Sometimes, you feel that you can’t compare to what friends, family or even competing industries are busy with. They might be more successful in business, produce smarter plans than you, spend more time with their families or perhaps just seem to contribute more effort towards their communities and charity. There is danger in comparison, but there’s also inspiration and options!
We might say we shouldn’t compare, but it is difficult not to, in our personal capacity. We even compare ourselves to other nations! According to Businesstech, it is hard to track emigration figures, but “the latest data from SARS shows that, over the last five years, over 40,500 taxpayers have ended their tax residency in South Africa.” It would be fair to say that these South Africans compared their current life or possible future in South Africa with another country and then chose to emigrate. Comparison motivated change. Is this an option for all South Africans? Obviously not, and that is why comparison and its possibilities should always be seen in context. Sometimes it happens in an environment where it can result in action. Many other times, however, it might result in negativity and feelings of despondence.
Can countries be inspired by each other? Perhaps it is a stretch to think that a country from the developing world can be inspired by a leading economy, but sometimes we need big dreams in order to take the first small step. Can a country like South Africa find inspiration in the entrepreneurship and innovation of the United States for instance? When the South African Government is shuffling funds to ensure they survive another financial year, we are caught between the relief that they have something to shuffle and the angst that we are now fidgeting with precious resources. The fight for survival is real and it’s no surprise that our local environment is not currently ideal for innovation and dreams.
In the same week as the South African budget speech, South African-born, but long-gone, Elon Musk announces the realisation of another of his “wild” ideas – the success of Neuralink’s first implant into a human patient’s brain, enabling control of a computer mouse through thinking. According to their press release, the patient has been moving the mouse on the screen purely using thoughts and without a finger on a button! Why do we want to save our fingers from clicking? According to Musk, this is just the initial step. The goal is for this technology to eventually “facilitate speedy surgical insertions of its chip devices to treat conditions like obesity, autism, depression, and schizophrenia.” (Read more) Now that can make a real difference!
A day after Finance Minister Godongwana’s budget speech, robotic explorer, Odysseus – the first American venture of this nature since the 1972 Apollo 17 mission – landed on the moon! (Read more) The dream to explore space is nothing new, but remember when we were trained people to live on Mars? The Mars One project might have since died, but it is interesting to know that some people compared the red planet to Earth and opted for the unknown. In a world plagued with war and poverty, all of this might sound like mind games and moon dreams, but while peace-making and humanitarian issues are very important, where will we be without dreams and crazy aspirations?
Comparison is negative when it leads to inferiority or superiority, but positive when it motivates and inspires. For comparison to be healthy, however, it is essential to understand the context. There isn’t much room for innovation when you are fighting for survival. That is one of the reasons why context is so important and why it isn’t really fair to compare. Your neighbour might be doing more for charity, but he might have more time or money and fewer responsibilities of his own. Your country might not build spacecraft because it is dealing with unemployment and corruption. Understand the context is important, but that doesn’t mean it is an excuse. We usually have the ability to do more. South Africa has the human capital and expertise to not only dream, but also to take action and inspire. Can we blame our environment if we don’t live up to the challenge? While dire circumstances can sometimes challenge you to produce a solution, a negative environment (especially when it isn’t in your control) can kill enthusiasm and the hope to dream.
It is a struggle not to compare and while we’re at it, we might just as well try and find the positive and the inspiration. Godongwana is keeping the dream alive with R150 billion from the Gold and Foreign Exchange Contingency Reserve Account (GFECRA), but I guess that is less out of comparison and more out of desperation.