3 Reasons You Shouldn’t Mind Your Business
Minding our environment could be better for us and the world
I used to be conflicted whenever I offer something deeply opinionated on someone else’s Tweet. I was often drawn between keeping my opinion to my self or feeling absolutely confident in exercising my right to free expression.
I soon got over that hesitation when I discovered the fundamental ways everything in the world is connected. It is not a far-fetched truth; simple instances from the human daily commune and commute illuminates this need.
We are even more embedded in other people’s business than we know simply because most humans do have an unconscious need for validation. And it is human interaction that readily provides this.
Business no more minds itself - value keeps trickling down at every opportunity it can find. People are also beginning to discover that an overly individualistic world would do them more harm than good in the long run.
We are now at a state where it is necessary to pay great attention to everything around us or we lose the moment to this fast-paced world.
Consider this:
Have you ever told someone to mind their business and to leave you alone? In reality, though, even people who tell others “mind your business” don’t always mind their own respective businesses.
So the “mind your business” cliche quickly became an easier cop out for those who do not want their intellectual laziness to be challenged, are too laid back to defend it, and it waned in popularity.
We can hardly do anything successfully in life alone. This is why we interact with other people day in day out. Nations, knowing the importance of globalism over isolationism, trade with one another.
The cycle of giving and taking has made our world rounder and flatter every time.
In our interconnected world which search engines, social media, maps, streaming, etc have linked together; it will remain egregious to not accept that “my business is your business” and vice versa.
1. The World Still Goes Round
I am now much involved in your business and you in mine. Let a billionaire who shares the same habitation with paupers who are below the world poverty line say s(he) is not bothered about the latter’s condition and s(he) will soon be run over by angry rioters.
If at all by luck, their generation escapes the merciless lynching when it comes, their incoming innocent generation may still be on the receiving end of generational hate.
A vivid historical example of an angry mob running over the bourgeoisie is in the French Revolution and the Bolshevik riots in Imperial Russia.
Robots too, despite the realization that they will reduce the cost of production, are yet to replace humans in manufacturing lines. Industrialists and billionaires sure know the need to keep the bottom rung of the population at least minimally employed or else they’d soon be wiped out themselves.
In essence, the chain of human labor still exists because you and I still matter to whatever other spectrum of human existence — strong or weak, wealthy or wretched, sane, or insane.
And I repeat; my business is your business because the world still goes round.
2. Does the Value Trickle Down?
This is a pertinent question. Yes, the wealth of all nations or that of individuals does always trickle down, but at what rate and in what volume does it trickle.
An overlord will have at least a form of interaction or another within the community where they are resident. Basic communal interaction such as shopping, hiring domestic staff, laborers for an orchard, etc do happen even in gentrified communities. Louts, the homeless also will earn the meager alms they depend on.
In such a scenario, value — no matter how minimal- has already been passed down to members of the 99%. In some cases, the overlord/bourgeoisie passes on a little of their privileges down to the lower class without them knowing.
Business is no more minding itself; value has migrated.
3. Is It My Duty To ‘Keep’ My Brother?
I bet you’re not staying alone. You’re either living under your parents or married whether with kids or not. I bet you got friends too, or at least you have family be it immediately yours or acquired family. Where do you work? Who do you work for or who works for? You are hardly alone.
Now figure this scenario where you live. Assume that your neighbor which you have never interacted with died silently indoors, would you know if nobody told you? It is easy to say that because you do not know what is going on in their life, then they are not your business?
But now that the neighbor has been dead for weeks now, the strong odor of the decaying body will most likely become a problem for you. You will be left with the option of either packing out of your lovely apartment for a longer time or you make it your responsibility to alert the authorities to get the body cleared out.
Now imagine if you were so engrossed in your alone world and nobody thought it necessary or dutiful to attend to your corpse after you have cut everyone off.
We do not mind our businesses until we are dead
