Never Enough
How much money is enough?
We invest because we want to grow our wealth. The more money we have the more we can consume and the more freedom we have over our time. And so it feels like we could always use more and never have enough.
But that’s not all. With the decline of religion and other sorts of metaphysical systems in which people formerly found meaning, the almighty dollar reigns supreme. That is, people measure themselves by their net worth. And, of course, as social creatures we compare ourselves to others.
One of the things I have noticed living in the Silicon Valley in recent years is the proliferation of luxury cars: Teslas, Porsches, Mercedes, Lexus, Range Rover, Rivian, etc… The freeways and parking lots of the Silicon Valley are filled with shiny, expensive luxury cars. Whenever I travel, I’m struck by how many more Toyotas and Nissans there are elsewhere.
Is this because of the intrinsic pleasure involved in driving a luxury vehicle? While that’s part of it, the biggest part is social proof. Having a luxury car is a signal to others that you are successful. I frequently see old men driving expensive sports car convertibles with the top down. Their motive is transparent: Look at me, I’m successful. More successful than you.
The problem is that, unless you’re Elon Musk, there’s always somebody with more. As a result, if you base your self worth on your net worth, you will always feel like you’re not enough. Morgan Housel puts it this way in The Psychology Money:
The ceiling of social comparison is so high that virtually no one will ever hit it. Which means that it’s a battle that can never be won, or that the only way to win is to not fight to begin with – to accept that you might have enough, even if it’s less than those around you (42).
Many people are driven to make a lot of money not because of what the money can do for them but to prove their worth to themselves and others. This is how our society measures people and so this is what most people set out to accomplish.
But it can become a trap. No matter how much you have, it never feels like enough and as a result you never feel like you’re enough. You spend your whole life trying to accumulate more to prove your worth but you never reach the point where you have enough, or more to the point, feel like you’re enough.
What is the way out?
Money is important. It’s not the root of all evil as the Bible would have it. But it’s not the root of all good either as Ayn Rand has Francisco D’Anconia say in his speech on money in Atlas Shrugged.
Money is a means to procure the things you need survive and thrive. It can also give you a measure of control over your time. These are essential to a good life.
But we seem to have lost the thread. Our culture no longer seems to realize that there is more to life than money. Health, family, friendship, community, spiritual and intellectual pursuits, fun: There are many other components to a flourishing life.
Keynes had it right when he concluded his essay “Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren” with this:
But, chiefly, do not let us overestimate the importance of the economic problem, or sacrifice to its supposed necessities other matters of greater and more permanent significance. It should be a matter for specialists – like dentistry. If economists could manage to get themselves thought of as humble, competent people, on a level with dentists, that would be splendid!
By all means work hard and make money. But don’t spend your life accumulating as much as you can to prove to others and yourself that you’re enough. No amount of money will ever be able to do that.
