I've been thinking about this topic a lot for the past few months, and it continues to perplex and fascinate me. I started thinking about how much I am (and we are as a society) constantly in a mode of consuming. The large majority of the population, it seems, is consuming information, food, products, services, and food while a smaller portion of the population is busy actually creating those things that are being consumed. American people watch a ton of TV and movies, listen to radio and music, read information on the internet and in E books(and sometimes in actual physical books) , play online games or video games, consume processed or packaged foods or fast foods, etc. We drive cars that other people made for us, we wear clothes that someone in another country created, we live and work in buildings made by other people- all so we can sit in a building for 40 hours a week at a computer and answer phone calls and type emails and talk to people about stuff that has really nothing to do with our personal life values and who we are at our core being. Then we leave this building, get in our mechanical vehicle, drive to another building, and spend the next three or four hours to basically refuel and get ready to do the whole process again the next day. In our free time, we don't create, we consume. We tell ourselves we worked so hard all day at our useless day job and then worked so hard to interact with our own offspring, that in our downtown, we deserve to zone out on Facebook or Pinterest, or the latest internet game, or binge-watch the top trending show on Hulu. Are there people who regularly use this down time to genuinely produce something? Maybe, but I don't personally know any of them. I'm sure there are some who work 40 hours, tend to their family, and then spend the evening writing music, making food from scratch, rebuilding a car in their garage, or painting a master piece. But in my experience, people engage in those types of projects maybe once a month, or for several days in a row, but then not again for another several months. I'm talking about how our typical, daily activities seem to be more centered on consumption rather than production.
It makes sense, though. With all of the advancements in modern technology and how easy it is to meet our basic daily needs, we just don't have to spend as much time on these things anymore. Hundreds of years ago, people would spend all day, every day, just making sure they had food and water and shelter and safety. For most of us, these are now just a given. So we have to spend our time doing something, why not spend it consuming all of these awesome things that society has handed to us on a silver platter. I mean, Netflix streaming is only like $8 a month! What a deal! Even if you can't afford cable, you can most surely afford Netflix. The cost of creating, though, doesn't really seem to have changed much over time. So why are people not creating more? Maybe because it's just easier to consume. Especially after working all day, and running kids to and from soccer practice, or taking your elderly parent to their chemotherapy or physical therapy appointments, or going to the mechanic, or the dentist, or shoveling snow or mowing the lawn, or repairing a leak in the pipes, etc. Maybe it's not the 40-hour-a-week job alone, but all of these other daily life things on top of it, that we just feel constantly obligated to do things because of the value we place on the outcome of task, not because we actually enjoy the process of completing the task. So, to reward ourselves for all the annoying things we have to do, we veg-out. '
There's another type of production that I left out- it's producing human relationships and volunteering out time and service to others. This would be things like calling our sick grandma, going to help someone move, volunteering at the animal shelter, being a mentor with Big Brothers, Big Sisters, etc. I think we might do these things more often then actually producing artwork or tangible goods, but it may not feel like it because we don't have anything tangible to show after the fact. But these types of production are very important, and can make us feel like we've really contributed and done something really important.
I find with consumption, that I almost never find myself thinking "Wow, I'm so glad I watched 4 Episodes of that TV show. I feel so much better!" It's more like, "That was fun, now what?" But, after I write in my journal or after I call a friend or make a delicious dinner, I'm almost always glad that I did and I almost always feel genuinely accomplished. Consumption, although fun, often leaves me longing for me, but it's like a deep, endless longing, and the more I consume, the more I want to consume, and therefore, the less desire I have to produce anything.
So why does it matter if we spend our time consuming or producing? Who cares if you watch a bunch of TV shows every week or if you spend hours on internet gaming sites? Like everything else, it's different for everyone. If your are a consumer, and your life feels full and content and very meaningful, then consuming isn't a problem for your. But if you at a consumer, and your life feels like it's missing something or maybe you are craving a greater sense of meaning and purpose, then you might try consuming less and producing more. Not only does it give us a sense of accomplishment to produce, but it can lead to us feeling more connected to other people and to society as a whole. Yes, it takes more work and effort to produce, but isn't that what life is supposed to be about? As with everything, I think a balance of production and consumption is very important, and that balance will be different for everyone. But for me, when I am craving escaping on a daily basis, I know that it's time for me to change gears and dig in deeper and produce something. Because when this life is over, I want to have more to show for myself than a bunch of checkmarks next to all of the TV series that I have completed, or a more than truck loads of empty containers of packaged foods that I've consumed. I want leave something more than candy wrappers, clothes, and debt. I want to leave a mark and make a difference, and I don't think I can do this by consuming TV all day.
