A Challenge in Conscious Creative Consumption
Reclaiming Personal Agency & Energetic Nutrition in the Age of Pre-Packaged, Mindless Consumerism
It used to be that we as humans only consumed what we actually needed when we needed it. However, today we live in a modern world of convenience, prioritizing never-ending productivity over just about everything else. It’s not been all bad — these modern advances have produced a number of incredibly useful and life-saving technologies. But they aren’t without their costs.
One of the most concerning of which is the near impossibility of tracing where any of the things we use and ingest on a daily basis come from, how they’re made, what’s in them, and who produced them. And a second being the unfortunate truth that most people admittedly prefer to mindlessly consume, and when given the opportunity to find out more, willingly refuse. This is certainly the norm for the 2020’s, but it’s been a long time coming.
Through my experience navigating a health crisis that led me to eventually become certified in Holistic Nutrition, it became obvious that the most basic step to improve one’s overall well-being is simply to become aware of what we’ve been putting in, on, and around our bodies, and to adjust our decisions accordingly.
Only it doesn’t stop at food, ingestible substances, cosmetics, clothes, and personal belongings. For those of us making use of modern technologies, the majority of what we consume aren’t tangible things. In a system that profits enormously from the collective outsourcing of our thinking, one’s attention is the most valuable form of currency.
Most people have subconsciously agreed to hand over our personal agency to media outlets, corporations, and public personalities to make all of our decisions for us, including what we know, what we listen to, what we buy (or buy into), and what gets to be considered valuable. As a photographer, artist, and creative this is the piece that most alarms me. And even more disturbing to realize: I’ve been just as guilty.
To spend any time online today at all is to be force-fed a constant stream of highly curated media that is strategically designed to steal as much of our time and attention as possible, get us hooked on cheap dopamine, and leave us irritable, overwhelmed, and fiending for more. It is not a stretch to call it an addiction, clearly defined by a loss of control and an inability to stop. It is technology created for the primary purpose of hijacking our independent decision making — not only about when and how much we use it, but also what we’re exposed to when we do.
Through the mechanisms of methodically trained algorithms, we have been robbed of the simple freedom to choose what we come across. From the second we open these apps and websites, we’re being shown information we did not seek out, but in most cases, willingly accept and submit to by handing over our attention and sticking around for more.
I’ll admit, sometimes the products of these algorithms can be cool, helpful, or even inspiring. Through these digital platforms, we’re now enabled to connect with new music, art, news, people, and perspectives we might not have found any other way. But every tiny crumb of insight is swiftly followed by an avalanche of intellect-degrading, fear-inducing, divisive nonsense that can violently uproot even the most grounded of us. And speaking for myself, the effects have grown to be debilitating.
Even knowing this, there are still moments when I’m not in the mindset to create or produce anything of my own and just want something to consume. We all have to physically eat food, drink water, and inhale oxygen to survive, and it’s not all that different energetically. Only I never intended to choose hours of endless scrolling and hyper-fixating on the same 7 songs over exploring the overflowing well of art and information readily available to me. But a decision is still a decision, even when made unconsciously.
So earlier this year, I decided to change my own relationship to these intangible forms of consumption and created a little challenge for myself. Instead of my usual mindless media habits, I’d spend my time exploring a realm of musicians I’d not paid enough attention to, iconic movies I’d never seen, podcasts and longer-form videos I’d bookmarked, and books that had been previously recommended to me.
I began pulling names from old lists scattered throughout my notes app and playlists friends had sent me that I hadn’t actually listened to. In the span of a few minutes, I had a list of about 75 or 80 artist names along with several dozen movies and books.
Awestruck by the sheer amount of inarguably brilliant works I’d neglected and felt a sudden urgency to meet, I wondered how I could reasonably get through all of it. Then it hit me that I could gamify things. I’d pop the list into one of those online wheel spinners people use for raffles and let the tech god’s choose my weekly lineup for me (essentially the modern version of pulling names out of a hat — I can appreciate technological conveniences and innovations when deserving).
I copied and pasted the names into the digital wheel and started spinning away, pulling out groups of 4-8 at a time and assigning each group to a calendar week. It was a simultaneous solution to my lingering decision paralysis, a hefty list of equally deserving works to get through, and a quick hit of dopamine! How exciting! And so it was that my first 4 weeks of this creative-consumption experiment came to be.
As with the introduction of most new, exciting things, I went a little too hard the first month and inhaled way more than I probably needed to. But my god, did it reignite a fire in me!
Like a kid who knows they’re gonna get to have a pizza party at school after one more sleep, I felt excited to wake up each day in a way I hadn’t been for ages, eager to discover what tasty creation I’d get to devour next. Only unlike the case with eating too much of your favorite sweet treat, this form of over-consumption didn’t leave me with a stomach ache. If anything, it only made me hungry for more.
Right away I knew I’d struck gold and come up with something my creative spirit needed so desperately. And even better that it didn’t require me to spend any amount of time sacrificing my nervous system to algorithms and their vicious force-feeding.
As the weeks went by, I got curious about what other artists I’d probably missed out on. A couple months in, I combed through recommended artists at the bottom of some of my pre-existing favorites’ Spotify pages and did a deep dive into some Amoeba’s “What’s In My Bag?” artist interviews, rapidly growing the list of artists and bands to where it currently stands at just over 350 names.
Over time some weeks have been paired down to just a few albums with no movies or podcasts, and — due to a relapse into my compulsive social media habit — I fell behind in my reading goals. But in a relatively short amount of time I’ve already found countless hidden gems I’d otherwise have overlooked and have felt more inspired in my own creativity and art practice than I had in years. So it’s safe to say I have no plans or intention to stop showing up to be fed anytime soon.
There’s no real end goal or point of completion, and I’ve got nothing to prove. This is, beyond all else, simply a new way relating to the world I’m a part of and the byproducts of others’ creative expression. Because I now fully recognize the value of my own attention and energy, and after a good amount of research, I’ve decided I’d rather spend it with a higher degree of intention. It’s certainly proving to have the biggest return on my investment.
I’ve just completed month six of what I’m referring to as “My Monthly Menu” — a name that came to me after months of trying to explain what I’ve been up to and why. And though I may be the only regular customer at this off-grid buffet, I’ve decided to invite anyone who happens upon this little publication to come have a seat at my table and let me serve you from the finest imports of music, art, and media that have inspired me.
At the start of each month I’ll review my previous month’s menu, complete with a playlist of my favorite main course items. Subscribe to get each month’s menu delivered directly to your inbox, and join me in the delicious sensory experience of conscious creative consumption.