Fear and Greed

Two emotions govern human beings over any other emotion Fear and Greed. From an evolutionary standpoint they are ingrained in our genes, hardwired into our DNA. We cant escape it. Fear and Greed have successfully contributed to the survival and destruction of our species since thousands of years. Its easy to sway people when you lure them into greed and easier to get anything accomplished if you can instill the right amount of fear. Its the Jekyll/Hyde side to the human condition.

Fear

Most of you must be finishing/ finished with your finals. What motivated you to succeed in them? Did fear play a small devilish role? Fear of knowing that if you don't receive at least an A- in managerial accounting you can say goodbye to BofA IBD recruitment in Fall. Fear of loosing your scholarship? Fear of not making to the Dean's honor list?

Some members are employed, but let me tell you. Fear governs our daily lives too. We're fearful when we don't hand in the spreadsheets on time. Fearful of screwing up the font size on the presentation or fearful of screwing the macro on the excel sheet. Fear keeps the monkeys awake at night while others are warmly tucked in their beds. Fear of loosing our jobs keeps us churning those comps meticulously like a well oiled machine on our computer screen.

Greed

Greed like fear comes in all shapes and forms. Greed for money, prestige, women, fine cuisine etc. You can never satisfy the monster that is greed. Its a bottomless pit. Have you ever cheated on your girl friend with another girl, and lost a relationship because of a stupid impulsive mistake? Do you buy clothes, jackets even though you have plenty and later bitch and moan when you are short of money? Do you buy the most expensive bottle of champagne to impress your friends and in the morning kick yourself? Do you work till 4am in the morning so you can make more money and then complain about having a shitty and unfulfilled lifestyle?

All bad?

Fear and Greed aren't necessarily bad. When a 6'4 220 lbs guy comes in your face, fear commands you to step back. When you bang some anonymous girl behind the alley, fear makes you carry rubber. Fear makes you study, work and keeps you from doing reckless shit like smoking pot outside a police station. Greed has its benefits as well. Greed motivates you to work harder than the next guy. It unleashes the full potential in you and makes you not settle for less.

But when does greed and fear invite a blowback?

Enter gut

Its when you use them gratuitously and don't know when to stop until it consumes you and hangs you out to dry. One thing which can help you from this cycle is your gut. Gentlemen, the gut NEVER lies. Gut feeling is the only friend you have in this world after porn. The friend that tells you to sober up, so you can wake up for class the next day. Your gut advises you not to hit on your co-worker to unleash a pandora of clusterfuck. The gut knows you inside out, it knows your limits, your moral code and your breaking point. Whenever you feel guilty, ashamed of doing something you haven't done. The gut flashes a disclaimer in bold headlines Do not fuck with me but you ignore it. Listen to your gut and do not let fear and greed control your life. You control your life and your only true friend is your gut. Unleash it and prosper.