The Future of Sharing

I know it’s taboo to talk about winter in the middle of a Chicago summer, but I am going to break my own rule and do it. Last year my husband and I bought a quaint 1920′s tutor style house in Elgin, an older suburb of Chicago. We were first time home buyers, which meant not only did we have a new mortgage to pay every month, but we also had to purchase some bigger ticket items to help maintain our small slice of Americana. We went ahead and got the lawnmower (great deal off Craigslist) and several other items, but we decided to hold out on the snow blower. Needless to say 3 shovels and seemingly 1,000 snow days later, we caved and got our little 5.5 horse power Honda.

As my husband was snow blowing our driveway one morning, I looked outside to see that each one of our neighbors was doing the same. I counted 7 snow blowers going up and down their respective drive and walk ways and then each retreat back into their homes. It was actually shocking to me that I had never noticed this before and a little disturbing that none of these 6 other snow blower owners had ever offered to help us out after seeing us over the past couple months with our little shovels.

By no means do I mean to hate on our new neighbors, as they have been more than generous as we have gotten to know them, but my point is more about wondering is it good or even right that we collect so much stuff and keep it to ourselves? Is sharing what you have a thing of the past? Do we really need all these snow blowers?

The answer, of course, is no. We don’t need all this stuff and the truth is we know it. In fact most of us have probably let out exasperating sighs when looking in our garages, basements, closets and at the cost we pay for storage spaces. (According to The Self Storage Association, there is over seven square feet of self-storage for every person in America.)

So we have a lot of things. Authors Rachel Botsman and Roo Rogers in their book What’s Mine is Yours suggest that there is a reason we have been collecting all these things. The 20th Century in the United States was defined by hyper-consumption. Credit, advertising and what we owned were the measures of value in society. So no wonder you have to rent storage space!

In the same book though, Bostman and Roo say that things are shifting and that the 21st Century is one of Collaborative Consumption. This means instead of measuring value in the gaining of things, value will be determined by reputation, community and what we can access. This idea has interesting implications across all areas of life, but especially around the stuff we own.

There are many reasons for this shift in thinking. The financial downturn is one, along with efforts to be more environmentally conscious. People and businesses are continually looking for ways to save money and reduce their footprint. In addition to these factors, faith and trust in big government and large corporations is beginning to wain and communities are starting to look inwardly to provide for themselves and their neighbors. For the first time in a long time, bartering is on the rise. So is sharing.

This brings me back my neighborhood of snow blowers. Be it for financial reasons or environmental, communities and groups of neighbors are starting to pool their resources to meet the needs of the group. From family style dinners to sharing of lawnmowers or other appliances people are sharing what they have.

And some people are even making a business of it. Remember all the stuff you have in your basement, closets, storage spaces that have been collecting dust for months? Years? You don’t want to sell it or give it away, but it could still make you some extra cash. Could be someone in your area might be willing to rent it from you. You’re not using it anyways right? Renting or loaning it out might be a good way to bring in a couple extra bucks.

The site NeighborGoods.net helps you do both of these and helps you find others to borrow or rent from.

Other sites are popping up all over connecting people who have something with people who need something. Craigslist and eBay are the big players we all know about, while Zopa (peer-to-peer lending), Swaptree (swapping goods) and Zipcar (carpooling) serve on a more personal/local level.

Sharing does have its risks (I’m sure you have already gone through all the reasons why no one is going to touch your stuff) but the reality is collaborative consumption is the way society is turning and like many technological advances there are some really big benefits.

Like most things, I suggest start small and be smart. If you don’t already, lend something you own to someone you know. And maybe borrow something from them. Set dates or a time frame for the loan so you know when you will be getting your property back and vise versa. As you become more comfortable and a little less attached to your things, possibilities are endless.

Let us know if this is something you’ve tried. What are the cons and pros you’re experiencing? Is there anything you wish you could borrow or lend?