These days, it is common to see young people squander their time and money on keeping up with the latest trends, including buying flashy clothing and tech gadgets. From my perspective, the desire for self-expression is the root cause, and this trend brings a number of negative consequences.

Due to the development of society, people are now living in a peaceful world full of convenience and wealth. The Internet and social media have also been developing rapidly, and have exposed people, particularly the youth, to large amounts of images of those with a desirable lavish lifestyle. Both of these factors contribute to the fact that many young individuals tend to express themselves, with an aim of proving their ability to afford luxurious items, such as fashionable clothes and high-end tech gadgets, from smartphones to tablets. For these reasons, many young people are quite willing to spend huge amounts of their time earning money so that they can simply pour it into the latest fashion trends. In the long run, this can have adverse effects, not only on young people but also on society as a whole. Following fashion trends certainly drives young people to the edge of bankruptcy, if they continue to squander their hard-earned money and consequently lose control of their spending. Things can even become worse, especially when unexpected things occur, such as accidents, or when the need to pay for tuition fees arises. On a social level, should more money be spent on luxurious goods, the need for common products will dwindle, causing a reduction in sales of common goods which may eventually affect local businesses and economies. In conclusion, the reason young people tend to want to spend money trying to keep up with the latest fashion trends is a result of them trying to express themselves, and this is a negative development in my opinion.