Experiences: The New Status Symbol

End of Materialistic Status
The material universe described in personal finance blogs is completely foreign to me, the world of being surrounded by buying bigger and better things essentially has never existed in my life. Maybe this used to be done in the USA East Coast or the USA West Coast back in the 1980's, but I have never been exposed to it. In my universe, corporate executives drive 20 year-old pickups, and I cannot recall a time in my life where I ever felt peer pressure to purchase a material thing, or envy because somebody else had something nicer.

The tide has turned, 10 years it was possible to get into debt buying things, but since then China has joined the World Trade Organization, slashing the price of everything manufactured, everything went online, it is much harder to get into debt buying things now than it was 10 years ago because everything is much cheaper. Having a bunch of stuff is no longer a status symbol, people now know that things are just cheap junk imported from somewhere, and it is no longer meaningful to load up on it. I cannot really see anybody impressing anybody today in 2009 when a thing, those days are over.

But people still need to show the world they have greater means, so how will they do it?
Now you have a whole new generation of people getting into debt buying experiences. People load up their credit cards with US$5000 trips to Europe and trying to outdo their online friends by going some place more exotic, more beautiful, and more luxurious.

I know it because I did it! I pissed away every penny I earned in my 20's jetsetting to locations all over the world, always in search of a new place more inaccessible, and further away.

• Do I regret it? No.
• Do I recommend it to others? Not really.
  

Internet Status Symbols
There is another significant cultural change which has happened in the last 10 years which makes experiences much more of a status symbol than before: The world has shifted online. Our internet presence is now a big part of our identity, and you can't show off your stuff on the online. But you can show off your experiences, you can write stories about adventures, and other people will read them and comment on them. Before you took a few snapshots of your vacation and showed them to relatives visiting during the holidays. Now people go off and do something and they report back by showing off videos and photos, frequently slickly polished to show off even more, not just to friends and families but anybody who will care to view.

I read a lot of online forums and blogs about travel and a bunch of other hobbies. I see a lot of people who travel a lot, and always come back to report about their travels and how it was bigger and better than ever before (basically, because they spent more money). These people's financial situations are unknown to me, maybe they have much more money than me. Finances just aren't discussed, often the biggest players always complain they are broke. While I certainly could afford to do this (without dipping into savings, or going into debt), my thinking is to instead save that money so I can save for something bigger and better in the future. I figure pretty much all niches on the internet are similar, there are online forums and communities for every interest today.

Inspiring Online Envy
There are a lot of people online who seem to spend an awful lot of money basically trying to impress strangers on the internet with their experiences. Going off on a diving trip to Belize and coming back and posting a bunch of exquisitely produced HD videos about it so you can brag about it on the internet is the 21st century equivalent of pulling up to the stop light in your fancy Italian sports car thinking you are impressing strangers. I think a lot of people go off and experience a lot of things, not so much for their own enjoyment, but just so they can make other people on the internet envious. They pump up what they do just to impress other people, not to make themselves happy.

Honestly, I see a lot of people online who make me very jealous. They are jetsetting to Brazil or wherever every other weekend. I used to do this, it was what got me into debt. It feels great to come back and be able to write on the internet and be the envy of all your online friends, but now I know better. How am I supposed to respond when surrounded by such people? "Sounds fun! I could afford that too but instead of spending all that money myself, I'd rather sit at home and put that money in my 401(k), and maybe when I'll retire I'll be able to do that too." No, that doesn't work in any world except for a personal finance blog. Past experiences you may have don't give you any currency because they are so 2006, and are considered dated, plus you didn't capture it using all of the current equipment. The whole thing is frustrating. What is a frugal bachelor to do? Maybe I am just jealous?

The personal finance blogs are a unique sanctuary and the only place online that I know of where you become more of a legend by spending less and having less. And the only place where I am superstar (at least in my own mind). Honestly, I find this world very comforting. I have taken a lot of the personal finance blog wisdom for granted, but trying to impress others by outspending then is definitely very much alive and well in 2009; it has just shifted from the material world to the virtual one.