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Chasing shadows: the empty pursuits of money and fame as end goals

by Adam Singer. Desire for ever-increasing material wealth or followers is mid, nurturing craft, discipline and relationships offers true enlightenment

Adam Singer has done it again! The following article was written by Adam Singer, the man and the mind behind the publication Hot Takes.

Hot Takes is spicy, useful, occasionally snarky takes (~1-2x/week at most) from Adam Singer on marketing, tech, investing, creativity and more. We, at BoldBrush, have found Adam’s thoughts about marketing insightful, refreshing, contrarian and aligned with our own philosophy of valuing real long-term human relationships over cheap engagement.

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This article originally appeared on the Hot Takes here. I’m sharing it with The BoldBrush Letter because in it, Adam has explored an important topic for creative people.
Editor’s Note: In two days, this post will be locked and is available only to paid members because we don’t want this duplicate content on the open web in a way that might draw traffic away from Adam’s original post. If you are not a BoldBrush paid subscriber, you can still read the entire post here.

“Envy is a really stupid sin because it’s the only one you could never possibly have any fun at. There’s a lot of pain and no fun. Why would you want to get on that trolley?”

― Charlie Munger

Quick intro: my friend Trung recently wrote on the trend of ‘successful’ YouTubers quitting, this post will at least partially explain why they burned out and threw in the towel. Imagine amassing millions of subscribers to share your thoughts with the world only to decide to stop. By all measures these people are successful, but something is missing. They got into it for the wrong reasons, ending up as slave to an audience and were spiritually unable to pivot. Or the work was simply not meaningful. On the other hand, I’ve written music for 20 years now (10 albums in total, here’s one if curious) and am not at all tired of it. But, I both do not monetize this work or promote it much. I have no expectations, audience demands or need for financial return for art (I work a day job specifically so this is the case) and move at my own pace. So I’m not burned out with this passion project. I strongly believe proper crafts are lifelong pursuits and we have infinite drive for intrinsically motivated things, but extrinsic is ultimately self-defeating. Let’s discuss this further.

In the pursuit of happiness, or perhaps just life, attention and money are now viewed by many as prime objectives. It’s common and understandable. Society inundates us with messages suggesting that these are the paths to contentment, and many are pushed here through various pressures economic and otherwise, so they feel they don’t have a choice. Unfortunately, this creates a paradox: the relentless pursuit of attention and wealth inevitably leads to a perpetual state of discontentment. Chasing an unsustainable and spiritually empty high.

The Greek philosopher Epicurus, known for teachings on pleasure and happiness, once remarked, "do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for." This wisdom shows the inherent danger of constantly seeking more in terms of attention or money (two things you will never be able to get ‘enough’ of). The pursuit itself inevitably overshadows the appreciation of what one already possesses, leading to a self-fulfilling spiral of dissatisfaction. You don’t need infinite amounts of these things anyway to live a great life, in fact the less you’re happy with, the better. (Note and nuance: this is not in favor of the WEF/de-growth agenda, you should still own things and the baseline of flourishing for all, energy abundance, etc should be improving over time).

When attention is the primary goal, people find themselves trapped in a quest for validation, now inflicted with a thirst that can never be quenched. Social media platforms when used to satisfy base impulses amplify this desire, creating a mindset of comparison and validation-seeking behavior, quite literally a formula for unhappiness. And anyway, real status and social proof are different (unless you really want to have an audience of idiots). The philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre aptly captured this phenomenon when he said, "hell is other people." In the context of seeking attention, this quote illustrates how the relentless gaze of others can become suffocating and anxiety-inducing, depriving individuals of the autonomy to define their own happiness.

The pursuit of money can similarly trap someone in a matrix of discontent. Financial stability is undoubtedly important, and getting to this point matters, but the blind pursuit of increasing wealth post sufficient baseline leads to a life devoid of meaning and purpose. Simply having ‘more money’ is not an end goal. Diminishing returns on the happiness of greater financials are real, if you believe they aren’t you’re already lost. The Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu cautioned against such pursuits, stating, "be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you." True wealth lies not in material possessions, but in the richness of experience and contentment with one's circumstances as well as focusing on craft for the sake of improving one’s abilities. As I stated in the intro of this post, these are all intrinsic.

There are countless examples of those who attained incredible wealth and fame, yet found themselves profoundly dissatisfied with life, or worse. Take the case of William "Bud" Post III. In 1988, Post won $16.2 million in the Pennsylvania Lottery, but his jackpot brought him more misfortune than happiness. Initially, Post squandered his winnings on extravagant purchases, including a mansion, luxury cars, and a twin-engine airplane. He also found himself surrounded by people seeking to exploit his newfound wealth.

Post's relationships deteriorated, and he faced numerous lawsuits and legal troubles. His brother even hired a hitman to kill him in the hopes of inheriting a share of the winnings. Post's extravagant lifestyle led to financial ruin, and he eventually declared bankruptcy. He later reflected on his lottery win, stating that it was "the worst thing that ever happened" to him.

On the other hand, there are those who have found fulfillment by prioritizing intrinsic values over external markers of success. The philosopher Aristotle emphasized the importance of eudaimonia, or flourishing, which he believed could be achieved through the cultivation of virtue and the pursuit of meaningful relationships. In contemporary times, even extremely wealthy individuals like Warren Buffett known for his modest lifestyle and philanthropy, exemplify this philosophy. Buffett's focus on personal integrity and relationships has contributed to his enduring sense of fulfillment and happiness. It’s impossible to imagine Buffett as a degenerate partier, or that this would even make him happy. If he lived like this he’d have certainly died many years ago.

Another example is the inverse of Buffett: Vincent van Gogh. Despite struggling with mental illness and financial instability throughout his life, van Gogh remained dedicated to his craft, finding solace and joy in the act of painting. He once wrote, "I am seeking, I am striving, I am in it with all my heart." Van Gogh's art was not motivated by fame or fortune but by a deep inner desire to capture the beauty of the world around him. Despite selling only a few paintings during his lifetime, van Gogh persisted in his artistic pursuits, producing over 2,000 works of art in his short career. I’d make any bet it’s far more common now someone popular in their own time is forgotten to history given the state of modern culture (elevating entertainment over craft) and mostly unknowns of today like van Gough persist. A brutal reality, but that’s the way it is.

It’s clear to me the pursuit of attention and money, while tempting, leads to an empty existence devoid of contentment for those who are self-aware. And you really don’t want to end up in such a nihilistic, empty place. Real fulfillment exists not in the external trappings of success, but in the cultivation of a disciplined internal space not requiring comparison to anyone but yourself, refining craft(s) for intrinsic reasons and the nurturing of genuine connections. As the philosopher Seneca observed, "It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor."

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