The older I get, the more of life I experience, the more I come to recognize the vast and disproportionate value of security, in the socio-economic sense of the word. Having a Good Job. Having safe housing. Having dental insurance. Having a bit of money put aside that you can throw at any moderate unexpected problem that might arise. Having a role in society that is generally considered respectable. Having the majority of people you encounter every day not look down on you. Simply being able to do, without drama or a second thought, whatever small and harmless thing you want to do, whether it's having a long hot shower, or making love to the consenting adult of your choice, or dyeing your hair red, or enjoying a glass of wine before bed.
The older I get, the more of life I experience, the more I enjoy doing what socio-economic security I do have and enjoy being empowered to do these kinds of small and harmless things that you can't always do (or at least not without drama) when you don't have socio-economic security, the more I become convinced that the benefits of socio-economic security are exponentially greater than any investment required to achieve it. I've already blogged about how I think the best way to help consumer confidence (and therefore economic recovery) is the perception among the general population that their jobs are safe. I've also found that the more social acceptance and less social censure I receive, the less defensive and more socially pleasant I become (which snowballs into even more social acceptance and less social censure), and I'm also in a better position to truly see and respect other people's points of view when I don't feel defensive about my own. I also find that in general, having a sense of my place in the world makes me a more productive citizen of the world. For most of my life, the world was a blur of confusion, swirling around me in an impenetrable mass of unwritten rules and unspoken expectations and uncertain futures. But the more socio-economic security I achieved, the more this blur came into focus. Instead of stumbling through a fog, it's more like walking down a busy street. Still lots going on, still lots of unknowns, but I have a better sense of what they are. Instead of using all my energy on not falling into unseen traps, I can spend some of it on inventing stuff and learning things and thinking about the societal implications of my choices. It's all very Maslowian.
So, thinking about all this, I think it would be fascinating if someone could quantify the ROI of providing people with socio-economic security. What would we have to invest to give everyone safety, a respectable place in society, and the leeway they need so that an innocent mistake or stroke of bad luck won't ruin them and so that they can enjoy harmless indulgences often enough to keep morale up? And what kinds of benefits would we gain from it?
6 comments:
I wonder, though, if this holds for extroverted risk-takers, who may also be the ones laying everyone else off--unless very secure-feeling risk-averse introverts are responsible.
So you're suggesting that extroverted risk-takers don't feel any particular benefit when their socio-economic security increases? Can you articulate why they wouldn't?
Perhaps they do feel a benefit, but they're willing to risk it to an extent that risk-averse introverts--who view socio-economic security solely as an end in itself--are not. Perhaps it's a matter of degree rather than kind, with extroverted risk-takers regarding socio-economic security as a means as well as an end under certain circumstances.
I am risk-taker, and although I don't subscribe to the intro/extro dichtomy, people would probably consider me an extrovert.
FWIW, I've had a very similar trajectory of growth. I hugely appreciated that socio-economic security when I had it, and a drop in that security for an appreciable amount of time has driven me to great lengths to try to re-acquire it. And my economic well-being didn't slip by as much as many people's.
I'm not sure risk-taking has much to do with this. Everyone needs a certain level of security and comfort in order to take risks.
I also reject the idea that extroverted risk-takers are "the ones laying everyone else off". What is that supposition based on?
But more to your original point, I think the societal ROI on economic security is massive - just like the societal ROI on public health care and public education. I wish we could achieve it for everyone.
@Anon: If socio-economic security is merely a means to an end, then what is the end?
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