Once in a while the guys and I end up in these philosophical debates when we're on our beer spree. The subject of discussion is usually quite ridiculous and just to give you an idea of how drunk we are, a few examples are:
- "Does one love with the heart or the head?" (Yes. This one is as stupid as it gets)
- "What is the Meaning of Life?" (This subject is way too common, and the debate is usually quite boring)
- "How are Men different from Women" (Discussions on this subject are usually limited to the genitals and if you knew my friends, it's probably not hard to see why)
But recently we got into a very interesting discussion, which is decided to write about. During one of these beer sessions, a certain friend of mine suddenly made a statement that I didn't quite agree with. After taking a huge gulp, which looked like almost half the bottle to me, he said, "Money is everything in this world and if you don't have money then you're lost. You may be a good person and all, but you're lost." I'm not sure if it was a reflex action, but I began to refute this statement almost instantly. The conversation then went into a You vs. Me debate that didn't eventually lead anywhere and was soon forgotten by everyone, everyone except me. On one of my nostalgic 90 minute drives to work I started wondering about what this friend had said and wondered if there was any truth in that statement. I wanted to be neutral and logically come to a conclusion as to whether that statement was accurate or completely absurd. After a while of thinking, I felt that the answered lied in the two very important points of discussion. First there is upbringing, i.e. the way you've been raised as a child. The way your family, has conditioned your ability to think, has conditioned you value systems, your morals etc. The second is priorities; this includes a list of your priorities and more importantly the order in which you prioritize them. I realized the reason I jumped to negate my friend's opinion was that according to my upbringing, my priorities were slightly different from his. My priorities, simply put are (in order of importance) as follows:
- Values/Morals/Ethics
- Intelligence/Personality
- Money
Now don't get me wrong, having money at number three doesn't mean that I'm not ambitious and eager to be successful in life. It's just that I think there are other things that need to be ranked higher than money in my books. Why? Well let's see, let's start with values, morals, and ethics. For starters, they help shape your personality. I believe your values largely determine whether you'll turn out to be a nice guy, a cunning person, a prick, spineless wimp, bold and forward, a sexist asshole etc.
Intelligence/Personality, do I even need to explain? Do you honestly think that one would want to rank money higher than this? Well if my friend said money was the most important thing I'll bet 100 bucks wisdom isn't on his list at all. But now that I think about it, I wouldn't be surprised if he isn't the only one like this.
"The lack of money is the root of all evil." True or False?
1 comment:
In the order of priority:
1. Family
2. Work
3. Money
Got my values and morals from Family, hence will always place them at the top of my priority list.
Family also taught me that one should never compromise their integrity. I get my salary because I am supposed to work and work well at that. Hence, my value system dictates I place it 2nd on my list of priorities.
I also realised after I started working that I was putting in my 150% at work (just as I was brought up to do...)and I am doing it for growth, self actualization and MONEY!
Afterall, money makes the world go around :)
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