# The Need for Paradoxical Excitement By:: [[Brian Heath]] 2024-11-21 Americans tend to be easily excitable. This is ingrained within any culture where materialism and individual achievement are vital factors. Materialism creates hype around having the most amount of exclusive things. Thus, status is acquired by having the latest version or coolest new toy before anyone else. Companies propel and benefit from this attitude and value system. If one looks at all the iPhones ever created and compares features, one will see that there might only be three iPhone iterations representing significant improvements or changes. All of the others are just minor changes. Yet, people continue to buy the new version each year or two, even if nothing significant is gained. Initially, the only reason for this is status. Once companies get wise to this behavior, they reduce the quality of the products, knowing that they don't need to do much to get customers to buy the newest version. Eventually, consumers must purchase a new product version each year because it simply stops working. Our excitement for the new via materialism erodes the quality of our lives in many aspects. But this excitement also generates the potential to create something new and take leaps that might be entirely illogical. When humans are excited, we tend to act more impulsively, and sometimes, the irrational is exactly what the world needs. Within a society that values individualism, intrinsic rewards, and status can be gained through hard work and taking a shot at the impossible. American stories and myths are full of one person fighting against all odds to gain something. Often, these stories end with the person rich and famous. When there is a belief in the potential of individuals to change the world, people are primed to be excited about any opportunity that comes along in hopes that it might be their time to shine. Within a materialistic culture, this individualistic spirit creates a positive feedback loop of more excitement and more products to be consumed. The troubles come when one considers the downside of individuals being lauded for winning as individuals. Massive wealth accumulation, unchecked individual power, and delusions of divine selection weigh heavy and risk breaking the camel's back. The question for Americans today is how to keep the excitement while maintaining a grip on a pragmatic reality. Many say this is a paradox, but this is precisely what we must strive for. We must learn to live in the paradox and value it as an anchor of truth. Embrace the vague-specific, the creative-analytical, the patient-impatient, the complex-simple, the assertive-passive, and the excited-stable. #### Related Items [[American]] [[Culture]] [[Materialism]] [[Capitalism]] [[Individuals]] [[Paradox]] [[Excitement]]