Lessons and Commitments (3/7) - On rent-seeking and self-respect

Rent-seeking, in the broadest sense, is a sin that robs you of far more than you gain in the short term. I have realized that I do not want to rent-seek, consciously or subconsciously. And more importantly, to gently but firmly correct this impulse when I see it in others. I want to preface this by saying that this is not written from any moral high ground. It is an observation, a trap that even well-meaning people fall into because many environments reward it. I am sure I have too. The first time I read about rent-seeking was in my economics class. Rent-seeking, in its economic sense, means gaining wealth or advantage without creating new value. This extends to human behavior too: it is the impulse to collect rewards, attention, or belonging without truly earning them. It is one of those habits that feels satisfying in the moment but leaves you emptier afterward. You start to see it everywhere once you start looking. It is the team member who takes credit for a project they barely to

Rent-seeking, in the broadest sense, is a sin that robs you of far more than you gain in the short term. I have realized that I do not want to rent-seek, consciously or subconsciously. And more importantly, to gently but firmly correct this impulse when I see it in others. I want to preface this by saying that this is not written from any moral high ground. It is an observation, a trap that even well-meaning people fall into because many environments reward it. I am sure I have too. The first time I read about rent-seeking was in my economics class. Rent-seeking, in its economic sense, means g