Impactalism

A book project, working title Impactalism. Two critical thoughts sit above everything else: there is something beyond the selfish why, and all people are equal. From this we are all confronted with the fact that we are not living our lives consistently with these two ideas.

Many of us have more than we need, and our misguided pursuit of more stuff leads us to lives of dissatisfaction. Given that, there are many opportunities to help others less fortunate than ourselves with our excess. Put simply, it is immoral to ignore the existence of human suffering and pursue a life of insipid consumption. The alternative is a life of purpose which leverages the money we earn, and dedicates the hours we spend at work, to fulfilling our life’s potential impact through whatever means we find most effective.

This realisation does not require an ascetic life. To be effective, we need to be well slept, well fed, well educated and well balanced — close friends, a sense of shared humanity, independent financial security before taking risks. The question is what to do with the genuine surplus beyond that.

The book is where the rest of this site’s thinking compounds. It led directly to EveryDrop, and it will be a major thread of the writing here.