Category Archives: What Is Necessity?

How Can a Man Not Use Aftershave Lotion?

Friday, April 18th, 2008

The other night, a lady friend was combing her hair in my bathroom when she decided to investigate the state of my toiletries instead.

She made appreciative sounds when she saw my Bvlgari body lotion and Burberry perfume, but was much perplexed when she couldn’t find any aftershave lotion.

Here’s a more or less faithful reproduction of the conversation that followed –

Lady Friend: (clearing her throat) Which aftershave lotion do you use?

Gaurav: Actually, I don’t use one anymore.

Lady Friend: (resuming her inspection of my toiletries) Oh! So, you use an aftershave gel. Those are good too.

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Necessity or Not: A List of What I Bought in Week 1-2

Sunday, April 6th, 2008

The intent of my off consumption experiment is to spend an year without buying anything that is not a necessity.

Even though I have written down rather elaborate rules for what is allowed and what isn’t during my year of being off consumption, I have deliberately avoided defining what is a necessity. This is because one of the most interesting aspects of the experiment for me is to discover what I think of as a necessity and how it changes with context.

Perhaps the only fool-proof approach to discover what I think of as a necessity is to record and study what I actually buy, and how it changes over time.

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My Insatiable Craving For McDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

McDonald's Paneer Salsa Wrap

I have a confession to make.

I have an insatiable craving for McDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap.

It hits me at the oddest times and places, more often than I would like to admit.

- X - X - X -

Sometimes, I’m running on Marine Drive and, suddenly, my stomach ties up into knots and all I can think of is a McDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap.

I have to stop, bend over, take a few deep breaths, look out over the sea towards Malabar Hills, wait for the craving to slowly subside.

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It Is Difficult To Search For Insights After Washing Three Bucketfuls Of Clothes

Wednesday, March 26th, 2008

It Is Difficult To Search For Insights After Washing Three Bucketfuls Of Clothes

Last night, I wanted to follow up my first insights post on why we buy things because buying things is easier than asking for things with a post on how marketers can use this insight.

This is the format I plan to follow through the year. My being off consumption will force me to do new things, like couchsurfing, which will give me insights into why we consume. I’ll share these insights in the form of really cool graphs supported by real-life case studies on how can marketers use these insights.

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When You Can’t Buy What You Want, You Learn To Ask For What You Need

Wednesday, March 26th, 2008

When You Can't Buy What You Want, You Learn To Ask For What You Need

We buy things because it is easier to buy things than ask for things.

As children, we have to ask for everything we want (or even need).

When we grow up, start making money, we find out that we don’t have to ask for anything anymore, because we can always buy what we want.

Over time, we become so used to buying everything we want that we forget how to ask for anything.

For instance, for more than seven years now, I haven’t really asked anyone for anything, without offering an immediate or delayed quid pro quo.

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Can I Sleep On Your Couch When I’m In Your City Next Time?

Wednesday, March 26th, 2008

If not knowing what to do on a first date when I’m off consumption is my number one concern, not knowing what to do on a business trip is a close second.

I’m a salesman with an impressive business card and, like every other salesman, I spend a lot of time on the road. In fact, I travel on work for anywhere between five to fifteen days in a month.

I usually travel well: I fly in comfort (thanks to frequent upgrades by Jet Airways), stay in five star hotels, have a car waiting for me, and get to use a no-questions-asked expense account.

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The Ten Commandments of Being Off Consumption: What Is Allowed, What Is Not

Tuesday, March 25th, 2008

Now that we know why I have gone off consumption, it’s time to lay out the rules for my year-long off-consumption experiment, list down what is allowed and what isn’t.

The intent of the experiment is to spend an year — from Mar 23, 2008 to March 22, 2009 — without buying anything that is not a necessity.

I have deliberately avoided defining what is a necessity because one of the most interesting aspects of the experiment for me is to “discover” what I think of as a necessity and how it changes with context.

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The Number One Question Everyone is Asking Me Ever Since I Have Gone Off Consumption

Tuesday, March 25th, 2008

Can you guess what is number one question everyone is asking me ever since I have gone off consumption?

No, it’s not “but why have you gone off consumption?”, or “but how will you live/ work/ date/ network if you go off consumption?”, or “but how will you survive without eating out/ going out?”, or even “but why should we care if you have gone off consumption?”.

The number one question everyone is asking me ever since I have gone off consumption is: “when you say ‘no shopping except for necessities’, how do you decide what’s a necessity?”

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