Recently, I have considered what determines the prosperity of a country or community from a broader, historical perspective. Let’s introduce my hypothesis about it.
Which country or community will grow?
Sometimes, we want to predict the future change. Preparing and investing properly enriches us efficiently. It is an intellectual way to become abundant.
One factor we want to predict is which country or community will grow in the future. Partnering with organizations that will prosper in the future also enriches us. On the other hand, teaming with communities likely to cause conflicts and excessive competition will drain our resources.
The same goes for human cooperation. An appropriate partner grows us and enriches us. Inappropriate ones decline us.
However, we sometimes cannot predict which countries, communities, industries, regions, or people will prosper and benefit us. That deprives us of opportunities to contribute.
One effective way is to assess the balance between the community’s investments and debts. The more they lend (a valuable giving) than borrow (worthless taking), the more promising they are. Today, I will explain those differences. This perspective may lead you to a place where you can contribute.
Two criteria that affect the community’s development
If you want to identify countries, communities, or people that will enrich your future, try assessing their balance between investments and debts. Communities that do more favors for others and reduce their debts will benefit you.
In social life, a community’s relationships with other societies determine its progression.
Two criteria affect the community’s development, as follows:
- Increasing investment: Providing practical value to its surroundings and to itself.
- Reducing debt: Eliminating unnecessary obligations to its surroundings and to itself.
In other words, identify those who make healthy investments. They will be the place you can contribute to. If there is no such community or place, be the one. That makes you show your talent.
Identifying practical value
Understanding them requires two kinds of wisdom: identifying practical value and seeing along a timeline.
The ability to produce practical value determines the worth of a person or community.
For example, although many spiritualists teach, ‘give rather than receive,’ it is pointless to donate worthless things. Giving everything away or gifting things that are valuable to yourself can harm you. You have to distinguish between investment and impoverishing giving.
There is no single answer to them.
It requires philosophy based on a broader, historical perspective.
For example, although everyone dislikes failure, preventing all their failures will ruin them, especially when learning. We should not supply harmful drugs immediately just because they want them. Various items and pieces of information can be toxic depending on their specific circumstances. It requires knowledge, wisdom, rationality, continuous feedback, and moderation.
In other words, an attitude that accepts being disliked in the short term can also become valuable. Worthy things and attitudes will become worthwhile in the long run.
Looking at it along a timeline
We also need to consider it from a timeline perspective.
Usually, healthy investment alternates between contributing to oneself and to others. For example, a student learned medicine and became a doctor. Learning is an investment in oneself. Then, treating patients properly enriches him. It means that healing others is an investment in them. Proper alternative investments benefit the person continuously.
Those who only give are unhealthy, as well as those who only receive. The current state of giving or taking doesn’t matter; a cycle of gaining and contributing does. Those who gain healthily will contribute to others practically, even if only a little at first.
Assessing their health balance
That enables you to discern which country or community will grow in the future.
Try assessing their balance between investments and debts with the perspectives introduced above. Don’t be misled by just one aspect.
For example, China has a huge amount of debt, but it also has immense investment. Judging it based solely on debt, compared with other countries, causes us to overlook its true value. In addition, it has shifted from investing in itself to abroad. Ignoring the timeline makes us underestimate it.
For another example, even if a country is already rich, it will decline if it robs its descendants just to maintain its current standard of living. Those who can align themselves with their current status without their past glory will rise again.
Nowadays, there are many distorted theories that justify people’s greed. Focusing on the detail makes us lose sight of the overall balance. The overall picture is not complex but simple, natural, and comprehensible.
During a turbulent era, those who become overconfident and arrogant decline. That determines the prosperity of a country, community, and even a person.
Conclusion
That is how to predict which country or community will grow in the future.
If you want to identify countries, communities, or people that will enrich your future, try assessing their balance between investments and debts.
Communities that do more favors for others and reduce their repayment healthily will benefit you.
This perspective may lead you to a place where you can contribute.
Thank you for reading this article. I hope to see you in the next one.
