As you rightly said, individualism isn’t without its challenges. In the West, we’ve witnessed firsthand the huge social cost of individualism.
As I read through the piece, I thought about what would be the balance between both extremes.
One idea that crossed my mind is the Igbo apprenticeship system, whereby a well-to-do family or community member mentors and empowers a younger family or community member to become financially independent. Once empowered, the young family member is then able to pay the empowerment forward, and it goes on and on.
This helps in two ways. First, over time, the level of poverty is significantly reduced because many people would have become financially independent. Second, there’s a shared understanding and responsibility within the family or community that the expectation is empowerment, for which the entire family or community is collectively responsible.
This is a sharp contrast to a system where only the wealthy community member is expected to give handouts indefinitely.
So, I believe the idea is not to get rid of the expectation altogether but rather to channel it into a productive and sustainable endeavor.
Thanks for the addition brother. Indeed the example you gave is a way to strike a balance. As you rightly said, the idea is not to get rid of expectations but rather to lower them and be individually responsible. Imagine if I knew that my father, despite being in a top position would not land me a job if I didn't merit it. It will help me balance my expectations and encourage me to work harder. We are just too engrossed in this expectancy thing even aside from the financial aspect. It cuts across every aspect of our lives.
Many thanks for this brilliant piece.
As you rightly said, individualism isn’t without its challenges. In the West, we’ve witnessed firsthand the huge social cost of individualism.
As I read through the piece, I thought about what would be the balance between both extremes.
One idea that crossed my mind is the Igbo apprenticeship system, whereby a well-to-do family or community member mentors and empowers a younger family or community member to become financially independent. Once empowered, the young family member is then able to pay the empowerment forward, and it goes on and on.
This helps in two ways. First, over time, the level of poverty is significantly reduced because many people would have become financially independent. Second, there’s a shared understanding and responsibility within the family or community that the expectation is empowerment, for which the entire family or community is collectively responsible.
This is a sharp contrast to a system where only the wealthy community member is expected to give handouts indefinitely.
So, I believe the idea is not to get rid of the expectation altogether but rather to channel it into a productive and sustainable endeavor.
Thanks for the addition brother. Indeed the example you gave is a way to strike a balance. As you rightly said, the idea is not to get rid of expectations but rather to lower them and be individually responsible. Imagine if I knew that my father, despite being in a top position would not land me a job if I didn't merit it. It will help me balance my expectations and encourage me to work harder. We are just too engrossed in this expectancy thing even aside from the financial aspect. It cuts across every aspect of our lives.