ANYTIME MONEY becomes the measure used to define who I am, I would have lost not only my way, but my purpose.
How could something that was not a major factor in the formative years of your life assume such proportion in the latter years? The answer lies in the society’s perception of success.
Success is not for most a journey in which we learn, make mistakes and therefore continuously redefine ourselves for the better. It is a destination that is measured in terms of position/status that is accompanied by material gain/growth. The latter often is reduced to money as the measure.
On one of the very few occasions that my revered, beloved and worshipped mother did not father me, my enigmatic father made an impression on me.
On that occasion, he offered me a dollar, which was graciously accepted. He then asked if I was satisfied, to which I replied: “A little with content is great gain.” I was in primary school at the time. He reached into his pocket and gave me another dollar. That simple exchange served to guide my thinking ever since.
At the age of 19, I was offered a job at a commercial bank for $600 per month. A week later, the Central Bank’s job offer came along at $500 per month. I chose the latter, knowing fully well the percentage difference between the two offers. I was excited by the prospect of understanding money rather than counting it.
I was one of two staff members of the Central Bank who contested the 1994 general election and lost. A way was found for me to leave the bank. To this day, the other individual works at the bank.
I understood the issue at the time, but time has revealed that there is very little that should be secretive about Central Bank information. In fact, such secrecy is over-rated.
Perhaps, what is more important is the structure of the board that oversees the functioning of the bank itself. The time has truly come to reconsider the governor being the chairman of the board. Furthermore, the composition of the board ought to better recognise the specialised areas of the bank’s activities. No man is an island.
To demonstrate that you can live what you believe, I provide the following example. As leader of a political party, I was told that a particular businessman demanded that I must meet with him if the usual contribution was to be made to the party. Given my disrespect for what the man represented, I refused. Time has revealed that my judgement was spot on.
It is simple: if a man can manipulate me because of money, then I have lost my way.
Given my upbringing, I never lost an ounce of sleep when a charge was made against me about money with respect to the manufactured Hardwood debacle. Sheila’s boy was not raised to worship money. He was raised to expect love from his family and friends and respect from the public. Time did reveal who had the love for money.
The debacle served its political purpose. It also served a bigger moral purpose: that the preacher must come to the pulpit with clean hands.
It is tempting for many to see success as a destination because of societal pressure. This temptation is even greater when there is a perception that the journey is longer and tougher if it starts from the lower classes of society. This perception can only be true if we embrace the wrong definition of success.
In accepting the wrong definition, the political class, which likes to boast of its humble origins, becomes more vulnerable to the moneyed class. Is this vulnerability the result of seeking to do for others or for self? The answer again lies in the society’s perception of success.
Again, this week, I appeal to the game of cricket for a parallel. In the early days, it was clear that West Indian cricketers played with the belief that the game allowed them to define who we are as a people on the world stage. We pursued excellence with limited resources. Success came in the journey.
It is now possible to define success in a big pay packet for a one-off Twenty20 series somewhere around the world. Is the new definition of success being used as a measure in other spheres of our lives?
It is very easy to lose your way, if your purposeis defined purely in terms of money.
• Dr Clyde Mascoll is an economist and Opposition Barbados Labour Party advisor on the economy. Email: clyde_mascoll@hotmail.com