What is Growth?

Shells in the Sands Series #9

The intention for this series is to share cherished thoughts and reflections of life in bite-size pieces. I have been an avid journal writer since my early teens, and most of the original writings were initially captured in my personal journal. I have chosen the most pertinent ones to share with the world through this series. This joy is similar to picking out beautiful shells while walking on a sandy beach.

This question first came to mind a few weeks ago regarding economic growth, inspired by the short film “Closer to Home” by Local Futures, Economics of Happiness. The film features thinkers, writers, and activists from every continent, arguing for the need to bring economies back home. One line from the film really struck me: “In the name of growth, we are all poorer.” It went on to give examples: “If your car is stolen and you have to buy a new one, that is good for GDP; if you have cancer and need expensive treatment, that is good for GDP; if you grow your own vegetables, eat healthy, and stay healthy, that is not good for GDP.”

“In the name of growth, we are all poorer.” — Closer to Home

I am struck by how economic growth, as measured by GDP, often seems to drive us away from health and happiness. This highlights the importance of indicators: narrow and flawed measures of growth can mislead us, steering us in the wrong direction.

This question about growth resurfaced during a recent conversation with my sister. Both in our thirties, we find ourselves in need of new indicators for growth because the ones we used to rely on have expired.

When we were younger, growth was measured by biological markers like weight and height, followed by life milestones such as academic degrees, work accomplishments, marriages, and children. For those ambitious in their careers, an easy marker would be how high they climb the hierarchical ladder or the size of their paycheck. Others may stop focusing on their own growth and start living vicariously through their children.

Life after school is nonlinear. For a long time, I’ve been asking, “Where did my A go?” As a straight-A student, I relied on grades to measure my academic progress. But since graduating with a terminal degree, I’ll never receive a clear-cut A again. So, how do I measure my growth in career, especially in the absence of major leaps in titles or salary?

With the stagnancy in the global economy, most people are experiencing slow growth, if any, in their salary. In the United States, my paycheck certainly isn’t growing as fast as inflation. My sister said that in China, the expectation is, “You are rich if you do not have debt.” People are certainly not expecting growth in their savings.

All this is to say, as we reach maturity in adulthood, external indicators of growth can fall short. I can’t imagine the anxiety it would provoke if a person’s main indicator of growth is their position on the career ladder or the amount of money in the bank. Perhaps this explains the high suicide rate during economic downturns — people lose hope when growth is negative and feel that life is no longer worth living.

What if we developed new indicators of growth that focus more on the quality of our lives rather than the quantity of our possessions? Quantities are much easier to measure than quality. Since the Industrial Revolution, we have relied on quantity to indicate growth and progress, putting ourselves in competition with machines. Perhaps this is why artificial intelligence provokes so much anxiety; humans are losing the quantity competition against machines with superior computing and mechanical power.

But what about things that are uniquely human? What is this human life about beyond its material existence?

Is it growth if we foster a deeper connection to the earth and nature? In a time when many children believe that food is grown in grocery stores and that air-conditioned rooms are natural, growth would mean developing a deeper appreciation for the ground that bears our food and living more in harmony with nature’s rhythm. A few years ago, I took my little cousin Amanda to see the giant pandas at the Beijing zoo, which has the highest number of pandas in the world. Amanda, about four or five years old at the time, was born and raised in the concrete jungle of Beijing and rarely had exposure to nature. Her idea of nature came from TV or her iPad. She didn’t spend more than two minutes in the panda section before walking away, irritated by how slow the giant panda moved compared to the one she saw on her iPad. I was heartbroken. Is it growth when children prefer what they find on their electronics to what is in the real world? I am deeply grateful for my earthy upbringing in rural China, which imprinted in me a respect for Mother Earth and fostered a deep love for nature. This connection has always been a source of peace and inspiration for me.

Is it growth if we understand more about our inner world? Given my immersion in Classical Chinese Culture, I have always believed in the intricate interdependence between the inner world and the external world. Everything that is “out there” has a correspondence “in here.” One of my favorite quotes from a modern Chinese spiritual teacher is, “Honey, there is nobody out there.” To be perfectly honest, I believe the inner world is the true leader: external stagnancy often follows major inner stuckness, while external resources follow inner growth. Guided by this perspective, I am very conscientious about my inner growth. Fortunately, I have recently encountered several excellent guides on the inner journey that have helped me lean into my shadow, releasing more creative agency. With the inner breakthrough growth I am experiencing, and without needing external validation, I am more confident in how I show up to lead in the external world. Is it growth?

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” — Albert Einstein

Is it growth if we have more quality of presence in each moment? I find so many of my Millennial peers consume themselves in their pursuit of material wealth and in their spending of it. Earning money is difficult and consuming; most people know that. But what most people do not consider is how much energy it takes to spend money: lavish vacations, custom clothing, fancy restaurants, all driven by the unexamined assumption that certain moments are more special than others, and special moments need money to buy. They get consumed in both directions of the material flow. No wonder burnout is so rampant. Just as the saying goes that money cannot buy happiness, money also does not make any moment more special than others. The quality of presence makes every moment special and it does not cost a penny. When we are present, we feel more at home in every circumstance, and more at peace in every situation. We develop the capacity to see the magic in every ordinary moment, as indicated by Einstein as a way of life. Is that growth?

I believe that beneath all the measurable happenings in life, there is an underlying thread. This thread represents our ability to love, to develop a relationship with our true selves, to live in harmony with our deeper values, and to avoid the many illusions life tempts us with. In that thread lies true growth.