Category: Daily updates

Accomplishments are probably the best possessions.

Physical things are a pain. They constrict where you can live, since they take up space and are a bother to relocate. They are always at risk of being stolen, burned, destroyed by water, or otherwise rendered worthless. Many of them break or become useless simply through the passage of time – a fate that is particularly likely for anything electronic or technological. They do confer enjoyment and social status, but do so to less and less of a degree as one acquires more and more of them.

Financial resources are also insecure. They do provide their owners with some measure of security, since they have means of responding to many different types of crisis. At the same time, they are always at risk themselves: at risk of being rendered worthless by inflation; at being taken away by well-meaning redistributionists, criminal governments, or ordinary thieves; and at risk of being lost or rendered worthless as part of a general societal catastrophe, such as a major war or ecological collapse.

While accomplishments cannot be called upon directly in the way a bicycle or a savings bond can, they are the basis for non-pathological self-esteem. Sure, there are people who think themselves to be superstars for tautological reasons (“I believe I am the greatest human ever, therefore I must be!”). Perhaps having a bit of that is even personally helpful or beneficial. Ultimately, though, one’s accomplishments are a more objective measure of both absolute and relative human worth. They are also part of a set of experiences that forms the basis for good judgment, though good judgment is probably something that is generated more in response to failures than in response to successes.

In the end, it seems sensible that people should prioritize the achievement of things, rather than the accumulation of either financial or other assets. One should have enough physical possessions to be able to make the most of day-to-day life: getting around and undertaking the various activities that are necessary and enjoyable. Similarly, one should have sufficient financial resources to meet one’s needs, those of one’s dependents, and those that may arise from misfortune. Once that level is met, however, it is probably healthier and more human to keep pushing out the boundary of one’s accomplishments, rather than expanding the sphere of one’s material or financial possessions.