After years of watching A Christmas Carol, I never before realized how much we have become a society of Scrooge.
We all spend our lives endlessly striving for better jobs, bigger houses, and nicer toys, all so we can live the fantasy life that we all imagine (just like Scrooge).
We are so obsessed with wealth and obtaining more stuff that we have basically become blind to everything (and everyone) else in the world that does not serve that purpose (sound familiar?).
We treat the elderly like a nuisance, the homeless like an eyesore, and the sick and needy like a drain on our time and taxes. As a whole, we are selfish and self-indulgent and we mostly only care for how we can improve our lives and those closest to us.
Essentially, we have all become our own versions of Scrooge.
The charitable minority
Of course, just like in the story there are those of us that have chosen to ignore societies commercial persuasions and lead more kind-hearted generous lives.
These selfless individuals remind us that there are more important things in the world than making money and gaining success.
In the story though, it seems like Scrooge is the minority and the world is full of merry people who want to spread joy and cheer to others. In reality, it seems things are far closer to the opposite.
So the question then becomes, do we chose to be part of our miser society or do we strive for a life with more substance?
Avoiding ghosts
Instead of waiting around for 3 ghosts to torture me into repentance, I wanted to take this December to try and do something positive with my time.
Rather than pinning away in my office working solely for my own personal gain, I focused on creating as much social gain as I could.
I volunteered, raised money, advocated for charities, and promoted the needs of those less fortunate. And here, at the end of the month, I realized an interesting thing had happened.
Even though I was working less and giving more, I actually got far more value out of this month than any other.
The 10x value of social capital
By donating only the smallest amount of my time I found was making a massive impact on those that needed it.
Whether it was scooping soup at the Gospel Mission or helping distribute hampers at the local Food Bank, I could tell I was making a profound difference in people’s lives.
I got to know others that were striving to make a difference and I received a harsh education of the suffering happening in my city.
Even though my profits for the month didn’t change, my personal value did. Not only did I feel really great about the time I had invested but I was more connected me to my community than I had ever been before.
A new social Scrooge
At the end of the Christmas Carol story, we see Scrooge turn over a new leaf and make his business about the business of mankind.
Although some might think that he gave away all his riches to make up for his mistakes, I would argue that Scrooge’s business more likely became more profitable than ever before.
By focusing on social practices rather than scrupulous capitalism, Scrooge would have created a positive social platform that would have only served to gain him more business.
Such is the same in today’s society. Even though my businesses didn’t see any impact to its bottom line, I have gotten many positive comments and connections.
This is the business model of the future and I believe, the best way to avoid becoming the cratchety old miser we all hate.
By building a business model of people. profit, and planet, we can strike a balance between community and capitalism and hopefully avoid becoming a bah humbug society.
