I’m horrified by the violent turmoil going on around us these days. Without getting overly simplistic about it, I think that one aspect of these conflicts and indeed, all global conflicts is greed. People in positions of authority are seeking more land, power, influence or riches.
These leaders are greedy and they can’t be satisfied with what they have. Conversely, some leaders might simply be defending what they have from those who want to take it away from them. They might be so attached to their land, power or money that they won’t give up even a little bit of it, for the sake of stability and peace.
Greed is a complex but ubiquitous human emotion. Greed makes us continually want more. We can’t be satisfied with what we have. We must try to take it from others. Chaos and destruction ensue.
But what’s at the root of greed? Can we become less greedy and more peaceful? I have a few ideas about this.
Greed comes, I believe, from a fundamental psychological error: the notion that happiness, peace and security come from external things. Individuals accumulate ever more money and possessions in the mistaken belief that having more will create safety and contentment. But it won’t.
In fact, recent studies out of Harvard University demonstrate that it brings us more happiness to spend our money on others and share our possessions than to accumulate more and more. Sharing creates meaningful connections with others, which is far more conducive to happiness than having more money and more stuff.
We can get so over-loaded with money and possessions that they stop having a positive effect on us. The same Harvard study found that buying fewer things makes us appreciate what we have more, and that when we defer our purchases it makes these things feel more special. The more we have, the less meaningful it all seems.
When we look outside ourselves for happiness, seeing money and things as the answer, it sets up a psychological mechanism that’s just the same as addiction. Any external object or activity can become addictive if we see it as the answer to our deepest unmet needs.
In the case of greed, we crave money and things; we accumulate more and more; initially, we feel some pleasure and satisfaction, but then we develop a tolerance to the effects; ultimately we indulge our craving as much as we’re able but we’re left wanting more and more yet feeling less and less fulfilled.
What we need to see is that greed is no more the answer to our needs than alcohol, drugs or junk food. We must turn away from external solutions in our search for contentment and security and look inward, where the real answers lie.
For true inner peace, contentment and security we need a life filled not with stuff but with meaning: meaningful relationships, pastimes and experiences. We need work that’s challenging and fulfilling; we need to make a contribution to our society; we need to feel a sense of belonging in our community.
Greed begets more greed, as it leaves us feeling more empty and more hungry. Instead of providing us with peace, it creates envy and aggression. We look to others who have “more” and we want it, believing that having “more” will finally do the trick.
Wars are waged in order to get what the other guy has, but the only thing accomplished is devastation. The winner doesn’t win. All that they’ve lost in their quest to have “more” can never compensate for the meagre pay-off they receive.
The impulse of greed comes from a primitive part of the psyche: the voracious, insatiable urge to consume. In the 21st century, can we not rise above our base impulses and see that endlessly consuming is not and has never been the answer to happiness and well-being?
Of course, we need a certain amount of money and things for our basic comfort and safety, and I’m all for creating a beautiful environment to live in, but our endless indulgence in greed is leading us away from happiness and toward meaninglessness, emptiness, competition, aggression and destruction.
Greed is not good. It never has been. We can choose to be motivated by the desire for a meaningful existence, rather than the desire for more money and things. This higher type of motivation is what will bring us happiness and fulfillment; it’s what will save our souls, save our lives and save our world.
Subscribe here to my free monthly newsletter, Wisdom Wednesday for wellness tips and more about creating happiness and wellness in 2015.