Compounds CompoundsCompounds, I

Is it that simple??

Dec 16, 2023

A penny saved is just a penny earned, unless of course you double that penny every day for 30 days, which is then $5,368,709.12
– Pietros Maneo

Compounding is present in our everyday lives but happens to proliferate without our realisation. Unlike inflation, which affects externals, compounding affects who we are as much as it affects our money or the world around us. It can be traced back to Babylonian times, c.2000 BCE, whose mathematics involved interest in interest calculations. Compound interest is when an amount is increased (or diminished) relative to the previous amount. This is repeated over and over resulting in herculean changes on the principal. It is the strongest force of change in the universe. What if I told you that a piece of paper folded 27 times would be taller than Mount Everest?^⁠1 Add 14 additional folds to that and you will reach the Moon.^⁠2 It sounds ludicrous at first.

We see this in biology, such as fungi reproduction, where a cell divides itself to produce two genetically identical cells. These two cells mitose themselves, producing four cells, that become eight in turn. Let us take the example of a mammal known to everyone, mice. While they have lured cats and their arguable domestication into our lives, that is perhaps the only positive from their insertion into our lives. These adorable rodents, while small in size, can grow to a full exponential infestation. A female mouse becomes pregnant about five to ten times a year and can mate again shortly after giving birth to its five to ten pups. The female pups in turn can mate from six weeks old. The problems then start to become evident.

Let us say a mouse produces four female pups every time and is not curtailed by predators, food, or space, it could lead to 131,258 mice a year.^⁠1 Unlike our ancestors, we do not rely on cats to keep them from our households. Modern habitations do not allow for mice to hide, and our food is safely stored should these mice find ways to travel unseen. John Mirk, a priest in late 14^th century England, wrote the following on rodents stealing the host from priests in his manual for the clergy: Instructions for Parish Priests.

3ef hyt were eten wyth mows or rat, If it were eaten by a mouse or rat,

Dere þow moste a-bygge þat; dearly you must pay for that;

Fowrty dayes for þat myschawnce forty days for that mischance

Þow schalt be in penaunce. you shall be in penance.

The author of Atomic Habits, James Clear, succinctly demonstrates in his book how our behavioural changes can lead to exponential improvements. In the case of a 1% daily improvement, be it at writing, playing guitar, programming, or anything else for a year. This small, unnoticeable daily change leads to becoming thirty-seven times better than when you started. That's the difference between a child's drawing and a very good oil painter. Not everyone is driven by passions or wishes to become good at one thing. However, if applied to life in general it can also lead to drastic changes. Imagine a version of yourself that strived to become more assiduous with exercising, said no more often, moved closer to work, or harbored more positive thoughts among other things. The results of many small improvements can be life-changing.

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We are constantly increasing our knowledge and capabilities as we age, we just don't always take the driver's seat. The aggregation of marginal gains, made popular by Sir Dave Brailsford, is just this. By focusing on a 1% improvement over several areas of his team, he managed to turn an embarrassing British cycling team which had won a single gold medal in 76 years, into winning seven out of ten gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, and the majority of gold metals at future Olympics and Tours de France.¹ There is no doubt that small increases catalyst to large outcomes. They tend to be invisible to us since there is no tangible alteration from one day to the next, but faith is just this. The dictionary defines it as a belief that is not based on proof. We hold beliefs that are not based on absolute facts and that helps us get to another day. We all hope that tomorrow is going to be better for one thing. Sigmund Freud thought religious beliefs to be the psyche protecting us from existential realities.^⁠2

In modern times the utility of religious beliefs is replaced with embodiments to fight for, two examples of these are political parties and celebrities. I think we all believe in something. It doesn't matter what that belief is as long as it helps us wake up in the morning. It could be that the K-pop band, BTS, are the greatest performers and kindest people on the planet to you, it doesn't matter. But why not believe in yourself in addition? We easily put our full trust and create paragons of strangers, despite knowing ourselves and our wishes better than anyone; decide to believe in ourselves indiscriminately. The Greek philosopher, Epictetus, said it is as simple as telling yourself what you want to become, then acting your part accordingly. Or in today's terms, fake it until you make it.

This doesn't only help with specific improvements but also general growth. Let us take Taylor Swift, or any popular YouTuber for instance–while at the beginning they saw a slow increase in interactions, perhaps ten views a week, by pure consistency what was ten views has grown to thousands and millions. The amount of subscribers you will acquire is relative to the amount of subscribers you already have. You can perceive this in all aspects of life.

The more potential partners are interested in you the more will become available to you, you do not have to be beautiful for it to happen. More opportunities will be awarded to you the richer you are, competence is not a prerequisite for this. It goes on and on. This phenomenon is called the Matthew effect. The term was coined from the bible in 1968 by the sociologist couple, Robert K. Merton and Harriet Zuckerman. This was initially used to describe how notorious scientists would get more credit than their lesser-known peers who provided equal work. This increased visibility and confidence more easily compounds into other great results. The more you have the more you will be given to you.

For to every one who has will more be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
— Matthew 25:29

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