing to sacrifice for these things?

“The less expensive stuff you have, the less there is to worry about.”
Ryan Holiday, Medium

Witt Lowry Quote on Happiness and Why You Need To Free Yourself From Materialism

“If you’re not happy, you’re forever in debt.”
Witt Lowry, Debt

Beyond the Quote (228/365)

Debt is something, typically money, that’s owed. When you borrow $20 from your friend, you’re in debt to them. Until you pay them back, you will have that debt weighing on your shoulders. That’s why repaying a debt is such a gratifying, lightening feeling. You’re lightening the worry of your load. But, what about the debts that we imaginarily create in our minds? Sounds ridiculous, right? But, think about it.

“We’ve fast become a world of things. And most people are being buried in the profusion. What most people need, then, is a place of community that has purpose, order, and meaning. A place in which being human is a prerequisite, but acting human is essential. A place where the generally disorganized thinking that pervades our culture becomes organized and clearly focused on a specific worthwhile result. A place where discipline and will become prized for what they are: the backbone of enterprise and action, of being what you are intentionally instead of accidentally. A place that replaces the home most of us have lost.”
Michael Gerber, The E-Myth Revisited (Page 207)

“Greed is an effort to stuff yourself with something —it may be sex, it may be food, it may be money, it may be power. Greed is the fear of inner emptiness. One is afraid of being empty, and one wants somehow to possess more and more things. One wants to go on stuffing things inside so one can forget one’s emptiness. But to forget one’s emptiness is to forget one’s real self. To forget one’s emptiness is to forget the way to god. To forget one’s emptiness is the most stupid act in the world that a man is capable of.” ~ Osho, Fame, Fortune, and Ambition

Gratitude leads to fulfillment.

“Consumer culture is very good at making us want more, more, more. Underneath all the hype and marketing is the implication that more is always better. I bought into this idea for years. Make more money, visit more countries, have more experiences, be with more women. But more is not always better. In fact, the opposite is true. We are actually often happier with less. When we’re overloaded with opportunities and options, we suffer from what psychologists refer to as the paradox of choice. Basically, the more options we’re given, the less satisfied we become with whatever we choose, because we’re aware of all the other options we’re potentially forfeiting.” ~ Mark Mason, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

The quickest way to have more:

12 Minimalist Quotes from Everything That Remains by The Minimalists

Excerpt: Minimalism is about reprioritizing what ‘fills’ with what ‘fulfills’ your life. These Minimalist quotes from Everything That Remains can help.