What's your goal in life? A common saying throughout society is be rich, have an awesome family, a nice car etc. But really looking at those goals, I can't help but feel a little bit disappointed in how materialistic that is.

Everywhere you go all you hear is the "American Dream." We celebrate individualism, freedom of speech (although that's a little debated), the ability to go from rags to riches with hard work, etc. But now a days all you see is those riches going towards the latest iPhone, expensive cars, designer bags, etc.

Don't get me wrong I love buying nice things as the next person. But as college students try and save up to prevent them from taking out anymore student loans from the high tuition prices, it's hard to fight this materialistic culture that we live in. The problem isn't shopping- it's the obsession with unnecessary products and the hope that buying a Chanel (or whatever the latest designer bag is) or wearing Yeezys in the street makes you happier and cooler to everyone else. The things that we own often end up owning us and we're bombarded with ads telling us how buying this certain product will make us happier and more fulfilled or celebrities telling us that buying this product will make you more like them.

Don't get me wrong- I suffer from this problem too. When college application season rolled around, I constantly compared the colleges I got into compared to my friend's, and we would always compare our shoes to everyone else's thinking that we were somehow cooler since we wore Jordans. I love shopping malls and buying cool things, but I've recently come to realize that I don't need those things to be happy. We need to stop comparing what we have with everyone else. It's super easy to look at someone's house, car, phone, clothes, and think that they have it way better off than we do. But the fact of the matter is- they probably don't. Comparison wastes time, money, energy, and often racks up credit card debt. And often times, it can lead to depression since we often feel a lack of self-worth when looking at those who have it better off.

The American Dream should be more than just buying the latest shopping trend, blowing your money on alcohol and parties, but having a fulfilling career, a family that loves one another, making a difference within your community. These are all things that we should strive for and what should be our answers when asked what our goal in life is.

So I challenge you- that car you've been eyeing, those shoes that you might be putting on your Wish List, the party you have coming up, ask yourself whether or not buying it will make you happy. Becuase I guarantee you- lying awake at night looking back on your life, most likely you won't be thinking "I'm so happy because I bought ___."