We live in an age where most people in western society have more than enough. If you really stop to think about it, all we require to live is air, water, food, and shelter – everything else is unessential.

Now, many people would argue that the standard of living in Canada dictates what is enough to get by. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Better Life Index, the average Canadian household brings in $40,000 net each year. Which is slightly higher than the OECD average of $38,000 CAD.

Wellness Factors of Life

I for instance, am just below the national average all on my lonesome. But that’s not a clear indicator of excess. Where you live, what you eat, and how you spend the rest of your money will be a contributing factor in your lifestyle of choice. And let’s be perfectly honest, whether you are a creative professional or not, but definitely someone who is in the midst of the hustle, pursuing their passions with the intent of making a living at it, you will definitely feel the pinch associated with living below the standard of living most enjoy. But what happens when you start to “make it?”

To give it even more consideration – where you rank housing, income, jobs, community, education, environment, governance, health, life satisfaction, safety, and work-life balance in that beautiful mix that we call living are big factors. And they vary from country to country.

When you begin to ask these questions for yourself, you’ll get a better idea of what you should be doing as a creative professional to live in health and wellness. And in fact, these themes just might be the beginnings of an area of exploration for timotheories readers in the coming months.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves friends.

Right now I want to focus on the concept of living with enough. Much like the spiritual concept of being enough, living with enough is important for you to stay on the creative path and block out the white noise of life.

The Path To Post-consumerism

I want to introduce the concept of post-consumerism. Post-consumer waste is that which comes after a consumer of a material stream, Wikipedia’s words, not mine. Examples include, but are not limited to, packaging, fruit skins, meat bones, dust, weeds, outgrown toys, feces, clothing, advertising materials.

In other words, it is the garbage that people discard: the stuff that ends up in the dump, poured down the drain or thrown away as litter.

Now postconsumers.com is a website that addresses the concept of post-consumerism in a practical way. The practice of purchasing as a form of therapy, the media machine, feeling love for objects, are all topics that Postconsumers tackles on the regular. Quite frankly, people can very easily become addicted to consumerism and it will have negative impacts on their health, communities, and satisfaction. And we haven’t even considered how it impacts education, environment, jobs, housing, income, and governance.

So my first question for you dear sweet readers is this – are you falling into the vice-grip that is an identity determined by your things?

Seriously though, do you think that brands are important? What about trends and styles? And hello, have you considered that vacuous hole in your life yet? The one where you think having more of something will make you more important or “better.”

Think on these things my friends, as we begin the journey of exploring what that can mean as a creative professional. For now, I’m out of theories, and also a little weighed down. Might need to shed some couture.

Tim!