Oprah Winfrey

Those are extrinsic values.

Intrinsic values are things like wanting to be good to the environment, wanting to be pro-social, wanting to grow spiritually, wanting to be a good neighbor.

Values operate like a zero-sum game.

So the more time and energy you spend pursuing values,

these extrinsic values, the less room you have in your life for pursuing intrinsic ones.

And here's why this matters, because extrinsic values are linked with negative mental health and substance abuse disorder, whereas intrinsic values are linked with the wellbeing we want.

And here, it's not that we in America

have bad values.

It's that our extrinsic values are constantly being activated.

On social media, in the wider media, we are hearing these messages day in and day out in our hyper capitalistic culture that you need these things to matter.

Whereas people who live their lives and organize their lives through intrinsic values, what they are doing is they are more likely living a life of mattering, living a life where they feel valued by their people and where they know that they add meaningful value back.

Hi, Gord.

I totally agree.

You will go to great lengths to prove that you matter.

That you do matter.

When I think about political extremes, I think about road rage, I think about shootings, I think about online attacks.

These are people who are desperately saying, oh, I don't matter, I'll show you I matter.

They'll even act out against themselves.

There was a study that I write about

of suicidal men.