Stuff

I want you to take stock in something real quick. In the past two weeks, how many catalogs have you received in the mail? This could be for housewares, toys, electronics, food, and clothes among other things. I am not even asking you to consider the amount of emails in your inbox advertising the same things. For me, in the past two weeks I have had 8 catalogs come to our house that I could count. These catalogs come in the mail, and the emails come to the inbox because at some point, we have bought or at least considered the stuff they were selling. Here is the next question, how many packages from Amazon, or other websites have arrived at your door this week? I have had four, and I had no idea what was in two of them. I want to make something clear, I am not shaming any of us for making money, and having the means to get stuff. It is okay to have and like stuff. You should absolutely work hard and better yourself each and every day to make more money, gain promotions and provide for your family in the best you possibly can.

With the holiday season in full swing, here is the point I am trying to consider for myself and what I am asking you to think about as well. How important is that stuff to you. In the hierarchy of things, where does stuff sit? Is it top three, or top five? Most of us would say our top three is faith, family, and health in some order. If you still had faith, family, and health but the extra material things were taken away, would you be okay? Whether we want to admit it or not, myself included, stuff is higher up the ladder of importance than it probably should be.

The way we can determine how high up the ladder we place material things is by understanding three things when considering pursuit of the stuff that we didn’t bring into this world and we can’t take with us.

1. How much unnecessary time do you spend away from the top three (faith, family, health) because of stuff? Outside of work, where we decide to spend our time is a clear indicator of where we place importance. If you consider faith, family, and health as the most important in your life, how much time are you allocating to those things. In theory, the most time should be spent there. What is taking time away from those things? No one will remember the amount of time you spent shopping, or the brand of clothing you wore every day. They will remember how you took care of yourself, your family, and others.
2. How often are you comparing your stuff to others stuff? This day in age, it is hard not to fall into this trap. There is always something newer and better. Your neighbor or friend will always have the fancier car, or the cuter housewares, or the more perfect Instagram worthy family vacation. Envy and resentment, whether you mean to or not, will take you down a path that will only lead to disappointment. Once again, will anyone remember the car you drove, how you decorated your house, or your Instagram story from two years ago? On your death bed, it will never come up, I guarantee it. So why let it occupy your thoughts now.
3. How generous are you? Giving can be tough. Each of our financial situations are different. I am not saying that you can or should give to others consistently if you can’t do so. That is not the point I am trying to make. A great way to gauge the importance of stuff in your life is to put yourself in a situation where you have to make a decision from time to time. Would you rather get an extra something for yourself, or instead, would you rather use that resource to give to others? This decision comes up way more than you think and it doesn’t have to be exorbitant in terms of money spent. Once again, on your death bed what will people remember? What you bought for yourself, or how generous you were to others? Generosity is not a dollar amount, it is a mindset.

You hear this phrase a lot but it is said for a reason. You don’t bring anything material with you into this world, and you can’t take it with you when you leave. This is so true. We walk a fine line when we idolize things and it is hard not to in the world we live in. Envy and resentment will eat at you whether you intend for it to or not and no matter what you do, there will always be something bigger, better, and more shiny. That quick hit of dopamine provided by material things will only last as long as it takes for something new to come out.