When we hear of investments, we usually think of financial assets, e.g. stocks, bonds, real estate, etc. This heuristic is incorrect because financial securities are just objects. Sure, they are objects we can invest in, but they are not investments in and of themselves. They are just plain objects. An investment is an act. It is the act of putting energy into something with the aim of getting a return.
Out of all things one can put energy into, financial assets are perhaps the lowest form of investment. Life energy is worth far more than fancy written contracts we call securities. So what are some better investments you may ask? The best investment you can make is to build a custom mind. Those of you not familiar with this term should check out my book on becoming more intelligent. Besides building a custom mind, the second best investment you can make is building a community, and that's what this article will be about.
I believe building a custom mind and building a community are yin and yang. They can't live without one another. A person needs both. Building a custom mind is the art of cultivating a skill and character to a degree that is unique. This is mostly an introvertic process, requiring time alone for practice.
Building a community on the other hand, is an extrovertic process. It requires contact with others so that bonds, social order, and a collective vision can be established. Most people suck at both. Here and there I meet someone who is good at one but not the other. I rarely meet individuals who are good at both but that should be your goal. It can be done!
Now let us be a bit practical and see what dividends community building provides. It is my goal to show you that building a community will offer you returns that no stock, bond, or real estate can pay you. Sounds exciting? Well let's get started!
What people call success is the feeling of being valued and accepted within a community. They care for us, we care for them. They like us, we like them. Success is very much a social thing. A genuine individual will not be loved by every community. Part of his or her success is finding the one that fits their personality.
A large number of people gathered together does not necessarily form a community. A community has common values, a common archetype, and most importantly, a shared ritual. People in your town, city, or country might not be organized into a community that works for you. The best thing to do is to invest energy into building one.
We have this false idea that one must go to school in order to get educated. While a special environment for learning might be useful for early childhood, it is certainly not required for teenagers much less adults. Whether you know it or not, your real place of learning is your community. In other words, who and what you surround yourself with is what you will become. You knew that didn't you...
Real learning happens subconsciously. We pick up a bit here, a bit there. We exchange some information here, some information there. After years of exposure, the information gathered over time transforms who we are. This statement is true for even highly technical skills. It is the constant exposure of something that makes us learn it. This exposure, which can be seen as a molding hand, is the true source of education. What dictates your exposure more than anything else is community. If becoming a super engineer is your aim, create a community of such people. If becoming an elite warrior is your goal, do likewise.
Apple has a strong community behind it so it is a multi-billion dollar company. A struggling business is a business with no or too small of a community. The same is true on an individual level. Your success can be measured by how strong the community behind you is and how valued you are within that world. An unemployed person is not necessarily unskilled, it can be a person whose character is rejected by the professional community.
A reject is someone whom no community wants. If this person has no family and lives in a country with no social support, they will become homeless. In fact, a homeless person may be seen as someone with no communal support. Many communities we respect highly today were started by rejects, the United States being one of them. These rejects had no choice but to create their own community or perish. Communities are economies in and of themselves. Building your own community means more control over your economy.
We date within our community. Take some time to meditate upon that- we date within our community. There are many people struggling to find love today and failing to realize that the problem is not with them. The problem is that they have not found their community. People tend to date others from work, school, church, etc. Regardless of the source mentioned, dating always take place within the bounds of a community.
Someone who is unemployed, not in school, and secular, will undoubtedly struggle in finding romance. Although having a job, or being in school elevates your chances for a romantic encounter, it certainly isn't a guarantee. Corporate and academic environments are too big and too vague to be genuine communities. Remember real communities have common values, possess an archetype, and share a ritual.
We date people in our community for several reasons. First, they have the same values as we do, which allows mental synergy to take place. Second, they have the same ritual as ourselves. This means our physical patterns closely resembles one another. This makes living or spending time together easy. The two lives can be blended without resistance. Lastly, because communities have the same archetype, our ideals of what we want to become are the same. This means we strive for a similar future. Without a common outlook, no relationship can last.
I have said enough in this article. Those of you interested in building your own community should look at the CityXcape app. It helps world builders create their community. I also consult on the subject so feel free to ping me if you would like to investigate a community. Till next time!
