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Not everything that is desired is neededHIGIT SA HALAGA:HIGIT SA HALAGA:HIGIT SA HALAGA:HIGIT SA HALAGA:The Illusion of Necessity in a Consumerist Culture The Illusion of Necessity in a Consumerist Culture The Illusion of Necessity in a Consumerist Culture The Illusion of Necessity in a Consumerist Culture
PALIWANAG NG PABALAT PALIWANAG NG PABALAT PALIWANAG NG PABALAT PALIWANAG NG PABALATNaglalarawan ang pabalat ng isang timbangan na mayroong barya at pera. At nag-sisimbolo ito sa opinyon ng mga tao sa kung ano ang gusto nilang priyoridadin sa kanilang mga pangangailangan at kagustuhan. Ang pamagat na “Higit Sa Halaga: The Illusion of Necessity in a Consumerist Culture” ay ang nagpapakita ng pangunahing paksa ng flipbook. Ipinaparating ng disenyong ito na ang tunay na halaga ng ating mga pinipili ay nakabatay sa ating mga moral na prinsipyo at pananampalataya, at hindi lamang sa presyo. Sa kabuuan, nagbibigay ito ng malinaw at makabuluhang introduksyon para sa matalinong pagkonsumo ng kabataan.
What if our wants are mistaken for our needs? Imagine a student with a weekly allowance of ₱500, who upon walking into school, sees friends showing off the latest trendy sneakers. The urge to spend that entire budget just to fit in is overwhelming, but doing so leaves nothing for essential school projects. This personal scenario mirrors a major global issue society faces. As inflation drives up prices, families still make securing necessities their top priority. And yet, a constant, contradictory voice in the back of people’s heads pushes them to spend beyond their plans due to influence. Because targeted social media ads persistently capture young people's attention, developing self-control and critical spending habits has become essential to navigating today's consumerist culture.Higit Sa Halaga: The Illusion of Necessity in a Consumerist Culture
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The goods, services, or experiences that people desire to have or enjoy. For example, vacations, luxury items, gadgets, and cars. The goods, services, or experiences that people desire to have or enjoy. For example, vacations, luxury items, gadgets, and cars. The goods, services, or experiences that people desire to have or enjoy. For example, vacations, luxury items, gadgets, and cars. The goods, services, or experiences that people desire to have or enjoy. For example, vacations, luxury items, gadgets, and cars. What should matter more, Needs or Wants? What should matter more, Needs or Wants? What should matter more, Needs or Wants? What should matter more, Needs or Wants?What exactly are Wants?What exactly are Wants?What exactly are Wants?What exactly are Wants?
The essential requirements for human survival, health, and functioning. Examples include, water, food, shelter, sleep, clothing, and education The essential requirements for human survival, health, and functioning. Examples include, water, food, shelter, sleep, clothing, and education The essential requirements for human survival, health, and functioning. Examples include, water, food, shelter, sleep, clothing, and education The essential requirements for human survival, health, and functioning. Examples include, water, food, shelter, sleep, clothing, and educationWhat exactly are Needs?What exactly are Needs?What exactly are Needs?What exactly are Needs?What should matter more, Needs or Wants? What should matter more, Needs or Wants? What should matter more, Needs or Wants? What should matter more, Needs or Wants?
Now, what is Demand?Now, what is Demand?Now, what is Demand?Now, what is Demand?Demand refers to the quantity of a product or service that the consumer are willing and able to buy at different prices. Generally, when prices rise, consumers are willing to buy the product at different prices and most likely would buy less. While lower prices may encourage them to buy more assuming other factors remain content. Demand refers to the quantity of a product or service that the consumer are willing and able to buy at different prices. Generally, when prices rise, consumers are willing to buy the product at different prices and most likely would buy less. While lower prices may encourage them to buy more assuming other factors remain content. Demand refers to the quantity of a product or service that the consumer are willing and able to buy at different prices. Generally, when prices rise, consumers are willing to buy the product at different prices and most likely would buy less. While lower prices may encourage them to buy more assuming other factors remain content. Demand refers to the quantity of a product or service that the consumer are willing and able to buy at different prices. Generally, when prices rise, consumers are willing to buy the product at different prices and most likely would buy less. While lower prices may encourage them to buy more assuming other factors remain content.
Higit Sa Halaga: The Illusion of Necessity in a Consumerist CultureUnderstanding how demand works in our daily lives is important in making clever consumer choices, especially when handling a limited budget. We also have to recognize that when we encounter consumer demands, it is no longer driven just by functional necessity, but also by the social trends and the perceived acceptance society thinks they will achieve once they follow such trends. According to research published in the Sinomics Journal, consumer behavior among the youth is motivated by the desire to fit in rather than for utility and necessity. For example, a student sees multiple friends with limited-edition sneakers that cost about ₱1,000 to ₱3,000 and due to influence on others, the product’s demand increases. SchoolFinderPH states that students have an average of ₱100 to ₱150 as their allowance everyday, or ₱500 to ₱750 weekly. To purchase sneakers that cost that much, students would need to save their entire allowance for at least four weeks—which indeed promotes vital saving habits for the future, yet leaves no money for project expenses. However, students that don’t have those sneakers might feel a sense of being left out or “FOMO” (Fear Of Missing Out), which in this generation is a very normalized phenomenon. As the analysis from the journal suggests, this emotional pressure tricks the brain into categorizing a temporary want as an essential need for social survival, creating a psychological perception that owning a pair of viral sneakers is the key to belonging.
Learning to choose our needs over our wants is more than just a money lesson. It is a lesson in contentment, self-discipline and in understanding what actually gives our lives value. The 50-30-20 rule in economics is a good example of this: 50% of your income goes to needs, 30% to wants and 20% to savings. Even if you have a very small allowance as a student, the principle is that every peso has a purpose and that you can't just spend it all and be left with nothing. It's all about the concept of 'less is more' because more possessions doesn't necessarily mean a happier life. We may want a pair of expensive sneakers because our friends have them, but their possessions should not be the measure of our own. Rather than spend everything to get that temporary sense of belonging, we can save a little bit at a time and buy what we want when we can afford it. This is the essence of pagiging matipid being thrifty which is a value we all know and understand in the Philippines. It is also a reflection of utang na loob and pagpapahalaga sa pamilya appreciation of family. The FIES Family Income and Expenditure Survey of the PSA shows that Filipino households spend their income on basic needs such as food, housing and transport. This is why budgeting is so important. We have to remember that no one's worth can be measured by the price of their shoes, their clothes or their gadgets. True worth is in the way we treat people, particularly those who have less than we do. When we learn to be content without having to compare ourselves to others we open the door to gratitude rather than envy and to wisdom rather than impulsive spending. The whole point of saving is not to deprive ourselves of happiness, it is to make the right choices so that our wants don't take away from our needs, our family's sacrifices or the person we are becoming.
Some may argue that buying expensive or trending items like new and stylish shoes, trendy clothes, and expensive gadgets is not a waste of money as it could bring people happiness, make them feel confident and express their personalities. Money earned should not just be put in the bank, it also should be spent in order to enjoy and reward ourselves for all the hard work we put in. In supply-demand, it says that if many people are interested and have demand for a specific product/service, the value for its supply will increase if it is trending and in demand by students. But being in-demand or trendy does not mean we have to buy it all, and just like saving money does not equate to denying ourselves anything we like. The important thing is to know how to prioritize what we want and need to succeed in life. For instance, a student who earns ₱150 a day wishes to buy a pair of sneakers that cost ₱1,500. If the student decides to use his daily allowance to buy the shoes, he would be unable to get money for his transportation and school projects. Instead, he can start saving up some of the money he sets aside for his needs and put it towards his dreams and wants. With this, he will have the freedom to choose what he wants without putting a strain on his needs like food, transportation, and school supplies. And last but not least, having the ability to save money can also give students more options. If he has an option to earn or save money, most students would choose the latter as it could give them more opportunities in life. For example, the 50-30-20 rule, where 50% of your income goes to your needs, 30% to your wants, and 20% to your savings. This rule could help students prioritize what they will do with their money. Even though this budget rule might be a bit difficult for students to follow because it prioritizes their needs first, the concept is still helpful as they can spend their money wisely while enjoying it at the same time. We should also remember that an individual's worth does not equate to how trendy their clothes are or how expensive their accessories are. So, to conclude, we must not completely deny ourselves from what we like, we should also learn how to compromise and prioritize to make a better future for ourselves. Students are allowed to enjoy their hard-earned money and the things they work for as long as they know how to handle and prioritize their needs and wants.A Letter of Counter
In conclusion, prioritizing our needs instead of our wants does not mean depriving ourselves of our pleasures in life, but instead, it teaches us to be wise in making our decisions that will affect us now and in the future. Money will not make us happy, but it will buy us the things that would make us happy, so let us use money to provide for our needs, prepare for the future, and if there is any left, buy the things that make us happy. By doing so, we would not only be financially stable but also happy due to our positive attitudes brought upon by the virtue of financial responsibility. The following lines will discuss the aforementioned topic further. We have come to the realisation that not only are we taught to use money wisely to provide for our needs, prepare for the future, and enjoy the little things in life, but also to develop patience, gratitude, moral fibre, and good character in ourselves. We are obliged to sacrifice our whims and desires to live a more comfortable and fulfilling life in the future. We are also encouraged to cherish the bounties provided for us by our parents like food, education, transportation, and many more. Instead of being envious of our rich classmates' designer clothes, shoes, gadgets, and other material items, we must understand that true wealth is measured by who we are as a person in character and how we treat the people around us. As a student, one could start by setting aside some money, budgeting, and last but not least, thinking before buying some material things. By doing so, we could learn to be a generous person to those less fortunate while still fulfilling our needs. Although it may seem trivial now, these teachings would eventually come to use when one day we have to make important financial decisions in the future. Moreover, we must not forget to be wise in spending our income on what we need whilst keeping aside some money for future use, and last but not least, enjoying the little things in life. Therefore, let us teach each other to be financially responsible people who prioritise needs over non-essentials, cherish what we have, avoid comparisons, and be wise in our spending. After all, wealth is not measured by the amount of possessions one owns but rather how the rich use their money wisely, how they are grateful for what they have, and how they prepare for the future.
Created By: Agojo, Ralph Gabriel Carandang, Toni Kate Created By: Agojo, Ralph Gabriel Carandang, Toni Kate Created By:Created By: Agojo, Ralph GabrielAgojo, Ralph Gabriel Carandang, Toni KateCarandang, Toni Kate