Much of the damage in the world comes from thinking economically when we should be thinking morally.
When people are treated as economic variables, we devalue them as human beings. As a society, we fail in our moral duty to take care of our sick and poor. We end up with slavery and sex trafficking. We incarcerate masses of people and forget about them. When the arts are treated as commodities, cheap cliches take precedence over more complex art that can challenge and inspire us. Our lives are less rich for it. When the natural world is reduced to what we can take from it, we fail to see the complexity of relationships that sustain us. Species are lost, ecosystems collapse, and quality of life is reduced for all of us. When you measure yourself by extrinsic markers of success, you lose a part of our soul. You become easy to manipulate. Spend more to help the economy; find a high-paying job instead of doing meaningful work; buy a nicer car so you have more status. We are beholden to our jobs and we do work that is immoral, hating ourselves for it but unable to see a way out and addicted to the external rewards it brings. We’re on a hamster wheel, running as fast as we can to get nowhere. How you focus your attention determines how you experience the world and the decisions you make. When you choose to focus your attention on intrinsic value, you start to cut through the delusion of economics and see the world as it really is. You treat people like human beings, whether they hold the reins of power or work in a service job, whether they fit the mold of success or live on the street with a drug addiction. You improve your relationships, not because of what they can do for you, but because you value people for their own sake. You free yourself from the hamster wheel of craving and begin to find peace. While extrinsically motivated people are consumed with status and wealth, you get to enjoy the full spectrum of life: art, literature, music, nature, friendships, and love. The Intrinsic Value Movement is about bringing your focus back to the intrinsic, intangible values that make life rich and meaningful. And as your focus changes, it will automatically nudge the people around you to value differently. Imagine an entire culture that focuses on intrinsic value:
How can you help? Start to notice and talk about intrinsic value. There's a reason gratitude journals increase happiness. It's because your focus automatically centers on things with intrinsic value: Art, Education, Nature, Relationships, Music, Experiences, Human beings, Animals. Help your tribe start to see intrinsic value, too. you can use the hashtag #intrinsicvalue to call attention to things that go beyond economic value and status. When you notice intrinsic value, you focus your attention on the things that really matter. It becomes a habit, a new way of seeing the world. As others see your new, more intentional way of looking at the world, they will take up the torch too, and your world will get a little bit kinder, a little wiser. As your friends become less concerned with signals of status and wealth, you will feel less pressure for those things. We can all get off the hamster wheel together, and go enjoy life.
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Nick is a teacher, writer, and amateur adventurer. Archives
June 2020
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