Don’t Treat Your Life as a Project: How to Embrace the Abundance of Being Alive and Avoid Definitive Failure

Don’t Treat Your Life as a Project: How to Embrace the Abundance of Being Alive and Avoid Definitive Failure

Introduction:

In our modern society, the notion of narrating our lives as coherent narrative wholes has become increasingly popular. However, philosopher Galen Strawson argues that this idea is a fallacy of our age. He claims to have no sense of his life as a narrative, with or without form. This perspective challenges the belief that a good life must form a coherent narrative and that we must tell that narrative to ourselves. But is there something to be gained from breaking free from this narrative mindset? Let's explore the concept of Life as Narrative and its implications.

The Fallacy of Life as Narrative:

Life as Narrative suggests that we are bound to present our lives as coherent narrative wholes. It implies that a good life must follow a linear narrative structure, with an agent, action, goal, setting, instrument, and trouble. However, this perspective overlooks the richness and complexity of our actual lives. Our lives are filled with an abundance of experiences, both successes, and failures. By reducing our lives to a single narrative arc, we set ourselves up for definitive failure. We define our worth and identity based on the outcome of this single enterprise, which is an erroneous way of perceiving ourselves.

Appreciating the Digressive Amplitude of Being Alive:

Instead of viewing our lives as a linear narrative that must reach a climax, we should embrace the digressive amplitude of being alive. Life is not a project with a predetermined plotline. It is a collection of small successes and failures, an inexhaustible miscellany. By appreciating the sheer abundance of incidents in our lives, we can free ourselves from the pressure to achieve a definitive outcome. We are not winners or losers; we are simply living.

Marketplace Liquidity: How Side Switching Can Help:

Shifting our focus to marketplace dynamics, we encounter the concept of liquidity. Marketplaces require a critical mass of demand and supply to thrive. Liquidity is easier to achieve in 1-sided networks, where users represent both demand and supply. However, in marketplaces, liquidity depends on the number of suppliers that can be matched with customer requests. The density of supply relative to demand determines liquidity.

Different Types of Marketplaces and Liquidity Challenges:

Marketplaces can be categorized based on their primary characteristics, such as geographic range and nature of supply. Hyperlocal marketplaces face the challenge of maintaining a specific supply to demand ratio within a small radius. They require significant investments in field operations to achieve and maintain liquidity. On the other hand, marketplaces with cross-border network effects have the advantage of spreading supply to demand ratio across a larger geographic area.

Commoditized Supply vs. Differentiated Supply:

Marketplaces can also be classified based on their supply type. Some marketplaces have commoditized or interchangeable supply, while others have differentiated supply. Marketplaces with commoditized supply find it easier to acquire a critical mass of supply across categories. On the contrary, marketplaces with differentiated supply face challenges in achieving liquidity due to the complexity of enabling matches.

The Role of Side Switching in Achieving Liquidity:

For hyperlocal marketplaces with differentiated supply, achieving liquidity becomes more challenging. In the absence of deep pockets to fund brute force approaches, these marketplaces have two options. The first approach is to use a "come for the tool, stay for the network" strategy. The second approach is to embrace side switching, where participants can switch between the demand and supply side. By encouraging frequent side switching, marketplaces can create liquidity and attract more valuable network participants.

Conclusion: Embracing the Abundance and Fluidity of Life and Marketplaces

In both our lives and marketplace dynamics, there is value in embracing the abundance and fluidity instead of rigid narratives and fixed roles. By understanding that our lives are an assortment of small successes and failures, we can avoid the trap of defining ourselves based on a single enterprise. Similarly, marketplaces can leverage side switching and the diversity of participants to achieve liquidity and growth. The key is to embrace the digressive amplitude of being alive and to recognize the potential of non-linear storylines and flexible roles.

Actionable Advice:

1. Embrace the complexity of your life: Instead of trying to fit your life into a single narrative arc, appreciate the richness and diversity of experiences. View your life as an assortment of small successes and failures, rather than defining yourself by a single outcome.

2. Foster side switching in your marketplace: If you're building a marketplace, consider incorporating side switching as a core part of your value proposition. Encourage participants to switch between the demand and supply side frequently, creating liquidity and attracting valuable network participants.

3. Focus on diversity and flexibility: In both life and marketplaces, diversity and flexibility are key. Embrace non-linear storylines, diverse experiences, and flexible roles. Recognize that there is value in the abundance and fluidity of being alive and doing business.

In conclusion, let go of the notion that your life must follow a linear narrative. Embrace the abundance and complexity of being alive. Likewise, in marketplaces, leverage side switching and diversity to achieve liquidity and growth. By breaking free from rigid narratives and fixed roles, you can find greater fulfillment and success in both your life and business endeavors.