In economics, there is a theory known as the law of diminishing returns. Many of us have heard of this before ; Yet more have experienced it. The crux of the law of diminishing returns basically states that the more you consume of something, the less you enjoy it. The typical example that was presented to me as a student was that one can of coke was good, the second was alright, and after the 3rd you would get either a sugar high, diabetes or an imaginary unicorn.
But really, its applications extend beyond a simple can of coke. Three bags of potato chips are nowhere near as awesome as one, doing homework used to be fun until I got swamped by it, and one can only take being around a clingy boyfriend/girlfriend for so long. By that logic, to achieve the most happiness/utility that we can out of our lives, we should be doing everything in moderation, stopping the moment it becomes less fun/rewarding than it should be.
But that isn’t how the world works, is it? 8 hours of work a day is hardly good for everyone. Some people, like myself, have huge attention deficit disorders and can’t really sit still for that long. Others only know how to work. The world imposes its standards on us, regardless of what we may think or know is the best for us, based on what someone else thinks is the best for us/them.
It would then seem that on a macro-level, the world moderates itself. Many of us may be overworked/underworked and are forced to adhere to certain rules we may not be happy with, but this mild discomfort pales in comparison to the trouble of starting a revolt or trying to change anything, trying to find oneself in a brave new world. Perhaps the social inertia has been instilled in us over the years. Sleeping at fixed times. Eating at fixed times. Allocated leisure time. It seems that society itself is subliminally telling us how we should spend it time.
But here’s the kicker – Wouldn’t this mean that we are committing the ultimate sin – an excess of moderation?
