Counter-intuitive, dark principles

by phil on Tuesday Mar 17, 2009 2:27 PM

I'm a big fan of principle-centered living, as suggested by Steven Covey, in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. I'm kind of a principle-hunter now, searching for sentences or quotes that really seal up a way to do things.

Two popped up this weekend that show the darkside of principles:

• Nothing makes money like money
• Life is ultimately meaningless, so just see as much of the world as you can

The first one is a result of talking with oilmen in Austin, and hearing about the various ways that they expand their businesses. That's a direct quote from one of them.

And the second one is something a friend of mine overheard. It got us talking about travel, and the idea of living in a country for a while where dollars go a long way. I think there's some truth to that.

These aren't really principles I adhere to, but I think they're interesting examples of provocative guiding rhetoric