GoHuman Blog » Balancing Greed and Good

Balancing Greed and Good

As we watch the fallout of Capitalism gone wild, and what it does to those who indulge their greed and lust for power, it’s important to remember that the little choices we make along the way are determinate of big choices we would make if we were in those positions.

In this light I read an interesting article in the May, 2009 Ode (the magazine for intelligent optimists). You have to love the tag-line, as the editors are aware that they are at risk of being called naive. You can check out the article “Getting to the Heart of Money” online.

Two choice examples used are an Israeli day care that implemented late fees and found parents were more motivated by common courtesy and perception than money, and volunteers collecting more for charities than those paid to canvas. Bruno Frey, economist at the University of Zurich maintains “People are much more altruistic than standard economics claims,” and lays down the following gauntlet: “The challenge is for economists to nurture this intrinsic motivation instead of crowding it out.”

At GoHuman.com we’re working to attract people to the vision of a better marketplace, that not only helps small businesses reduce marketing costs, improve branding, and grow their customer base, but ensures those who care about making things better are also rewarded for their contributions and the value they create.

We thank those of you who are already on board, and hope to continue this dialogue as a reality check on how we’re doing in maintaining this delicate balance. We view our members, customers, supporters and co-owners as mirrors that keep the operators honest, to ensure that the small choices we make today are in line with the philosophy of creating a transparent market that rewards all contributors in an equitable fashion, no matter when they joined or what positions they hold.

Let us know how we’re doing!

money_morality

This entry was posted by Wade Fransson on Monday, October 12th, 2009 at 8:40 AM

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Tags: accountability, Altruism, Business, community, finance, GoHuman, Greed, monetization, social, Vision, Wade

http://www.astekweb.com aswindler

You raise some fascinating points. I’ve always believed that people are more intrinsically altruistic than common wisdom would say, but I also understand how and why people are motivated by money. This doesn’t make everyone greedy, it’s just a fact of human nature that we want to be valued in the eyes of our neighbor, and the clearest, most standardized method to demonstrate that value is payment.

I think we’re on the right track to balance the need to survive (e.g., make a living) with the need to thrive (do the right thing for our fellow humans). First we all need to accept that making money for small acts isn’t evil, and then build a community that supports such a flexible economic model.
Eugene

Your first paragraph is completely incomprehensible. Capitalism gone wild?? People indulging their greed?? And then the babble about little choices?? What and to whom are you referring? My God, is your intended audience mind readers? If you begin with meaningless crap how are we to interpret what follows? Moreover, what actually does follow-the Israeli day care center-is again beyond comprehension, especially, as nobody in their right mind would waste their time following you links. I suggest writing your blog BEFORE you smoke week. or shoot up or whatever you do next time. Better yet, don’t write a blog.
http://gohuman.com wade

Eugene,

Thanks for your comment on my blog.

In my first paragraph I’m referring to the string of corporate blow-ups which are detailed in some of my previous blogs, and include Enron, Worldcom, Countrywide, AIG, Bear Stearns, Madoff, … need I go on? I’m also referring to the mega bonuses paid to the leaders of these companies, and other prosecutable crimes, as well as some non-prosecutable behavior, such as Naked Short Selling and TARP fund bailouts, just to name two.

It was not my assumption that my audience are mind readers, but that, with the ability to navigate the Internet to the degree that they can find my blog, and interest in the topics I discuss, that they would have enough familiarity with the economic events of recent years to make these connections.

I’m all for elevating the quality of writing on the Internet, which you seem to be advocating, without adhering to. The main point of my blog was to point out that we all need to be accountable in the little things we do – like deciding what to write in a comment to a blog.
Eugene

Your first paragraph is completely incomprehensible. Capitalism gone wild?? People indulging their greed?? And then the babble about little choices?? What and to whom are you referring? My God, is your intended audience mind readers? If you begin with meaningless crap how are we to interpret what follows? Moreover, what actually does follow-the Israeli day care center-is again beyond comprehension, especially, as nobody in their right mind would waste their time following you links. I suggest writing your blog BEFORE you smoke week. or shoot up or whatever you do next time. Better yet, don't write a blog.