Development in todays world has become so very synonymous to Economic development alone and consumer demand is being spoken in the same breath as overall economic development ,so much so that it has become the most important indicators of the potential for economic growth and the overall human development in a region. But is consumer demand based economic growth a real indicator of Human development in the true sense? Lets take a closer look.
A lot has been said about how accurate a measure GDP is in explaining human development . There have been many studies that have proven it to be quite the opposite. So then does the fact that the consumer demand is rising really mean that we are heading towards Development in the true sense , and if not what does this really mean to us?
Human development is a direct measure of the quality of life that the people are experiencing and the potential for improvement of the same in the future and there are numerous studies to indicate that economic development or more money on hand does not necessarily mean more satisfaction. In fact it turns out to be quite the contrary to it. Take for instance the impact that the consumer goods have on our daily life. Back in india I have grown up hearing of how the daily routine was organised in such a way that every aspect of life, right from physical health to mental health and somethings as subtle and deep as spiritual health , had been taken care of by tweaking daily activities very smartly and intelligently. Washing of clothes for instance was the most complete exercise to the hands ,the likes of which does not find a substitute in todays alternatives . I find it so very innovative and intuitive in the way they had the toilets designed for example. You would be amazed at the ingenuity of our ancestors in creating a commode(indian) that enables you exercise those parts of the body which are hardly reachable by any other physical routine , whats more the posture helps you press energy centres in the body which instigate the immune system and also help improve blood flow.How thoughtful of them to have weaved this into something that is an unavoidable doing on any given day.
A lot of which might prove to be a little discomforting to begin with when asked to practice but then how would you like the idea of being able to get that vital dose of exercise being incorporated in your daily routine saving all that time and planning that you otherwise do to keep fit considering the lack of time that we keep complaining about. Now how is all this that I am talking about you might wonder relevant to the topic in question.
In todays society the amount of money that one holds has become synonymous to prosperity and how well you have done for yourselves in life. What you do with the money though is buy amenities that are meant to make your life comfortable(which is the consequence of associating comfort to inaction) and thereby introducing newer needs in life to maintain the same level of health and physical wellbeing , which otherwise could have been achieved by some simple adjustments to our daily routine as mentioned earlier ,and which in-turn create the vicious cycle of want/demand for these goods , the lack of money to buy which makes you work harder ,progress in your job and earn better etc. What this is doing is gratifying you monetarily ,which to some extent is satiating you for having achieved something in your job but in the bargain what you have lost out on are the instruments that are the building blocks for a heathy and happy living. Most of the huff and buff that you go through really does not add up to improving your quality of life per say as much as just keep your needs fulfilled.I am not for a minute suggesting against working for a living, but it would be a more worthwhile living if it was more effortless and not a case of you finding yourself in a rat-race.So then its a case of you stretching beyond need and should i say more often than not complicating the cycle of life by getting in too many other mini-goals to attain the same larger goal which is essentially happiness and wellbeing.
So then business and monetary growth or economic growth is just a measure of how successfully a nation can provide for your ‘wants’ that you have created for yourself and has got almost nothing to do with what steps are to be taken to live a fruitful and happy life.
Doesn't that mean that the amount of money and demand that you generate has got nothing to do with your prosperity and its just that you seem to be finding tougher and tougher ways of maintaining the same fundamental requirement of life that has been is and will always be.Collective consciousness of the society defines the direction in which we head and as it stands our collective consciousness has been been highjacked by a handful of people who are defining your idea of happiness . An advanced version of an IPhone for instance , the manner in which they market it , is deep enough to touch and alter your whole perception of what a better living would be, in this case a better life is being sold as a new version of IPhone. Yes the phone does a great job at what ever it does and i personally admire apples products , but it should be seen as a gadget which does your job efficiently and nothing more. Economic motives have successfully been able to link human wellbeing to economic growth through the means of consumer driven demand ,which have now become essentials in our day to day lives. Most economic confusions and conflicts and crisis have their roots in a setup like this.
