Note: This is a guest post from Lisa Avellan of Simple and Soul.
This world is obsessed with measuring up. Research shows we are exposed to thousands of advertising messages every day—and hidden inside each of those ads is a mistruth: “You don’t measure up until you buy our product.”
Ad agencies are good. Real good. They know how to sneak into our psyches and change the story we tell ourselves. Before long our brains begin to believe their lie—that our lives can be measured by what we buy, wear, drive, and live in. And while their bottom line bursts at the seams, the consumer is broke—financially and otherwise.
Measuring up is breaking us up.
This NY Times article from 2008—written during the Great Recession—shows how powerful a slogan like, “Live Richly” can be. It even contributed to the housing bubble that negatively impacted so many lives.
“It’s very difficult for one advertiser to come to you and change your perspective,” said Sendhil Mullainathan, an economist at Harvard who has studied persuasion in financial advertising. “But as it becomes socially acceptable for everyone to accumulate debt, everyone does.”
Everyone does it, so that makes it okay. As a culture, we begin to measure our lives by the things we can buy, because others are buying it too.
The simple life is not immune to these advertisements. And we aren’t immune to the struggle of measuring our life by standards that contradict the way of simplicity. The nature of today’s world, being in constant reach of advertising through screens and print, demands our intentionality of focus on the true measures of life.
Designing a simple life invites us to measure our lives differently. We realize as we pare down that we don’t have to keep up. We don’t have to buy, borrow, upgrade, or upsize to secure our place in the world.
I need reminders often that my worth isn’t found by the world’s measuring stick. I get to define my own success, and live a meaningful and abundant life.
You do too. Try these new measurements for size, and simplify.
5 Better Ways to Measure Your Life
1. Gratitude.
With a measure of gratitude, you gain the world. When you are grateful for what you already have, you don’t need more. Gratitude is always enough.
This perspective is a shield to the thousands of messages of ‘not enough’ we hear every day. Gratitude turns what we have into enough. We don’t need to have those shoes, that device, or and that new car.
2. Generosity.
“To measure the man, measure his heart.” Malcolm Forbes once said.
A great gift of simple living is the freedom to give. The infinite freedoms available when we design a life of less allows for infinite ways to be generous. Whether it’s with our time, money, talents, hospitality, donations, or airline miles—when the measuring stick of things ends, generosity keeps growing.
3. Contentment
Advertisers bank on the public’s perpetual discontent. In fact, they create much of our discontent through their stealth word play and product development. It’s evident in the lines outside Apple stores days before the next iPhone is released, which has just enough new capabilities to make the previous model obsolete in the eyes of the consumer.
Contentment is not the satisfaction of want; it’s the pursuit of having enough. And it invites an unmistakable freedom into our lives.
4. Availability
Bob Goff is known for his fun and whimsical personality. He famously put his personal cell phone number in the back of a NYT bestselling book, and he expects and answers calls. He makes himself available.
He also says he plans his calendar nine months and one day in advance, no further, in case he is to be become a grandfather. His purpose is to be available.
Busyness is no way to measure a life. Busy is a thief. It’s a phantom measure of worth and success and it will never get as much done as availability will. Remain available. Learn to say no, and measure your life by the things you get to say yes to.
5. Purpose
“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” Ralph Waldo Emerson is quoted as once saying.
If we pay too close attention to how the world measures life we will never understand the difference that our life, our one life, can make. Simplicity of home, time, and character magnifies the very things we were designed for—it points us to the significance of who we are.
We are purposed for much more than our net worth and closet size. Simplify and live well.
The Great Recession of 2008 changed us. More and more people are looking for a new way, a simple way to live. As advertisers revamp their messages toward this post-recession culture, we can redefine the measure by which we live. It helps to remember the best things in life can’t be pitched in thirty second ads.
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Lisa Avellan blogs at Simple and Soul where she inspires and equips others to live with intention. You can also find her on Facebook.
littleblackdomicile says
All points so well presented. As a design firm, we are striving to be part of the desire for all of us to live with purpose and have our homes assist us in doing so. -Laurel Bledsoe
Ladysmartypants says
Thank you for being such an inspiration :)
You’re articles are a great help on my journey, so I will definitely stay tuned.
Lots of love,
Smarty
paket umroh desember says
trims for your articels
Reeta Pathania says
Thank you Lisa for this thought provoking article.I hope everyone reads it ,imbibes it and does some serious soul searching.It pains me no end to see most of the people leading fake,vain lives.Natural resources are being abused to meet the greedy, unreasonable needs of such people.
More and more great writing to you.Love and blessings.
Tom J says
A very good article. Both thoughtful and insightful.
I especially liked this: ” I need reminders often that my worth isn’t found by the world’s measuring stick. I get to define my own success, and live a meaningful and abundant life.”
It’s just two sentences but very profound ( and something that I needed to hear/remember on rough days).
Thanks for writing it out, Lisa.
And thanks for sharing it, Joshua.
Felino Joseph Jr says
Well said Lisa… Makes understanding our purpose clear.
John says
Emerson also noted: ““My life is for itself and not for a spectacle.” Hopefully as we mature, we realize that good health, love of family, friends, good books and maybe a creative passion are all we need for happiness. Thanks for a good read, Lisa.
Lisa says
That’s a great quote, John! Thank you!
Sanjay says
Thanks Lisa for your wonderful article on measuring the value of our life. Gratitude really helps us to know the position that we are in our life.
Regards,
Sanjay
Lisa says
Yes, I am also passionate about gratitude. It’s a life changer on its own! Thank you!
Sandy says
These ways are really awesome. I do feel contentment is the actual way to measure the life.
Lisa says
Thanks, Sandy!
Tony W says
There is a war going on for our hearts and souls. It is being waged by advertisers. They are spending billions and I guess they are receiving a return on their investment.
I live the quote “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful . . .”. This is powerful. To be useful is the key to opening the door to happiness and life’s natural riches.
Being useful usually leads to monetary riches but that is not the focus.LOL. When you help people you are helping yourself.
Lisa says
I love that quote too, Tony! Its a powerful perspective to have in a world usually focused on themselves.