Yes I'm gonna have to add this to the next list of things that make me mad, because, SAME - sucks to be the buyer and the creators who do actual hand-made goods in that scenario, ruins it for everyone!
Agreed! Twice now I've used filters for "handmade" and within so many miles of my location and got something packaged from overseas. Idk if it's a seller or etsy filter issue but it's so hard to find things now.
That's extremely irritating. It's even filtering down to some of the local craft fairs, festivals, and markets. I've noticed some of these markets that used to sell almost exclusively local made crafts and goods are becoming full of cheap mass made goods that are disguised as original hand made goods.
@@KayleeCee I went to an art show once and one of the vendors was selling mass produced purses from Mexico and they claimed that their family made them. lol. It was a huge art show in Fort Worth TX. For such a high caliber show I have no idea why that vendor wasn't vetted.
I’m upset that some of our leaders want to privatize everything-public schools, national parks etc. These are the few places that have been ad free, but as they have been defunded, they have to start selling things. A national park that educates people about environmental issues now has to sell a sweatshop-made tshirt that will end up in a landfill.
I've also noticed this when visiting Salisbury cathedral in England. A beautiful and serene place, but it charges an entrance fee and has a large shop selling various generic tourist-y things. It was even worse when I visited Stonehenge earlier that day, which had a whopping 100 bucks entrance fee for our four people family, and had almost lost its charm with artificial paths and instagram challenges being everywhere. This is human heritage, not just a tourist trap, and it should be free or at least accessible for everyone without being turned into a consumer hell.
@@whatsyourname9581 On the other hand, I work at a church that people visit -- and ask us where our merch is. Where's the t-shirts, postcards, etc. to buy as souvenirs. Aaargh!! It's been normalized, and that drives people thinking it's something we need to do. Standard answer: we're not here to be a tourist attraction, and that's why people visit us.
A couple of things high on my list: - The desire to turn absolutely every product into a subscription, so instead of buying it and then you have it, you have to keep paying constantly on it in order to keep it. This includes things like buying a newer home, where the developer makes more from the HOA fees than they do on the original sale of the homes. - The use of relatively new AI tech to pretend you're talking to a person when you aren't. For everything, ranging from sales to customer service, I'll see a chatbot popping up about "How can I help you today?" My answer: "I want you to go away so I can look at the stuff I want to look at, thanks."
Ooh, adding these to the list for next time - I am also increasingly dismayed at the use of AI, it seems like many content creators are promoting AI tools, either directly (paid ads for Grammarly or AI video making) or indirectly, by making use of ChatGPT during videos...what is the point of watching that? I'd rather see an authentic human with flaws and limitations, especially in the field of "independently-created" content...but maybe I'm just reaching the point where I'm too old to jump onto new tech like that
Minor one, but I can’t with people on social media using the phrases “I’m obsessed” or “I would die for” some object. No you aren’t and no you wouldn’t. Get a grip.
The planned obsolescence also grinds my gears. I've been complaining about this for decades. I hate the idea of having to buy something just to line the pockets of manufacturers, rather than the product adding actual value to my life.
My nans washing machine was brought and used before I was even born (at the time 22), it then broke beyond repair, So Got a new one.... Broke down juuuuuust after the warranty. Things just aren't built to last. 😢
The front two wheels on a lawnmower I found on the side of the road are not simply mounted to the metal deck, the deck is cut short, and there is a thin plastic extension in its place. Aaaand it's broken. On an otherwise good mower. This is on something that is meant to be pushed around and takes a buse from the ground normally, so not designed strong enough for that.
It's why, wherever I can, I buy what I can from charity shops. There I can find things that have often stood the test of time, some are several decades old. My husband is a bit more up-to-date and will buy a motorised spice grinder (even though we have hand cranked ones as well), but it's ridiculous just how quickly stuff breaks down. I can't believe how bad some products are getting now. We are building a new cage for our young ducks, and bought galvanised wire mesh. It was barely put over the cage frame - when it started to rust. It's complete rubbish, and I can't think of any situation when this would be any good. Quality is just going down and down all the time.
My pet peeve is when creators say "THAT'S WHY I partnered with (insert company)" to sort of obscure their motivation for creating the video. I feel much more comfortable if they straight up say "I'm getting paid to create this ad"
They can probably charge more for that sneaky format, so they’re selling out their audience extra hard. I respect more the YTers who do a 30-second ad read for extra income, knowing their savvy audience can skip past it.
Yes - at this point it's gotten almost comical for me and I suspect it's why I'm getting more and more turned off of consuming content in general - not saying everyone "should" stop watching this stuff, it's just my "new personal choice" at this phase of my life/no-buy experience 😅 I agree that keeping the ad-read unrelated and therefore more "advertisement-like" can actually start feeling more acceptable, compared to a video that SEEMS genuine (a daily vlog, a fashion advice video, makeup try on, etc or even some thought-pieces) only to be proven less so by the sneaky ad placements that had to play at least some part in the thought of the video's narrative.
@21cormorants brings up an interesting point as well not just about individual videos, but whole channels or media presences - is the goal to eventually be sponsored and/or monetized, or is the primary goal to share ideas or art? How many would still be posting with zero compensation? I've admitted this myself where I would definitely still be posting but I might not be sharing as many ideas (doing as many videos) if I wasn't ad-monetized. I'd still have the ideas but not sure I'd be trying to organize them in the same way.
many authetic creators will use that line just to segway into the 30 second ad clip, and the video was never soley created just for the ad. Honestly not that bad unless the entite video is seriously an ad for a product. I dont see that happen too often.
In Australia we have these things called a "council clean up". Your local council let's you know one or two times a year when they will come with a big garbage truck and collect your undesirable items to throw into landfill. As a twenty something I was filled with delight whenever these council clean ups happened, as I would scour the neighbourhood for cool things that others were throwing away and I could have furnished several houses with what I found. These days, as a 40 something I still check out what others are throwing out, but it makes me feel sick to see how many good quality items are being thrown into landfill because people can't be bothered to find a way of reusing. Full leather couches in good condition, dining settings, working sewing machines, tools. I have picked up both an extension hedge trimmer and an extension chain saw, plus multiple leaf blowers, a jig saw and so many other things. All in perfect working order. The fact that people won't take the time/effort to figure out how to rehome these items and would rather risk these things going to landfill if someone doesn't happen to see and collect it before the truck comes along to dump it just makes me so mad. There is so much scope for rehoming items with easy access to buy nothing pages these days. It's just not okay.
Oh I think my neighborhood in Texas had one of these too. We never managed to make use of it as the only time we had significant pieces for landfill (furniture etc) was when we were moving, and would sometimes use that time to let go of things with no further use-value without significant work (broken couches that we still used, a decades-old, visibly stained mattress). It is dismaying to see anything with use value get tossed! I understand that reselling - or even listing something for free pickup - can be hard and time consuming, but I do view it as part of the price we pay for bringing these items into our lives. Our broken couches were acquired this way, when someone else was moving and listed them for very cheap online. They were already a little broken when we got them but worked just fine. If they hadn't been through the mess of babies when we moved we might have relisted them for free - but, I think part of this general issue is also that many people are less willing to sacrifice "shiny and new" in favor of saving the money - or the planet! - these days...for example, some college students get brand new ikea furniture every time they move, rather than using old beat-up hand-me-downs during these temporary periods.
@@Alexas.nobuyyear new things are so cheap these days (in many senses) that it's hard to blame people for getting new things. It can look grubby to have hand-me-downs and to be picking up other people's discards from the side of the road. My hubby is sometimes embarrassed if I'm seen rifling through other people's rubbish. I get it. I'm just mad that it's left out as rubbish in the first place. So many things get ruined even if it simply rains. I'm just getting old and cranky, I think. Young people these days!!!
I have a sewing machine, a food processor that are over 40 years old and still work fine. The key to knowing they were well made is there weight ...no plastic parts.... I was given a newer food processor by a friend it was so light weight and the blade was downright dangerous because it was poorly and cheaply made. This item was made for planned obsolescence. I will never stop using my over 40 year old items . So well made.
This is actually inaccurate. They add fake weight to a lot of consumer products to make them feel more significant. So it's hard to tell by weight. Also, it completely depends on what polymer, there are hundreds, if not thousands of different types. Some, like carbon or glass reinforced Nylons are exceedingly durable and resistant to all kinds of environments. The consumer just has to do a lot of research these days as even price is not a good indicator of a good product anymore. I work in design and manufacturing.
Yes, this can go either way. My mother loves Kirby vacuums. They're so heavy. I love 8 to 10 lb Orweck vacuums. (They started as work horse, hotel industry vacuums. Kirby was the vacuum with all the attachments, bells and whistles that wealthy housewives bought from door to door salesmen.) But the Kirbys are so heavy. Then the self-propelled came around, but it's one more thing that can break. Kirby storefronts with maintenance and repair done onsite eventually became a thing. Anyway I hate cheap vacuums that get gross and quit pucking up. Ppl buy new, cheap vacuums like they are an accepted "planned obsolessaints" factor of stinking. Talk about a big contribution to the landfill pile. Oh, Dyson came along somewhere along the way, but The Dyson company spent so much $$$$ on advertising, I just know that's been worked into the price. They don't need to cost so much. I think they tried to become the Nike of vacuums with built in "Brand prestige" I guess. Im going to buy a new vacuum. Maybe a stick will be lightweight enough I wont rupture my stomach condition. I compared a few and threw in the towel for now. I hate that there are so many styles, brands and options. Vacuums are a market too full of redundancy. Some of these Sticks are offered in 7 colors.... Too many options. If it works great I don't care much about the trim colors. Its so cool easy to overpay for things like vacuums that wear out, or one part breaks or they just begin to stink or blow dust all over the house. Ive got weak abdominals and need something that's not major workout to push around. I cringe at the thought of how many big, plastic, bulky, carpet vacuums plus all the attachments go in the landfils. Sorry for the rant, but I couldn't help but think of Kirby vs Orweck and "powerful but lightweight" and ease of carrying being a selling point for Orweck vacuums. Mom's Kirby always reminded me of 1957 Buick. Its a beast.
I use daily a Singer 1937 sewing machine it's a amazing machine. Sews a perfect straight stich every time even though leather. and I can fix and maintain it myself with just an oil can and a screwdriver.
no plastic parts it’s kinda silly. if it’s 40 years old then it’s made in the 70s or 80s when plastic was very much the rage. i’m thinking you mean thinner plastic? nothing wrong with having plastic parts, it just depends on how sturdy they are. and plastic can be heavy as hell.
I did a no-buy year in 2019 and it forever changed the way not only that I shop but the way I view the world. I think it's a bit like taking the pill in the Matrix movie - you can't go back or unsee these things. All of these things make me mad too!! I've opted out of most things that make me mad, like social media, never, ever shopping from Amazon, spending my money at local shops, and supporting community agriculture. A lot of times people will scoff at me for these personal actions but I remind myself that just because I can't do everything doesn't mean I should do nothing. Great discussion!
Yes and also the personal actions can help feel like we are at least able to live a little more in line with our own values, I find. It's so cool to hear that the no-buy had a similar effect on you too! Maybe it needs to become a common practice for young-adults as they are thrown into the world of unsupervised and unregulated consumerism after leaving home 😅
As someone who is forced by circumstance to be very mindful about when and what they buy and how much they can provide or produce on their own, it is incredibly infuriating seeing how much people just blindly follow consumption habits, even people who are in worse positions than I am. I detest the fact that it's rammed down your throat whether you are interested in a product or not. Especially electronics.....
How in the world do you go a whole year without buying anything? How did you eat? How did you get gifts for your kids' birthdays or Christmas (if you have kids)? How did you get to work without buying gas/public transportation? and so on...
@@Darcy783 you can be self sustainable save seeds grow your own food, make gifts out of stuff you have around your house, be fortunate enough to walk or bike to work etc... it's not exactly hard when you put your mind to it, but in context it's also mainly don't buy extraneous stuff outside of necessity for yourself ie no restaurants, fast food impulse buying etc it's all about reusing the things you have already and repurposing them
@ that's not possible in a lot of the US, especially the walking or biking to work where's the roads are not safe to do that on. And many folks cannot grow their own food.
The making up of new problems/insecurities, as you mentioned, is SO ENRAGING to me. The “whole body” deodorant trend right now is so reminiscent of companies inventing the need for mouthwash and I cannot stand it. There are so many other examples but for some reason whole body deodorant grinds my gears lately. Also I can’t stand UA-cam ads lately that are just a 60 min episode? Like if you don’t hit skip it’s a 60 min ad? What nonsense is that????
Big same! Whole body deodorant is just basically trying to advertise a new insecurity, primarily to women, about how they stink and should use their product to mask. It’s a bunch of bull and I will never use deodorant anywhere except my pits.
I had a somewhat cynical college economics prof, he had marketing figured out. The goal of marketing, he said, is to make a rat. Then threaten to shove it down your shirt if you don't buy their product. The rat is anything they can convince you is a rat. Stinky elbows, not having the latest car to impress the neighbors, etc. So I always look for the rat - they're not hidden after all. If there's a rat, the product isn't anything I need.
I realize that most items for sale are of the “create a problem, sell the solution” ilk, but the whole body deodorant ads make my hair want to catch fire. First of all, we (mostly women) have enough body insecurities unlocked. Second, the evolution of that particular item from patients with actual clinical problems that cause them to have excessive or aggressive body odor to “your butt crack smells, even after a shower” is just watching capitalistic greed in fast motion. WHO THE HELL IS OUT THERE BUTT-SNIFFING?!? We are not dogs. This is not an accepted greeting in any human culture that I know of. My position is, if you have somebody sniffing your butt, stop associating with them or press charges, whichever seems appropriate. Then, get on with your life unburdened by at least one intrusive person without purchasing unnecessary products to make them feel better. Good grief.
You're just putting unnecessary and useless chemicals on more of your skin. Wouldn't it block skin pores and make you spotty? Another issue if you are already putting deodorant everywhere because you are self conscious. They'll probably have a product for the spots it causes soon. Create the problem then the solution.
*IVE HAD A NO BUY DECADE* it started by necessity - I was bankrupt & homless - but I never went back to consumerism - now almost everything about modern consumer society annoys me The amount of stuff we NEED V the mount we BUY is utterly STAGGERING. I only buy what I NEED and even then I buy it second hand and you know what - I have a very happy, normal life with hobbies and pastimes and a part-time self employed job.
I'm happy to hear you aren't in that situation anymore, I had much leaner circumstances in previous years as well and was on no-buy years out of necessity too - but then I started earning a salary for a little while and things got out of control, hence doing a purposeful no-buy this year to get things back on track. You are so right about "needs" vs. "actual purchases". It is staggering, and not normal.
Homelessness does make you reshape your ideas over possessions. After I had a brief time homeless, I was quite proud of the fact that, for several years, I could pack all my belongings into 2 suitcases. It's not like that any more, not now that I have a home and a family. But I still don't like clutter. My husband and son do, unfortunately, and if I clear a space, they take that as a sign they can put something in it. My son is a hoarder, buys all sorts of rubbish and will keep empty food packets if I didn't go through his room occasionally and shovel all this stuff out. His room makes me really distressed to be honest. He bought a pair of shoes online that didn't fit, and instead of sending them back, he keeps them. He'll never wear them, but nor will he ever dispose of them.
Designed obsolescence (designing to re buy) has been around since Ford realized his cars were so good people didn't need to buy another one. He made the second Ford model T worse to hurt the long term resell market. As a industrial designer ( the person who designs this stuff) it pisses me off. I want to make good products that last, but unfortunately the focus to make everything cheaper rules all.
Overconsumerism becoming more and more rampant in hobby spaces makes me mad and sad. It's more about buying the thing than talking about/engaging with/connecting through the thing.
Yes! I am a knitter and, while I love watching content on YT about knitting, I have to be careful because some of the content can easily turn into a show-and-tell of an over-abundance of beautiful yarn and project plans and WIPS and other random acquisitions that just create this feeling of wanting more more more. It's a bit of an oxymoron to constantly obtain more stuff and try to justify it with a hobby that's meant to be slow and intentional.
@@AlannaMcCartney Yeah, exactly! I'm into reading books, playing video games, anime/manga, drawing, and more recently into board games and those are all very slippery slopes. I have to be very careful watching content in those spaces too. It seems to be happening in every single online hobby space, even with slower hobbies. There seems to be more emphasis on showing off enormous hauls, collections, merch, special editions, hoarding supplies, showing fancy set-ups, etc. Buying much more titles or supplies than you can ever use. All acquired in a very short amount of time. I'm no saint, definitely not a minimalist, but what I'm seeing today is so excessive. I suppose it's easier/faster to make content showing off the things you bought. Creating something using your supplies or reading/watching/playing a title and sharing your thoughts takes time.
@@AlannaMcCartney I'm also a knitter, and the first thing that popped into my head is the acronym "SABLE," which means (for any non-knitters who are curious): "stash acquired beyond life expectancy."
@@arguchik That reminds me of the endless owned to be read piles in the book community or huge backlogs in the video game community. Or how 'buying books and reading books are two different hobbies' is a thing.
The way I combat two of the main things that make you (and me) mad is: I report all Temu, Shein, and their ilk, YT vids as harmful; I wear my patched and visible mending as a badge of courage against fast fashion. There is a burgeoning group of people who are against everything you talked about and my sincere hope is that someday that group will be so large that others will take notice.
Yes! Working on cultivating a voice for that group - I think that will be the main project after this first "no buy year" actually. Love the ways you combat.
12:18 you talk about being in a "spendy mood" and I have FELT that before and didn't really know how to articulate it. Now I will remind myself that I am just in a Spendy Mood and it will pass even if I don't buy something. 👍🏽
LOL. I just go to Amazon or a store site and put it in my cart and walk away. Days later I can't remember what, which site and don't care. Money remains in bank, the world is safe from me tossing overstock in my closet.
What makes me mad: 1) Apple not supporting their older models. My iPhone 7 was still working fine, but Apple won’t upgrade the software. Same for the IPad Air 2. 2) the American overly outrageously expensive healthcare and dental care. Now, same for veterinary care. 3) women’s overkill with makeup, especially the ridiculous eyebrow trend. Most are more beautiful w/o the makeup.
While I haven’t worked with Apple products myself, I have some experience with software maintenance and there could be a lot of legitimate reasons for this (security support, not having enough engineers to support both the oldest and newest hardware, could even be poor infrastructure in the product). Instead, I think the industry can take the lessons learned and better warn customers on the label, or thr clearest way possible, that there is a shelf life to their products so they can make the best financial decisions, such as purchasing a cheaper phone maybe.
@@yalazha Remember desktop PCs? You could put new operating systems, like the newest Windows on a 10 or even 20 years old PC... it would be slow, but it worked. In fact, you could still do that up until Windows 11. There's really no good reason for Apple to create software that's locked to just a few hardware devices. In fact, there's really no good reason for Apple to lock their hardware so that it's limited to only run iOS. It's just that there's not enough innovation in the smartphone market, so they have to create a reason for people to buy new hardware, instead of making new innovative hardware that people really want because of it being meaningfully better.
I have a tooth that's fine now, but may eventually need to be extracted. So I told my dentist ok, we can do that. She said, " we don't extract teeth here. You'd have to go to an oral surgeon and it will be $600.
@@QoraxAudio bullshit, laptop from windows xp and vista era can't be upgraded to Windows 10 or 11 simply because their hardware is too weak to run it properly
Here’s what Im mad about - I have no say about my personal algorythm. Thats f ed up. Theres zero technical reason why I should not be able to adjust what I’d like to be fed/see but I have no direct imput. No one does. Why? So gross. It s so we can be the perfect targets. That is what being manipulated is in a nutshell.
Not really how algorithms work. It has to be the same for everyone. But websites usually add your individual interactions as input to the algorithm to give you targeted recommendations. Targeting your interests specifically is much more effective at advertising to you
There are some ways to influence the algorithm. For example, have you ever seen the mini survey they put sometimes(I get those all the time) asking what are your thoughts about a video you just seen. Also on the three dots next to every video, it asks if you don't want this video as a recommendation or don't show any more from this channel, click here. That helps the algorithm to weed out what you don't like. Plus always clicking on the topics you like, will give more similar.
Ooh I have a video coming about the algorithm making conscious consumerism much more difficult - both of content and products that content inevitably suggests. I'm trying to distance myself from so much tech/media use these days. Even with the "good" parts of the algorithm (showing things that I actually AM interested in after it's learned my preferences) I'm not sure it's actually good to get sucked into content loops of tantalizing ideas and media.
@@Alexas.nobuyyear Sounds like a great video! Algorithms are very bad at recommending new to you topics, and great at giving you more of the same - creating content loops / information silos / echo chambers.
I recently watched a video on how China’s youth are “revenge saving”, I think they’re on to something. Once you start saving or just stop spending frivolously it becomes quite addictive, you literally get a rush from it.
You go to a restaurant and they aren't allowed to have straws or plastic bags, but still give you plastic cups for your drinks or plastic take-home boxes and plastic forks and spoons. We managed to live with paper straws, paper bags, paper cups, paper wraps for food in mid-century America. It's not so hard. In fact, it makes me hate take-out food and drink. Cafeterias and fast food had huge dishwashing machines and there wasn't any plastic throw-away. In Europe, you drink your espresso or coffee or tea at the bar or cafe or home out of a mug or china vessel. It is part of the experience.
Oh man this might make it onto the next list of maddening things, because I totally agree. Take-out (and even in-restaurant service sometimes) and the amount of unnecessary waste, single-use plastic...
Paper straws flat out suck. They do NOTHING for the environment. It's just an example of activists & government focusing on something stupid and then cramming it down on businesses and the public.
Burger places are typically better for using cardboard and paper packaging for takeaway food, as well as pizza places with their classic cardboard pizza boxes. Chinese and Indian restaurants tend to use the plastic takeaway tubs but I reuse them a lot for batch cooking and heating canned food. Fish and chip shops are now the worst because they switched to polystyrene boxes from the newspaper wrapping that they successfully used for decades.
@@Alexas.nobuyyear There is a small thing that we can do! At least in NY, when we order takeout, restaurants do not include disposable utensils unless you specifically request them. It saves them money and reduces waste (after a learning curve because some places mistakenly thought they should still include it for "good customer service"). This started from a somewhat recent law so if more places passed similar laws, that's a little bit less single-use trash.
Some one gave me a huge pile of National Geographic magazines from the 1920's. There was a car ad in the magazine and their selling points were that their cars are very reliable, last for years but easy for a customer to fix themselves if something did break. They also said that they make their vehicles so that older and newer models use all the same mechanical parts to make it simple for all their customers. Also there was an article in one of those magazines about how the United States had such a huge population of people in all parts of the country raising pigeons as food livestock. They had pictures of cities like Chicago where the building rooftops had pigeon coops. People were successfully raising their own protein source. I think big livestock corporations pushed for that to be illegal just so people would have to buy their chickens.
This is the first video of yours I’ve watched and I subscribed part-way through. I did a no-buy year in 2018 and it was going perfectly until half-way through and I was diagnosed with cancer. Suddenly there were all sorts of things related to chemo and surgeries and a changed body that required purchases and I was entirely derailed. And then pandemic and the purchase of land and building a house with all its attendant purchases. But lately I’ve felt the pull toward less consumerism, hence watching your content. So I’m in for 2025, I’m ready for a no-buy year and a re-set. So thank you!
Thank you! I will say, this video is a bit of an outlier on here - I plan to do more of this general critique next year after my first "no-buy" attempt concludes this year, in addition to continued no-buy weekly "sermons" 😆 A cancer diagnosis is literally one of my current fears (turns out I have hyperthyroid, which gave me some worrying symptoms like rapid weight loss and anxiety, so the fear wasn't totally coming out of nowhere), I hope you are doing okay now!
I just saw a Crest commercial telling me that my teeth should be as white as a facial tissue, when I wonder why what I blow my snot into is so white in the first place.
For sure, I was curious enough to look this up actually and apparently the bleaching of tissue/toilet paper makes it softer and more absorbant, making it white is just a byproduct. Don't know if that's true or not but I'm definitely not bleaching/whitening my teeth either way, no thank you
As someone who has dealt with way to many dentist appointments, teeth are naturally slightly yellow. They are bone after all. Whitening toothpaste can even damage your enamel through abrasion and bleaching. Be careful with that stuff.
This is specifically related to home (with a yard) ownership, but grass lawns and HOAs that require them. They have almost no ecological value and they require so much maintenance getting the lawn mowed (usually with gas-powered mowers) and potentially watered too. It costs so much money since landscapers usually require you do pay for at least weekly servicing. And it's so bad for the environment - the plants, the animals, even the people who live there who have to deal with the noise. Aside from the very few patches of lawn that actually get used by children or dogs, they're effectively wastelands. In the 1950s, Roundup came out with a weed killer that they wanted people to buy - it worked great at killing weeds, except it also killed the very helpful clover, then considered a proper part of a lawn. So they just had a huge smear campaign marketing against clover, calling it a weed. It was successful, so people bought their product, at the expense of people's wallets, their health, and the environment.
One thing that I really loved in the book A Psalm for the Wild Built was when the main character mentions that their pocket computer is designed to last a lifetime. Reminds me of my trusty old TI-83+, which I got in I think 1999? and it's still going strong. And the same model is still being produced today. That's what I wish phones were like.
I feel in the past there were high quality and low quality products (brands and no brands etc) The good ones were expensive and the sloppy were cheap. But these days there no quality. Even the expensive products are of poor quality and brands no longer guarantee anything. The sense that you are being ripped off never leaves you for a moment nowadays.
That last part about minimalist-conscious consumer influencer hypocrisy really makes me mad too. I 'm glad you're going into the no-sponsors route. I remember the video of you toying with the idea and I got a little nervous LOL. Because as you say, these people don't NEED to make this content. They choose to have this as their job and the cognitive dissonance just gives me the ick. I don't mind the youtube ads as much because there are ways to circumvent them, but the insidiousness of trusting someone to give you financial or eco-conscious advice and then getting you to buy affiliate stuff is just messed up. That being said, as an artist,I understand doing youtube videos is a demanding process (sometimes), so I also understand wanting to be paid for your labor...it's so complex!
You can rest assured! Everytime I get a brand offer I can quickly remind myself why I won't do sponsorships, when I go look into their product. 99% of the time it's something I don't actually need, the other 1% of the time (if I actually use the product or service already) there are still downsides to the thing that I'm sure I wouldn't be allowed to point out in my own way, in an ad. It's really not my style to omit any of my thoughts, even though I do try to think carefully and compassionately. There's absolutely no way influencers would actually use this stuff if they weren't influenced themselves, and my goal here is to be free from influence (especially on social media) and also help others get to that place if they want to 👍
Omg was waiting for “you need this”. I’ve worked in marketing, and it just grosses me out. I actively unsubscribe from brands that use that language and am trying to leave the marketing field all together. It just grosses me out!
😃 THANK YOU!!!! I LOVED this video!!! I agree with everything you mentioned - especially the idea that "you or your life is imperfect but this is how you can be perfect like me" nonsense. I love & adore people who shine the light on & eradicate the awful messaging of "you're not enough, you don't have enough."
I discovered your channel a few months ago as I, too, am on a conscious consumerism journey, and I have found your videos and your perspectives SO helpful. Thank you so much for your content. I resonated with everything you said in this video, and these days I am specifically mad about the fact that I have seen so many creators-turned-influencers who make videos about purchasing luxury items as if it's a normal thing. I'm not trying to judge the act of purchasing of a luxury item in itself (although we cannot deny that the ethics and sustainability practices of many of these companies is questionable at best), but the fact that influencers who are monetized are essentially showing off their luxury items that cost exorbitant amounts of money, KNOWING (at least they should know!!!!) it's making their viewers feel like this is something they may want or could aspire to have, is really not okay to me. As someone who has struggled with compulsive shopping largely due to being influenced on social media throughout my adult life, I have in the past made purchases that I couldn't necessarily afford (or at least, shouldn't have prioritized purchasing) because the influencers I followed made the items seem so enticing. Right now when I watch influencers who are promoting items to buy or showing off luxury items it just turns me off because it makes me feel like they are so out of touch with the struggles of every day people in everyday life, and they are not considering that there are SO MANY people who work so hard their whole lives and will probably never be able to afford a $3000 bag or a $700 pair of shoes (ie. many of their viewers who started following them years ago because they promoted minimalism, living simply, being responsible with money, etc.). I feel a bit duped these days as I've had to unsubscribe from some of my favourite channels. Sorry this was a bit of a rant as it's clearly something that has bothered me recently, but I would just LOVE to see the end of normalizing spending tons of money on nonessential items. It's not normal!
Same. I am interested in perfumes and most perfume influencers that i ve watched just buy , declutter and WASTE perfumes. it is very annoying and i m glad when i see normal people consuming...normally.
Yes I agree - luxury items are "interesting" because they've been marketed hard as a kind of status symbol and there's a narrative that if one has that amount of money, one can show that they have this "success" through those purchases. (Or even if one doesn't really have the money but can afford to buy through other means, credit, saving for a long time, etc). I really feel like influencers are very influenced, themselves, to go in this direction and seeing it this way has helped me realize that it's all a kind of trap, not the symbol of success that they would have us believe it is.
I started my no buy year in 2015. I've never truly stopped (but mostly thanks to the cost of living crisis). Once you've done it, you can't unsee it. Shopping will never be the same again, and I'm thankful for that.
I think the thing with targeted ads, and terms of service agreements, is that you can't opt out of either of them, you have to comply with their service agreements, or you click no and you don't get to use the thing. And you have to take a bunch of extra steps to remove ads in other means that you have, which is frustrating.
These are not just pet peeves. These are the reasons for the dissatisfaction that leads to shopping and clutter. We were influenced by the trend in the mid-seventies and made a conscientious decision not allow television, radio, newspapers, and magazines in the house. We had a scanner for local disasters and advisories. It cost money to have a crystal for each channel you wanted to scan. We read reputable newspapers at an affordable coffee house or a library then. My biggest pet peeves are advertisements in mailers and in the middle of YT videos. I pay for an ad-free YT subscription. I don't mind patreon, buy-me-a-coffee, or optional tipping. There are a few independent news channels I will support. But I skip all the sponsorship content. Our motto is No Money Leaves This House without a darned good reason.
I do a lot of sewing. I ask friends to hang on to garments they can't donate so that I can sort through it before sending the truly unusable part to a recycler. I have made so toddler clothes out of garments that have slight holes or stains. I just cut around the ruined part.
Hi, great list. The leaf blower is the smartest invention ever….. leaves love ‘em - “ Weeeeee, we just got blown over here and the wind will blow us right back in 10 mins. “
Yes! I know it's a current "turn of phrase" that probably not everyone is truly thinking about the meaning of, or even using ironically...but I'm trying to cling to the integrity of language over here. And I don't care if that makes me an "old lady" now
Obsessed: excessive or compulsive concern for something. Not healthy, in fact implying not normal. Hmmmm…over earrings,over a purse, a pair of shoes…a thing, what a waste of time.
Let's take a pic of everything that has broken down in less than a year and send all of it to our politicians demanding better regulations. I did this after nail scissors ✂️ I bought broke after the first use. After cutting the first nail. Fingernails, ok? This is just straight up THEFT. From Canada,🇨🇦 thanks for your great video, subbed.❤
You nailed it on so many things when you used the word predatory! There is so much wrong with our consumerist culture but it all goes back to that. How many people have died because in the past, cigarette advertising made it look "cool" to smoke? I'm amazed at the amount of junk I see advertised on social media. No, you really don't need a Stanley mug and you REALLY don't need all the junk to go with it either. Ugh.
Yes! The advertising on cigarettes is such a poignant example, and how they used different marketing tactics to eventually make it appeal to women in a market of largely men, and get adults hooked younger to create customers for life...I've read about how Coca Cola also does that, tries to get kids drinking their soda so they have a customer for decades. The more I learn the more okay I am with labeling marketing strategies as predatory, even though some may see it as "killing the fun of buying a few cute little trinkets" or whatever. In my eyes, the advent of "influencer marketing" is just another way to get young people hooked on buying little trinkets all the time, (or even things like iphones, sneakers, etc) to cultivate the attitude of constant consumerism as normal and justified.
The death of influencer culture is either dying or evolving. Thank you for this. I LOVE your content and how you promote intentionality with what we do and how we spend our time.
First video of yours I've seen - hello! Love your straightforward and no-nonsense discussion points here. :) I love watching minimalism content because it inspires me to own and consume less, but it makes me mad when those influencers inevitably start advertising containers and storage! The whole point is to not NEED additional containers. I despise how "restock" videos have taken the internet by storm, implying that storage drawers should be ultra-curated with clear acrylic dividers filled to the brim with products. We don't need more stuff, we need less, that's the whole point. Same with all the viral cleaning products. It's one of the few areas where a minimalist can partner and advertise so I get it, but it's still the opposite of their message. I'm also mad about the way consumerism is taking the place of personality. With TikTok algorithms, so many people are trying to morph their personality into a defined box by calling it "clean girl," "mob wife," "cottagecore," etc. And according to social media, how do you get to claim that label? By buying things! Of course. It's just more fast fashion and waste. Lately it seems like the verbiage has changed to "I'm a ____ girly" instead, but the concept is the same. I want to know about YOU, not about your Amazon purchase history! Ok that's my rant, looking forward to more videos on your channel :)
Welcome! They're not all like this (yet!) but I can feel myself going more and more in this direction. I totally agree with the points you brought up about storage and the personality aesthetics. Maybe gotta add those to the next "list of maddening consumer-focused things" 😆
As someone who doesn't see a lot of ads anymore (adblocking ftw), they ring more and more hollow. "Buy this to impress your friends" Mmm no, they're not in my life to be impressed, they're my friends because we have interesting conversations and geek out about stuff. "Buy this to be in a different social level" No, as someone who has talked to middle-class / middle-high-class people *I don't want them* to be a friend because they just live in a different world and are out of touch. I wouldn't want that for myself OR my friends. "Buy this it'll make you feel better" As someone who has "paradoxical reactions" to medications, odds are the thing they think will make me happy will make me meh. Or sleepy. Or cranky. Or mentally foggy. No thanks. Especially when waking up in the wrong part of my sleep cycle has the same effect and is *free*. "Buy this to be more sexy" ... why? If a partner is that easy to sway when they normally wouldn't be interested, that means it's not real AND it implies that anyone else could sway them doing the same thing. I have higher expectations of people including myself.
Absolutely! I've actually started a series on here called "nothing you buy will make you...____" and I think all of these things make good contenders for that list. These "desirable" things cannot be bought, as much as marketing tries to turn them into commodities.
Great video. Glad the algorithm suggested you. I took this past year to really narrow in what my personal tastes are- so much beauty and skincare content is about testing the latest things… and I’m pretty solid on what I actually want. I started watching beauty UA-cam to get color descriptions of swatches and now I mostly have a few creators I follow for their opinions who are more critical and I feel more confident that they’re actually using things vs doing first impressions of PR. I have a whole separate email for shopping - logging in once a month or so really lays bare how often I get emails that are like “this is the sale you can’t miss! Here’s an extra $50 for you if you spend this amount!” If I didn’t organically look at my stash of things and think I needed something, it’s thankfully not as effective. I wish that more creators would mark their sponsored ad section as an ad because I am one of those people that does pay for UA-cam- if a podcast that 3 guys run can figure out how to mark their sponsored section as an ad so it auto skips, I wish more people could do that. And yes the body type “trends”… I am in my 30’s and have enough medical issues and know how absolutely risky it would be to do even medically necessary surgery. I’m not going to ever opt to have hip surgery (had a consult for that last year) since it would most likely lead to more issues. Even healthy younger people are accepting a lot of risk to do elective surgery and I don’t see many creators really making that clear, let alone medical professionals, that even the most innocent seeming procedure may not be as effective or necessary. I only got to this mental point by being in a good living situation and no longer feel urged to dissociate from my life and shop for my fantasy self. Still happens once in a while but it’s not all consuming.
Right - and there are so many "latest things" these days, which is actually kind of good, since it's not really exciting to see a new release anymore. I also have a separate "junk email" for shopping now and even in that one I don't subscribe to sales notifications. I'm learning that there always will be a sale at some point, so when something becomes a real need I can try to plan it around the next sale if it makes sense (I did that for my shampoo last Christmastime, for example, and for regular consumable products. Clothing can almost always wait or be found secondhand). It's kind of crazy how paying for youtube premium removes the platform ads, but nothing can avoid the "special creator ads" found within the video content. Totally agree about the ability to get into a good living situation, I feel the same, it gets a lot harder to resist the siren call of the fantasy self when things are difficult or emotions are running high.
I chose a product over one slight cheaper because it was “made in America “. Then with shipping info they stated “shipping from mainland China. I wasn’t able to cancel order.
I miss the range of fresh produce and dried goods to cook with I had a couple of decades ago. The supermarkets are filled with ready meals in throw away plastic and short shelf lives.
Right there with you on this one - I recently finished reading "Ultra-Processed People" and did a chat about that on here...a book that I do recommend if you haven't come across it yet!
your frustration is valid and I dislike all of them too ☹️ you are the realest for this, i didn't hear anyone from this platform say such thing. I thought maybe I'm too sensitive.. but you always hit the nail on the head. although your emotion is flooding here, you still choose nice words to say, no cursing and all ❤
agree 100% with the influencer bit. I just cannot watch most sponsored content any more, even beyond conscious consumer/minimalist videos. I miss when UA-cam was just people posting videos about topics they were passionate about, rather than trying to make it a career. I instantly get pissed that they're trying to sell me crap, doesn't even matter what it is.
Under planned obsolesce - had something happen recently. My newer used 2020 vehicle parts are much of the time unavailable anymore. Just a few years and they don't make parts anymore for repairs. Now luckily I'm creative and handy af and the part was just a plastic piece for my dash that had cracked/broken. I was able to more/less trace out the shape and make the piece out of wood. That's right. I am falling back on something our predecessors did with early vehicles, wooden interior pieces.
Yessss love to hear this. Hate that parts are unavailable though, we had that happen with our 1995 van when one of the little plastic switches got sucked up in a carwash vacuum, but it does feel a bit more acceptable when the vehicle is pre-2000 (and we're just rolling with it since it's not a functionally necessary piece).
I like how you’re navigating the line between participating in the system, yet also identifying lines, which when crossed are somewhat a net loss for society. I’m exhausted by the prevalence of the ‘you must live frugally in a cave to not hand hypocritical critique’ - it’s a thought terminating cliche. I loved this video, and I am a consumer - wanting to do better should have no shame in critique of a system they participate in, and are present in because they indulge their human urge to connect with a co-opted and clouded social sphere.
Thank you so much for this. I think in summary, I have finally internalized, that the knowledge that we cannot be perfect does not mean that we shouldn't try, and some will criticize or judge no matter what line one tries to walk. Just as the knowledge that we will someday pass into possible meaninglessness, doesn't mean we can't have a good and meaningful life. Becoming comfortable with these sometimes contradictory ideas, is the realm from which I now operate 😅
With you all the way with the hatred of continuous ads on social media. I pay £15 a month to UA-cam to avoid the videos I watch being sullied by advertising spam, but then I *still* get it when the creator then says 'this episode is sponsored by...' 😡 I also think you need to do a Shein and Temu episode, those particular companies have the dodgiest business practices and seem to be actively destroying the planet!
@@TheNicoliyah in my opinion yes! Especially as the ads come in unannounced so at times you aren't sure if it's part of the video you're watching or not. 🙄 You could always give it a try for a month or two and then cancel if you're not happy.
If a content creator goes into a sponsorship reel I immediately close the video. It either takes me out of the subject and I sit there mentally fidgeting while waiting for the ad to end or takes me out of what I'm doing, putting it down to skip through. Might as well save myself the time.
@@TheNicoliyah Why not just use an ad-blocker? I do that and it works just fine. Sometimes I have to reset it but it's still working and I see zero ads.
I have, and use daily, a Singer sewing machine from 1937, made before planned obsolescence. It's all metal parts that just need a bit of oil and a quick cleaning to work perfectly nearly forever and they can be serviced by me with just a flathead screwdriver and a UA-cam video. Sure it doesn't do fancy computerized stiches but it does a perfect straight stich every time even through leather for the last 90 years. Consider buying vintage if you want out of the trap of planned obsolescence.
My Mum has one she got second hand...still going. Seen rows of them working in India, if you are into ordinary sewing definitely get one, they are indestructible!
I'm a maker, so I buy second hand materilas whenever I can to use in my work. I'm tired of fast fashion and the tons of textile waste that go into landfills every day.
Too much packaging. In S. Korea for a year, For example most cookies are in plastic wrapped boxes, inside the box is a plastic tray and the items are individually wraped. Almost every food item has at least 3 layers of packaging.
Love this, such excellent content, thank-you! Really great insights to help break out of the matrix and not be influenced by these strategies. 1. planned obsolescence 2. marketing that preys on/creates anxiety. 3. glorifying extreme practices (e.g., showing off collection of 100 shoes) 4. telling us we 'should' do something. 5. targeted ads and info gathering 6. media solely focused on shopping (e.g., 'must have list' presented like a genuine article). 6. Content farming 7. conscious advertising (green washing, minimalism/simple values, but geared to push reader to consume/purchase something) 8. Tiktok (product glorification and the way it pushes consumerist narrative). 9. Shein 10. Temu
Though I still watch creators with sponsored content, I resonate with the ick you describe regarding UA-cam sponsorships. What makes these sponsorships especially problematic is the parasocial element. In traditional media like print and tv, ads are impersonal, with a clear boundary between the content and the commercial break. On platforms like UA-cam, the advertisement is baked into the relationship you have formed with the content creator. It’s no longer unfamiliar actors or models (except maybe celebrities) in a commercial-it’s someone with whom you feel a genuine connection. Even with solid media literacy, our brains just haven’t evolved enough to fully distinguish between a person who speaks to us regularly through a screen and someone we know in real life. There’s a loneliness epidemic in this country (U.S.), and it’s being exploited by this newer advertisement model. Intuitively, I hesitate to fully place the blame on all sponsored creators (there is a spectrum of ethical and unethical behavior.) The issue feels more systemic to me. This newer advertisement model is something that we’ve all grown accustomed to and now view as acceptable, much like other once-accepted norms that would be considered unacceptable today.
100%! I stumbled my way through these exact thoughts about halfway through the no-buy year I think, where regular ads with actors or even celebrities are clearly ads, and they interrupt the "main content". With influencer-creators, the ad is often PART of the "main content" or in some cases the ad or product is the actual inspiration for the content. I've also touched on my personal realizations that being lonely has led to being influenced! So I am in total agreement here. Also agree that it's systemic and not right to totally vilify individuals for this, even if individuals do have the choice to opt out. When money is on the table, who can blame someone for taking it? But I do think there are "better" and "worse" ways of doing ads and product content if a creator is going to make that a part of their work. You make a great point about how norms go through phases of acceptability.
Another thing that makes me mad is unnecessary packaging. So many layers of packaging on everything! You buy one thing online and it arrives in five boxes and three layers of plastic. Grrrrr.
I also have a disdain for hypocritical content creators. I started watching a new channel recently because I liked her commentary on overconsumption, toxic influencers, and using what you already have. But then on the same channel she has...Amazon favorites and Prime Day deal videos, where she recommends up to 75 different things?? I subscribed and unsunscribed within a few days 😅
Yes! It's frustrating...we are all a bit hypocritical as humans, myself too - but, I'm always going to at least try to think about the possible impact of something I share on those who might be watching, especially when it comes to recommending things for purchase for monetary compensation (which I just won't do). I'm sure this is what's happening with the amazon/prime day videos, probably everyone who makes those has an Amazon partnership and makes $$ off of that! Otherwise, why? 😑
I'm starting to wake up from the consumerism epidemic. Its nuts, i was on Instagram but have now deleted the app because of the constant ads and i was finding myself clicking on them with out thinking. I refuse to watch tiktok even thought my family love the funny vids. It started with hobbies and watching hauls and wanting to be a part of it but how I've woken up i take no enjoyment in it. Next step is a no buy year
Welcome, if you want a place to post comments with your personal updates, if or when you do go on your no-buy year, this is the channel for you! What you said is so true about waking up from the epidemic. I never want to go back.
Excellent perspective! I was beginning to wonder if being obsessed with an item was a requirement for sponsorship and partnerships. I’ve also wondered how can these influencers possibly use or wear all the goods they are hawking. I enjoyed the content of some UA-cam influencers, they were entertaining, funny, some with wonderful anecdotes but now almost all of them are now an advertising channel for the flavor of the month (Lily Silk, Quince, etc). I no longer click on. I was also at an event recently for a soft opening of a boutique hotel. They brought in several influencers and said it was less expensive to treat them to a dinner and fine champagne than it was to pay for an advertising firm. The influencers are taking the place in many instances of traditional advertising. They are incentivized on many levels to make the “must have and must do” work. I feel for any parents who have teens who are pulled into this rat race of overconsumption. I’m older and can look at it with a critical eye but I am one hundred percent certain I would have fallen prey several years ago.
Yes - makes so much sense when you see companies sending influencers on extravagant vacations - that kind of thing gets so much "cheap" press compared to a legimately-produced ad-campaign. I chatted in a recent video about how influencers are actually used in this way, even though they're the ones receiving compensation (incentivized) to sell whereas viewers are just pushed to buy. I also feel very lucky that I wasn't on here creating "content" and getting "partnership offers" until I was already old enough to have a job that I love, and also to know that I don't want to participate in that, no matter what money might be on the table. I don't need yet another clothing brand on my radar, (or hair/skincare, beauty, glasses, jewelry, phone provider, etc...if I need it, I already have one!) and I'm pretty sure most of my viewers don't need to hear about these brands - yet again - either.
I think the algorithm must be very confused about me...what do you advertise to someone whose main social media consumption is zero waste and anticonsumerism content 🤣 most ads i see are not tempting at all, they havent been able to peg me 😂
I despise when after paying for a plan for two years, and costing $1500, for a cell phone, we cannot use again. After the plan is over, they never update the software. BUY A NEW PHONE, AFTER THAT COST? THAT MAKES ME MAD!!!!!!! Planned obsolete.
Have you considered buying a phone that's not $1500? I'm not saying planned obsolesence is good or fair, but there's no shortage of quality phones affordable enough to buy in a single payment (I got mine secondhand!). Brand loyalty will do you no favors.
@@hexx2211 $1500 is what it cost in total for the plan to not purchase the phone plus the plan would have been more. I don't even use a phone, cill or landline. Too much for something I do not use. Phone usage should be free, hey, it is actually old tech.
Apple supports their phones for 7 - 9 years, Samsung’s current lineup is supported for 4 years feature + 3 - 5 years security depending on model, Google supports for 7 years on the Pixels. You have options, do your research before you buy and never buy through the carrier for most Android devices as the carrier installs their own custom OS that does not keep up with the manufacturer unless the manufacturer doesn’t allow them to have the custom OS.
I don’t think we can outlaw planned obsolescence. But maybe we can require manufacturers to identify the likely lifespan and reveal when items are designed to fail rather than to be repaired.
Sure! And then if enough customers are choosing the longer-lifespan items even at higher prices, maybe this would fix the issue of producing cheap quantity over quality, at least in some areas of the market
The active hostility manufacturers have toward repair upsets me so bad. I cannot think of a single person who wouldn't take a slightly larger, bulkier anything if it meant that they could fix it when it breaks.
Yes! Like we're supposed to believe it's "harder" to make things repairable? We know it can be done, it would just make less money than forcing consumers to buy new instead of buying one part for a repair.
Ohhh that sucks! My fridge is about that old, one of the last good ones according to our repair guy. We can still get replacement parts, but they're not made to last. I dread the day I have to try to buy a new fridge that is just a fridge, no icemaker or computer screen or whatever stupid thing!
i enjoyed the way you say "this makes me MAD." subscribed lol. following anticonsumerist channels has definitely helped me chill out on these things. but yea im now disgusted with the normalization of "omg i HAVE TO have it." it's said jokingly, but the impulsivity is too real
😅 thank you haha. And I'm starting to think that even said jokingly, the dialogue (I "have" to have it, I'm OBSESSED, it's "iconic", run don't walk...) feels like it's covering something kind of insidious - as if we "have to have it" because we're feeling a certain way that pushes us towards impulsive purchases to seek happiness, and if we were truly content we wouldn't be "obsessed" with material items. I am no doubt reading into it too a little too much and/or raining on the "fun girly aesthetics and shopping parade" here, but that's my current way of "decoding" this kind of consumer-speak
@@Alexas.nobuyyear yea, if i had to take a stab at it, i feel like it's this longing for something deserving of our obsession. like it's super fun to be enthusiastic about something. I really had to unpack my fandom purchases, and it wasn't until someone said "you could connect with the media by re-watching the anime or re-listening to the album. you don't have to BUY all the things or anything." that's when it hit me that i had defaulted to products as a way to connect with things and show my enthusiasm. of course corporations LOVE that lol.
I just found your channel yesterday and watched some of your videos. I respect you so much for not advertising things and not working with companies. I used to follow one girl who talks about overspending, minimalism etc but almost all of her videos are sponsored. In one video she talks about not buying things that we don`t need ( like Stanley cup ) and in the next one she promotes a sleeping mask... And I believe that is so true that those content creators just make their videos to promote something. For example, she made a video " Don`t go to college" recently, and she was talking about how expensive it is and there are no jobs and actually that we could learn things online....and then surprise, surprise, she advertised some online learning platform. She made this whole video to promote this platform. It was too much for me and I did unfollow. Thank you so much for not doing the same thing.
Yeah these days that just isn't the kind of content I'm interested in watching anymore, I'd rather see someone share without ulterior motives. Sometimes I really wonder what these platforms would look like and who would be here, if there wasn't the option for sponsored content!
I am with you and have been living consciously and frugally for decades now and I am so glad in a sense to have the no consumption muscle in shape these days. For example I am getting totally turned off by how Instagram is shoving shopping reels on me as soon as I watch the one from my sister -in-law lets say I enter SOCIAL media to be SOCIAL and to connect with people I like and I have to get this ad for something I have never wanted and not in here to look for and the next one is ANOTHER sponsored reel. so hit X again I don't want to see this crap and the next one is YES! a sponsor reel so I get off social media and I will never see people that are far away or know anything social because I am not willing to put up with that cloud of mosquitos trying to suck my blood. It honestly feels agressive!!
Yeah I actually tried to film a video the other day, involving commenting on how social media videos are all sales pitches by watching some TikToks... and I couldn't bring myself to watch very many before getting out of the app. Instagram is becoming just as bad. I just don't want to spend much time on those apps anymore, watching or posting!
Congratulations on reaching a level of maturity where your eyes have been opened to these things. Now learn to focus on and find the things that are positive and worthy of your time and attention. It will take some effort but you'll eventually get to a point where that stuff becomes background noise you're able to tune out 👍🏻
What makes me mad is these "cooking" videos that are usually desserts that are 100% made of non-food items. I've seen desserts made with cream cheese, crushed oreos, and cool whip. These are NOT food. These are toxic. People who eat this way will die young. Once I saw someone melt chocolate inside the original plastic package in boiling water then use the plasticy melted chocolate in a non-food item recipe. Plastic is so bad for us. Junk foods are NOT a good deal. They are toxic and even if it's on sale, it's not a good deal because it will make you sick. If not today, down the road.
Ooh I recently finished the book "Ultra-Processed People" and I couldn't agree more. These are industrially produced edible substances, not food, and hopefully my body is able to recover from eating that junk when I was growing up.
The browser shopping points/discount apps are the worst for this. You’re agreeing to have your browsing tracked for the purposes of consumer research and targeting. You’re the product!
As much as I appreciate your optimism on being to change it, my first and only instinct is to run lol. Really thinking of deleting my Instagram bc of the stupid ads but the funny reels have me hanging on for now 😅 but yes i am thoroughly disgusted at the direction we’re going and how blatant its becoming. I wanna go off the grid and read books for entertainment if my adhd allows me to
Well honestly I might be thinking about a combination of running and fighting, if that's possible - I personally don't use short-form content much but if I start to develop an anti-consumerist agenda that might be catchy through short-form, I might jump back into the fray to quickly deliver my blows, and immediately run away back to my books and cabin in the woods😆 (figuratively - maybe someday I'll get to actual cabin in the woods status haha)
What makes me really mad is when the information, advice, or whatever is presented with a fake human voice. There is no real person sharing their experience or expertise, the text was probably written up by a team or AI and then read off by a voice simulator. There always comes a point when a native speaker hears an incorrect language melody, pronounciation, emphasis, or misinterpretation of a dash or word split by a dash (as at the end of a line, when the sentence continues). What makes me mad is that the people or company behind it know or believe to know which kind of voice will attract the most listeners or viewers. Ultimately this will lead to everyone sounding the same. I'm not talking about non-native speakers using English or any other language for their videos. That's understandable, because they can reach a wider audience. What I mean is the damage done to our sense of language by hearing machine-speak all the time.
Good odds you’re talking about the TikTok automated voice. Did you know that the voice actress whose voice they used didn’t give them permission? She sued and Bytedance settled. Makes me that much more angry every time I hear it.
Thanks for bringing this up! I actually hadn't thought about this specifically but I agree - the voice automations and/or filters are strange and probably doing something bad, even if it's just cultivating a certain attitude towards AI ....which, maybe I'm just not forward-thinking here, but using AI in fields like advertising just seems wrong and unnecessary to me, where the "benefit" is selling people more stuff that they likely don't need. I can understand it being used as a diagnostic tool, to facilitate data entry and save some human labor, or other outcomes that actually have a practical use and don't diminish opportunities for human creativity. But maybe I just have an irrational fear of AI destroying humanity as we know it...
@@Alexas.nobuyyear I don't think it's all that irrational. While A.I. may be helpful for the ADHD peeps to find work that's satisfying to the way their brains work (regular jobs don't often offer enough novelty), the A.I. voices for TikTok and YT shorts just give me the creeps. Brrr!
The economy works on consumerism (money flow cycle), and companies are profit driven but they also know that there's a limit to consumer tolerance in terms of prices. That's what's leading to planned obselence/inflation/shrinkflation. The "Free Market" aspect prevents government agencies from stepping in too much, and companies are using this to their fullest advantage. As a teacher, when my students going into the workforce ask me for advice I often say "Constantly keep track of your income and expenses down to the cent. Work on increasing income, not just decreasing expenses. Don't fall for what I call the "YOLO scam" because wealth takes time to build (can take years). Just because your paycheck is big doesn't mean that your lifestyle has to be big too. If your significant other truly loves you, they will not constantly seek to drain your wallet at your expense, and of all things, over materialistic things like expensive flowers, dining places etc. If you meet someone like that, drop that person like a hot potato."
Love your advice! And I have been feeling this YOLO scam recently - there are so many narratives in society these days about how "you deserve to treat yourself" or "enjoy this while you're young" or "spoil your significant other/kids/friends/etc" or "buy this for self-care" or even, the concept of how life is fleeting - it's all used to make us feel okay about spending more on non-essential purchases! And I'm aware that I'm still a little trapped in these mindsets myself - there's a balance to be found between living financially "now" vs. for the future, and I think another "first step" is to make sure that both paths are being walked, that we are saving as well as spending - especially if we are unwilling to cut the spending.
UA-cam is the only social media I have, and I can tell you that not being on other platforms cuts out so much advertising! Still, it sucks that social media is mainly used to sell products instead of promote genuine social interaction. What a waste.
Point 1... Obsolescence vs worn out can sometimes be a fine line. But either way we buy the thing again. Like my current fridge is 13 years old, my tv is 16. But both will need replacing. It is not IF but When. Keep this in mind... Companies can increase by... Selling more often to the same people, selling to more people, selling for greater margin. So keep those three things in mind to understand why businesses do what they do... If the have tapped out their market and there are not enough new people, they are left with existing customers buying more frequently. Look at the history of the lightbulb to understand this. I am not saying the practice is good, because it isn't beneficial to me having to rebuy something due to it failing the longevity test, but i understand why it can seem that way and why it can be a fine line. Now if only i could get a microwaveable non plastic cup that doesn't break when dropped 😉
Well exactly like you said - we can understand something and still be annoyed about it! And I'd argue that in some categories it's not such a fine line. I would be surprised if an iphone for example even has the chance to last 10 years and still be usable these days, with software that stops updating after a set period. Fast-fashion or cheaply produced clothing is designed to fall apart after a few wears/washes, and again I'd say that's not a fine line when other clothing can last for years, even decades. But we've grown to collectively tolerate these short life cycles and believe that shopping so much is okay and normal
My parents grew up during the Great Depression. Watching their families, friends and neighbors struggle to make ends meet shaped their views. Frugality was deeply embedded in them as children and lasted all their lives.
I like that you feel like a regular person being a UA-camr rather than someone putting on a personality to be a UA-camr. I've been trying to find videos on UA-cam that don't feel like their solely made to be consumed and actually have a purpose and I think you fall in that realm.
Haha you got it, I am a regular person 😁 UA-cam will never be my "job," (I have a job that I don't want to quit) so hopefully I can avoid acquiring the "social media personality" while continuing to share on here.
I hate built in price escalation for things like internet services. Comcast comes to mind. They will increase prices every year until you call them to complain
I think Shelbi is an exception to the sponsorship thing because she brings her expertise as a trained analyst of full product lifecycles and she does stop partnerships when the company does something shady (and tells us about it). I give her a pass bc I genuinely do want to ask an expert what the best option for cleaning products or what have you are, and she is an expert on that and has a habit of taking us through that analysis. Would it be more ideal if this happened without a sponsorship at all? Probably. But I get the balance there. Mostly though, I agree about the ick factor.
Yeah there are cases where I am not as bothered by it too (or think that a creator has a net positive impact with their work despite the ad content) and I also do understand that it's up to me whether or not I watch any kind of content at all, so I have mixed feelings about complaining about it too much. But the truth is that now, every time I hear a creator say "that's why I use X product" I do feel an internal cringe that I didn't have so much before starting on this path!
I don’t like to share personal information to get a coupon, or have a coupon app from a store try to lure me to a different isle while in the store looking for the coupon. I’d rather pay the extra 40 cents.
I've never had it (didn't have a smart phone until I was forced to upgrade my 14 year old mobile by the 3G network shutdown this year) but am not tempted... I hear there are so many ads. I try to severely curtail my exposure to advertising.
@@racheljames9187 I'm in the same boat, I want to ditch the smartphone so bad but I don't know if there's any non-smartphones that can use the modern network.
You really made me think.. About how language creates reality and we need to be careful with language 😊 It may actually destroy humanity if we let humans be creators and not slaves to tech gigants and their political arbitrary views.
The rechargeable Fitbit only lasts about 2 years. They have a confusing recycling system where you can send it to a company that is supposed to rebuild it but it’s not clear how to do it. You used to be able to simply change the battery.
Ugh that's frustrating! I've run into similar things with sustainable companies, where they have a recycle or composting policy for their own goods at the end-of-life, but you have to send the item in somewhere specific and despite having that on my to-do list it's difficult to get around to.
Ads on Etsy that say “hand-made” or “small business” but they’re really just drop shipped from overseas and re-sold in the States…that makes me mad.
Could be worse: Imagine you are the one legit hand made creator among all that 😮
Yes I'm gonna have to add this to the next list of things that make me mad, because, SAME - sucks to be the buyer and the creators who do actual hand-made goods in that scenario, ruins it for everyone!
Agreed! Twice now I've used filters for "handmade" and within so many miles of my location and got something packaged from overseas. Idk if it's a seller or etsy filter issue but it's so hard to find things now.
That's extremely irritating. It's even filtering down to some of the local craft fairs, festivals, and markets. I've noticed some of these markets that used to sell almost exclusively local made crafts and goods are becoming full of cheap mass made goods that are disguised as original hand made goods.
@@KayleeCee I went to an art show once and one of the vendors was selling mass produced purses from Mexico and they claimed that their family made them. lol. It was a huge art show in Fort Worth TX. For such a high caliber show I have no idea why that vendor wasn't vetted.
I’m upset that some of our leaders want to privatize everything-public schools, national parks etc. These are the few places that have been ad free, but as they have been defunded, they have to start selling things. A national park that educates people about environmental issues now has to sell a sweatshop-made tshirt that will end up in a landfill.
Yes I've even read about how schools have had to have ads (for things like processed foods) in order to supplement their budgets
I've also noticed this when visiting Salisbury cathedral in England. A beautiful and serene place, but it charges an entrance fee and has a large shop selling various generic tourist-y things. It was even worse when I visited Stonehenge earlier that day, which had a whopping 100 bucks entrance fee for our four people family, and had almost lost its charm with artificial paths and instagram challenges being everywhere. This is human heritage, not just a tourist trap, and it should be free or at least accessible for everyone without being turned into a consumer hell.
@@whatsyourname9581 On the other hand, I work at a church that people visit -- and ask us where our merch is. Where's the t-shirts, postcards, etc. to buy as souvenirs. Aaargh!! It's been normalized, and that drives people thinking it's something we need to do. Standard answer: we're not here to be a tourist attraction, and that's why people visit us.
Yyyeessssss!!! Just a way for greed and more control , not the betterment of the masses; a lot of persons arrested commodities .
I agree. it's neoliberalism diseasea
A couple of things high on my list:
- The desire to turn absolutely every product into a subscription, so instead of buying it and then you have it, you have to keep paying constantly on it in order to keep it. This includes things like buying a newer home, where the developer makes more from the HOA fees than they do on the original sale of the homes.
- The use of relatively new AI tech to pretend you're talking to a person when you aren't. For everything, ranging from sales to customer service, I'll see a chatbot popping up about "How can I help you today?" My answer: "I want you to go away so I can look at the stuff I want to look at, thanks."
Ooh, adding these to the list for next time - I am also increasingly dismayed at the use of AI, it seems like many content creators are promoting AI tools, either directly (paid ads for Grammarly or AI video making) or indirectly, by making use of ChatGPT during videos...what is the point of watching that? I'd rather see an authentic human with flaws and limitations, especially in the field of "independently-created" content...but maybe I'm just reaching the point where I'm too old to jump onto new tech like that
Clippy: The original bot pretending to help but instead distracting you from the real function of the product.
Minor one, but I can’t with people on social media using the phrases “I’m obsessed” or “I would die for” some object. No you aren’t and no you wouldn’t. Get a grip.
“Get a grip” made me smile hahaha, I’ve never really thought about that but it’s very true
I think that also applies to "Amazon essentials" videos.
"I'm so happy with how this turned out!"
Ugh ‘obsessed’ gets me everytime!
100%
The planned obsolescence also grinds my gears. I've been complaining about this for decades. I hate the idea of having to buy something just to line the pockets of manufacturers, rather than the product adding actual value to my life.
for most utility pieces in the house, go to a thrift store or antique mall. that stuff has already proved it lasts
Cell phones!!!
My nans washing machine was brought and used before I was even born (at the time 22), it then broke beyond repair, So Got a new one.... Broke down juuuuuust after the warranty.
Things just aren't built to last. 😢
The front two wheels on a lawnmower I found on the side of the road are not simply mounted to the metal deck, the deck is cut short, and there is a thin plastic extension in its place. Aaaand it's broken. On an otherwise good mower. This is on something that is meant to be pushed around and takes a buse from the ground normally, so not designed strong enough for that.
It's why, wherever I can, I buy what I can from charity shops. There I can find things that have often stood the test of time, some are several decades old.
My husband is a bit more up-to-date and will buy a motorised spice grinder (even though we have hand cranked ones as well), but it's ridiculous just how quickly stuff breaks down.
I can't believe how bad some products are getting now. We are building a new cage for our young ducks, and bought galvanised wire mesh. It was barely put over the cage frame - when it started to rust. It's complete rubbish, and I can't think of any situation when this would be any good. Quality is just going down and down all the time.
My pet peeve is when creators say "THAT'S WHY I partnered with (insert company)" to sort of obscure their motivation for creating the video. I feel much more comfortable if they straight up say "I'm getting paid to create this ad"
They can probably charge more for that sneaky format, so they’re selling out their audience extra hard. I respect more the YTers who do a 30-second ad read for extra income, knowing their savvy audience can skip past it.
Yes - at this point it's gotten almost comical for me and I suspect it's why I'm getting more and more turned off of consuming content in general - not saying everyone "should" stop watching this stuff, it's just my "new personal choice" at this phase of my life/no-buy experience 😅
I agree that keeping the ad-read unrelated and therefore more "advertisement-like" can actually start feeling more acceptable, compared to a video that SEEMS genuine (a daily vlog, a fashion advice video, makeup try on, etc or even some thought-pieces) only to be proven less so by the sneaky ad placements that had to play at least some part in the thought of the video's narrative.
It feels like that scene from The Truman Show. Cocoa beans from the slopes of Mount Nicaragua. 😂
@21cormorants brings up an interesting point as well not just about individual videos, but whole channels or media presences - is the goal to eventually be sponsored and/or monetized, or is the primary goal to share ideas or art? How many would still be posting with zero compensation? I've admitted this myself where I would definitely still be posting but I might not be sharing as many ideas (doing as many videos) if I wasn't ad-monetized. I'd still have the ideas but not sure I'd be trying to organize them in the same way.
many authetic creators will use that line just to segway into the 30 second ad clip, and the video was never soley created just for the ad. Honestly not that bad unless the entite video is seriously an ad for a product. I dont see that happen too often.
In Australia we have these things called a "council clean up". Your local council let's you know one or two times a year when they will come with a big garbage truck and collect your undesirable items to throw into landfill. As a twenty something I was filled with delight whenever these council clean ups happened, as I would scour the neighbourhood for cool things that others were throwing away and I could have furnished several houses with what I found.
These days, as a 40 something I still check out what others are throwing out, but it makes me feel sick to see how many good quality items are being thrown into landfill because people can't be bothered to find a way of reusing. Full leather couches in good condition, dining settings, working sewing machines, tools. I have picked up both an extension hedge trimmer and an extension chain saw, plus multiple leaf blowers, a jig saw and so many other things. All in perfect working order. The fact that people won't take the time/effort to figure out how to rehome these items and would rather risk these things going to landfill if someone doesn't happen to see and collect it before the truck comes along to dump it just makes me so mad.
There is so much scope for rehoming items with easy access to buy nothing pages these days. It's just not okay.
Oh I think my neighborhood in Texas had one of these too. We never managed to make use of it as the only time we had significant pieces for landfill (furniture etc) was when we were moving, and would sometimes use that time to let go of things with no further use-value without significant work (broken couches that we still used, a decades-old, visibly stained mattress). It is dismaying to see anything with use value get tossed!
I understand that reselling - or even listing something for free pickup - can be hard and time consuming, but I do view it as part of the price we pay for bringing these items into our lives. Our broken couches were acquired this way, when someone else was moving and listed them for very cheap online. They were already a little broken when we got them but worked just fine. If they hadn't been through the mess of babies when we moved we might have relisted them for free - but, I think part of this general issue is also that many people are less willing to sacrifice "shiny and new" in favor of saving the money - or the planet! - these days...for example, some college students get brand new ikea furniture every time they move, rather than using old beat-up hand-me-downs during these temporary periods.
@@Alexas.nobuyyear new things are so cheap these days (in many senses) that it's hard to blame people for getting new things. It can look grubby to have hand-me-downs and to be picking up other people's discards from the side of the road. My hubby is sometimes embarrassed if I'm seen rifling through other people's rubbish. I get it. I'm just mad that it's left out as rubbish in the first place. So many things get ruined even if it simply rains.
I'm just getting old and cranky, I think. Young people these days!!!
I have a sewing machine, a food processor that are over 40 years old and still work fine. The key to knowing they were well made is there weight ...no plastic parts....
I was given a newer food processor by a friend it was so light weight and the blade was downright dangerous because it was poorly and cheaply made. This item was made for planned obsolescence. I will never stop using my over 40 year old items . So well made.
😂yes, but remember the old ones don’t have the new safety features so dry your hands and be careful with plugs.
This is actually inaccurate. They add fake weight to a lot of consumer products to make them feel more significant. So it's hard to tell by weight.
Also, it completely depends on what polymer, there are hundreds, if not thousands of different types. Some, like carbon or glass reinforced Nylons are exceedingly durable and resistant to all kinds of environments.
The consumer just has to do a lot of research these days as even price is not a good indicator of a good product anymore.
I work in design and manufacturing.
Yes, this can go either way. My mother loves Kirby vacuums. They're so heavy. I love 8 to 10 lb Orweck vacuums. (They started as work horse, hotel industry vacuums. Kirby was the vacuum with all the attachments, bells and whistles that wealthy housewives bought from door to door salesmen.) But the Kirbys are so heavy. Then the self-propelled came around, but it's one more thing that can break. Kirby storefronts with maintenance and repair done onsite eventually became a thing. Anyway I hate cheap vacuums that get gross and quit pucking up. Ppl buy new, cheap vacuums like they are an accepted "planned obsolessaints" factor of stinking. Talk about a big contribution to the landfill pile.
Oh, Dyson came along somewhere along the way, but The Dyson company spent so much $$$$ on advertising, I just know that's been worked into the price. They don't need to cost so much. I think they tried to become the Nike of vacuums with built in "Brand prestige" I guess.
Im going to buy a new vacuum. Maybe a stick will be lightweight enough I wont rupture my stomach condition.
I compared a few and threw in the towel for now. I hate that there are so many styles, brands and options. Vacuums are a market too full of redundancy. Some of these Sticks are offered in 7 colors.... Too many options. If it works great I don't care much about the trim colors. Its so cool easy to overpay for things like vacuums that wear out, or one part breaks or they just begin to stink or blow dust all over the house. Ive got weak abdominals and need something that's not major workout to push around. I cringe at the thought of how many big, plastic, bulky, carpet vacuums plus all the attachments go in the landfils.
Sorry for the rant, but I couldn't help but think of Kirby vs Orweck and "powerful but lightweight" and ease of carrying being a selling point for Orweck vacuums. Mom's Kirby always reminded me of 1957 Buick. Its a beast.
I use daily a Singer 1937 sewing machine it's a amazing machine. Sews a perfect straight stich every time even though leather. and I can fix and maintain it myself with just an oil can and a screwdriver.
no plastic parts it’s kinda silly. if it’s 40 years old then it’s made in the 70s or 80s when plastic was very much the rage. i’m thinking you mean thinner plastic? nothing wrong with having plastic parts, it just depends on how sturdy they are. and plastic can be heavy as hell.
I did a no-buy year in 2019 and it forever changed the way not only that I shop but the way I view the world. I think it's a bit like taking the pill in the Matrix movie - you can't go back or unsee these things. All of these things make me mad too!! I've opted out of most things that make me mad, like social media, never, ever shopping from Amazon, spending my money at local shops, and supporting community agriculture. A lot of times people will scoff at me for these personal actions but I remind myself that just because I can't do everything doesn't mean I should do nothing. Great discussion!
Yes and also the personal actions can help feel like we are at least able to live a little more in line with our own values, I find.
It's so cool to hear that the no-buy had a similar effect on you too! Maybe it needs to become a common practice for young-adults as they are thrown into the world of unsupervised and unregulated consumerism after leaving home 😅
As someone who is forced by circumstance to be very mindful about when and what they buy and how much they can provide or produce on their own, it is incredibly infuriating seeing how much people just blindly follow consumption habits, even people who are in worse positions than I am. I detest the fact that it's rammed down your throat whether you are interested in a product or not. Especially electronics.....
How in the world do you go a whole year without buying anything? How did you eat? How did you get gifts for your kids' birthdays or Christmas (if you have kids)? How did you get to work without buying gas/public transportation? and so on...
@@Darcy783 you can be self sustainable save seeds grow your own food, make gifts out of stuff you have around your house, be fortunate enough to walk or bike to work etc... it's not exactly hard when you put your mind to it, but in context it's also mainly don't buy extraneous stuff outside of necessity for yourself ie no restaurants, fast food impulse buying etc it's all about reusing the things you have already and repurposing them
@ that's not possible in a lot of the US, especially the walking or biking to work where's the roads are not safe to do that on. And many folks cannot grow their own food.
The making up of new problems/insecurities, as you mentioned, is SO ENRAGING to me. The “whole body” deodorant trend right now is so reminiscent of companies inventing the need for mouthwash and I cannot stand it. There are so many other examples but for some reason whole body deodorant grinds my gears lately.
Also I can’t stand UA-cam ads lately that are just a 60 min episode? Like if you don’t hit skip it’s a 60 min ad? What nonsense is that????
The first time I saw whole body deodorant my thought was "why don't you just take a shower??" 😂
Big same! Whole body deodorant is just basically trying to advertise a new insecurity, primarily to women, about how they stink and should use their product to mask. It’s a bunch of bull and I will never use deodorant anywhere except my pits.
I had a somewhat cynical college economics prof, he had marketing figured out. The goal of marketing, he said, is to make a rat. Then threaten to shove it down your shirt if you don't buy their product. The rat is anything they can convince you is a rat. Stinky elbows, not having the latest car to impress the neighbors, etc. So I always look for the rat - they're not hidden after all. If there's a rat, the product isn't anything I need.
I realize that most items for sale are of the “create a problem, sell the solution” ilk, but the whole body deodorant ads make my hair want to catch fire. First of all, we (mostly women) have enough body insecurities unlocked. Second, the evolution of that particular item from patients with actual clinical problems that cause them to have excessive or aggressive body odor to “your butt crack smells, even after a shower” is just watching capitalistic greed in fast motion. WHO THE HELL IS OUT THERE BUTT-SNIFFING?!? We are not dogs. This is not an accepted greeting in any human culture that I know of.
My position is, if you have somebody sniffing your butt, stop associating with them or press charges, whichever seems appropriate. Then, get on with your life unburdened by at least one intrusive person without purchasing unnecessary products to make them feel better.
Good grief.
You're just putting unnecessary and useless chemicals on more of your skin. Wouldn't it block skin pores and make you spotty? Another issue if you are already putting deodorant everywhere because you are self conscious. They'll probably have a product for the spots it causes soon. Create the problem then the solution.
*IVE HAD A NO BUY DECADE* it started by necessity - I was bankrupt & homless - but I never went back to consumerism - now almost everything about modern consumer society annoys me
The amount of stuff we NEED V the mount we BUY is utterly STAGGERING. I only buy what I NEED and even then I buy it second hand and you know what - I have a very happy, normal life with hobbies and pastimes and a part-time self employed job.
I'm happy to hear you aren't in that situation anymore, I had much leaner circumstances in previous years as well and was on no-buy years out of necessity too - but then I started earning a salary for a little while and things got out of control, hence doing a purposeful no-buy this year to get things back on track.
You are so right about "needs" vs. "actual purchases". It is staggering, and not normal.
@@Alexas.nobuyyear thank you
That’s incredible 🤔
@@ranikster9955 OH the whole story is far more bizarre than that - I wrote a book about it.
Homelessness does make you reshape your ideas over possessions. After I had a brief time homeless, I was quite proud of the fact that, for several years, I could pack all my belongings into 2 suitcases.
It's not like that any more, not now that I have a home and a family. But I still don't like clutter. My husband and son do, unfortunately, and if I clear a space, they take that as a sign they can put something in it.
My son is a hoarder, buys all sorts of rubbish and will keep empty food packets if I didn't go through his room occasionally and shovel all this stuff out. His room makes me really distressed to be honest. He bought a pair of shoes online that didn't fit, and instead of sending them back, he keeps them. He'll never wear them, but nor will he ever dispose of them.
Designed obsolescence (designing to re buy) has been around since Ford realized his cars were so good people didn't need to buy another one. He made the second Ford model T worse to hurt the long term resell market. As a industrial designer ( the person who designs this stuff) it pisses me off. I want to make good products that last, but unfortunately the focus to make everything cheaper rules all.
Overconsumerism becoming more and more rampant in hobby spaces makes me mad and sad. It's more about buying the thing than talking about/engaging with/connecting through the thing.
Yes! I am a knitter and, while I love watching content on YT about knitting, I have to be careful because some of the content can easily turn into a show-and-tell of an over-abundance of beautiful yarn and project plans and WIPS and other random acquisitions that just create this feeling of wanting more more more. It's a bit of an oxymoron to constantly obtain more stuff and try to justify it with a hobby that's meant to be slow and intentional.
@@AlannaMcCartney Yeah, exactly! I'm into reading books, playing video games, anime/manga, drawing, and more recently into board games and those are all very slippery slopes. I have to be very careful watching content in those spaces too. It seems to be happening in every single online hobby space, even with slower hobbies. There seems to be more emphasis on showing off enormous hauls, collections, merch, special editions, hoarding supplies, showing fancy set-ups, etc. Buying much more titles or supplies than you can ever use. All acquired in a very short amount of time. I'm no saint, definitely not a minimalist, but what I'm seeing today is so excessive. I suppose it's easier/faster to make content showing off the things you bought. Creating something using your supplies or reading/watching/playing a title and sharing your thoughts takes time.
@@AlannaMcCartney I'm also a knitter, and the first thing that popped into my head is the acronym "SABLE," which means (for any non-knitters who are curious): "stash acquired beyond life expectancy."
Oh yes, I sew, read and play board games...@@ChronicVillainy
@@arguchik That reminds me of the endless owned to be read piles in the book community or huge backlogs in the video game community. Or how 'buying books and reading books are two different hobbies' is a thing.
The way I combat two of the main things that make you (and me) mad is: I report all Temu, Shein, and their ilk, YT vids as harmful; I wear my patched and visible mending as a badge of courage against fast fashion. There is a burgeoning group of people who are against everything you talked about and my sincere hope is that someday that group will be so large that others will take notice.
Yes! Working on cultivating a voice for that group - I think that will be the main project after this first "no buy year" actually. Love the ways you combat.
12:18 you talk about being in a "spendy mood" and I have FELT that before and didn't really know how to articulate it. Now I will remind myself that I am just in a Spendy Mood and it will pass even if I don't buy something. 👍🏽
LOL. I just go to Amazon or a store site and put it in my cart and walk away. Days later I can't remember what, which site and don't care. Money remains in bank, the world is safe from me tossing overstock in my closet.
What makes me mad:
1) Apple not supporting their older models. My iPhone 7 was still working fine, but Apple won’t upgrade the software. Same for the IPad Air 2.
2) the American overly outrageously expensive healthcare and dental care. Now, same for veterinary care.
3) women’s overkill with makeup, especially the ridiculous eyebrow trend. Most are more beautiful w/o the makeup.
While I haven’t worked with Apple products myself, I have some experience with software maintenance and there could be a lot of legitimate reasons for this (security support, not having enough engineers to support both the oldest and newest hardware, could even be poor infrastructure in the product). Instead, I think the industry can take the lessons learned and better warn customers on the label, or thr clearest way possible, that there is a shelf life to their products so they can make the best financial decisions, such as purchasing a cheaper phone maybe.
@@yalazha Remember desktop PCs? You could put new operating systems, like the newest Windows on a 10 or even 20 years old PC... it would be slow, but it worked. In fact, you could still do that up until Windows 11.
There's really no good reason for Apple to create software that's locked to just a few hardware devices.
In fact, there's really no good reason for Apple to lock their hardware so that it's limited to only run iOS.
It's just that there's not enough innovation in the smartphone market, so they have to create a reason for people to buy new hardware, instead of making new innovative hardware that people really want because of it being meaningfully better.
I have a tooth that's fine now, but may eventually need to be extracted. So I told my dentist ok, we can do that. She said, " we don't extract teeth here. You'd have to go to an oral surgeon and it will be $600.
@@QoraxAudio bullshit, laptop from windows xp and vista era can't be upgraded to Windows 10 or 11 simply because their hardware is too weak to run it properly
I can’t be made at a company for no longer supporting 10 year old software
The fact that we're even called "consumers" says it all!
The battle was lost long ago, but yeah, we used to be considered customers. Not anymore.
Here’s what Im mad about - I have no say about my personal algorythm. Thats f ed up. Theres zero technical reason why I should not be able to adjust what I’d like to be fed/see but I have no direct imput. No one does. Why? So gross. It s so we can be the perfect targets. That is what being manipulated is in a nutshell.
Not really how algorithms work. It has to be the same for everyone. But websites usually add your individual interactions as input to the algorithm to give you targeted recommendations. Targeting your interests specifically is much more effective at advertising to you
You can click off content, downvote it, not interact with comments - all of these tweak your algorithm
There are some ways to influence the algorithm. For example, have you ever seen the mini survey they put sometimes(I get those all the time) asking what are your thoughts about a video you just seen. Also on the three dots next to every video, it asks if you don't want this video as a recommendation or don't show any more from this channel, click here. That helps the algorithm to weed out what you don't like. Plus always clicking on the topics you like, will give more similar.
Ooh I have a video coming about the algorithm making conscious consumerism much more difficult - both of content and products that content inevitably suggests. I'm trying to distance myself from so much tech/media use these days.
Even with the "good" parts of the algorithm (showing things that I actually AM interested in after it's learned my preferences) I'm not sure it's actually good to get sucked into content loops of tantalizing ideas and media.
@@Alexas.nobuyyear Sounds like a great video! Algorithms are very bad at recommending new to you topics, and great at giving you more of the same - creating content loops / information silos / echo chambers.
I recently watched a video on how China’s youth are “revenge saving”, I think they’re on to something. Once you start saving or just stop spending frivolously it becomes quite addictive, you literally get a rush from it.
Ooh that's a cool concept
You go to a restaurant and they aren't allowed to have straws or plastic bags, but still give you plastic cups for your drinks or plastic take-home boxes and plastic forks and spoons. We managed to live with paper straws, paper bags, paper cups, paper wraps for food in mid-century America. It's not so hard. In fact, it makes me hate take-out food and drink. Cafeterias and fast food had huge dishwashing machines and there wasn't any plastic throw-away. In Europe, you drink your espresso or coffee or tea at the bar or cafe or home out of a mug or china vessel. It is part of the experience.
Oh man this might make it onto the next list of maddening things, because I totally agree. Take-out (and even in-restaurant service sometimes) and the amount of unnecessary waste, single-use plastic...
Paper straws flat out suck. They do NOTHING for the environment. It's just an example of activists & government focusing on something stupid and then cramming it down on businesses and the public.
I hate that so much!
Burger places are typically better for using cardboard and paper packaging for takeaway food, as well as pizza places with their classic cardboard pizza boxes. Chinese and Indian restaurants tend to use the plastic takeaway tubs but I reuse them a lot for batch cooking and heating canned food. Fish and chip shops are now the worst because they switched to polystyrene boxes from the newspaper wrapping that they successfully used for decades.
@@Alexas.nobuyyear There is a small thing that we can do! At least in NY, when we order takeout, restaurants do not include disposable utensils unless you specifically request them. It saves them money and reduces waste (after a learning curve because some places mistakenly thought they should still include it for "good customer service"). This started from a somewhat recent law so if more places passed similar laws, that's a little bit less single-use trash.
Some one gave me a huge pile of National Geographic magazines from the 1920's. There was a car ad in the magazine and their selling points were that their cars are very reliable, last for years but easy for a customer to fix themselves if something did break. They also said that they make their vehicles so that older and newer models use all the same mechanical parts to make it simple for all their customers. Also there was an article in one of those magazines about how the United States had such a huge population of people in all parts of the country raising pigeons as food livestock. They had pictures of cities like Chicago where the building rooftops had pigeon coops. People were successfully raising their own protein source. I think big livestock corporations pushed for that to be illegal just so people would have to buy their chickens.
This is the first video of yours I’ve watched and I subscribed part-way through. I did a no-buy year in 2018 and it was going perfectly until half-way through and I was diagnosed with cancer. Suddenly there were all sorts of things related to chemo and surgeries and a changed body that required purchases and I was entirely derailed. And then pandemic and the purchase of land and building a house with all its attendant purchases. But lately I’ve felt the pull toward less consumerism, hence watching your content. So I’m in for 2025, I’m ready for a no-buy year and a re-set. So thank you!
Thank you! I will say, this video is a bit of an outlier on here - I plan to do more of this general critique next year after my first "no-buy" attempt concludes this year, in addition to continued no-buy weekly "sermons" 😆
A cancer diagnosis is literally one of my current fears (turns out I have hyperthyroid, which gave me some worrying symptoms like rapid weight loss and anxiety, so the fear wasn't totally coming out of nowhere), I hope you are doing okay now!
I just saw a Crest commercial telling me that my teeth should be as white as a facial tissue, when I wonder why what I blow my snot into is so white in the first place.
For sure, I was curious enough to look this up actually and apparently the bleaching of tissue/toilet paper makes it softer and more absorbant, making it white is just a byproduct.
Don't know if that's true or not but I'm definitely not bleaching/whitening my teeth either way, no thank you
As someone who has dealt with way to many dentist appointments, teeth are naturally slightly yellow. They are bone after all. Whitening toothpaste can even damage your enamel through abrasion and bleaching. Be careful with that stuff.
This is specifically related to home (with a yard) ownership, but grass lawns and HOAs that require them. They have almost no ecological value and they require so much maintenance getting the lawn mowed (usually with gas-powered mowers) and potentially watered too. It costs so much money since landscapers usually require you do pay for at least weekly servicing. And it's so bad for the environment - the plants, the animals, even the people who live there who have to deal with the noise. Aside from the very few patches of lawn that actually get used by children or dogs, they're effectively wastelands. In the 1950s, Roundup came out with a weed killer that they wanted people to buy - it worked great at killing weeds, except it also killed the very helpful clover, then considered a proper part of a lawn. So they just had a huge smear campaign marketing against clover, calling it a weed. It was successful, so people bought their product, at the expense of people's wallets, their health, and the environment.
Agreed! A lot of the rules that some HOAs have are something that makes me "mad", not to mention the fees for having to abide by these rules.
One thing that I really loved in the book A Psalm for the Wild Built was when the main character mentions that their pocket computer is designed to last a lifetime. Reminds me of my trusty old TI-83+, which I got in I think 1999? and it's still going strong. And the same model is still being produced today. That's what I wish phones were like.
I feel in the past there were high quality and low quality products (brands and no brands etc) The good ones were expensive and the sloppy were cheap. But these days there no quality. Even the expensive products are of poor quality and brands no longer guarantee anything. The sense that you are being ripped off never leaves you for a moment nowadays.
That last part about minimalist-conscious consumer influencer hypocrisy really makes me mad too. I 'm glad you're going into the no-sponsors route. I remember the video of you toying with the idea and I got a little nervous LOL. Because as you say, these people don't NEED to make this content. They choose to have this as their job and the cognitive dissonance just gives me the ick. I don't mind the youtube ads as much because there are ways to circumvent them, but the insidiousness of trusting someone to give you financial or eco-conscious advice and then getting you to buy affiliate stuff is just messed up. That being said, as an artist,I understand doing youtube videos is a demanding process (sometimes), so I also understand wanting to be paid for your labor...it's so complex!
You can rest assured! Everytime I get a brand offer I can quickly remind myself why I won't do sponsorships, when I go look into their product. 99% of the time it's something I don't actually need, the other 1% of the time (if I actually use the product or service already) there are still downsides to the thing that I'm sure I wouldn't be allowed to point out in my own way, in an ad. It's really not my style to omit any of my thoughts, even though I do try to think carefully and compassionately. There's absolutely no way influencers would actually use this stuff if they weren't influenced themselves, and my goal here is to be free from influence (especially on social media) and also help others get to that place if they want to 👍
Omg was waiting for “you need this”. I’ve worked in marketing, and it just grosses me out. I actively unsubscribe from brands that use that language and am trying to leave the marketing field all together. It just grosses me out!
😃 THANK YOU!!!! I LOVED this video!!! I agree with everything you mentioned - especially the idea that "you or your life is imperfect but this is how you can be perfect like me" nonsense. I love & adore people who shine the light on & eradicate the awful messaging of "you're not enough, you don't have enough."
🥰
I discovered your channel a few months ago as I, too, am on a conscious consumerism journey, and I have found your videos and your perspectives SO helpful. Thank you so much for your content. I resonated with everything you said in this video, and these days I am specifically mad about the fact that I have seen so many creators-turned-influencers who make videos about purchasing luxury items as if it's a normal thing. I'm not trying to judge the act of purchasing of a luxury item in itself (although we cannot deny that the ethics and sustainability practices of many of these companies is questionable at best), but the fact that influencers who are monetized are essentially showing off their luxury items that cost exorbitant amounts of money, KNOWING (at least they should know!!!!) it's making their viewers feel like this is something they may want or could aspire to have, is really not okay to me. As someone who has struggled with compulsive shopping largely due to being influenced on social media throughout my adult life, I have in the past made purchases that I couldn't necessarily afford (or at least, shouldn't have prioritized purchasing) because the influencers I followed made the items seem so enticing. Right now when I watch influencers who are promoting items to buy or showing off luxury items it just turns me off because it makes me feel like they are so out of touch with the struggles of every day people in everyday life, and they are not considering that there are SO MANY people who work so hard their whole lives and will probably never be able to afford a $3000 bag or a $700 pair of shoes (ie. many of their viewers who started following them years ago because they promoted minimalism, living simply, being responsible with money, etc.). I feel a bit duped these days as I've had to unsubscribe from some of my favourite channels. Sorry this was a bit of a rant as it's clearly something that has bothered me recently, but I would just LOVE to see the end of normalizing spending tons of money on nonessential items. It's not normal!
Same. I am interested in perfumes and most perfume influencers that i ve watched just buy , declutter and WASTE perfumes. it is very annoying and i m glad when i see normal people consuming...normally.
Yes I agree - luxury items are "interesting" because they've been marketed hard as a kind of status symbol and there's a narrative that if one has that amount of money, one can show that they have this "success" through those purchases. (Or even if one doesn't really have the money but can afford to buy through other means, credit, saving for a long time, etc). I really feel like influencers are very influenced, themselves, to go in this direction and seeing it this way has helped me realize that it's all a kind of trap, not the symbol of success that they would have us believe it is.
I started my no buy year in 2015. I've never truly stopped (but mostly thanks to the cost of living crisis). Once you've done it, you can't unsee it. Shopping will never be the same again, and I'm thankful for that.
I think the thing with targeted ads, and terms of service agreements, is that you can't opt out of either of them, you have to comply with their service agreements, or you click no and you don't get to use the thing. And you have to take a bunch of extra steps to remove ads in other means that you have, which is frustrating.
These are not just pet peeves. These are the reasons for the dissatisfaction that leads to shopping and clutter.
We were influenced by the trend in the mid-seventies and made a conscientious decision not allow television, radio, newspapers, and magazines in the house. We had a scanner for local disasters and advisories. It cost money to have a crystal for each channel you wanted to scan. We read reputable newspapers at an affordable coffee house or a library then.
My biggest pet peeves are advertisements in mailers and in the middle of YT videos. I pay for an ad-free YT subscription. I don't mind patreon, buy-me-a-coffee, or optional tipping. There are a few independent news channels I will support. But I skip all the sponsorship content.
Our motto is No Money Leaves This House without a darned good reason.
Loving that motto 🙌 and agree about youtube sponsorship content, bugs me too!
I do a lot of sewing. I ask friends to hang on to garments they can't donate so that I can sort through it before sending the truly unusable part to a recycler. I have made so toddler clothes out of garments that have slight holes or stains. I just cut around the ruined part.
That's so cool!
Hi, great list. The leaf blower is the smartest invention ever….. leaves love ‘em - “ Weeeeee, we just got blown over here and the wind will blow us right back in 10 mins. “
This gives me the same vibes as we all have to cut our grass for aethetics or the HOA can literally kick you out of your own home
Influencers/ads telling me theyre SOOO OBSESSED wirh some thing just makes me tune out at this point.
Yes! I know it's a current "turn of phrase" that probably not everyone is truly thinking about the meaning of, or even using ironically...but I'm trying to cling to the integrity of language over here. And I don't care if that makes me an "old lady" now
100% agree! I can’t even watch a weather report on the app until I sit through an ad first. 😳
Right, just tell me if it's gonna rain, I'm not here to buy anything!
Planned obsolescence makes my blood boil too! So wasteful both environmentally and financially
Obsessed: excessive or compulsive concern for something. Not healthy, in fact implying not normal. Hmmmm…over earrings,over a purse, a pair of shoes…a thing, what a waste of time.
Let's take a pic of everything that has broken down in less than a year and send all of it to our politicians demanding better regulations. I did this after nail scissors ✂️ I bought broke after the first use. After cutting the first nail. Fingernails, ok? This is just straight up THEFT. From Canada,🇨🇦 thanks for your great video, subbed.❤
Talk about a product not doing what it says it would do! So frustrating!
You nailed it on so many things when you used the word predatory! There is so much wrong with our consumerist culture but it all goes back to that. How many people have died because in the past, cigarette advertising made it look "cool" to smoke? I'm amazed at the amount of junk I see advertised on social media. No, you really don't need a Stanley mug and you REALLY don't need all the junk to go with it either. Ugh.
Yes! The advertising on cigarettes is such a poignant example, and how they used different marketing tactics to eventually make it appeal to women in a market of largely men, and get adults hooked younger to create customers for life...I've read about how Coca Cola also does that, tries to get kids drinking their soda so they have a customer for decades. The more I learn the more okay I am with labeling marketing strategies as predatory, even though some may see it as "killing the fun of buying a few cute little trinkets" or whatever. In my eyes, the advent of "influencer marketing" is just another way to get young people hooked on buying little trinkets all the time, (or even things like iphones, sneakers, etc) to cultivate the attitude of constant consumerism as normal and justified.
Thank you, i wish this conversation was LOUDER and more widely discussed!!
The death of influencer culture is either dying or evolving. Thank you for this. I LOVE your content and how you promote intentionality with what we do and how we spend our time.
Someone put it best with the old money/looking rich looks; “ ok so you bought all the items. You’re still not rich. Now what?”
Ooh "now what?" is actually a powerful question, thanks for sharing!
First video of yours I've seen - hello! Love your straightforward and no-nonsense discussion points here. :)
I love watching minimalism content because it inspires me to own and consume less, but it makes me mad when those influencers inevitably start advertising containers and storage! The whole point is to not NEED additional containers. I despise how "restock" videos have taken the internet by storm, implying that storage drawers should be ultra-curated with clear acrylic dividers filled to the brim with products. We don't need more stuff, we need less, that's the whole point. Same with all the viral cleaning products. It's one of the few areas where a minimalist can partner and advertise so I get it, but it's still the opposite of their message.
I'm also mad about the way consumerism is taking the place of personality. With TikTok algorithms, so many people are trying to morph their personality into a defined box by calling it "clean girl," "mob wife," "cottagecore," etc. And according to social media, how do you get to claim that label? By buying things! Of course. It's just more fast fashion and waste. Lately it seems like the verbiage has changed to "I'm a ____ girly" instead, but the concept is the same. I want to know about YOU, not about your Amazon purchase history! Ok that's my rant, looking forward to more videos on your channel :)
Welcome! They're not all like this (yet!) but I can feel myself going more and more in this direction.
I totally agree with the points you brought up about storage and the personality aesthetics. Maybe gotta add those to the next "list of maddening consumer-focused things" 😆
As someone who doesn't see a lot of ads anymore (adblocking ftw), they ring more and more hollow.
"Buy this to impress your friends" Mmm no, they're not in my life to be impressed, they're my friends because we have interesting conversations and geek out about stuff.
"Buy this to be in a different social level" No, as someone who has talked to middle-class / middle-high-class people *I don't want them* to be a friend because they just live in a different world and are out of touch. I wouldn't want that for myself OR my friends.
"Buy this it'll make you feel better" As someone who has "paradoxical reactions" to medications, odds are the thing they think will make me happy will make me meh. Or sleepy. Or cranky. Or mentally foggy. No thanks. Especially when waking up in the wrong part of my sleep cycle has the same effect and is *free*.
"Buy this to be more sexy" ... why? If a partner is that easy to sway when they normally wouldn't be interested, that means it's not real AND it implies that anyone else could sway them doing the same thing. I have higher expectations of people including myself.
Absolutely! I've actually started a series on here called "nothing you buy will make you...____" and I think all of these things make good contenders for that list. These "desirable" things cannot be bought, as much as marketing tries to turn them into commodities.
Great video. Glad the algorithm suggested you.
I took this past year to really narrow in what my personal tastes are- so much beauty and skincare content is about testing the latest things… and I’m pretty solid on what I actually want. I started watching beauty UA-cam to get color descriptions of swatches and now I mostly have a few creators I follow for their opinions who are more critical and I feel more confident that they’re actually using things vs doing first impressions of PR.
I have a whole separate email for shopping - logging in once a month or so really lays bare how often I get emails that are like “this is the sale you can’t miss! Here’s an extra $50 for you if you spend this amount!” If I didn’t organically look at my stash of things and think I needed something, it’s thankfully not as effective.
I wish that more creators would mark their sponsored ad section as an ad because I am one of those people that does pay for UA-cam- if a podcast that 3 guys run can figure out how to mark their sponsored section as an ad so it auto skips, I wish more people could do that.
And yes the body type “trends”… I am in my 30’s and have enough medical issues and know how absolutely risky it would be to do even medically necessary surgery. I’m not going to ever opt to have hip surgery (had a consult for that last year) since it would most likely lead to more issues. Even healthy younger people are accepting a lot of risk to do elective surgery and I don’t see many creators really making that clear, let alone medical professionals, that even the most innocent seeming procedure may not be as effective or necessary.
I only got to this mental point by being in a good living situation and no longer feel urged to dissociate from my life and shop for my fantasy self. Still happens once in a while but it’s not all consuming.
Right - and there are so many "latest things" these days, which is actually kind of good, since it's not really exciting to see a new release anymore. I also have a separate "junk email" for shopping now and even in that one I don't subscribe to sales notifications. I'm learning that there always will be a sale at some point, so when something becomes a real need I can try to plan it around the next sale if it makes sense (I did that for my shampoo last Christmastime, for example, and for regular consumable products. Clothing can almost always wait or be found secondhand).
It's kind of crazy how paying for youtube premium removes the platform ads, but nothing can avoid the "special creator ads" found within the video content.
Totally agree about the ability to get into a good living situation, I feel the same, it gets a lot harder to resist the siren call of the fantasy self when things are difficult or emotions are running high.
I chose a product over one slight cheaper because it was “made in America “. Then with shipping info they stated “shipping from mainland China. I wasn’t able to cancel order.
Oh that's frustrating, talk about a bait and switch
I miss the range of fresh produce and dried goods to cook with I had a couple of decades ago. The supermarkets are filled with ready meals in throw away plastic and short shelf lives.
Right there with you on this one - I recently finished reading "Ultra-Processed People" and did a chat about that on here...a book that I do recommend if you haven't come across it yet!
your frustration is valid and I dislike all of them too ☹️ you are the realest for this, i didn't hear anyone from this platform say such thing. I thought maybe I'm too sensitive.. but you always hit the nail on the head. although your emotion is flooding here, you still choose nice words to say, no cursing and all ❤
agree 100% with the influencer bit. I just cannot watch most sponsored content any more, even beyond conscious consumer/minimalist videos. I miss when UA-cam was just people posting videos about topics they were passionate about, rather than trying to make it a career. I instantly get pissed that they're trying to sell me crap, doesn't even matter what it is.
Under planned obsolesce - had something happen recently. My newer used 2020 vehicle parts are much of the time unavailable anymore. Just a few years and they don't make parts anymore for repairs. Now luckily I'm creative and handy af and the part was just a plastic piece for my dash that had cracked/broken. I was able to more/less trace out the shape and make the piece out of wood. That's right. I am falling back on something our predecessors did with early vehicles, wooden interior pieces.
Yessss love to hear this. Hate that parts are unavailable though, we had that happen with our 1995 van when one of the little plastic switches got sucked up in a carwash vacuum, but it does feel a bit more acceptable when the vehicle is pre-2000 (and we're just rolling with it since it's not a functionally necessary piece).
Shawna Ripari echoes very much your sentiments. I enjoy both of your channels. I find them empowering.
Thank you for highlighting these points. Stay true to you and know you are perfect and loved
Critical thinking; must be taught from young age.
Mindlessness should be frowned upon not glorified.
Off topic but I love the way you annunciate your words, it's very clear and satisfying :]
😁
I like how you’re navigating the line between participating in the system, yet also identifying lines, which when crossed are somewhat a net loss for society. I’m exhausted by the prevalence of the ‘you must live frugally in a cave to not hand hypocritical critique’ - it’s a thought terminating cliche. I loved this video, and I am a consumer - wanting to do better should have no shame in critique of a system they participate in, and are present in because they indulge their human urge to connect with a co-opted and clouded social sphere.
Thank you so much for this.
I think in summary, I have finally internalized, that the knowledge that we cannot be perfect does not mean that we shouldn't try, and some will criticize or judge no matter what line one tries to walk.
Just as the knowledge that we will someday pass into possible meaninglessness, doesn't mean we can't have a good and meaningful life. Becoming comfortable with these sometimes contradictory ideas, is the realm from which I now operate 😅
With you all the way with the hatred of continuous ads on social media. I pay £15 a month to UA-cam to avoid the videos I watch being sullied by advertising spam, but then I *still* get it when the creator then says 'this episode is sponsored by...' 😡 I also think you need to do a Shein and Temu episode, those particular companies have the dodgiest business practices and seem to be actively destroying the planet!
I’ve been thinking about paying for UA-cam premium to avoid adds too. Would you say it’s worth it?
@@TheNicoliyah in my opinion yes! Especially as the ads come in unannounced so at times you aren't sure if it's part of the video you're watching or not. 🙄 You could always give it a try for a month or two and then cancel if you're not happy.
@@mairead5891 Good point, thanks for coming back to me
If a content creator goes into a sponsorship reel I immediately close the video. It either takes me out of the subject and I sit there mentally fidgeting while waiting for the ad to end or takes me out of what I'm doing, putting it down to skip through. Might as well save myself the time.
@@TheNicoliyah Why not just use an ad-blocker? I do that and it works just fine. Sometimes I have to reset it but it's still working and I see zero ads.
I have, and use daily, a Singer sewing machine from 1937, made before planned obsolescence. It's all metal parts that just need a bit of oil and a quick cleaning to work perfectly nearly forever and they can be serviced by me with just a flathead screwdriver and a UA-cam video. Sure it doesn't do fancy computerized stiches but it does a perfect straight stich every time even through leather for the last 90 years. Consider buying vintage if you want out of the trap of planned obsolescence.
My Mum has one she got second hand...still going. Seen rows of them working in India, if you are into ordinary sewing definitely get one, they are indestructible!
I'm a maker, so I buy second hand materilas whenever I can to use in my work. I'm tired of fast fashion and the tons of textile waste that go into landfills every day.
Too much packaging. In S. Korea for a year, For example most cookies are in plastic wrapped boxes, inside the box is a plastic tray and the items are individually wraped. Almost every food item has at least 3 layers of packaging.
😫
Love this, such excellent content, thank-you! Really great insights to help break out of the matrix and not be influenced by these strategies. 1. planned obsolescence 2. marketing that preys on/creates anxiety. 3. glorifying extreme practices (e.g., showing off collection of 100 shoes) 4. telling us we 'should' do something. 5. targeted ads and info gathering 6. media solely focused on shopping (e.g., 'must have list' presented like a genuine article). 6. Content farming 7. conscious advertising (green washing, minimalism/simple values, but geared to push reader to consume/purchase something) 8. Tiktok (product glorification and the way it pushes consumerist narrative). 9. Shein 10. Temu
Though I still watch creators with sponsored content, I resonate with the ick you describe regarding UA-cam sponsorships. What makes these sponsorships especially problematic is the parasocial element. In traditional media like print and tv, ads are impersonal, with a clear boundary between the content and the commercial break. On platforms like UA-cam, the advertisement is baked into the relationship you have formed with the content creator. It’s no longer unfamiliar actors or models (except maybe celebrities) in a commercial-it’s someone with whom you feel a genuine connection.
Even with solid media literacy, our brains just haven’t evolved enough to fully distinguish between a person who speaks to us regularly through a screen and someone we know in real life. There’s a loneliness epidemic in this country (U.S.), and it’s being exploited by this newer advertisement model.
Intuitively, I hesitate to fully place the blame on all sponsored creators (there is a spectrum of ethical and unethical behavior.) The issue feels more systemic to me. This newer advertisement model is something that we’ve all grown accustomed to and now view as acceptable, much like other once-accepted norms that would be considered unacceptable today.
100%! I stumbled my way through these exact thoughts about halfway through the no-buy year I think, where regular ads with actors or even celebrities are clearly ads, and they interrupt the "main content". With influencer-creators, the ad is often PART of the "main content" or in some cases the ad or product is the actual inspiration for the content. I've also touched on my personal realizations that being lonely has led to being influenced! So I am in total agreement here.
Also agree that it's systemic and not right to totally vilify individuals for this, even if individuals do have the choice to opt out. When money is on the table, who can blame someone for taking it? But I do think there are "better" and "worse" ways of doing ads and product content if a creator is going to make that a part of their work. You make a great point about how norms go through phases of acceptability.
we are jack’s unhinged anti-consumerism ❤️✊ 📕
🙌
Another thing that makes me mad is unnecessary packaging. So many layers of packaging on everything! You buy one thing online and it arrives in five boxes and three layers of plastic. Grrrrr.
I also have a disdain for hypocritical content creators. I started watching a new channel recently because I liked her commentary on overconsumption, toxic influencers, and using what you already have. But then on the same channel she has...Amazon favorites and Prime Day deal videos, where she recommends up to 75 different things?? I subscribed and unsunscribed within a few days 😅
Yes! It's frustrating...we are all a bit hypocritical as humans, myself too - but, I'm always going to at least try to think about the possible impact of something I share on those who might be watching, especially when it comes to recommending things for purchase for monetary compensation (which I just won't do).
I'm sure this is what's happening with the amazon/prime day videos, probably everyone who makes those has an Amazon partnership and makes $$ off of that! Otherwise, why? 😑
I'm starting to wake up from the consumerism epidemic. Its nuts, i was on Instagram but have now deleted the app because of the constant ads and i was finding myself clicking on them with out thinking. I refuse to watch tiktok even thought my family love the funny vids. It started with hobbies and watching hauls and wanting to be a part of it but how I've woken up i take no enjoyment in it. Next step is a no buy year
Welcome, if you want a place to post comments with your personal updates, if or when you do go on your no-buy year, this is the channel for you! What you said is so true about waking up from the epidemic. I never want to go back.
Excellent perspective! I was beginning to wonder if being obsessed with an item was a requirement for sponsorship and partnerships. I’ve also wondered how can these influencers possibly use or wear all the goods they are hawking. I enjoyed the content of some UA-cam influencers, they were entertaining, funny, some with wonderful anecdotes but now almost all of them are now an advertising channel for the flavor of the month (Lily Silk, Quince, etc). I no longer click on. I was also at an event recently for a soft opening of a boutique hotel. They brought in several influencers and said it was less expensive to treat them to a dinner and fine champagne than it was to pay for an advertising firm. The influencers are taking the place in many instances of traditional advertising. They are incentivized on many levels to make the “must have and must do” work. I feel for any parents who have teens who are pulled into this rat race of overconsumption. I’m older and can look at it with a critical eye but I am one hundred percent certain I would have fallen prey several years ago.
Yes - makes so much sense when you see companies sending influencers on extravagant vacations - that kind of thing gets so much "cheap" press compared to a legimately-produced ad-campaign. I chatted in a recent video about how influencers are actually used in this way, even though they're the ones receiving compensation (incentivized) to sell whereas viewers are just pushed to buy.
I also feel very lucky that I wasn't on here creating "content" and getting "partnership offers" until I was already old enough to have a job that I love, and also to know that I don't want to participate in that, no matter what money might be on the table. I don't need yet another clothing brand on my radar, (or hair/skincare, beauty, glasses, jewelry, phone provider, etc...if I need it, I already have one!) and I'm pretty sure most of my viewers don't need to hear about these brands - yet again - either.
I think the algorithm must be very confused about me...what do you advertise to someone whose main social media consumption is zero waste and anticonsumerism content 🤣 most ads i see are not tempting at all, they havent been able to peg me 😂
Woohoo, you have achieved ad immunity! 🎉
I despise when after paying for a plan for two years, and costing $1500, for a cell phone, we cannot use again. After the plan is over, they never update the software. BUY A NEW PHONE, AFTER THAT COST? THAT MAKES ME MAD!!!!!!! Planned obsolete.
Have you considered buying a phone that's not $1500? I'm not saying planned obsolesence is good or fair, but there's no shortage of quality phones affordable enough to buy in a single payment (I got mine secondhand!). Brand loyalty will do you no favors.
@@hexx2211 $1500 is what it cost in total for the plan to not purchase the phone plus the plan would have been more. I don't even use a phone, cill or landline. Too much for something I do not use. Phone usage should be free, hey, it is actually old tech.
@@hexx2211you still need a new phone even if your old one is perfectly fine. It hurts everyone but the seller.
I hear you!
Apple supports their phones for 7 - 9 years, Samsung’s current lineup is supported for 4 years feature + 3 - 5 years security depending on model, Google supports for 7 years on the Pixels. You have options, do your research before you buy and never buy through the carrier for most Android devices as the carrier installs their own custom OS that does not keep up with the manufacturer unless the manufacturer doesn’t allow them to have the custom OS.
I don’t think we can outlaw planned obsolescence. But maybe we can require manufacturers to identify the likely lifespan and reveal when items are designed to fail rather than to be repaired.
Sure! And then if enough customers are choosing the longer-lifespan items even at higher prices, maybe this would fix the issue of producing cheap quantity over quality, at least in some areas of the market
That's the warranty. If you divide the price by the months it lasts you can see what a waste of money it is.
The active hostility manufacturers have toward repair upsets me so bad. I cannot think of a single person who wouldn't take a slightly larger, bulkier anything if it meant that they could fix it when it breaks.
Yes! Like we're supposed to believe it's "harder" to make things repairable? We know it can be done, it would just make less money than forcing consumers to buy new instead of buying one part for a repair.
I know that's true for i phones and stuff, but also, what John Deere does (and I assume other companies attempt to do) is downright despicable.
RIP to my washing machine 😢 I’ve had for 25 years. The part that it needs is no longer available 😭😭
Nooo so frustrating
Ohhh that sucks! My fridge is about that old, one of the last good ones according to our repair guy. We can still get replacement parts, but they're not made to last. I dread the day I have to try to buy a new fridge that is just a fridge, no icemaker or computer screen or whatever stupid thing!
i enjoyed the way you say "this makes me MAD." subscribed lol. following anticonsumerist channels has definitely helped me chill out on these things. but yea im now disgusted with the normalization of "omg i HAVE TO have it." it's said jokingly, but the impulsivity is too real
😅 thank you haha. And I'm starting to think that even said jokingly, the dialogue (I "have" to have it, I'm OBSESSED, it's "iconic", run don't walk...) feels like it's covering something kind of insidious - as if we "have to have it" because we're feeling a certain way that pushes us towards impulsive purchases to seek happiness, and if we were truly content we wouldn't be "obsessed" with material items.
I am no doubt reading into it too a little too much and/or raining on the "fun girly aesthetics and shopping parade" here, but that's my current way of "decoding" this kind of consumer-speak
@@Alexas.nobuyyear yea, if i had to take a stab at it, i feel like it's this longing for something deserving of our obsession. like it's super fun to be enthusiastic about something. I really had to unpack my fandom purchases, and it wasn't until someone said "you could connect with the media by re-watching the anime or re-listening to the album. you don't have to BUY all the things or anything." that's when it hit me that i had defaulted to products as a way to connect with things and show my enthusiasm. of course corporations LOVE that lol.
I just found your channel yesterday and watched some of your videos. I respect you so much for not advertising things and not working with companies. I used to follow one girl who talks about overspending, minimalism etc but almost all of her videos are sponsored. In one video she talks about not buying things that we don`t need ( like Stanley cup ) and in the next one she promotes a sleeping mask... And I believe that is so true that those content creators just make their videos to promote something. For example, she made a video " Don`t go to college" recently, and she was talking about how expensive it is and there are no jobs and actually that we could learn things online....and then surprise, surprise, she advertised some online learning platform. She made this whole video to promote this platform. It was too much for me and I did unfollow. Thank you so much for not doing the same thing.
Yeah these days that just isn't the kind of content I'm interested in watching anymore, I'd rather see someone share without ulterior motives.
Sometimes I really wonder what these platforms would look like and who would be here, if there wasn't the option for sponsored content!
@Alexas.nobuyyear I think only people who actually have something to say, would stay.
I am with you and have been living consciously and frugally for decades now and I am so glad in a sense to have the no consumption muscle in shape these days. For example I am getting totally turned off by how Instagram is shoving shopping reels on me as soon as I watch the one from my sister -in-law lets say I enter SOCIAL media to be SOCIAL and to connect with people I like and I have to get this ad for something I have never wanted and not in here to look for and the next one is ANOTHER sponsored reel. so hit X again I don't want to see this crap and the next one is YES! a sponsor reel so I get off social media and I will never see people that are far away or know anything social because I am not willing to put up with that cloud of mosquitos trying to suck my blood. It honestly feels agressive!!
Yeah I actually tried to film a video the other day, involving commenting on how social media videos are all sales pitches by watching some TikToks... and I couldn't bring myself to watch very many before getting out of the app. Instagram is becoming just as bad. I just don't want to spend much time on those apps anymore, watching or posting!
For the obsolescence thing, it's easy solved with a law that force compagnies to replace any product with default until several years.
Congratulations on reaching a level of maturity where your eyes have been opened to these things. Now learn to focus on and find the things that are positive and worthy of your time and attention. It will take some effort but you'll eventually get to a point where that stuff becomes background noise you're able to tune out 👍🏻
i love you so much, articulated many of my own feelings and totally support the anger
What makes me mad is these "cooking" videos that are usually desserts that are 100% made of non-food items. I've seen desserts made with cream cheese, crushed oreos, and cool whip. These are NOT food. These are toxic. People who eat this way will die young. Once I saw someone melt chocolate inside the original plastic package in boiling water then use the plasticy melted chocolate in a non-food item recipe. Plastic is so bad for us. Junk foods are NOT a good deal. They are toxic and even if it's on sale, it's not a good deal because it will make you sick. If not today, down the road.
Ooh I recently finished the book "Ultra-Processed People" and I couldn't agree more. These are industrially produced edible substances, not food, and hopefully my body is able to recover from eating that junk when I was growing up.
If you are getting free then you are either the product or the target.
The browser shopping points/discount apps are the worst for this. You’re agreeing to have your browsing tracked for the purposes of consumer research and targeting. You’re the product!
As much as I appreciate your optimism on being to change it, my first and only instinct is to run lol. Really thinking of deleting my Instagram bc of the stupid ads but the funny reels have me hanging on for now 😅 but yes i am thoroughly disgusted at the direction we’re going and how blatant its becoming. I wanna go off the grid and read books for entertainment if my adhd allows me to
Well honestly I might be thinking about a combination of running and fighting, if that's possible - I personally don't use short-form content much but if I start to develop an anti-consumerist agenda that might be catchy through short-form, I might jump back into the fray to quickly deliver my blows, and immediately run away back to my books and cabin in the woods😆 (figuratively - maybe someday I'll get to actual cabin in the woods status haha)
What makes me really mad is when the information, advice, or whatever is presented with a fake human voice. There is no real person sharing their experience or expertise, the text was probably written up by a team or AI and then read off by a voice simulator. There always comes a point when a native speaker hears an incorrect language melody, pronounciation, emphasis, or misinterpretation of a dash or word split by a dash (as at the end of a line, when the sentence continues). What makes me mad is that the people or company behind it know or believe to know which kind of voice will attract the most listeners or viewers. Ultimately this will lead to everyone sounding the same.
I'm not talking about non-native speakers using English or any other language for their videos. That's understandable, because they can reach a wider audience. What I mean is the damage done to our sense of language by hearing machine-speak all the time.
Same ! it irks me so much
Good odds you’re talking about the TikTok automated voice. Did you know that the voice actress whose voice they used didn’t give them permission? She sued and Bytedance settled.
Makes me that much more angry every time I hear it.
The AI voice thing gives me the "psychic ick" vibe. Give me a real human speaker, please and thank you!
Thanks for bringing this up! I actually hadn't thought about this specifically but I agree - the voice automations and/or filters are strange and probably doing something bad, even if it's just cultivating a certain attitude towards AI ....which, maybe I'm just not forward-thinking here, but using AI in fields like advertising just seems wrong and unnecessary to me, where the "benefit" is selling people more stuff that they likely don't need. I can understand it being used as a diagnostic tool, to facilitate data entry and save some human labor, or other outcomes that actually have a practical use and don't diminish opportunities for human creativity. But maybe I just have an irrational fear of AI destroying humanity as we know it...
@@Alexas.nobuyyear I don't think it's all that irrational. While A.I. may be helpful for the ADHD peeps to find work that's satisfying to the way their brains work (regular jobs don't often offer enough novelty), the A.I. voices for TikTok and YT shorts just give me the creeps. Brrr!
The economy works on consumerism (money flow cycle), and companies are profit driven but they also know that there's a limit to consumer tolerance in terms of prices. That's what's leading to planned obselence/inflation/shrinkflation. The "Free Market" aspect prevents government agencies from stepping in too much, and companies are using this to their fullest advantage.
As a teacher, when my students going into the workforce ask me for advice I often say "Constantly keep track of your income and expenses down to the cent. Work on increasing income, not just decreasing expenses. Don't fall for what I call the "YOLO scam" because wealth takes time to build (can take years). Just because your paycheck is big doesn't mean that your lifestyle has to be big too. If your significant other truly loves you, they will not constantly seek to drain your wallet at your expense, and of all things, over materialistic things like expensive flowers, dining places etc. If you meet someone like that, drop that person like a hot potato."
Love your advice! And I have been feeling this YOLO scam recently - there are so many narratives in society these days about how "you deserve to treat yourself" or "enjoy this while you're young" or "spoil your significant other/kids/friends/etc" or "buy this for self-care" or even, the concept of how life is fleeting - it's all used to make us feel okay about spending more on non-essential purchases!
And I'm aware that I'm still a little trapped in these mindsets myself - there's a balance to be found between living financially "now" vs. for the future, and I think another "first step" is to make sure that both paths are being walked, that we are saving as well as spending - especially if we are unwilling to cut the spending.
I love your energy in this video 😅🙏🏻
Anger can sometimes be helpful in resistance
The class consciousness you possess made me decide to subscribe. Amazing video too, great points.
UA-cam is the only social media I have, and I can tell you that not being on other platforms cuts out so much advertising! Still, it sucks that social media is mainly used to sell products instead of promote genuine social interaction. What a waste.
Agreed
Point 1... Obsolescence vs worn out can sometimes be a fine line. But either way we buy the thing again. Like my current fridge is 13 years old, my tv is 16. But both will need replacing. It is not IF but When. Keep this in mind... Companies can increase by... Selling more often to the same people, selling to more people, selling for greater margin. So keep those three things in mind to understand why businesses do what they do... If the have tapped out their market and there are not enough new people, they are left with existing customers buying more frequently. Look at the history of the lightbulb to understand this. I am not saying the practice is good, because it isn't beneficial to me having to rebuy something due to it failing the longevity test, but i understand why it can seem that way and why it can be a fine line. Now if only i could get a microwaveable non plastic cup that doesn't break when dropped 😉
Well exactly like you said - we can understand something and still be annoyed about it! And I'd argue that in some categories it's not such a fine line. I would be surprised if an iphone for example even has the chance to last 10 years and still be usable these days, with software that stops updating after a set period. Fast-fashion or cheaply produced clothing is designed to fall apart after a few wears/washes, and again I'd say that's not a fine line when other clothing can last for years, even decades. But we've grown to collectively tolerate these short life cycles and believe that shopping so much is okay and normal
My parents grew up during the Great Depression. Watching their families, friends and neighbors struggle to make ends meet shaped their views. Frugality was deeply embedded in them as children and lasted all their lives.
I like that you feel like a regular person being a UA-camr rather than someone putting on a personality to be a UA-camr.
I've been trying to find videos on UA-cam that don't feel like their solely made to be consumed and actually have a purpose and I think you fall in that realm.
Haha you got it, I am a regular person 😁
UA-cam will never be my "job," (I have a job that I don't want to quit) so hopefully I can avoid acquiring the "social media personality" while continuing to share on here.
Love your energy in this video! Reminds me of calling your bestie and just ranting about what's wrong with society 😜
Since it was omitted, a Shein and Temu video please! I think there’s enough in that topic for an entire video in fact 😂
I hate built in price escalation for things like internet services. Comcast comes to mind. They will increase prices every year until you call them to complain
thank you for saying it! we need a change.
more humanity , real content !
I think Shelbi is an exception to the sponsorship thing because she brings her expertise as a trained analyst of full product lifecycles and she does stop partnerships when the company does something shady (and tells us about it). I give her a pass bc I genuinely do want to ask an expert what the best option for cleaning products or what have you are, and she is an expert on that and has a habit of taking us through that analysis. Would it be more ideal if this happened without a sponsorship at all? Probably. But I get the balance there.
Mostly though, I agree about the ick factor.
Yeah there are cases where I am not as bothered by it too (or think that a creator has a net positive impact with their work despite the ad content) and I also do understand that it's up to me whether or not I watch any kind of content at all, so I have mixed feelings about complaining about it too much. But the truth is that now, every time I hear a creator say "that's why I use X product" I do feel an internal cringe that I didn't have so much before starting on this path!
I don’t like to share personal information to get a coupon, or have a coupon app from a store try to lure me to a different isle while in the store looking for the coupon. I’d rather pay the extra 40 cents.
I agree lets cancel TikTok
But what will happen to the positive, wholesome side: morons self-reporting by posting the stupid and/or illegal things they are doing
I've never had it (didn't have a smart phone until I was forced to upgrade my 14 year old mobile by the 3G network shutdown this year) but am not tempted... I hear there are so many ads. I try to severely curtail my exposure to advertising.
@@racheljames9187 I'm in the same boat, I want to ditch the smartphone so bad but I don't know if there's any non-smartphones that can use the modern network.
You speak so eloquently!
I love her voice with her look.
You really made me think.. About how language creates reality and we need to be careful with language 😊
It may actually destroy humanity if we let humans be creators and not slaves to tech gigants and their political arbitrary views.
The rechargeable Fitbit only lasts about 2 years. They have a confusing recycling system where you can send it to a company that is supposed to rebuild it but it’s not clear how to do it. You used to be able to simply change the battery.
Ugh that's frustrating!
I've run into similar things with sustainable companies, where they have a recycle or composting policy for their own goods at the end-of-life, but you have to send the item in somewhere specific and despite having that on my to-do list it's difficult to get around to.