One of the areas we encourage clients to consider are their possessions. While important to all age groups this is a particularly challenging subject for those going through the transition from their primary career to what follows next. These are the Baby Boomers, who through life have seen rapidly changing attitudes towards possessions.

Their parents, the War Generation, instilled the values of austerity – make-do and mend; hold on to everything ‘just in case’; save for tomorrow. Yet the Boomers grew up in the time of mass production when prices fell and marketing men encouraged them to spend spend spend. This combination of values resulted in them buying because they could and holding on to it all. In turn, this fuelled the self storage industry that allowed them to create extra space for the new without having to part with the old.

The dawn of the digital age has seen the arrival of eBay and the ability to search through other people’s attics. Now the Boomers are asking ‘Why hold on to things ‘just in case’ when someone, somewhere else has been doing that for you?!’

As digital life becomes the new norm our attitudes to possessions are changing again. The films, photos, books and record collections that once filled shelves are disappearing. In their place is a digital archive ever bit as powerful as a house full of ‘momentos’ when it comes generating happy memories. Our new challenge is to learn how to organize, display, present and preserve this vital part of life.