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  Today Online 20 Aug 07
Greed can flatten the world
Succeed with John Bittleston succeed@newstoday.com.sg

When the roller coaster of the financial markets starts on a downward trend, everyone gets jumpy.

The world of banks and shares is built on confidence, on the belief that your money is safe within the constraints of the risk you know you are taking. Anything that shakes that confidence has people running for what they see as safer investments: Reputable banks' deposit accounts, blue-chip bonds, gold or property.

Investment is not about rich people getting richer — well, not all about that — but about every dollar we spend.

We expect a return — not always monetary, of course — from all our investments: Good, cheap food; a smart, useable car costing less than a Ferrari; an apartment of adequate size and comfort without breaking the bank.

The difficulty is we all want a return immediately. In today's phrase, we want it now.

But the demand for immediacy is incurring immediate costs that we often do not associate with our rapacious investment criteria. That is why our planet has a problem.

If you think the turmoil of the markets over the past three weeks has been rough, talk to the 5,000 people who have been made homeless in Britain by floods.

Ask the more than 20,000 whose houses have been irreparably ravaged by fire in Eastern Europe what "rough" means. Consult the victims of earthquakes, tornadoes or desertification on the subject of "rough" living. They will have a thing or two to say.

So, how is the financial rock and roll connected with the climate heat and heave? The answer is "directly".

As long as we demand fast returns, we will get them, and we will damage, further, the planet on which we live, on which our children live and our grandchildren will in due course.

I imagine you care about them as much as I do, and about the generations that will follow them, all with some of our genes, all perpetuating our memory in a small way, all testifying to the prudent, thoughtful people we have aspired to be.

You may ask: "How can I contribute to the well-being of the earth? My influence is infinitesimal." It is not.

The floods we have seen were made up of millions of tiny drops of water. Combined, they made a flood.

Millions of tiny actions can repel that flood, can stabilise the planet's climate, can make life on earth tolerable again for the many who have suffered.

Is this a plea for money? No, it is not. Of course, giving to help victims is a hugely worthy action. But it is often conscience-salving, a gesture, albeit a thoroughly decent one.

If we want, as individuals, to make this next magnificent adventure work, we must do three things.

First, we must decide to defer some — not all — of our pleasures.

Most of us are pretty spoilt. The postponing of a part of our aspirations will not ruin our lives, but it will help the lives of others.

Second, we must take a real interest in the companies in which we place our money and from which we borrow it. We must insist as shareholders, lenders or borrowers on transparency and an account of how they are contributing to planet salvation. We must avoid those who will not play fair.

Third, we must, in our daily lives, each take four small steps to reduce excessive consumption.

Gordon Gekko (from the 1987 movie Wall Street) was wrong. Greed is not good; it is suicidal. I am not ready for suicide. Are you?

John Bittleston mentors people in business, career and their personal lives at www.TerrificMentors.com
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