EP.18 - - 12 IDEAS FOR A GOOD LIFE #2 Collect experiences, not things

Sutterfaction

Philosopher Nietske emphasised the lived life - a move away from a preoccupation with trivial concerns - he told us to avoid the unlived life, and to live boldly and fully.

In today’s modern, uber connected, world it is easy to get lost in a pursuit of things - shinier, brighter, faster, better, more. Which makes the examination side, one preached by many a philosopher, and made popular by Socrates and his unexamined life is not worth living idea, all the more difficult. With limited time, busy and tired, it is definitely easy to be lured into the buy-my happiness culture in the pursuit of feeling good quickly. And, we see how quickly we can fall prey to a consumer society that attacks our attention and aims to manipulate and confuse, that targets each of our own insecurities and delicate imperfections so vividly that we yearn for that next click of the buy now button.

This pursuit is an endless cycle. Schopenhauer wrote that “the accumulation of wealth and goods is endless and unsatisfying. The more we possess, the more our claims multiply.” He says “wealth is like seawater, the more we drink, the thirstier we become, and in the end, we don’t have our goods, they have us.”

This means that sadly, critically, we don’t experience things - we just buy them. And, in choosing things over experiences again and again we do our happiness and wellbeing, our relationships, our life, our planet, a tremendous disservice. In settling for a quick fix, we miss the truer beauty that lies just below.

Join author and activist, Evan Sutter, as he dives into our addiction to things. Skilfully connecting parenthood, work-life balance, technology, nature, connection, climate change, wellbeing and distraction; Sutter offers us a chance to foster a deeper awareness and take control of our time in order to really enjoy our lives!