Do you have to be evil to be rich and successful?

1. 60

   IDONOposted 11 years ago

   Do you have to be evil to be rich and successful?
   
   It seems like anyone that is successful is automatically scrutinized by media and the public in general as a person with a dark side. I realize it's next to impossible to be successful without stepping on someone along the way, but does that make you evil? Is being successful a blessing or a curse? How do you feel about it?

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2. 82

   Attikosposted 11 years ago

   I've known too many successful people who are also good people with fine track records to believe for a moment that evil has anything to do with their achievements. That isn't to say that bad people too don't succeed, but there is no question in my mind that success does not imply bad character.
   
   One of the greatest hypocrisies currently on display is politicians exploiting a feeling among swaths of the population that it is impossible for "rich" people to be "good" people. Politicians, fanning the flames of that social prejudice, pretending that they have the better characters than those who have done well in their careers? What effrontery!

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3. 70

   crazymom3posted 11 years ago

   That's the craziest Idea--of course not!  There are many many good succesful, rich people.

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4. 37

   edhanposted 11 years ago

   Being rich does not really means having lots of money.
   
   Success comes in many forms. It can be wealth, health and relationship. One does not need to be evil to earn richness.

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5. 86

   TIMETRAVELER2posted 11 years ago

   The word evil is pretty strong, and it means different things to different people.  This makes your question tricky to answer, but in general, I don't think all wealthy people are evil or need to be evil to obtain money and success.
   
   However, they do have to be intelligent, lucky, hard working and realistic.  This having been said, I do feel that many wealthy people (and I have known a number of them personally) seem to have the attitude that they are better than other people or that they "deserve" what they have, even when they've inherited their money.  Many also are greedy and never seem to have enough...they always want more and only "give" when they can "get" something in return.
   
   Few of them are really happy because they always wonder whether people only want them for their money!

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6. 54

   whonunuwhoposted 11 years ago

   No..just observe ones in this country of America and the beneficial presentations and sharing that they have been so wonderful in doing. There is evidence that this evil has been a factor in history and some not so long in the past.

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7. 63

   beadreamer247posted 11 years ago

   Absolutely not. Rich and evil have nothing to do with each other! There might be evil people who are rich and there are a lot of good people who are rich. And besides that, what means rich to you???
   For some it is a blessing for some it is a struggle as well, being rich does not equal being happy and satisfied.

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8. 73

   lburmasterposted 11 years ago

   No, you don't have to be evil to be rich and successful. I know two millionaires who are very caring and friendly. However, they are cheap. Honestly, I believe someone's reaction to gaining fortune and fame are based off of their personality and how they reached their "success".

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9. 86

   SidKempposted 11 years ago

   All people, I think, have a dark side. Even Gandhi said, "I practice non-violence because I am such an angry person." Having a dark side does not make us evil. Promoting our dark side, or denying it and letting it control us leads us to fall into evil.
   
   And anyone can do that, rich or poor, successful or a failure.
   
   That said, I do think there are some correlations when it comes to financial success and greed and the risk of evil. Certainly, without excellent self-management, compassionate people will tend to share their wealth, and therefore not be as wealthy. Also, it is easier and faster to get wealthy if one is self-centered, and even selfish. And that opens a door to uncaring and evil.
   
   As Attikos said, being wealthy is easily linked in one's own mind to deserving wealth, and that can easily lead to entitlement, loss of empathy, selfishness, and evil. It was a key difference between Saruman, who fell into evil, and Gandalf, who did not, in the Lord of the Rings.
   
   I don't think that wealth or power always corrupts, but it certainly opens a door to temptations.
   
   That said, poverty is full of temptations, as well, such as the temptation to despair, or falling into the idea that we need help and cannot succeed through developing our own abilities.
   
   For profiles of people who have or had a lot of wealth and power, two, at least, of whom were certainly not evil, read my hub on The Four Types of Leaders.
   
   In my own life, I am trying to find out if it is possible to develop wisdom and love, be compassionate and generous, and live a financially balanced life. I don't compromise on the first four, and I'm working on #5.

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   1. 60

      IDONOposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      A person that shares their wealth, as long as it doesn't cut into their own wants, (not needs), is not necessarily compassionate. Sometimes this is motivated by selfishness and a need to cover that up.

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   2. 86

      SidKempposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Agreed. There are many complicated ways that the ego can get involved in fundamentally good qualities, such as responsibility and generosity. I believe it is good to check all that we do with the Wisdom rooted in our own heart.

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10. 79

    Say Yes To Lifeposted 11 years ago

    You're probably thinking that the only way to become fabulously wealthy is by exploiting the poor, like those sweatshop owners in the Olden Days.  That's not necessarily true.  You get wealthy by getting a good paying job, and saving and wisely investing what you earn. 
    
    People who exploit others make enemies; though they may become wealthy, they often don't keep what they have.  I personally know someone who became wealthy by running a prostitution ring.  At any time, rival gangsters could have come to his mansion and shot up his family.  As it turns out, a "friend" went into business with him and wiped him out - that's another common occurance.
    
    Getting rich quick usually involves exploitation - but the money also goes out faster than it comes in.  Drug dealers are notorious for spending more than they make.  They also generally are murdered before age 30 - by rival drug dealers.
    
    Slow and steady is the best way to accumulate wealth.  I strongly believe a person is wealthy based on how hard their money is working for them - so SAVE and INVEST!!!  No one will be hurt in the process!

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    1. 83

       gmwilliamsposted 8 years agoin reply to this

       A+++++++. People become RICH by assessing what the public wants & act upon that.  People also become rich because of phenomenal talent, smarts, etc.

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11. 83

    gmwilliamsposted 8 years ago

    
    
    C'now on now.  What? What?  Get....REAL.  The premise that in order to be wealthy & successful that one has to be EVILLL is merely an atavistic stereotype propagated by the extreme & deluded left & extreme religionists.  Have you considered that there are HIGHLY, EXTREME evil people as a result of being impoverished? 
    
    It is impoverished people who commit crime in order to feed their families.  It is impoverished people who oftentimes resort to highly illegal behavior to be socioeconomically afloat.  It is impoverished people who force their children to work in order to keep the family socioeconomically above sinking.   Please do not present the sing-song that in order to be wealthy & successful, one has to be morally bankrupt.  That is pure hyperbolic propaganda against those who are extremely successful, socioeconomically affluent, & high achievers.  There seems to be an animus against the highly successful, educated, & affluent based upon an underlying hatred & envy.
    
    Highly successful & affluent people are demonized.  This reminds one of  honor & A students who were considered to be successful because they are teacher's pets &/or some other negative, pejorative characteristic.  Highly successful & affluent people are the way they are because they visualize, strategize, & work smart towards their goals.  They also make sacrifices for their successes while the poorer among us refuse to make such sacrifices, preferring the philosophy of immediate gratification without any care nor thought regarding the future.
    
    I do not have any problem with the rich & successful.  They are not eating up my taxes like the poor who continuously bilk the system through welfare & other government entitlements.  Let's discuss them instead of always criticizing the rich!  I am SICK of the rich being CONSTANTLY & CONSISTENTLY demonized!  They should be ADMIRED & ADULATED!

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