Hi ,

Mahatma Gandhi once said:

'"The world has enough for everyone's needs, not everyone's greed."

We're all secretly greedy (and secretly needy).

Retailers know this.

They exploit it masterfully.

Here's how…  

(I skip Black Friday Cyber Monday and other holiday spending on $hit I don't need because of this...)

Warning: This might pi$$ you off...

🧵

10 Lessons learned from the Dark Art of Consumerism from the "Buy Now" documentary:

1. Planned Obsolescence: Profit Scheme

Brands design products to fail. 

Why? 

Because they want you hooked on buying the next version, the next upgrade. 

It's not about innovation; it's about keeping the cash flow going.

Example: Ever hear of the Phoebus cartel?

They lowered the life expectancy of light bulbs to 1,000 hours.

Before them, lightbulbs used to last 2,500 hours.

They lowered their cost to make'em, which is awesome, but...

They also raised the price tag to consumers without fear of competition.

Choice is bad for the business owner.

But it's good for the public consumer.

Did you know...

There's also a lightbulb that's been on since 1901?

Lookup: Centennial Light.

It's in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The longest lasting lightbulb that’s been around since 1901.

Quality is a choice.

A useful exercise: 

Consider how you might incentivize quality versus quantity.

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2. Greenwashing: The Eco-Psyop

Companies claim they're "green" or "sustainable. 

Often this ain't true.  

The label is just a feel good facade. 

Green labels help consumers feel good about buying.

Justifiable bullshit.

No real positive impact. 

Helps ease cognitive dissonance a bit, but holy smokes is it a lie (see pic)

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3. The Hidden Manipulators of Retail Dictatorships

Big retail is like a secret society.

As with the mafia or military...

Loyalty and obedience means everything.

Going against the organization is a no, no 🚫🙈🙉🙊.

Anyone who does it gets eliminated ⚰️.

The documentary has plenty of excommunicated insider's stories.

From mercenary winners to mission driven repentant sinners.

Their stories give this doc lots of juice.

My favorite is @TrashWalker, but they've all got some useful insights to share.

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4. The Consumption Flywheel

The Matrix is real.

We're all stuck in its loop.

This doc reveals the glitch: 

• Produce
• Consume 
• Repeat. 

But, good news...

You can end the cycle. 

Hit the brakes.

Rethink your consumption patterns.

Think: Why am I buying this?

Do I need this?

Why?

If it's transformative or PRODUCTIVE in some way then why not, right?

But...

If it's because you have money burning a hole in your pocket, is that a good reason?

Upcycle...

Recycle...

Fix.

One cool hack I learned from Rory Sutherland a while back was...

If you want to get that new car feeling for your old car...

Spend on a thorough Car Detail every once in a while.

For less than $200 bucks, you'll do a good deed for your car that'll make you feel like a million bucks.

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5. The Sin of Destruction

Destroying perfectly fine unsold goods feels evil.

Maybe...

Because it is? 

Perfectly usable items are trashed to maintain market value. 

There's GOTTA be a better way. 

Homeless people starving.

Families without.

Low & (disappearing) Middle Class fighting for the last big screen.

All so the corporate shareholders get their ROI?

How is that a net positive?

When is it disgusting?

Why shouldn't we change it?

I can't think of any good reasons.

You?

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6. The Sales Dilemma

Sure, not selling old stock sucks for sales but...

If it didn't sell, anyways...

Why destroy it? 

Imagine if those goods reached those in need without tanking sales.

Perfectly good food.

Still new in package, NEVER opened, never used products...

There's gotta be a better way to do this.

[Show more goods that are fine]

7. Waste Management: Untapped Goldmine

There's gold in our garbage!

The trick is seeing it that way.

Reframes can help us see waste as a resource.

This is a great place for Entrepreneurs to come in.

Natural problem solvers.

Innovators.

Their visionary skills, coupled with world builders could be the next big opportunity.

From Trash  🗑️ →  to more beneficial to the world, cash 💰.

How do we do this?

Therein lies some useful thought exercises.

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8. Biggest Irony: It's Narrated by A.I.

The documentary uses an AI voice narrator, named Sasha.

Think Siri, Alexa, or ChatGPT.

Perfectly in line with the times.

But...

I wonder if this isn't also a meta psy-op.

See, it's a benevolent demonstration of something that can also be wielded for evil.

I guess that's the thing...

Anything and everything we do is a matter of intent.

Good or bad is subjective.

Context matters.

The bots are here. 

🤖 The question is how will we use them?

9. The 5 Irony-Laden Rules of Retail

Sell More: Because profits.

Besides…

Who doesn't love a sale?

Waste More:

If they can't sell it to you, no one should have it.

Who cares if people are starving and in need.

They're not producing any value in the world anyway.

Lie More: Green labels, misleading ads - it's only a lie if you get caught. 

Well... these mofos got caught. 

The question now is... what are we gonna do about it?

Hide More: Transparency?

No... Public corps are just like you... they value privacy.

It's more profitable.

Control More: Perception is reality.

The magician's key is to give the illusion of choice. 

It keeps the people happy~ish.

After all, no one wants to start a riot.

Revolutions are bad for business.

Biggie Smalls put his own version in play and shared his principles before he got eliminated, back in the day

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10. The Power of Song

Ever notice how jingles stick? 

That's a psychology trick. 

Music embeds ideas deep in your mind. 

Helps us recall ideas, easier. 

Works even when we don't want it to.

Like that one song you can't stand, but you also can't help knowing the words to. 

[Cue Mariah Carey Christmas Music] 🎶

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This thread isn't just about pointing fingers…. 

It's a toolkit.

A useful meta framework. 

Those in power use these tactics to milk people for profit.

But what if we used them for something greater?

Something less zero sum, more net positive.

Did you find this just something educational?

Or, did it help inspire change?

Why not reduce unnecessary waste?

Why buy what we don't need to show off to people we don't care about?

Why not uplift humanity?

If you've never had the good life...

I get it.

Get the toys out of your system.

Have some top shelf trinkets so you can see...

It's just as meaningless as countless others find out and say it is.

Remember, next time you're shopping...

Think: Is this purchase necessary?

Or are you just a blind following sucker in someone else's profit machine? 

Did you find this useful?

In your corner

Carlos "Not just for the $" Rosario

P.S. I'm thinking of doing a workshop to help you level up.

Mainly to help you get traffic.

I'm wondering, do you want:

• viral organic traffic tactics
• or looking for little known paid loopholes.

Reply back to lemme know which sounds more interesting.