More Money, More Problems
Materialism is so relevant in modern-day society, that it’s very easy to become obsessed with it. Becoming trapped by greed involves your excessive admiration and pursuit of material goods, even at the expense of relationships, morals, values and your soul. Greed has no boundaries; it can infect anyone at anytime.
Greed is a particular problem in modern-day society because we are easy to be awed by fancy cars, exotic houses, expensive brand name clothing and advanced technological gadgets. We are also living in an ultra-competitive society where a lot of people strive to get ahead of others academically, intellectually, financially and physically.
As evidenced by the college scandal in America, even celebrities who have millions of dollars are willing to sacrifice their integrity in order to secure a spot for their teenager at an ivy league school. It seems that the more you have in wealth and materialism, the more you continue to seek it.
The greatest rapper of all time, The Notorious B.I.G. wasn’t lying when he made the song, “Mo Money, Mo Problems.” Because for many, there seems to be some truth to this saying: when you start to accumulate wealth, you also start to desire more in the flesh. It becomes a psychological addiction to accumulate more material goods.
As with alcohol and other drugs, the brain releases great quantities of dopamine when you accumulate more material goods. When dopamine is released, you relate materialism with the sex-like or high-like feeling of the dopamine rush. So your mind becomes programmed to keep chasing wealth and materialism; this is what is meant by being trapped by greed.
The way to help alleviate greed is to focus on others. Rather than storing up treasures for yourself, you can become involved in the community or start meaningful and honest charities that are meant to help people who are struggling. When you redirect your energy onto helping others, your desire for materialism will start to dissipate.
There’s nothing wrong with being motivated to accumulate wealth, but know the fine line of modestly purchasing objects once in a while versus extravagant purchases every other day. Don’t become trapped by greed; as with any deadly sin, it has the potential to rob you of your soul. And what good does that do to you?
Are you Ready? (This is Defeating Stigma Mindfully)
DSM (Defeating Stigma Mindfully) 