Here’s An Alternative to Our Obsessive Consumerism Culture
Become a bohemian.
For a long time, I sought a philosophy that would explain the way I see the world and the way I wanted to live.
After all, where I come from, most people think I am crazy.
I don’t work full-time. I don’t have a wife or kids at 22. I couldn’t care less about making money (although I like living a good, comfortable life, money per se doesn’t motivate me). I stopped caring about achievement or proving something to somebody a short while back.
In my culture, young people (men, especially) are expected to do or want all of the above.
And for a long time, I thought this is what I should want for myself, too.
I dropped out of college and went straight to work, making money, being a ‘man,’ a provider, like I was supposed to be. I made friends with people who traded bitcoin (that immediately tells you something about the quality of those friendships). I spent nights at clubs or restaurants. I started businesses. Got into debt to impress people. And wore shirts exclusively and, oh, a huge red watch. (My girlfriend still teases me about that last fact.)
A lot has changed since then.
But I can’t say it was easy letting go of those standards and cultural expectations. Especially when your own family asks questions such as:
“So, have you found a wife yet?”
“What are your job prospects?”
“So you are what… a writer? Please don’t tell me you’re serious.”
“How much money do you make?”
“Show some respect! Go work and make a living.”
But a few weeks back, I found a term I like. It was in a book about Hemingway (for those interested, the book is brilliantly written by Mary Dearborn). The author said that Ernest Hemingway lived a bohemian, peripatetic lifestyle. Some strange force made me re-read that a few times.
“What’s the heck is bohemian?” I asked out loud.
Angelina was sitting nearby but didn’t pay attention. It’s our fourth year, and she is already used to me talking to air.
I googled it and found an article called, Why We Should All Consider a Bohemian Lifestyle.
It says:
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a “Bohemian” as someone, “especially an artist, literary man, or actor, who leads a free, vagabond, or irregular life, not being particular as to the society he frequents, and despising conventionalities generally”.
“Fuck,” I said out loud. (Now my girlfriend looked at me and frowned.)
This is me! This is exactly who I am! I was so happy to find a way of life that describes the way I live (or, at least, aspire to live).
As I read on, I discovered that bohemian (or boho, as laypeople call them) is not just about fashion style or interior design pics on Pinterest. It’s a philosophy.
As Laren Stover, author of Bohemian Manifesto: A Field Guide to Living on the Edge, put it:
“Bohemianism is not a trend, it’s a timeless movement, a way of life both fleeting and enduring that reappears every now and then as a backlash against our bourgeois, mass market, easy access culture.”
Bohemian is a lifestyle that stands for being your absolute true self.
It goes against the prevailing social notions that we’re never enough, that we should rush from place to place (all while drinking coffee), career to career, consume more, achieve more, be more.
As a backlash against mass culture, bohemian stands for contemplation, stillness, intellectual and artistic development, being in tune with your true nature.
The movement itself has a fascinating history. It originated in major European cities of the 19th century (mostly Paris) and used to refer to artists, writers, poets, and actors who led an unconventional lifestyle.
Because they frequently went against society, they were often broke. But they didn’t care, because what mattered to them was their creative and intellectual freedom, not material status.
In every society or time, there will be a group of people who goes against the status quo — the people who, in Seth Godin’s terms, make a ‘ruckus.’ In the 1950s and 60s, it was the hippie movement. Many consider the hippie culture of the 1950s and 60s as a sub-category of bohemianism.
The hippie culture made sense in the middle of the past century. It was a backlash of the war with Vietnam, the rise of violence, globalization, arms race, and the Cold War.
But today, we have a lot of things to go against, too.
The commercialization of our private lives through Facebook. Global warming and the politicians’ lack of concern for it. The authoritative regimes and corruption in countries such as Russia and Belarus. The hustle dogma. The entrepreneurs becoming the new rock stars and put on pedestals. The celebrity culture. The non-stop reality TV that we feed ourselves through platforms like Instagram.
We need an alternative — an exit route.
And I’ve found that the ‘boho life’ is an exit route for me.
What the bohemian lifestyle is about
- It’s doing yoga or swimming, not running.
- It’s forgetting about the money as an object and living as if it weren’t one. (But remember that it is one.)
- It’s focusing more on meaning and social impact from your work.
- It’s living a life that you find meaningful and important, not what you’re ‘supposed to’ because you’re a particular gender, sexual orientation, or were born into a particular culture.
- It’s being globally-oriented and respecting people from other cultures.
- It’s making each day different. As Seth Godin said, “If you have a typical day, then that’s something you should work on.”
- It’s not having idols and, instead, listening to yourself.
- It’s being vulnerable and seeking deep, meaningful connections with your fellow humans.
- It’s living sustainably.
- It’s pursuing your dreams.
- It’s being the person you want to be and building what philosophers call virtue.
- It’s voicing your concerns.
- It’s getting rid of toxic people from your life as if getting rid of the poison in your food.
- It’s getting rid of all ‘should’s’ in favor of ‘want-s.’
- It’s traveling, laughing, dancing, and having fun because the fact that we’re alive is a miracle in itself and should be celebrated.
If that’s not a great way to live, then tell me what is.