My three (3) year old daughter has gotten a new bike. It is her first “real” bike. Prior to this, she had what I would describe as a toddler trike. It could in theory convert into a “bicycle,” but I never felt confident enough to do it. Now she has her first bicycle and I am so excited to ride with her. I love riding all over Nashville on my Trek bicycle, and I cannot wait to share adventures with her.
This experience has made me reflective on consumerism and how we live so much in a throwaway culture.
Throwaway Culture: a social and economic mindset where products and goods are treated as disposable rather than durable, often being discarded after short use instead of repaired, reused, or recycled
I am guilty of being a member. Watching my daughter ride her new bike made me think of my bike. I bought it from trek around 2008, over seventeen (17) years ago! I love it and could not imagine replacing it, even though technological advancements have made biking so much more accessible. I do have a goal to try converting it to a pedal assist bike at some point, but that is for a future version of me. Being proud of the durability and longevity made me look at some of my planned upcoming purchases.
My wife’s AirPods Pro had stopped working. I am ashamed to admit I really did not spend much time troubleshooting them. I saw they were not holding a charge and figured they had died. Apple is supposedly releasing a new model next month, so I thought: “Okay, let’s get the new one for her.” Roughly the same time, my xbox wireless headset snapped, probably due to my big head. I had also planned to just buy another copy for one hundred dollars ($100) and move on. These two headset-related episodes deserved a revisit thanks to my daughter.
The AirPods really did not take much time to fix. I clean every port and connector. I reset them. I learned they were actually taking a charge it was just the led on the case was no longer working. They work and will be used hopefully for much longer now. Now my xbox wireless headset needed a little more work. Ironically I turned to a key contributor to throwaway culture, plastic. I used some thermoplastic tape to reinforce the side that snapped. It is now stronger than the original side and should last me another four (4) years.
These two (2) products almost were thrown away and replaced. We are living in a time when planned obsolescence is a feature not a negative.
Planned Obsolescence:a business strategy where products are intentionally designed with a limited lifespan.
Whether it is fast fashion, attacking the right to repair, single use products, or just plain skimping on the durability of a product, we are almost encouraged to throw something away when there is a problem and just buy a new version. It is discouraged to the point of trying to make it illegal for us to try and “repair” our products. We should all try to make things last. To fix instead of replace, to be conscious about the type of products we buy and the companies we support. The same logic is true for legal.
I can’t and won’t hide the fact that AI has made legal analysis more accessible to the masses. ChatGPT and his cohorts will answer basic legal questions and provide analysis on documents. Contract templates are available online. You can patchwork together a solution. You can do the bare minimum and ignore the bigger legal issues until something goes wrong. A business that is built on shortcuts is fragile. Our society normalizes disposable products; let’s not normalize disposable relationships too.
As a fractional general counsel, I offer my clients more than just unlimited legal advice. I provide the support of knowing that you are not alone in this journey. I ensure that you are formed on the best terms, with contracts that are durable, adaptable, and scalable to your unique needs. Your operations are built on sustainable legal structures from the outset, and I will be a steadfast steward, helping you preserve and grow your business. Determine the appropriate time to select the right tool, whether it’s artificial intelligence or real intelligence.
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