Netizens have never lacked creativity, and after the word "996" swept the Internet in 2019, people gradually found that with the increasingly fierce competition, although more and more are paid, they may not be able to get corresponding returns, which is called "inner volume".
In fact, the phenomenon of "involution" was first proposed by the American anthropologist Giltz, who found when studying the rural economy that farmers will continue to increase the labor input of rice cultivation under population pressure, and carry out inefficient production at the cost of diminishing marginal returns, and labor tends to be involuted, thus forming "growth without development".
It can be seen from this that the "inner volume" is actually the self-idling of labor, so what are the manifestations of the inner volume refracted into the social field from the initial economic phenomenon?
Manifestations of the "inner volume"
Recently, it is said that an article in Huawei's internal forum made a brilliant discussion of the phenomenon of internal volumes. Seven manifestations of the inner volume are listed:
(1) Meaningless excellence. (2) Complicating simple problems. (3) In order to avoid liability, passively cope with the work. (4) Work that deviates seriously from the expected goal. (5) Low level of imitation and reproduction. (6) Internal competition that limits creativity. (7) Endless excavation research on the same problem.
In short, neither the increase in quantity nor the internal friction of qualitative improvement can be called inner volume.
Why "inner volume"?
There are two directions for social development: one is the increase of quantity, and the other is the improvement of quality. Everything develops because of imbalance. Because only differences generate motivation. The same is true of society, when one stage replaces another stage of development, the first priority of social development is first to complete the accumulation of quantity, and then to improve quality.
Therefore, at each stage of the transformation period, a temporary balance will arise. This stage generally has four characteristics: (1) Society has become weak by the original way of pushing. (2) Endogenous dynamics have not yet been formed. (3) Lack of new guidance mechanisms. (4) Society is pervasive with negative emotions.
When the inner volume appeared, social competition seemed fierce. But this competition is actually internal friction and does not create additional value. Because of the different resources they have, the emotions they show when they are rolled up are different. Those who have fewer resources and are at the bottom will have more labor to break through the class restrictions.
Can "inner rolls" be avoided?
Inner volume is an inevitable phenomenon of social development to a certain extent. It is only in different social systems and countries that the performance of the inner volume is also different. Every economic crisis experienced in developed Societies in the West is an involution. In the economic crisis, the industry is manifested as excess products and slow sales, while the life of residents is manifested as weak consumption and unemployment.
This kind of internalized economic crisis seems to be the cancer of capitalist society, and no good solution has been found so far except to pass on the crisis through war or to carry through economic restructuring.
In fact, after China experienced the transformation of private ownership in the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the subsequent reform and opening up, the economy has been greatly improved in terms of quantity and quality. GDP per capita was close to $10,000 by 2018. This is the threshold that economists call the "middle-income trap."
Humans themselves are inert. According to the theory of human needs, after the needs of each level of people are satisfied, a certain inertia will occur. After a period of adjustment, it will stimulate a new and higher desire for demand.
Human beings exist as a society, when the economy develops to a certain stage, the inertia of individuals is often expressed in a group way, at which time people's pioneering and creativity will be limited. Therefore, the inner volume is actually a social group expression of human nature.
Drawing on the wisdom of the ancients, you can't "lie flat" because of the "inner volume"
The wisdom of netizens is infinite, almost at the same time as the "inner volume", and "lying flat" has quickly become a hot word on the Internet. The so-called "lying flat" means that some people take the initiative to marginalize and stay away from competition. A large part of those who hold a "lying flat" attitude are young people. In fact, this part of the population does not live at the bottom of society. The person who really "lies flat" must be a person who lives a carefree life and can get something for free.
Once "lying flat" becomes a social phenomenon, it will greatly limit the vitality of society. Professor Li Fengliang, director of the Institute of Education and Research of Tsinghua University, saw the social harm of lying flat, and he shouted loudly on the Internet: you can't "lie flat" because you don't like the "inner volume".
Inner scrolls are an inevitable phenomenon in any society, how did the ancients survive the inner volume period?
Zeng Guofan, a famous minister of Zhongxing who lived in the late Qing Dynasty, was once called "half a saint". On the basis of summarizing the ideas of famous masters, he proposed "four realms":
The first kind of person, like Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao, is sincere and humble, pays attention to self-cultivation and gives birth to wisdom and wisdom;
The second kind of person, as expressed in the Zi Si Testament, sincerely reaches the extreme point of touching the gods, and then reaches the realm of foreknowledge of the future;
The third kind, as Confucius, Mencius, Yan Hui, Zengzi, etc., said, is content with poverty, is willing to adhere to the moral standards of their own beliefs, and then is healthy and has a rosy face;
The fourth kind of person, as Tao Yuanming, Bai Juyi, Su Shi, Lu You, etc., appreciates the beauty of nature and the leisurely chanting poetry, so that the mood is comfortable and the look is idyllic.
In fact, no matter what kind of realm, there is a kind of life meaning of "loving life, cherishing time, regulating oneself, and being optimistic and enterprising" in it. As a contemporary person, we must not only absorb the wisdom of the ancients, but also judge the situation and find the most suitable way of life for ourselves in the state of inner volume.
The author of this article is Li Xinmiao, from the public account "Thoughter's Notes" (ID: swot 0101)