Don't accumulate possessions for the sake of having a lot of stuff. On the other hand, don't deny yourself something that you really want or need. If you buy things that are important to you, you can appreciate them every day and won't feel the need to fill your home with every item at the mall.
In a single year, Americans buy over 17 billion articles of clothing. Americans buy so much new clothing that every year we give over 200 million pounds of clothing away to the Salvation Army alone. Americans buy so much new clothing, and so quickly discard anything that is worn, that the federal government has reclassified sewing machines' place in economic growth measurements from the "apparel and upkeep" category to the "recreation" category.
Many of us accumulate so far beyond our needs that we cannot use nearly all of what we have. In those cases, we are spending more, but getting less, because the things we buy don't really
serve our needs or purposes. Other people go to the opposite extreme. Don't put off buying
items that would have value to you every day merely to demonstrate your frugality, since the purpose of saving is to allow you to buy what you need.
Anticipating and accumulating consumer goods can contribute to a sense of persona! well-being; however, placing too much emphasis on material goods has a diminishing effect on happiness.
Oropesa 1995
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