I was watching
the TODAY show last week and overheard an interesting story about Sam Polk, a
man who renounced his strong addiction to money. The headline, “Former ‘wolf’ shuns money,
tackles hunger,” caught my eye because the central theme was philanthropy but
also because it would describe the mentality of a “wolf on wall street.” This man had come into a very rewarding
position on Wall Street and was making millions of dollars; however, he later
gave up his infatuation with money to create a nonprofit, called Groceryships.
In class this
week, we talked a little about they very rich, their inability to donate larger
sums of money and their extravagance. All
of their actions, such as wasting enormous sums of money on yachts instead of
donating, are indeed voluntary and quite deplorable. However, in looking at this article, I also
wonder if the issue goes deeper than just selfishness.
Sam Polk,
whether intentionally or unintentionally, put the issue in the light of
psychology. He refers multiple times to
his love of money as an addiction, an interesting concept. He lived everyday obsessed with when would he receive
his bonuses and constantly compared his rewards to others at the company. While some of the super rich today may not be
as obsessed with the idea, I am certain they are always inadvertently comparing
their wealth with other frontrunners.
By living in an
elite world and having our culture reinforce the idea that, if you have a lot
of money, you are a celebrity, we’ve created a kind of monster. These extremely wealthy individuals gain a lot
of personal satisfaction when they receive a large bonus or when their salary
gives them millions of dollars. It could
be that wanting money and not being able to give it up are difficult habits to
break, much like quitting smoking. Do
you think this addiction exists among most of the super rich? Or was Sam Polk’s addiction a unique
case?
Sam also
mentioned that he was grown up in a house that thought having money would
answer all of life’s problems. He wanted
to be rich since he was 12 years old.
This also brings up another interesting issue. Do you think an individual is more likely to
have this obsession with money if they are born into a wealthy family or if
they are raised like Sam (thinking that to have money would solve everything)?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-tian-dayton/money-addiction_b_221937.html
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your post, I started to see if there was any research done on whether or not money was addictive. I came across this article that discusses how money can trigger the brain in a similar way that drugs, gambling, or other addictive activities do. Also, similarly to how people build a tolerance to drugs, people can also build a tolerance to money in which their salary is never enough. I think in Sam Polk’s case this makes perfect sense because not only does he admit to being obsessed with money, he also suffered from drug use and insecurities as a child. Money was this outside factor that he was able to use to make him feel better about himself. This article I found labeled it as people’s “shadow” in which money could mask these insecurities.
You also brought up the question on whether or not people who are brought up believing that money would solve all their problems would be more likely to be addicted to money. I think yes because when they start to make their own money, they don’t want to have too little to make them feel how they did when they were growing up with little. On the other hand, people who live a more comfortable lifestyle growing up would not see a as much of a need to be obsessed with money if they know that they can live happily with what they currently have.
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DeleteI completely agree with everything you uncovered in your first paragraph. People who have an addiction to gambling and drugs, since it does have an effect on the brain, are sometimes thought to have a “condition.” I believe that extremely wealthy individuals who are unable to part with their wealth may have this to some degree. It is not a serious, diagnosable issue, however, I think it is certainly a trend among the superrich. This leads me to wonder what can be done to break this addiction, an addiction that can be quite formidable? Writing a book and imploring them to engage in philanthropic activities because it is their civic duty might not be enough. In Sam Polk’s case, he had a life-changing revelation where he was able to acknowledge the effects that money was having on his life. What would be an effective way to make the very wealthy have a revelation and persuade them that donating money would be extremely beneficial?
DeleteI also want to provide a counter to what you said in your second paragraph (not because I necessarily don’t agree with it). If an individual grows up in a very wealthy household, they might come to expect a certain standard of living. If they live a more comfortable lifestyle they can get used to the rewards and be unwilling to part with them. This can be the case especially if a child grows up “spoiled” unless their parents are able to instill them with good values (This would look like Verunca from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory). I agree that this is an extreme case but it is an alternative perspective, which is interesting to think about.
I wish I knew the answer to your question about how to convince the super wealthy to donate instead of spending in excess... I'm boggled trying to come up with a solution.
DeleteI agree with what you said in your second paragraph. I didn't think of that case, but it definitely makes sense. I guess the more "middle class" seems to be most likely to not become as obsessed with money as opposed to the other extremes (people with nothing and people who are spoiled with too much). However, this is all generally speaking and of course depends on the individual as well.
This is such a interesting story! It's cool to see someone who went through so much addiction be able to come out of it and really make a difference. Sam Polk is a unique case because he found such a helpful way to come out of his addiction. As for your questions, I don't believe that we can make any generalizations like that. I am sure that middle class people are just as susceptible to becoming addicted to money as the poor or super rich. Even though you both brought up a really good point that on each of the extremes there can be more emphasis on money being the main structure that makes it possible to function and have power.
ReplyDeleteIn a blog I read, the author compares money addicts to drug users. When money addicts have money they feel happy and complete, but when they don't have money (or enough of it) they are miserable and seeking a high just like drug users. Similar to Sam Polk, he was constantly trying to earn more money and reach a "high" higher than the last high.
Money can most definitely be an addiction for some people, no matter what kind of class they were born into or where they live. Addictions come in many forms, and money is just one of the many. Although it may not cause physical harm, it can most definitely cause mental and emotional harm as well as destroy relationships.
http://www.richdad.com/Resources/Rich-Dad-Financial-Education-Blog/October-2013/Breaking-the-Money-Addiction.aspx
Meredith, I do agree that money addiction can exist in any class and I did not mean to suggest it only exists among the rich. I was just interested in exploring the issue among the super rich because of the unique nature of the beast. Most Americans envy their wealth and status, so naturally they get a lot of attention. By putting them in this spotlight we are reinforcing their behavior and making it more difficult for them to part with their money. Essentially, we are strengthening the addiction to money in individuals who are more capable of donating than most other people.
DeleteIt kind of reminds me of Miley Cyrus. She admits that her wild behavior recently is getting her a lot of attention. The attention is making her continue to do unexpected and "interesting" things. While this comparison may not be exact, it exemplifies the effect that society can have. The addiction that the super rich have for their money is heightened and they may find it harder and harder to donate to worthy and needy causes.
I have to say that I agree with Meredith and that we cannot make generalizations about who is addicted to money, for the poor, middle class and the rich can all be addicted to it. Personally, I believe it is more of how an individual person values money and sees its "worth". I placed worth in quotation marks because I do not mean solely the monetary value of money, but rather how money plays a role in one's life. Frankly, the addiction of money is rooted in greed and anyone, no matter their class, can be guilty of greed. Are the rich more likely to be targeted for an addiction to money and greed? Most definitely, simply because they have the money to spend on the excesses of life. I am by no means defending the superrich or shunning the poor, it is just important to know that stereotypes do not always hold water when comparing individuals.
ReplyDeleteI want to address Kaitlin's question about being raised in a wealthy family. Once again, I think that anyone can grow up to have an obsession with money; it is in the fabric of the American society. We are a nation of consumers and are blitzed by advertisements and the media about how bigger is always better. It is apart of the "American Dream." The nation we live in is always striving to make more so that it can spend it on the bigger yacht or the newer sports car or showing off. . When boiled down, it really is a culture issue. What we need today are more Sam Polks who can turn against their addiction and the tide of typical beliefs to make the nation more focused on giving then spending in excess.
I actually had a conversation with a friend of mine during dinner about the causes of addiction. She told me that addiction/ happiness is caused by receiving goods or things perceived to improve your life, but after 50,000 dollars a year happiness does not increase as the amount of money you make increases. Which means that recieving money after the original 50,000 dollars does not make anyone any happier and the happiness is only perceived to be higher by others. Which means that addiction to money can be all because people believe that more money will make their lives better while in reality the chase for profit and doing better than your coworker is probably just increasing their stress and hurting their lives.
ReplyDeleteI am really glad that you chose to write about this topic, for I have thought about it in the past and now even more so since the start of this class. Ironically, I read an article on EliteDaily that discussed essentially what you discussed, Kaitlin.
ReplyDeletehttp://elitedaily.com/money/psychology-giving-super-rich-motivated-money/
The article states that, “there is a growing list of billionaires who are drawn to philanthropy more by the psychology of giving and the intrinsic value it offers than by the lure of charitable tax deductions.” This list of billionaires actually exists which is awesome; you can look at who is on it here:
http://givingpledge.org/
These extremely wealthy individuals have made an effort to help address and alleviate some of the most pressing issues by donating more than half of their wealth to philanthropy or charitable causes either during their lifetime or in their will. The Giving Pledge also specifically focuses on billionaires or those that would be billionaires if they did not pledge. What I think is really interesting is the families or individuals that choose to pledge get public recognition at an annual event. So not only are they giving simply because they are generous, but they also get to experience recognition which kind of connects to what Kaitlin is discussing in regards to are wealthy people addicted to their wealth. No, not all are addicted to their wealth, but honestly it would be hard not to be addicted to your wealth if you had that much, so it is nice that the Giving Pledge makes a point of giving these wealthy people recognition that they have this wealth and are choosing to donate it.
I definitely think how you grew up has a huge effect on how you perceive money and charitable giving in your adult life. Personally, there was a time in my life where my family didn't have a lot of money. We weren't broke or bankrupt, but we were walking a fine line. It was not a fun experience, and I think it absolutely influenced how I deal with money. However, I wouldn't say it's an addiction, but more of a fear. Spending money, even on things I need, like groceries and health care, gives me huge amounts of anxiety, because I never want to be back in that position. I tend to hoard money. While a lot of people put most of their paycheck into savings and a small percentage towards fun spending money, I have a hard time doing anything but putting all of it into savings, due to that fear of needing it in the future and not having it. If I have that much trouble spending money on myself, you might think that I would have an incredibly hard time giving to charity. The answer isn't straightforward though. I do, and I don't. There's that fear of giving away money that I might need, and that sometimes gives me pause, but then I think about how the situation I'm afraid of being in again, is the situation that the people the money will go to are in right now. Actually, their situation is probably much worse. And then that empathy helps me to give the money. So while I frequently struggle initially with giving money to charity, I always end up doing it.
ReplyDeleteI also know some people who have always been well off, and I've seen that it's pretty evenly split between the people who realize they have excess money and are glad to give it to people who need it more than they do, and the people who have an "I worked for it, they didn't" attitude and spend all of their money on impulse purchases and frivolities. I'm not sure that I would call their attitude towards money an addiction, but maybe a bad habit.
I think you raised a very interesting point and it has given me a lot to think about.