Although luxury is understood as the manifest expression or display of abundance and wealth, its evolution and constant transformation, while it is also a sign of its time, luxury today is such a subjective concept that is going through an important reformulation, a considerable breadth, from beluga caviar to the pleasure of not having to do anything.
Learning what we like, wearing what makes us look and feel better, undertaking new adventures and traveling at our own pace can be a luxury.
But behind those mountains of sumptuousness, exclusivity, pleasure and comfort, there are valuable lessons, codes and paths to enjoy life more fully.
Some famous voices guide us to enjoy it in a much fuller and more focused way.
1. Experience luxury beyond a product or service
Beyond being a synonym of status or privilege, the essence of luxury would tend to appreciate something more precious than material possessions or exclusive amenities that are provided to us when traveling.
Today, memorable experiences, quality time, spaces to share, build community or learn from our people can be something unique, exclusive and distinctive.
As actress Kate Winslet once said, for whom true luxury is having time to read endless stories in bed with her children.
2. Enjoy it like no one else would
One might think that luxury is made by humans for other humans, that it deals with tastes, needs and pleasures with meaning.
It is not an isolated mechanism or a meaningless possession;
we activate it and this is what makes it different.
A luxury car can be very beautiful, but we will have to enjoy it, carry it and give it our style to live it fully.
There is no luxury without us.
Here comes what was said by businessman Paul Getty: "I can afford to say what I want."
3. Appreciate the small details
“I am convinced that there can be luxury in simplicity”, once assured the minimalist German designer, Jil Sander, for whom luxury is an opportunity to spend time and appreciate what is not seen at first glance.
In this sense, beyond the impressive brilliance and obvious elegance, a way of living luxury strategically invites us to pay attention to subtleties, fine detail and effort where others do not.
4. Be aware;
sustainability is part of the equation
Nowadays, there is no luxury that ensures its future if it is not with a social and environmental conscience.
If a sector can give itself the opportunity to respect life cycles, pay attention to its impact and repercussion in the world, in addition to inviting much more responsible consumption in this sense, it is undoubtedly that of luxury.
Let's not forget the wise words of Orson Welles: "Living a life of luxury is not bad except that you never know when luxury is going to end."
5. Diversify and alternate your experiences
“The saddest thing I can imagine is getting used to luxury,” iconic actor Charlie Chaplin once said.
As it is a scarce, exclusive and select ecosystem, luxury is better appreciated if it does not detach itself from its context and can alternate with other experiences to nourish itself and complete a cycle in which it maintains its meaning.
In this sense, for some luxury brands, producing excessively would imply a latent risk of eroding the spirit that gave them prestige.
Well they say out there, that of the good, little.
But also varied.
Those who experience luxury strategically know how to appreciate and enjoy its full spectrum, even outside of it.
6. Expand and learn from the things that afford you the luxury
One of the ideals of luxury, little fulfilled but always present, invites us to use luxury as a way to enjoy life, enhance our senses and human essence on what makes us happy.
Film director John Landis puts it in an evocative image: "I grew up thinking of snow as a luxury that one visits."
7. Sharing is evolving
The big difference between flaunting without taste and living luxury strategically, say those who know, is to learn things that help us to live life in a much more full, calm and special way, but also to share, give ourselves and enjoy time with ours and be better from these experiences.
The Dalai Lama once said: “Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries.
Without them, humanity can not survive".
8. Create a meaningful relationship with your passions
"Luxury is a state of mind," model and designer L'Wren Scott once said.
There can be luxury in virtually any area of modern life (think of homes, travel, experiences, precious objects, sports or exciting cutting-edge technology), but it is the type of relationship, the value we assign and everything that leaves in us the luxury which will make it exceptional.
9. Take responsibility for your consumption
As we mentioned before, the sign of exclusivity and selectivity of luxury also calls us to appreciate everything that is behind it in order to have access to it, so we should be careful in the form, measure and rhythm with which we acquire it.
As the Italian writer Cesare Pavese said: "Every luxury must be paid for, and everything is a luxury, beginning with being in this world."
Appreciate and thank, it never hurts.
10. Give back a little of what you receive
At the end of the day, the things, experiences and services that can be considered a luxury also weave a series of experiences that are not for the majority.
We talk about emotions, hobbies, tastes and pleasures that are part of a privilege.
As something alive and in constant movement, luxury has to open up and flow with the world;
inspire us to give some of that and give back a little of that happiness that is given to us.
Choreographer Twyla Tharp once put it in precise words: “I believe that whoever is pushed to do their best is privileged.
This is a luxury."