Is That New Purchase Really Going to Take You From Zero to One?
Here's a thought exercise for you.
Pick any industry you like. To keep things simple, let's make it the camera industry.
Now, imagine that you live in a world where all camera gear still costs exactly the same as it does in our world, but with one huge difference - new models are released every single month, as opposed to every year or two, as they are now.
Canon EOS R5 Mark 1? Ha! That's ancient. They are already up to Mark 24. Next week that will be obsolete, as they will be releasing Mark 25, with Mark 26 set for global release in the second week of the holidays.
Are you still craving that new camera, knowing that your very recent $5,000 purchase is already several generations behind?
How about a new phone?
This month's iPhone 180 Pro Max is so much better than last month's 179 Pro Max S. It has a much faster processor, a more vivid display, better cameras, and double the storage at the same price.
I am such a fool for having just bought the latest model. I should have waited one more week, as the next one is everything I never knew I always wanted - until the following month, that is.
Are you still pining for that new phone upgrade?
Think about this - how frequently would a product line need to be upgraded, in order for us to stop craving the latest version all the time?
This horror scenario is actually not that different from what is happening in the world right now, except that here it's happening in slow motion.
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life
It has been said that one of life's hardest goals is to want the things you already own. If the past three years have taught me anything, it's that I am definitely much closer to achieving that goal.
Prior to all the uncertainty and wave after wave of lockdowns, the world was in a very different place. I feel that as a society, most of us lazily accepted many things as a given, and didn't really think about what would happen if it all went away overnight.
The pandemic gave us a rare glimpse into that possible reality, which caused a global shutdown of business and industry, and created a situation where many of the things which we used to take for granted had suddenly become a little bit more scarce.
Job uncertainty aside, it certainly slowed down the desire for the endless cycle of product upgrades, and offered the perfect opportunity to reset the way we see our current possessions.
It gave us a chance to appreciate them as more than just a 'model number' released in a particular year, with a new instalment always only a few months away.
I would like to think that it has also helped many of us realise that what we have, is already more than good enough; and that the pursuit of the latest-and-greatest is nothing more than a marketing gimmick.
Product Development Cycle 101
Some may say that this upgrade-mania started quite recently, around the time that smartphones became a thing. While that is certainly one example of things getting needlessly refreshed way too frequently, I can tell you that it goes back much farther than that.
Every industry starts with version 1.0 of their product.
This first version is then quickly superseded with the next one, which drastically improves in nearly all areas in which the first was lacking.
This is part of the basic product development cycle, and it's why nobody should ever expect any of the early iterations to tick all the boxes.
Version 1.0 is only there as a teaser, in order to get the ball rolling and funds flowing for the next version.
With each iteration, every product gets closer to reaching its 'penultimate' version, which is as close to being 'finished' as it's ever going to get. This is where the product's quality and feature set become good enough for a much longer amount of time, and each subsequent release is only marginally better than the one before it and rarely brings anything revolutionary to the table.
In fact, in some ways the new model is actually a little bit worse than its predecessors, as by now companies have figured out how and where to cut corners and maximise profits.
Going From Zero to One
This leads me to the point of this blog, which was inspired by a great book which I had recently finished reading - Zero to One by Peter Thiel.
While the book is aimed at startups and new businesses, one of the lessons it teaches is to recognise whether you're going from nothing to something (from zero, to one); or simply upgrading (going from 1.0 to 1.n).
Let me explain.
If you don't own a car, buying any car is like going from zero to one. You didn't have a car, and now you do - regardless of how old and crap it may be, it's still a car that you own and can drive.
By contrast, upgrading something which you already possess is like going from 1.0 to 1.n, with 'n' representing how much of an upgrade it is to the previous version.
So if your first car is rubbish (as most first cars tend to be), then your next car purchase will likely be based on how many shortcomings it improves upon, which currently burden your existing vehicle.
This way of thinking can be applied to pretty much everything we own, or want to own. Cars, cameras, phones, computers, houses, the list is endless.
Going from zero to one opens up a whole new world of possibilities and opportunities, whereas merely upgrading something which is still more than good enough, does nothing more than stroke the ego and drain our bank accounts.
What the global pandemic has created, is a rare opportunity for all of us to take stock of all the things we currently possess, and question whether we really need to upgrade them yet - or at all. To put it another way, I doubt that your one year-old phone is in need of a refresh, unless it is damaged beyond repair.
There is a Better Option
Instead of buying the latest phone, car, camera, or whatever; ask yourself very honestly whether this purchase will genuinely take you from zero to one. I can guarantee that there will be a tiny voice inside your logical brain telling you that this is not the case.
What that little voice will be trying to tell you, is that your money could probably be better spent on upgrading yourself.
So instead of updating your camera, go on a holiday and take some once-in-a-lifetime photos with the gear you already own. Alternatively, you could also invest in a photography course which teaches you how to squeeze every last bit out of your existing gear.
As for your phone, unless your current one is truly broken, stolen, or unfit for purpose, you can extend its life by replacing the battery at a fraction of the cost of a new unit. You could also make it run faster by deleting any apps and files which are hogging memory and resources.
As for that new car, I don't know about your personal requirements, but cars are considered to be the most recycled man-made items in the world, on average lasting 25 years and going through at least three owners before being scrapped.
Ask yourself how many years do you feel are still left in your current model, and would your money be better spent on giving it a good service and wash instead.
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Happy shooting!
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