Taking Back Our Lives in the Age of Corporate Dominance

Reveals the profound impact of the global corporate economy on our daily livesDetails 75 immediate and long-term Action Steps for empowering ourselves both individually and as a societyOffers specific tips, ideas, and resources on how to pare down our lives and open up our timeProvides questions for reflection that help readers to think in new ways about what matters most to themCorporate structures, products, and processes permeate our society -but what do they really mean to us in our daily lives? The bottom-line mentality that drives corporate America, say Ellen Augustine (formerly Schwartz) and Suzanne Stoddard, is creating a world unresponsive to human needs, corrosive to the democratic process, and destructive to the planet itself. Taking Back Our Lives in the Age of Corporate Dominance shows the links between our mundane everyday struggles and the global corporate economy, image-driven media, and the relentless pace which consumes us all. And it tells us how we can change things by transforming both our work and leisure.The authors use hard-hitting examples and illuminating personal vignettes about confronting fear, anger, death, family problems, and the stultifying effects of staying in the "comfort zone." They detail over 75 steps for personal and societal actions-some quick and immediate, others in-depth and long term-for retaking control of our lives. The authors include provocative questions for reflection that shock, prod, and jump-start the reader into thinking about what matters most to them.Deeply moving, outrageous, encouraging, compelling, and inspiring, Taking Back Our Lives in the Age of Corporate Dominance blends unrelenting candor with the comfort of real-life stories of hope-and ultimately shows us that choice is the most important tool we have for reviving our lives and our world.

Never before have so many people felt the American Dream crashing down around them. The corporate framework—which values competition and the bottom line above all else—keeps many of us running after an elusive goal and impinges on our personal lives. Advertising-driven culture causes material desires to grow with no corresponding increase in personal time or energy to pursue them. These artificially amped-up needs cause a pressure-cooker lifestyle that threatens health and happiness.Ellen Schwartz and Suzanne Stoddard show the links between our own everyday struggles and the global corporate economy, image-driven media, and the relentless pace which consumes us all—and they tell us what we can do to change things. Detailing 75 action steps for retaking control of our lives, they teach us how to find balance by simplifying, paring down on material possessions, and reevaluating corporate careers. Their provocative questions will shock, prod, and jump-start you into thinking about what matters most to you.

Reveals the profound impact of the global corporate economy on our daily livesDetails 75 immediate and long-term Action Steps for empowering ourselves both individually and as a societyOffers specific tips, ideas, and resources on how to pare down our lives and open up our timeProvides questions for reflection that help readers to think in new ways about what matters most to themCorporate structures, products, and processes permeate our society -but what do they really mean to us in our daily lives? The bottom-line mentality that drives corporate America, say Ellen Augustine (formerly Schwartz) and Suzanne Stoddard, is creating a world unresponsive to human needs, corrosive to the democratic process, and destructive to the planet itself. Taking Back Our Lives in the Age of Corporate Dominance shows the links between our mundane everyday struggles and the global corporate economy, image-driven media, and the relentless pace which consumes us all. And it tells us how we can change things by transforming both our work and leisure.The authors use hard-hitting examples and illuminating personal vignettes about confronting fear, anger, death, family problems, and the stultifying effects of staying in the "comfort zone." They detail over 75 steps for personal and societal actions-some quick and immediate, others in-depth and long term-for retaking control of our lives. The authors include provocative questions for reflection that shock, prod, and jump-start the reader into thinking about what matters most to them.Deeply moving, outrageous, encouraging, compelling, and inspiring, Taking Back Our Lives in the Age of Corporate Dominance blends unrelenting candor with the comfort of real-life stories of hope-and ultimately shows us that choice is the most important tool we have for reviving our lives and our world.