Possessions: How We Think about Our Stuff, and Ourselves, as We Own Less and Use More

Summary

"You'll own nothing. And you'll be happy. Whatever you want you'll rent." That was the World Economic Forum's number one prediction for 2030, made back in 2016. The timing might be slightly off, but it's undeniable that ownership is in significant decline. We're in the midst of a tectonic shift from a society of owners to a society of users, renters, and streamers. As a result, we're trading ownership for access, purchases for subscriptions, and possessions for the rights to digital copies stored in data centers. Homeowners are giving way to forever renters, and some have even embraced the life of a digital nomad.

This shift is more than just an economic one; it's a profound challenge to centuries of using ownership to form and express our identity. In fundamental, human ways, we are what we own. So what are we if we don't own much?

In Possessions, Carey Morewedge, a leading researcher and powerful voice in behavioral science, marketing, and consumer behavior, leads us on a journey to answer that question. He takes us on a fascinating tour of the rapidly shifting landscape, from a life of creating ownership in which you possess things—to a life of "liquid consumption"—life-as-a-service, in which all you possess are your experiences and your brand (and probably a phone). From Delaware goat farms to Australian housing tracts to a Quebec City ice hotel; from an artist in London to a former economist who lived for a time with only his devices and what he could carry on his back, you'll visit places and meet people that show just how complicated and compelling the idea of ownership is, why you value your things so much, and what happens when you can't (or decide not to) own something.