I have long suspected that to be a good person in today’s society is an act of rebellion. There are so many voices out there asking us to be greedy, to be selfish, to follow the crowd and not any higher law- it seems an absolute necessity to learn to tune out those voices and tune into these higher voices, to our own hearts.
This is hardly an original idea. Countless religious believers and other members of various countercultures have found a need to withdraw from The World in order to rise above it, or even to still be in the world, but not of it. As someone who has never been much of a joiner, who would never join a religious cult or a commune, I would like to propose this idea- that for an ordinary person to succeed within a capitalist system, it is most advantageous to rebel against some of the things it promotes for ordinary people- most specifically, consumerism. To be in the capitalist world, but not completely of it.
Of course someone can become fantastically successful within the capitalist system by starting a company that becomes wildly successful, like Bill Gates or Jeff Bezos, or become a successful athlete or entertainer, and live a luxurious lifestyle of excess consumption, glamour and fame. However, especially for entrepreneurs, the old Protestant Work Ethic emphasizes, in addition to hard work, living below your means, and saving and investing the surplus- which explains why Bill Gates or Warren Buffett have lifestyles less flashy than many celebrities. The Protestant Work Ethic, as Max Weber suggested in the title of his most famous book, is indeed “The Spirit of Capitalism”, and it works on many levels.
What I propose is a revival of this living below your means aspect of the old PWE, an aspect that was essentially abolished for ordinary people (but still followed by many entrepreneurs) by the rise of the modern advertising industry in the 1920s, when it was decided that further growth in an economy that was reaching the point that the basic needs of most people were being met could only come if people were induced into spending more money, into buying more goods and services.
Ordinary people were of course still expected to work hard, but not for their own enrichment- but for the enrichment of others- for their employers as always, but now, in addition, to those who wanted to sell them more stuff. That is their assigned role in our economy. Negotiating for better pay from your employer, either individually or through a union, has always been a good idea- in addition we must rebel against consumerism by buying less stuff. Why accept our assigned role? We will then invest our surplus, grow our wealth, and have more freedom to retire early, work less, take lower paying but more satisfying work, start our own businesses- in other words, to have more freedom.
It can start by thinking of ourselves as CEOs of our own lives. I am the co- CEO of Marshall Inc., and my job is to grow by increasing our income and reducing our expenses. My wife and I do not need a house any bigger than the 1440 square foot rambler we have now, and our cars just need to get us where we need to go, nothing more. Status means nothing. Since we are a private company, with no outside shareholders clamoring for growth, we can choose to remain small, to not increase our income- to be satisfied with what we have. Our wealth, being tied to investments in the larger economy, may continue to grow as the economy grows, which means we can have the best of both worlds- a stable lifestyle, but increased wealth that will go back out into the world when we die, either through charitable contributions, and/or to nieces and nephews, since we have no children of our own.
It is for these reasons that, despite my leftist tendencies, I still have some faith in the capitalist system. If you are further to the left, and are a socialist at heart, perhaps a realization that you do still live and work in a capitalist system will encourage you to participate in the rebellious ways I have mentioned. Some people I know refuse to invest in the stock market for moral reasons- hopefully you all can find alternative investments that still give a decent return, a way to put your surplus to work building a new system and still getting at least some return. Or not, if that is what you prefer. I suspect, however, that you will have no trouble with resisting the siren call of consumerism, with living below your means- and no doubt most if not all of you already do.
That’s the beauty of living below your means- you can do it because you are an old fashioned believer in the Protestant Work Ethic, and use it to succeed in the capitalist system in traditional ways- or you can do it because you are a rebel. The only alternative is to be a sucker- to play your assigned role, and help others get rich.
It’s your choice!
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This Post is republished on Medium.
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Photo credit: iStock
