Rich Man, Poor Man-------
Can a person lead an enriched life whilst being, say, not well off'? And likewise could they lead
an 'unriched' life whilst being 'well off'? If some of the potentially important areas of human life
are weighed up -personal, community, environmental, social, to name but a few - then presumably
whilst money can have an effect, it's not necessarily an all-consuming one. Take personal satisfaction,
for instance. Someone might be, let'say, a skilled maker of wooden furniture. Because they get so much joy and
satisfaction in handling and shaping wood, they spend a lot of time on each piece - if they had an accountant
she/he might be tellingthem they were being 'uneconomic'.
Yes, the financial returns are probably lowered by the 'quality' style of operation, but as long
as they've got 'enough', they are more than compensated by their 'intrinsic satisfaction' returns. Paradoxically, in a
different time span, the longer term, for instance, their method may yet though, pay off financially,
with the extra quality of their pieces now being recognised by extra price.
Beggar Men----?
A couple with a semi-self sufficient smallholding hereby (in the UK North Midlands), would no doubt
have been rated officially as 'poor', not needing a particularly high rate of cash income. Ok, they probably
couldn't have afforded too many flash holidays or cars, but, so what? Their particular value system
didn't call for such, but they did have plenty of healthy, tasty, grub to eat, an idyllic, peaceful
place in which to live and enjoy nature, their own energy supply from their own wood, with terrific
'fuel security', and of course a very independent, self-reliant lifestyle - masters of their own little
ship. They made their social contribution too, selling their tasty, healthy produce to others at reasonable
prices, a certain amount of money generation being important to them, but only to an identifiable,
limited degree. Interesting - officially 'poor', but with 'enriched' lives - ?
They might be good examples of those that might cry out 'but I don't want to be a millionaire!'- possibly
though, risking charges of 'sedition and sacriledge' in modern culture -?! For them, as probably with other 'freerangers',
further and continued 'dollar chasing' could well be counter-productive, leaving too little time for other
key areas of their multi-dimensioned lives. Maybe it's been the economists' on-going message of natural
human behaviour being that of maximising returns, which in a money economy tends to mean maxing making dosh. that's caused so much focus in recent years on 'chasing the dollar', allied maybe with the 'freeing the market'
effect.
Could be, though, that such a one-dimensional approach involving mainly money making could be then taking
a 'narrowing track', particularly if level of efforts are directly linked with monetary reward, with the result
that other important areas, particularly if non-monetary, then by default become under-focused, and under-done?
And have such focused money-making habits become 'ingrained'? In running the local 'not-for-profit' ,
community social club and bar, for instance, it has at times proved difficult to get off the money-making
thinking track, resulting in a need to consciously remind ourselves that money-making is not the 'end',
but rather the 'means'. Presumably this approach could have wider life applications, which may have been
the inherent message in the old saying 'money be a good servant, but a bad master'.
Within a money-orientated culture, 'poor' inevitably tends to take on a mainly financial interpretation, but
as the mini case-study above can suggest, a wider view could indicate that there are those not necessarilly
materially well blessed, but who nevertheless lead enriched lives. Country people, for instance
can hold dear values such as community, contact with nature, independence and lifestyle, which aren't necessarily
always connected directly totally to money, and maybe tend to get a little overlooked due to the weight of urban outlook.
Presumably, it may also be a possibility that materially fullsome lifestyles don't always guarantee 'life enrichment'?
Thief of Time-------?
One way to actively limit any potentially over-powerful 'money influence', could be to accept a certain
(and sustainable) level of money generation, which may then 'free-up' the scope to take on board other life
'return' areas, such as, say, personal satisfaction, so to then lead a 'freerange' 'multi-dimensional' lifestyle
(what the recent focus on 'work/life' balance' and the trend of 'downsizing'appear to be about).
Such considerations seem particularly relevant to here in the Uk - the results of a new study of 2000 adults by comparison website uSwitch indicate that the Uk is now the worst place in Europe in which to live, with 'a broken society', the high cost of living, crime and having 'to live to work' being the key reasons cited. Whilst, then, 'freeranging' multi-dimensional living may have become more difficult in the Uk, particularly in maybe having the time and freedom with which to follow it, the need for it may yet be ever stronger.
The ready availability of so much to buy, and the easy availability of borrowing (eg. credit cards) must surely have also helped stoke expectations, and of course, 'good for business' economic demand. Might, though, living
'on tick' give an illusory feeling of 'false wealth' in the shorter-term, with 'the chickens coming home to roost'
in the longer-term? Such a situation with its attendant attitudes and expectations was, according to one broadsheet
commentator recently, a root cause of today's financial and economic problems, a problem bound to surface given time.
Maybe after all, as they say, 'there ain't a lot new under the sun'----?
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