What is money? October 18, 2008
Posted by Visionary in Life, Perception, Philosphy, belief, capitalism, ethics, government, morality, politics, religion, self help.Tags: belief, capitalism, ethics, government, hope, Life, morality, Perception, Philosphy, politics, religion, self help
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Money is something we use every day so we might take for granted that we know what it is. Our parents, if they did their job properly spent a lot of time and energy explaining the use, function and importance of money to us from an early age. Our society and economies depend on it. Our food on the table depends on it, as does our health, homes and increasingly our status and our happiness and sense of fulfilment. Its association with our well being is bound up with the alternative names we use for money such as bread and dough.
Given how much our lives revolve around it I wonder how many people have ever stopped to ask them selves this very simple question – What exactly is money? It may sound trite and silly but if you can spare the time, please spend a few minutes now thinking about how you would define what money is. Excuse the awful pun but can you sum up money in a phrase using 8 words or less that captures money’s true essence, can be used to describe all its uses and can’t be simplified any further?
Common answers to this question include; a means of exchange, a token of value, a way of buying goods, a way of buying services or a virtual representation of material goods. There are many different possible explanations and all of them are of course valid descriptions of what money is. Yes it is a token of value; it has whatever value we assign to it. Yes we can use it to buy things or services from someone. However, to distil the answer to its simplest form, we must ask ourselves this question; when buying anything from another human being, what is it we are actually paying for. The answer is the same for every single thing we buy.
Let’s ask another question to get us thinking; why do you buy things at all? Every item or service you buy, you could in reality make or do for yourself. You don’t have to buy food you could grow it yourself. You don’t need to buy a tool you could make it yourself. You don’t need to pay a builder to build your house you could build it yourself. So why do we chose to pay other people for things we could do ourselves?
The simple answer is time. As mortals, human beings are limited by the amount of time we have available to us. By specialising in a particular skill, we can become more proficient and efficient at what we do. This allows us to make or do what ever we specialise in much faster and to a higher level of proficiency. Thus saving us time and resulting in a higher quality product or service.
Take food as an example. To grow food we would first need some land. We would then need to learn how to grow vegetables, what time of year to plant the seeds, the right seeds for our soil type and the right methods of soil management. We would need to spend time preparing the ground, planting the seeds and tending them for months until they were ready to harvest. We would then need to harvest and store the food until we needed it. Also, we would need to invest either time or money in getting the right tools to do the job. All of which takes a huge investment in time and is built on the thousands of years of time our ancestors invested in learning those specialised skills to pass on to their descendents interested in specialising in those same skills.
In short, when we buy food, instead of growing our own, we are actually paying for someone else’s time. The centuries that humanity has invested in learning the specialised skills, the years the farmer spent learning his or her trade, the investment they made buying land and tools and the time they put into producing the food.
The same is true of every single thing we might think about buying. At the root of every transaction involving money, what we are actually buying is the other person’s time. The old proverb “time is money” is in a sense true and so money is time. To take this one step further and to a slightly more spiritual level, the simplest and truest definition of what money is that I can come up with is this
Money is token for life force.
Why this definition is important will become apparent as this Blog evolves. The next article in this series can be found here – What Financial Crisis
Nice writing. You are on my RSS reader now so I can read more from you down the road.
Allen Taylor
Hi Visionary,
Fascinating stuff, too true – how no one thinks about the meaning of money (just how to get more of it ; ) ).
I like the specialisation bit, too. I am currently out of work, trying to find my passion, I guess I could rephrase my quest thus. Who will pay for which of my individual speciality skills?
Another interesting aspect in this day and age is the equation with value. Which values may we try to buy with money, that actually come for free? Or, have we overspecialized in certain areas, spending money on things that are more valuable if we spent our own direct life force growing? I am thinking about relationships, family and how we define love.
The third thing that comes to my mind is, how the current global financial crisis links the Western world (Europe, US) to China: it’s Chinese money that we’ve borrowed, it is! So, is China the global life force bank?
Thank you for this inspiration. Best regards,
Tess
Hi again Tess,
Thanks for another intuitive comment.
I too am out of work yet again and have been out of my specialised profession for five years now. I finally admitted to myself that I was no longer enjoying what I was doing. When I did, I realised that all my career decisions for at least the previous ten years had been based on what would bring me more money and not more happiness or contentment. In terms of achieving my goals, I was extremely successful. I had lots of money and no contentment or fulfilment.
I’m sure you already know what your passionate about, I get a sense of it from your writing. The tough question our current system forces you to ask yourself is ‘is there a way you can make money from it’. You might be interested to read this article that I wrote when I was considering this specific aspect of society. I too am at the point of trying to find how I can make a living from my unique talents in a world with very fixed views about what is of value and what isn’t.
The raison d’etre of this blog is to share a Vision with the world of just how much the direction we are taking as a species is pre-determined by our current value system. I hold an amazing Vision of how unbelievably different things could be for humanity if we could change the framework within which we are forcing ourselves to operate every day.
Money no longer serves its intended purpose, which is why its important to remind our selves what it was supposed to be. I wrote this article specifically to pave the way for another article I am writing at the moment about how the framework we call money really works today. It explains why the current Global financial crisis was not only predictable over 300 years ago but absolutely inevitable. When you have read the article you will understand why China is only a pawn in a much larger game. It may be the current leader on the board but it is by no means in control of it’s own destiny China is as much a slave of the system as the rest of us.
Keep them coming Tess your on a roll.
Quite fascinating. I can’t say that money buys or sells our own time 100 percent of the time; i.e., there are some things that we may not be able to do ourselves, like produce breast milk for some women and all men. If we look at animals and their form of bartering, then perhaps we might discover the root definition of money. But in retrospect; animals do not barter, do they? So my definition for money is as follows.
A means of bartering for that which we want or need but refuse to give away freely; often even to our selves.
PLL, CordieB.
[...] What is money, Visionary ’s views on his Save Our Species [...]
Thanks again V for sharing all that so freely. Without knowing your Vision yet, I am already almost a believer! (then I saw her face..) Very curious to what you’re working on. Dont hold off posting it because of the last 20% now! I imagine slips of the pen and mind make for interesting and usually enriching sidetracks.
And yes, your true observation that we are on a similar road (cant boast having made that much money, though!) makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside!
@CordieB: fascinating definition – especially the “to our selves”-bit. Rings very true to me. Although I would rewrite, especially to ourselves.
Love to you both!
@CordieB – I am meditating on your comment before I reply. My intuition tells me that money is a token for time. There is a reason why this is important. You aren’t the first to raise the subject of unique abilities though so thanks for giving me food for thought.
@Tinkabell – I am working on it now and rest assured you will see it here first. By the way, I forgot to include the link to this article about value in my comment above.
Love V
Allen
Thanks for the compliment and sorry its taken me so long to reply. For some reason Akismet put your comment in my spam queue and I only just noticed.
@CordieB
Sorry for the delay but there is a lot going on in the Blog world right now all demanding attention. I have been meditating on the point you raised though and I’m ready to reply.
As with the majority of mature systems we have in place today, there is a big discrepancy between the need that money evolved to meet and what the system is being used for now.
Money cannot be a ‘means of bartering’ as bartering existed long before money was thought of. Even when bartering for goods instead of money, people were free to give something freely or ask for something in return. The important thing to realise is that money represents something that allows us to barter more easily. It is of vital importance to understand what exactly money represents if we are to have a hope of fixing the mess the monetary system is currently in.
Whilst some individuals have unique talents and abilities that others cannot replicate, this does not represent the normal transaction that money evolved to represent. In the age when money was invented, unique abilities were of much lower importance than food on the table and shelter from the elements. If a woman couldn’t produce her own breast milk, she wouldn’t be able to go and barter for a bottle of milk from a local shop that she could then give to her baby in the comfort and privacy of her own cave. She would have to find another woman who was lactating, didn’t need the milk for her own children and was prepared to give her time by sitting and feeding your baby for 20 minutes 6 times a day. That’s a huge time commitment for someone else’s child.
Another early example of a specialised skill that was highly valued by primitive peoples was the shaman or healer. Before money was invented, the Shaman would still have needed food and shelter. He could have spent his time hunting and gathering and building a tent or hut like everyone else in the community but this would have left him with no time to practice what he was good at and that no one else in the community could do. In a true community, before money was invented, the others in the community would have taken on the burden of providing food and shelter for the shaman. In other words, members of the community would have given their time in order to free up the shamans time to allow to do what he was best at healing and guiding the community.
Once money had been created, it became possible for individuals to profit from all kinds of unique abilities. However, if you do not posses a unique ability ultimately the only thing you have to offer is your time. Ultimately everything that exists was paid for with time.
Goodmorning V!
I came here today wondering if your follow up article was ready – impatient, I know! Instead, I find your answer to CordieB. Very interesting, too. I hope you don’t mind my budding in, putting in my thoughts.
The reason money would make bartering easier is fairly easy to see, once you describe it like that. It’s the time/planning factor, isn’t it? You can get a token representing the egg’s worth in corn (for example), if you don’t need all the corn you could get for the eggs. You still have to get rid of the eggs! Also, you can postpone the decision of what to get for your eggs. So, with money you get the possibility of delaying your purchase, and also the freedom of deciding what to purchase later on. Both resulting in saving value for an indefinite amount of time. Not to mention the freedom of taking your value with you wherever you go, making travel possible. You would have to carry far less if you had money (still true for smart packers). This way, money starts functioning as a market opener: markets that were limited by location or by time (things that go off soon) could be opened.
The breastfeeding example speaks to me, too. 6×20 mins/day? Try the first weeks, essential for survival: 8 to 10 feeds of up to 60 mins each – that’s a huge time investment, even for your own child! No wonder infant mortality was so high in those days! And no wonder rich people did get a “nurse” for their baby when they could or would not lactate – can we see some of the disempowering power of money here? Sure, the whole nursing started as a solution for women who could not nurse themselves, but there must have been wealthy trendfollowers who did it out of a desire for status).
The problem both these examples point to, in my mind, is how the freedom money creates, may act as a knife to cut through relationship ties. If we’ve all got enough money to take care of ourselves, how will we stay connected? Through financial dependencies only? This is a major question in my mind recently.
Thank you for eliciting that thought in my mind. Don’t let my rambles deter you, though, I am waiting for the follow up on this article! (why is China a pawn just like Europe? Questions, questions, that I am keen to hear your take on!).
Love Tess
PS Shamans, yes! How different do we look upon those we (have to) care for, now. Talking ’bout the elderly and how we throw them away. Then again, shamans must have had enemies, too!
Hi Tess,
I’m sorry I haven’t written the sequel yet but I promise I haven’t forgotten. My kids have been at home for the last two weeks with half term school holidays which has had a major impact on my writing time.
Having read your comment above though, I’m really glad that I didn’t write the next chapter before you got to read my reply to Cordie. It seems that dropping a few hints was enough for your intuition to work with to figure it out for yourself.
Whilst I could just write in simple terms explaining what my Vision shows me it will serve no purpose unless I can find a way to make it speak to other people too. So it was absolutely wonderful to to see where you managed go with this by yourself with just the few seeds the comment to Cordie planted in your mind. So please don’t ever stop sharing your thoughts and feelings, were all in this together and we all have to take responsibility if we want it to be different.
You’re right about money affecting relationships. Whilst it’s purpose was to make transactions more simple and fluid, a side affect of having enough money to buy everything we want from a shop can lead to the illusion that we no longer need other people. However, this masks the reality that all that money is actually buying is other peoples time. If other people didn’t exist or refused to accept our money we would find out again very quickly that his feelings of independence is an illusion.
Maybe you should write your own article on this if its something that you’ve been thinking about?
I’m taking a short surfing break in Cornwall now the kids are back at school. I promise that I will use the time alone to write the sequel over the next few days.
Love V
Hi Tess. . . you’ve left me wondering what would our connection be if it were not for a bartering system. . . . I must ponder this. Thanks for awakening my mind this morning!
Peace, Light and Love to you and yours. . .
An excellent question Cordie. I would love to hear where your thoughts take you.
Love V
Hi V!
Yeah, I know, getting anything done with kids around – forget it! I would be nowhere if our little boy didn’t go to daycare 4 days a week. And feel he’s well looked after and enjoying himself.
I have been thinking about an article (series, intervention of some sort) myself, of course! but I hesitate. It seems like such a controversial topic and – well I’m just scared I guess. For seeming like a know-it-all, or something. Whereas I think the question is fascinating, and due. Also what you say when you write “whilst I could just write in simple terms explaining what my Vision shows me it will serve no purpose unless I can find a way to make it speak to other people too,” resonates with me. It’s the whole change thing isn’t it? You want people to find out for themselves. Draw their own conclusions – or rather, come to your conclusions in their own time and way. Hmmm… slippery slope there. I always hated teachers asking ‘driving’ questions, and kept wanting them to just say what they wanted to hear instead of trying to manipulate someone else into saying it. If you know what I mean.
I guess one option would be to write the article/chapter as a real question. Start out with something really personal that made you think about it. The situation that put the question in your mind, originally. Put forth some tentative answers or directions of thought.Then ask your readership how they feel… o no! that’s more or less what you did
.
Another direction would be, to provide alternative behavior options for a lifestyle that does not revolve around money, but around different values instead. Such as authenticity, connectedness, beauty, love, kindness. Showcasing them, making them really attractive/glamorous/sexy. I tried my hand at this at eurocracy.wordpress.com, another blog (pretty stealth so far, more a private playground) that I have been writing, on and off. I am not really pleased with the results, however feel free to check it out and comment if you wish.
Finally, I keep thinking the solution focused paradigm (solutionfocusedchange.blogspot.com) should be able to provide some clues for a succesful change – should give that one some more thought, myself.
Wonderful encouraging words again, V, glad to know we’re in this together : ). I’ll let you know how I get on, if, at all- I’ve been reworking my blog and cranking up the level of jobhunting activities, so pretty busy all in all. Trying to keep a focus on priorities, finding someone who’ll pay for something I love doing is still nr. 1! Fingers crossed in faith it can be done! Then comes home and family life, a close second. Of course blogging comes next. If for nothing else, for the wonderful motivation I haul in scoops at a time : D
Makes me happy!
@Cordie, glad to be of help awakening! Glad to hear you chiming in on a regular basis!
Going to sleep now, myself (yawn!) – Flo slept through the first time last night, we’re hoping its his new routine (again, fingers crossed!).
Good night and clarity to your mind, warmth to your heart and soul!
Tess, it really does seem like we’re on a similar path. My articles about Self Acceptance and the Nature of Genius were my first attempts at coming to terms with my own fear about seeming to ‘know it all’.
The simple fact is though that there is no reason why you or I can’t have noticed something that no one else has yet, after all someone has to be the first. Or maybe lots of people have noticed it already but just like you and I, currently lack the courage to stand up and talk about what they’ve seen. Maybe starting to talk about what you ‘know’ will provide the vehicle for others to find the courage to speak too.
I will take a look at your other blogs – thanks.
Love V
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