Hoarding: When is enough money enough?
Fear leads us to hoard, yet we can change the game by circulating
Life at the top 0,5%. My little cousin is in a remarkably privileged position. His father, my uncle, has had some marvelous professional endeavors which have granted him great wealth. My cousin has an office job in a startup that pays him nothing compared to what he gets from his family. Recently, he, who is in his early 20’s, confided how helpless he feels about having a successful professional life that also supports society and those in need. “I would love to help more,” he said, “but I don’t know how to help when I need to make money for myself and want to live well.”
I was astonished by the statement. Here is one person who already carries more than enough. He wasn’t kidding or being naive. Behind his affirmation was a deeply rooted belief: the one that we are to be independent, to make our lives for ourselves, for our worth is connected to our work and how much money we make. This idea is a prison for our being and what we allow ourselves to be.
When is enough really enough?
This is a hard question to answer. We set minimum salaries, but we have no maximum ones. As for my cousin, he would say his wealth is “his dads”, he is to make it “on his own terms”. On a micro level, in a society that says our worth is connected to how much we make, it might make sense. Yet, on a macro level, making it on your own terms, having your own worth when you already have so much means more hoarding.
We are in times of staggering inequality, and if those who already have great means keep on creating more wealth and hoarding more, guess what? We have even more inequality - unless governments start taxing those with wealth better and work on distribution.
Our worth as humans is intrinsic to our being, and not connected to what we do for a living, yet we keep forgetting that. It certainly isn't connected to our paycheck; one’s contribution to society goes way beyond economic gains. We need to break free from the market economy and its individualistic ways.
We live in a society that is constantly telling us that we are not enough, that we need to get slimmer and buy new clothes to look prettier…
