A recent article on these pages by Khalid Al Ameri eloquently argued that success in the UAE "should be far more than having a luxury lifestyle". The article was written in response to the findings of a MasterCard survey, exploring cross-national definitions of success. The report suggested that, in the UAE, success was typically defined as "a way to fuel a lifestyle of luxury and enjoyment".
Firstly, I really don’t like the term “lifestyle”. I can visit a hairstylist, but can I visit a life-stylist? Or is a life-stylist just another word for a parent, a teacher or a psychotherapist? Using the word “style” also suggests we have an array of choices hanging in our existential wardrobes. Shall I live the life of a Parisian poet this year? Or should I dust off the old South American revolutionary lifestyle? I hear that the “Che Guevara” is back in fashion. Does my soul look big in this?
This now-debased term – lifestyle – actually comes to us from Alfred Adler, a physician, psychologist and cofounder of the psychoanalytic movement figureheaded by Sigmund Freud. Adler used the term “style of life” to refer to our unique, unconscious and relatively fixed ways of responding to, or avoiding, the main aspects of life: relationships, love, work and so on.
Today, the term is used to exaggerate or justify some minor aspect of a person’s life. For example: “he lives a rock’n’roll lifestyle”. This could just mean that he is bordering on alcoholism, and has issues facing up to responsibility. Similarly, “she lives an alternative lifestyle” could just mean she has some unusual body piercings, bizarre taste in music and attention-arresting make-up and fashion sense.
So, too, with the so-called “luxury lifestyle”, those living the materialistic dream will not necessarily have luxurious relationships, they may not have the finest mahogany parents, solid gold spouses, or even diamante-encrusted friends. Furthermore, their occupations may not be luxurious, they may even be non-existent: a kind of luxurious purposelessness. Life and existence cannot be reduced to objects. Things, however luxurious, do not make the man, or the woman, and they certainly don’t constitute a style of life, at least not in the Adlerian sense.
This is not to suggest that we should have an aversion to comfort or feel guilty for enjoying beautiful things. There is clearly a difference between a discerning appreciation of aesthetics and the mindless overconsumption of fancy goods. What fault is to be found in a fondness for the form of a beautifully crafted artefact? Are the connoisseur and the glutton the same creature?
But for me, the idea that shopping, or a fondness for expensive stuff, should be considered a lifestyle at all is nonsense. A lifestyle should not be made so narrow as to be defined by what objects we choose to buy. The danger is we lose sight of what is really important in life, and then validation through the possession of objects is all that is left – “I am what I own”.
Ultimately, a lifestyle isn’t about what we spend our cash on; it’s about how we spend our time and with whom we spend it. Wealth can often free up lots of time, either through hiring help, or purchasing an army of labour-saving devices. With little need to work, we can be left with unlimited leisure time. This is a gift and a curse, if we are unlucky it simply leads to the empty consumerism that some refer to as a luxury lifestyle.
A friend once told me about a conversation that took place between an American and a Bedouin from Mauritania. The American boasted about how luxurious and labour-free his life was: “I have a private jet, I can get from one side of the country to the other in six hours – a distance that would take you months.” Wide-eyed but wise, the Bedouin responded: “But what do you do with all the time you save?” The American guy was stumped.
Justin Thomas is an associate professor of psychology at Zayed University and author of Psychological Well- Being in the Gulf States
On Twitter: @jaytee156
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FIXTURES
All kick-off times 10.45pm UAE ( 4 GMT) unless stated
Tuesday
Sevilla v Maribor
Spartak Moscow v Liverpool
Manchester City v Shakhtar Donetsk
Napoli v Feyenoord
Besiktas v RB Leipzig
Monaco v Porto
Apoel Nicosia v Tottenham Hotspur
Borussia Dortmund v Real Madrid
Wednesday
Basel v Benfica
CSKA Moscow Manchester United
Paris Saint-Germain v Bayern Munich
Anderlecht v Celtic
Qarabag v Roma (8pm)
Atletico Madrid v Chelsea
Juventus v Olympiakos
Sporting Lisbon v Barcelona
Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
- Stay invested: Time in the market, not timing the market, is critical to long-term gains.
- Rational thinking: Breathe and avoid emotional decision-making; let logic and planning guide your actions.
- Strategic patience: Understand why you’re investing and allow time for your strategies to unfold.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
more from Janine di Giovanni
The five pillars of Islam
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
TWISTERS
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos
Rating: 2.5/5
Gertrude Bell's life in focus
A feature film
At one point, two feature films were in the works, but only German director Werner Herzog’s project starring Nicole Kidman would be made. While there were high hopes he would do a worthy job of directing the biopic, when Queen of the Desert arrived in 2015 it was a disappointment. Critics panned the film, in which Herzog largely glossed over Bell’s political work in favour of her ill-fated romances.
A documentary
A project that did do justice to Bell arrived the next year: Sabine Krayenbuhl and Zeva Oelbaum’s Letters from Baghdad: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Gertrude Bell. Drawing on more than 1,000 pieces of archival footage, 1,700 documents and 1,600 letters, the filmmakers painstakingly pieced together a compelling narrative that managed to convey both the depth of Bell’s experience and her tortured love life.
Books, letters and archives
Two biographies have been written about Bell, and both are worth reading: Georgina Howell’s 2006 book Queen of the Desert and Janet Wallach’s 1996 effort Desert Queen. Bell published several books documenting her travels and there are also several volumes of her letters, although they are hard to find in print. Original documents are housed at the Gertrude Bell Archive at the University of Newcastle, which has an online catalogue.
Premier Futsal 2017 Finals
Al Wasl Football Club; six teams, five-a-side
Delhi Dragons: Ronaldinho
Bengaluru Royals: Paul Scholes
Mumbai Warriors: Ryan Giggs
Chennai Ginghams: Hernan Crespo
Telugu Tigers: Deco
Kerala Cobras: Michel Salgado
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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