Living Large—How Luxury Fits Into Your Life
What does luxury mean to you? For many, the idea conjures the trappings of wealth—maybe yachts, private planes, or opulent houses. But are these things luxurious in and of themselves? Once you get beyond these trappings’ flashiness and comfort, you must still have a meaningful life to make them enjoyable. And you may find that if you do have a meaningful life, you don’t need this brand of luxury. Simple pleasures can be considered luxurious and don’t involve the cost, maintenance, or hassle of the more lavish luxuries. What are the luxurious things in your life? Do they give you pleasure, or must they be connected to other parts of your life, such as friends, to add meaning?
What is luxury?
Mirriam-Webster defines luxury as “something adding to pleasure or comfort but is not absolutely necessary” and “an indulgence in something that provides pleasure, satisfaction, or ease.” These definitions encompass a broad range of potential avenues. The words used, pleasure, comfort, satisfaction, and ease, cover a broad range of feelings or physical conditions. The idea of luxury is likely different for different people. Like many things in life, companies and commercials try to sell you specific ideas of what luxury is. But if you think back to the words used in the definition, luxury doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated.
What luxury means to me
I have very specific ideas of luxury, including (but not limited to) sufficient sleep, getting warm in front of a fire, a day with no commitments, and good (but not necessarily healthy) food. I’m not against more pricy luxuries—I love being on friends’ boats, having a nice rental next to the ocean, eating in a fancy restaurant, or staying in a lavish hotel room. I fantasize about having a comfortable jet ready to take me anywhere in the world at a moment’s notice or a boat big enough to have a bedroom, living room, office, and music room. But if cost were not an issue to me, I don’t think I would buy into these luxuries anyway, as there are tradeoffs with the good that the money involved could do in the world if I didn’t purchase those luxuries.
Feelings of guilt associated with luxury
Luxury is inherently self-indulgent. It is hard for certain personality types to take a break from their work or purpose to pamper themselves a bit. Some personality types feel guilty when they engage in even a little bit of luxury. They feel like they should be working or are worried about the money they’re spending. Some don’t feel any guilt related to luxuries, even expensive ones, including those with a sense of entitlement and those born into very poor conditions who have worked hard to improve their lot. In other words, those who feel entitled to it and those who feel deserving. It can be interesting to figure out where you fall in this spectrum and how that manifests itself.
Finding your version of luxury
Everyone needs a little luxury in their lives—even if it’s something as simple as a warm cup of coffee on a cold morning or a cozy chair to “luxuriate” in after a hard day. Having a specific idea of what your luxuries are, or might be, given your personality type, your means, and what gives you pleasure (or comfort, satisfaction, and ease), can help you take advantage of that part of your life. It can allow you to have a built-in destination you can go to to relax, recharge, and leave your worries behind for a while. It will depend only on what makes you happy and comfortable.
It’s good to make some space in your life for luxury—to find the balance between work and rest and pamper yourself a bit. And guilt is not welcome.
