“The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates and a monthly salary”.
This is Nicholas Nassim Taleb.
I’ll leave heroin and carbs for another day…
(another email, not another day. You know what I mean)
…and ponder the bit about the monthly salary.
Can you be addicted to your salary?
Seems a wacky idea.
It’s not like smoking or drinking. People don’t go to salary addiction
meetings.
But Taleb has impressive credentials. He’s a multi-award winning author and philosopher.
So
perhaps he knows what he’s talking about. And maybe his idea is worth pondering.
Which leads me to ask:
Why would he suggest that someone can be addicted to their salary?
I guess it depends how you define addiction.
And Google tells me it’s “an inability to stop engaging in behaviour even though it causes harm”.
So I’ve got to ask…
Did my salary cause me harm?
It let me put food on the table…
Pay the bills…
Go on holiday…
And live a
pretty comfortable life.
So on that basis no.
But with that being said…
Being comfortable isn’t always a good thing.
There’s a thin line between comfort and complacency.
At some point I rested on my laurels and started to let things happen. I stopped going after what I really wanted.
So I can see a link between my
salary and my feeling that life wasn’t quite going the way I expected.
But that’s not all.
Because the truth
is…
My job impacted my health, my relationships and my happiness. I can say that for sure.
And why did I do my job?
It wasn’t because I loved it. Or to make a difference in society.
It was for the salary. Pure and simple.
Knowing I’d get money deposited in to my bank account each month.
Like clockwork.
So yes, it caused me harm.
And did I have the ability to stop engaging in this
behaviour?
Not really. Not for 13 years.
I stuck my head in the
sand and crossed my fingers that things would improve.
Almost like a form of denial.
So I can see some truth
in what Taleb is saying.
But before I get too carried away, let me take a step back.
Is this a bit of a
stretch?
How can anyone be addicted to something which will sustain them and their family?
After all, we need
money to live off. The bills have got to be paid.
But I don’t think that’s what Taleb is saying.
He’s not talking about an addiction to money. He’s saying we can become addicted to our salaries.
That monthly “hit”.
So the more I think about my previous job…
And the more I think about the idea…
The more truth I can see in the quote.
What do you think?
That’s it for today.
Catch you tomorrow.
- Tom
p.s. Whenever you're ready, here are the ways you can connect with me