Wealth
Wealth is something that we all strive for as a society but only a select few are able to achieve it and sustain it for years to come. Wealth is something that takes years and years of hard work often times. It is also something that often takes lots of risk in order to get to where it can be successful. The greatest entrepreneurs know and understand this, and that is why they are as successful as they are today. They also understand that it takes many years of learning and sometimes learning the hard way in order to sustain a successful venture. I really like how Gilder opens up in chapter three by stating that capitalism is started with giving and not being greedy. There are many greedy people out there so it is important to be successful to not be greedy and to always do things the right way. After all, being successful but having to lie and cheat to get there will only hurt you in the long run anyway. The overwhelming weight of evidence points to empathy as the true engine of capitalism, not greed. Understanding another person's thoughts and motivations requires empathy. And this is the quality that distinguishes successful entrepreneurs the most. Gilder highlights many key aspects in his article, opening the eyes of his reader. Gilder rightly replaces many of the distanced, materialist assumptions about economic reality that a large part of the economics profession holds, in favor of a more realistic analysis of the way the economy works that focuses on human originality, entrepreneurship, and a wide range of individual incentives.
Greed
Gilder gives supply-side economics, which focuses on giving people the means and incentives to collaborate, generate, innovate, engage, save, and take risks, the rightful place of importance over demand-side managing the economy and wealth redistribution, both of which have failed in the past. Risk taking is one of the scariest parts about becoming an entrepreneur, and not taking these common traits seriously can force your venture to fail which takes the wealth away and changes things.
Nonetheless, however complex and tangled in motive and historical
development
Gilder takes another stab at highlighting the importance of not being greedy in capitalism. I really like what he is trying to say in this statement, he is stating that although we have seen many entrepreneurs fail due to greed, or not collaborating well, it is a good reminder to us that we should continue to keep our heads down and keep working hard. Greed can make someone lose sight of what is truly important, and can even damage relationships in and out of the workforce, so it is something that cannot be involved in everyday work.
I really like what Gilder is referring to when he discussed "feasting" and how he uses it in his article to continue to highlight his main point he is trying to make. He is stating that when you as an entrepreneur work harder than everyone else, and continue to do so for years, it can be one of the most rewarding things to just sit back and take everything in when it begins to take off and become a successful venture on its own. Almost anyone can be an entrepreneur, but not everyone can be a successful entrepreneur. Many successful entrepreneurs are some of the absolute hardest working people around, and for that reason they are able to provide successful ventures. There are many bumps in the road when in the entrepreneurial field, but keeping your head down and continuing to work is what sets the good apart from the bad and keeps their ventures up and running for many years to come. Not everyone will always believe in you or your venture, but as long as you do, and continue with your moderate risks, it is likely to pay off in the end.
Capitalists are able to establish wealth through feasting, because of their work and determination.
Within the framework of the capitalist system, there are, without a doubt, examples of businesses that have behaved in a self-centered manner and lost sight of the desires and requirements of their customers. Wealth can change people often times, and can be for the worst in many cases. Losing sight of what you started the business can do is something that can happen but it is important to not allow it to happen. As your business grows, and you establish wealth it is so crucial that you continue to do great work and continue with the great relationships you have made along the way. Wealth is what we all strive for and is why we get into the things that we get in to, but it is important to stay humble and do not fall to greed, because it can cause the venture to fail.
This author did an excellent job of talking about what they gathered from the articles of this week. In the first part of this article, the author discusses how Gilder brings up that he believes that the main component or attribute of capitalism is not greed but is in fact empathy. This was a major part of Gilder's chapter three because he is trying to describe why capitalism is such a good structure for those who wish to make their life in a business or entrepreneurial way. The author then goes on to describe how Gilder explains the danger of giving into the other part of the equation, greed. This is important because when corporations or people give into greed they begin to separate themselves from their clientele and this is when their venture can start declining.
The author then goes more in-depth into the issues that greed can create in a capitalistic society. In the next section of this article, the author beings to discuss how in Gilders works he offers up a good explanation of why it is important for entrepreneurs or those in an entrepreneurial position should be wary of greed, and even though there is no big intellectual meaning that does not mean that the lesson is not important. Gilder simply makes the point that because when people become drunk with greed they slowly crumble into less than stellar humans and this, in turn, causes other people to not want to work with them. I know this seems like a silly reason but it really gives you something to think about because when you think of what kind of employer you would want to work with I do not know many who would pick a wildly successful boss who is tyrannical and treats their employees like dirt. It is much more common for people to choose a boss who puts them first and wants to see them succeed. To quote the author of this article Wealth is what we all strive for and is why we get into the things that we get into, but it is important to stay humble and do not fall to greed, because it can cause the venture to fail. I really liked this authors ending quote because in my eyes it seems to tie the whole article together really nicely