It seems like everyone wants to label you and me a consumer. Economists, politicians, and corporations seem to think our greatest contribution to society is our ability to consume.
The impression we’re left with is the only thing we have to offer the world is our purchasing power. In fact, there seems to be an expectation that our duty is to go out and spend $$ each weekend so our economy keeps humming along.
We are reduced to nothing more than a consumer confidence index.
Everywhere we go the subtle message to consume is whispering in the background. It’s impossible to escape…billboards, store window signage, radio commercials, bumper stickers, emails, banner ads…all promising a fuller and richer life if you just realize your full consumer potential.
Where can you go to escape the label of “consumer”?
It’s difficult to escape this narrative that’s forced upon us from our earliest memories.
But I believe your core identity is not a consumer, but a creator.
Your true identity is that of a creator.
You can easily see this identity in children. Every child is a creator at heart. They love to use their creativity to draw, paint, and make stuff out of what most of us would discard as trash. A creator doesn’t see junk, they see the contributions still possible within everything.
A robot my son made out of boxes he found lying around.
I’ve noticed the older children get the easier it is for them to move away from their creative identity and start taking on the identity of a consumer. I think the primary reason for this shift is screen time. The more screen time the more the identity of a consumer sets in. Everything about screen time reinforces a narrative of consuming.
The irony is technology promises creativity and awe but it keeps us from experiencing the true creativity and awe all around us.
The next time you go to the beach look around and see how many people are glued to their phones and how many are enjoying the true awe right in front of them.
Or the next time you’re at your child’s game look around and see how many parents are soaking up this limited slice of their child’s life and how many are missing it because they are scrolling through someone else’s life. Make sure that when your child glances at you for approval and recognition during the game you are able to give it. Those are truly wonder-filled moments.
Our screens and in particular social media encourages us to walk in the identity of being a consumer…and the product we consume is other people’s lives. We miss all of the opportunities to create and live in the wonderful life we have been given.
I’ve never met someone who said… “You know I just spent an hour scrolling through social media and I feel so much better about my life. I feel relaxed and refreshed. I need to do this more often!”
Most of us leave social media feeling envious, discouraged, and discontent.
If that’s true why do we check it as soon as we wake up…while waiting in line…in the “rest” room…at a traffic light…on a date…when we park in our driveway…during dinner with our family…while we watch tv…right before we crawl into bed at night?
We’ve fallen victim to the lie we are just a consumer.
You were created for so much for!
You were created to be a creator.
What would it take for you to create more than you consume?
The key to being able to create more is in how you spend your free time.
What did you used to love creating?
Was it music? Maybe it’s time to pull out that guitar or get your piano tuned.
Was it working with wood? Maybe it’s time to get a new project.
Was it painting? Maybe it’s time to get some new brushes and a canvas.
Was it writing? Maybe it’s time to start a blog or log back in.
Was it knitting? Maybe it’s time to make a winter cap.
What was the thing you use to create that made you feel relaxed and refreshed? I’m talking about the type of thing that would make you say, “I need to do this more often!”
You don’t have to create something that wins an award or even gets noticed. That’s a consumer mentality. If it needs to be award worthy to count I would have given up on writing a long time ago. What you are doing by creating is breathing life back into your soul and those around you.
Think about it this way…churches all across the country are blessed by musicians and singers the world will never know. But their community is blessed every week by what they create.
As a parent, I would much rather have a card or a present my child made than one they bought at a store. Why? They created it and there isn’t a card or a gift you could buy anywhere that would mean more to me.
I understand some of what breathes life into our soul is consuming what others create, like music. I understand it’s impossible to live without consuming at some level. In fact, you would die. We are interdependent. And that’s precisely what I want you to own…our need for you to create and not just consume.
What if you started today by being more purposeful with your leisure time? What if your default wasn’t a screen? What if you chose to use that time to create more than you consumed?
I can’t wait to see what you create!
