Officially Allergic to Commercials

On Thursday I boarded a plane to head on a mother daughter weekend to Florida. I booked a direct flight at a great rate. What made the option even better was the airline had television. The idea of watching “regular” tv for hours on the way to Florida was appealing.

What I didn’t expect was how much I changed over the past couple of years after paying off debt.

Big Goals with Little Distractions

Something interesting happens when you prioritized big financial goals over everything else. For me, I cut back tremendously on additional expenses that don’t increase my intellectual or financial growth. That included many things, but one of the biggest expenses was cable tv. As a result, I was no longer bombarded by commercials during my leisure time.

After one hour of watching Comedy Central I found myself counting how many commercials partitioned my show. Then I noticed the same messages coming across the screen over and over. Finally, I felt drained. I guess I wasn’t hiding how depleted I felt, because my mother leaned over and asked if I was ok.

Catered Experiences

Internet television has become a catered experience for me over the past few years. I never know the latest shows. When I turn on our television, I enter what I want to watch in the search bar. Sometimes I do an internet search to find a show or movie that fits my current state. I find myself watching movies and documentaries mostly, which have no commercials. I get to choose the messages I am receiving. Once I realized how I felt on the plane, I took out my earphones and plugged them into my phone to listen to music. There was an instant change. My energy came back and I opened my computer to write this post.

Super Skeptical

When you spend years altering your habits to accomplish a financial goal, commercials take on another form. You become more skeptical about the message. Additionally, you feel like you have to sit through so many of them and never get any satisfaction. They don’t really speak to you, because most of them don’t offer what you need to accomplish your goal.

What do you think about tv commercials? Have you switched away from “regular” to internet television? If so, have you noticed changes in the way you feel during your entertainment time?