The words 'Clean Freaks' in the title really should have told me what I was going to expect from this video.
Please do not get me wrong: I like it clean and tidy! I need to know where my things are so I do not have to search for them. I get frequently told off by my wife for being a little too conscious. This video, however, takes cleanliness to a complete different level and could be easily labeled as 'obsessed'. I do appreciate that there are many people out there who love that sort of organised home and also probably depend on that level of cleanliness to give them stability and comfort in their lives.
I am not trying to have a go at these people, critizise or judge them in any way - not at all. This video merely triggered a philosophical thought errupting in a few questions.
Why have humans developed this strict efficiency?
Why do we aim for maximised productivity in life?
Why is everything else seen as failure or unsuccess?
And I am right in the centre of that crowd of human beings that think just like that too. Sure it is because during our (my) upbringing we usually get taught those values by our parents, friends and other social environment. So if we would have been told the opposite our general opinion about chaos and unproductivity would therefore be very different too. But how has this value developed throughout the existence of human life?
 |
| http://www.123rf.com |
The Cambridge Dictionary states:
Efficiency is the good use of time and energy in a way that does not waste any.That is a rather rechnical explaination in my view.
Well, nature for one is usually very efficient. It has to be, as many a times resources are extremely precious and could mean life or death to any species in the plant or animal kingdom. So if you waste your resources (food, water, shelter, health etc.) you are not going to survive for very long. We would not have the diversity of plants and animals on this planet if everything would fail their purpose of life. In fact this planet might just be a lump of minerals clouded in gas.
So is the urge to be efficient and seeing efficiency as a vital achievement simply set deep down in our genetics by nature? Probably to some extent. And then enhanced by our upbringing. As civilization has developed, certain values have increased or decreased in their meaning. Effiency has paid off during many centuries so that millions of humans regognize this value as a must to have an easier life. The more productive you are, the more you can achieve. The more you can achieve, the more comfortable will your life be. The more comfortable your life is, the less struggle to survive.
Instead of survival efficiency in the Western civilization becomes equal to success.
Although nowadays of course, it is not so much the survival that is important anymore. Survival in our luxurious civilization is so easy that nobody is concerned about survival in the original sense anymore. Apart from the third world of course, where resources like food, water, shelter, health etc. are still very much deciding over life or death. But I am thinking of efficiency that concerns the so called Western lives. Instead of survival efficiency in the Western civilization becomes equal to success. That is usually measured in monetry value. So if you are efficient you can maximise your productivity and therfore are successful in whatever you do. Well normally. There are exceptions as always.
What if a person has a fantastically organised home, just like in that video, but struggles for years to get a job. As a result this person is not seen as successful at all. Which means efficiency is not a magical spell that guarantees a fabulous life necessarily. On the other hand some people do not aim for wealth and luxury as a goal in their lives. They have very different values.
And what about those people that seemingly by nature are chaotic and absolutely struggle to keep their homes tidy. Filing systems, colour-coded laundry, shoes and clothing all in one location only, floor space cleared and kitchen units usable seems a real life challenge to some. Sure, some people are just simply lazy, do not bother or have been spoilt in their upbringing. I am talking about those that truly struggle with any form of rules, systems and tidyness of human civilization. Is it because nature had a mishap in those genetics? Or are these people closer to the original cavemen genes than the rest of the overbred human race?
Everything has to be effecient and pushed to maximised productivity. Why?
No comments:
Post a Comment