The Age of Instant Gratification

It is a very strange experience to come in close contact of the “I want it now!” generation that is characterized by an extreme form of disregard for consequences. Throughout my childhood and teenage readings I have heard wise people speak of “now or never” quotes but what I see in the young (and in no way do I intend to implicate myself as old and/or wise) is a lifestyle that is based on this fundamental philosophy of now or never – the age of instant gratification.

Sociologist and other social scientists call it the most obvious fallout of what is very often termed as the Risk Society where uncertainty of existence is questioned by the violence and turmoil that is inherent around us and has sort of defined the better part of the 13 years of the 21st century that we have seen. And, from the way things are going, we are headed towards cloudier days ahead.

But, one way or the other, I think that this tendency towards momentary urges, spanning the distance from shopping pangs to an extremely high consumption driven lifestyle has made a social construct, as is prevalant today, that is keenly driven by the need to satisfy the momentary urges without the necessary calculation of what could go wrong in the process. And, with so much going down the path of wrong these days, I am amazed at the spirit characterized by a certain potion that is a mix of bravado and wrecklessness. To that end, I think, that the crumbling down of the social, economic and political structure across the world is somehow an outcome of what has become a vicious cycle of ease of availability, tendency to consume without any equation of consequence and an ‘ignorance is bliss’ outlook.

I have had the occassion over the past year to interact with some of the weeds of this new cultural forest, and it is surprising how much of the phrases “so what”, “who cares” and “big deal” are being uses. Everyone has a different arguement and logic justifying their unique wrecklessness but almost invariably these are spotted extensively by aforementioned exclamations. This tells me two things. (i) We are faced with a generation serious about ensuring the maximization of value from life while it exists instead of procrastinating about consequences, future and especially what the world thinks of their actions. Amd, (ii) that it is probably a different world we are headed into over the next 10 – 15 years where individualism will reach a peak that will, most probably, put man back in a strange way to pre-stone age social structure – every man/woman for their own self.

Survival of the fittest in a very urban and chic social environment…!