Black Friday is in about a month from now and for those working in the marketing sector, this is the month of burnouts and endless working hours, to quench our thirst as consumers for hot burning sales. Let’s take a pause and question all this. What’s this craziness about?

There is certainly a guilty (or not?) pleasure we experience as we hoard retail stores on this day where our favorite brands seem to be more generous than ever. As we start this marathon of mad shopping with our fellow runners, it is time to step back and ask ourselves what our real goal for this race is?

After all, after the crazy sales we have drowned ourselves in, be it online or at stores, the next morning we still stand in front of our barely closable wardrobes thinking, “But I don’t have anything to wear”. Statistics show that we now own more clothes than ever in history, so what has gone wrong?

Possibly a consequence of the passive consumers we have become, following the herd from a discount sign to the cash counter. Knowingly or unknowingly, we gluttonously try to fill our inner voids with materialistic items. However, how long lasting are these “fixes” really?

Speaking of long lastingness, our sense of understanding of quality over quantity has also diminished over the years. A (not intentionally) ripped pair of jeans can easily be substituted by a pair that comes at an unbelievably cheap cost. But who exactly pays the cost then?

It is time to shift from our selfish mindsets focused on consuming more of what we consider materialistic “necessities” and let this be the first Black Friday where you are able to distinguish between your needs and wants.

As a post on Instagram says, “Add to your heart and not to your cart.”

P.S. Take the time you spare to educate yourself on the harms your shopping spree has on the environment and society.