HAMZ MUSINGS

IN QUEST FOR GENUINE VALUE.
by Hamz

Never more in history have we been more inundated with so huge a deluge of materials on self actualization, self-esteem, The Brand Called You, and countless other similar messages than at this time.
So, Dear readers, let's talk about the brand called and your value today.

Self improvement teachers, quality assurance coaches, motivational speakers, psycho-analysts, brand consultants, all seem to be smiling to the banks after dishing out corny, well-worn quotes to thirsty souls.
"The picture of your future is featured in the scripture"
"Trial and error will land you in trials and horrors"
"Your confession in your confusion will affect the conclusion of your condition"
"The you in you is the you that makes you the you you are"
"When you often blow your top you likely never get to the top"
And some downright absurd ones like, "If you’re going to Ilorin in a lorry, do not be in a hurry or you’ll be sorry" (does that sound as dumb to you as it does to me? Maybe they should have just, "If you’re a Tory on a lorry headed for Ilorin to buy a Strawberry, do not be in a hurry or a flurry, or your vision will be blurry like the starch from garri and you’ll end up sorry with much to worry about for you’ll never marry Mary the sister of Terry... such utter nonsense!)
N.B Ilorin is the capital of Kwara State, Nigeria.

I daresay there are some coaches and speakers who are doing their best in the business of making people and brands better but too many charlatans lured by the bait of easy money have invaded the noble profession and a made nonsense of it. The end result of this is making people feel good rather than be good. I find that all these quotes nonetheless, a great deal of people still seek a deeper meaning to their lives and to discover true value and purpose. These people, like parched dust, will hungrily soak up anything that remotely looks like an answer. And since rubbish is always in surplus supply, invariably rubbish gets soaked up more often. Society seems to be controlled by some dubious, questionable set of values.
Coughed up from the murky belly of the moral depravity called evolving modernity, the allure it holds comes not from the fact that some eccentric few hold sway in society but that the clueless majority seek any sort of definition to their existence beyond running directionless in the rat race. So, like drifting ions in the electrolyte of society, they gravitate towards electrodes that somehow make up for their weaknesses and self-indulgences. As mindless sheep, they follow after the sick fluxes of an ever-changing community. They cannot stand the test of time simply because they are unwitting casualties of "TREND-EVOLUTION". And those who pride themselves on their ability to "KEEP WITH THE TIDE"? 
They end up so thoroughly confused, continued existence is no longer an option.

Take a look around you and discover how people derive their sense of value.
• The lady who brazenly exposes a shocking portion of flesh that leaves little to the imagination- She must be the cynosure of attention, if not she doesn’t feel worthy
• The human pack rat who hoards money and more money- His self-worth is directly proportional to his bank account
• The policeman who’ll cause unnecessary traffic jams, hold you up for hours on end because of a little ‘something’- his value is derived from being able to cause discomfort to just about any-damn-body
• The bully husband-cum-father whose wife and children are walloping punchballs, frustration vents for his miserable existence- His Lord-of-the-Manor sense of significance and achievement is gotten from the black eyes, plastered heads and palpable timidity he sees in his home.
• The self-serving, manipulative trollop who uses the junction of her thighs to break up homes- Her life has meaning only in so much that men- married or no- pay her sufficient attention, and money too.

Who says the thin-as-a-scarecrow look is sexy and fat is bad? Who says white is good and black is bad? Who says the six-pack stomach is better than pot-bellies? Who says short is unalluring? Who determines what is and is not acceptable socially? Just who do you give the right to place a value on you? Or a de-value on you?
Any form of value that comes not from discovery is ATTRIBUTED value or DERIVED value. Your true value is INHERENT value.
A perfect example of an object with ATTRIBUTED VALUE is the currency of most any country. Its ability to function as a legal tender in exchange for goods or services is completely dependent on the reigning government. Its relevance and worth exists only as long as the accepted authority that affirms it. Otherwise, it is worthless paper fit to squish bugs and fuel fires. On the other hand, something like salt, whether or not it is ‘okayed’ by the government has a basic value-seasoning of food. With the rise and fall of a thousand accepted or not-accepted governments it retains its significance and importance. As a matter of fact, if it is banned by the reigning government, its value sky-rockets. The relevance of salt to an individual is independent of the "Government"and is only limited by their knowledge of its application. If you have ATTRIBUTED VALUE your relevance is dictated by the ebb and tide of the trends that fuel your importance. Whereas, if you have INHERENT VALUE, your significance in any situation is only subject to the discovery of your worth.
In addition, that currency note, even as a legal tender, would most likely not be accepted in another country in a normal over-the-counter trading transaction. Its functional-relevance is a direct result of its location.
In simple words, the victim of ATTRIBUTED VALUE is locus-restricted and can only thrive where the fuel of their self-worth exists. On the other hand, salt is useful anywhere because it doesn’t function according to what the ‘Government’ says. INHERENT value gives rise to resourcefulness regardless of location.
Again, in the instance of a war outbreak or severe hyper-inflation, though the government that endorsed the currency is still in place, the note has lost its ability to be used in exchange of anything worthwhile. (An example is what happened about Nine years ago in Zimbabwe- with a truckload of the Zimbabwean Dollar you’d be lucky to get dog food as at that time). So, even within the ambit of its fuel, the note loses its relevance. In dire circumstances, disciples of ATTRIBUTED or DERIVED VALUE quickly lose relevance unlike people with INHERENT VALUE who actually thrive in those same circumstances. In the last scenario, salt increases in its value as a tool for trade by barter. Stayability is a consequence of inherent value.
The differences are as glaring as they are countless.
WHICH WOULD YOU RATHER LIVE WITH?


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Hamz is a freelance creative content writer & editor, a thought leader with an incendiary desire to change the world through his pen.
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