We’re currently in the process of looking for speakers for our next event on the theme of Work/Money. The third of three sub-themes we want to explore within the theme is Work, Money, and Perception.
Our world is full of work and money “myths.” We have ingrained perceptions on what it takes to make money, who has it, how to properly manage it, and more. Some will extoll the virtues of hard work as a means to make money, others might think a lack of ethics is the fastest path to riches. We have perceptions about “good debt vs bad debt,” and to what degree freedom or security can be better found through entrepreneurship or steady employment.
Many aspects of our work/money paradigm are worth questioning but are very rarely put to the test. Is it truly necessary to work 40 hours a week? Is capitalism the “best we’ve got”? What does it mean to carry debt or run a deficit? Why do we even believe in the value of printed pieces of paper or numbers on a screen anyways?
In our places of employment there are unspoken rules about everything from sharing salary information, when you can push back on workload, or how much of your personal life is allowed to effect your role in the office. Outside of work, it often considered rude or uncomfortable to talk about money. Friends and family fight over money and hold resentments with few trusted social norms to regulate how these disputes get managed.
Many of us have emotional baggage around work and money. Even millionaires can find themselves living in fear of “not having enough,” while others of us might resign ourselves to a life of always “being bad with money.” We hold ourselves to expected norms and avoid confronting ingrained emotions, all of which leading to a normalization of unhealthy behaviors around work and money in our lives.
On a more philosophical level, it’s been posited that capitalism exists as a quasi-religion in our world, replete with its own values, dogmas, and morality. Socialism and supply side economics have their ardent supporters, both generally arguing more from a gut sense of what’s right than empirical data. Some might even argue that economics is a speculative practice since it’s impossible to create truly controlled environments from which theories can be tested.
What mindsets guide us when it comes to work and money? Do these mindsets actually serve us? What happens when these mindsets are challenged?
How do our ideas about social change intertwine with work and money? Can we believe in market based solutions, like b corps and conscious capitalism, or is an equitable and sustainable world going to require a wholesale rethinking of the entire system?
For this sub theme we’d be especially interested in anybody who has challenged the standard conventions of how we operate with Work and Money in our world. What inspired the action? What was the outcome? Has it led to a change in thinking, an improvement in life, or were there unintended consequences?
If you think you have a story for this theme, we’d love to hear from you. The link to the speaker submission form is below. Please share this with anybody else who you feel would make a good speaker too.