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How excitement became part of the mythology of capitalism
Introduction: When Risk Becomes a Fate Story
Capitalism grew up on a cult of opportunity: anyone can "play" with idea, labor, capital and change their status. Here excitement is not only emotion, but also the language of justifying risk: "whoever decides is worthy." Over time, this language has become a myth explaining success and failure, shaping the rituals of markets, the hero of the "entrepreneur-player" and the massive expectations of the "jackpot" - from the exchange to startups.
1) Cultural roots: work ethics, chance and the blessing of success
Rational discipline + legitimization of profits. In early bourgeois societies, the risk of investment was morally justified: profit is a sign of competence and foresight.
The figure of an enterprising hero. From an innovative merchant to an industrialist and a venture capitalist, the hero "puts" against the usual order, winning over a long distance.
From fate to probability. Religious metaphors of "chosenness" are transformed into secular ones - "talent recognized chance," "the market rewarded risk."
2) Gold rushes and stock cycles: scenarios of mass excitement
Fevers (gold, oil, real estate, crypto). Recurring plot: hearing → capital migration → growth → overheating → correction. Each cycle feeds on the 이야기 of a "new era," where past rules "no longer work."
Stock bubbles as a performance. Newspapers, telegraph, radio, TV, social networks - every technological step accelerated the infection of excitement. The mass observer turns into a participant, and the market turns into a theater of brief roles.
3) Startups and Ventures: Professionalizing "Managed Excitement"
Portfolio logic. Venture recognizes the high mortality rate of projects, but sells the myth of the "unicorn," which will pay for everything. This is an institutionalized jackpot.
Narrative as an asset. Pitches, demo days, "stories of the future" are legitimate ways to boost valuations, where rhetoric is converted into capital.
Sprint and beer culture. The right to make a mistake is part of the ritual. Excitement is structured through metrics, rounds, captable - a game with rules and judges.
4) The Loterization of Capitalism: When Chance Trumps Math
"Ticket to Social Mobility." Study, career, market - served as a lottery with opaque chances, where "everyone can."
Risks and regression to the mean. In reality, systemic factors (access to capital, networks, institutions) and dispersion distribute the chances unevenly, but the myth is kept at the expense of rare stories "from poverty to billionaires."
Microlaterials of everyday life. Cashback wheels, loot boxes, binary options for the masses - the economic environment is saturated with "small bets."
5) Wall Street as a stage: heroes, anti-heroes, rituals
Cowboy trader and wise investor. Two archetypes feed the myth: instant glory versus calm "long distance."
Confidence rituals. Trading opening bells, "expert panels," terminal signals - theatricalization, which increases the emotional valence of risk.
Meme actions and crowds. Social networks turned the crowd into the director of the play: collective excitement is able to defeat the fundamental for a short time.
6) Gamification of labor and consumption: metrics as chips
Points, levels, badges. Sales, fitness, training, even charity are framed as a game: the goal is frequent, small "wins" to keep engagement.
Side effects. When KPIs become "chips," it is tempting to play against the metric rather than for real value. The myth of excitement replaces meaning with process.
7) Media, myth and the accessibility effect
Rare fortunes look ubiquitous. Stories of a billionaire winning a "series of sure bets" are clogging the information field, displacing a mass of unseen failures.
Serialization of success. Docudramas, biopics, podcasts - the "hero's way" is sold as a replicated recipe, although it is often a survivor and a wind of luck.
8) Ethical tensions: between innovation and operation
Fine line. Excitement motivates for the risk that progress needs (new technologies, markets), but easily slides into speculation, manipulation and predatory products.
Information inequality. Those with access to data and structures turn someone else's excitement into income, monetizing the volatility of the masses.
Responsibility of institutions. Regulators, exchanges, platforms and media form the "rules of the game" - from data transparency to restrictions on vulnerable groups.
9) How the myth of excitement reflashes everyday morality
Success = dignity? Capitalist mythology sometimes reduces virtue to the result of a bet: "it turned out - it means smart." This is a dangerous retrospective rationalization that justifies risk without analyzing the quality of decisions.
Normalization of instability. The frequent change of jobs, cities, projects is romanticized as a "promotion game," although for some people this is forced turbulence.
"Restart" rituals. Hackathons, accelerators, challenges - cultural forms that promise a new attempt = a new chance.
10) Practical conclusions for business and society
For product and platform creators
1. Non-manipulative design. Contain behavioral "hooks" that turn normal risk into an obsessive game (hidden probabilities, endless scrolling, loot boxes without transparency).
2. Transparency of probabilities and rules. Make chances, commissions, risks visible "in two clicks."
3. Restrictors. Voluntary limits, time reminders, friction steps before high-risk actions.
4. Encourage long distance. Rank metrics so that sustainable contributions are valued, not "one-off wins."
For investors and employees
1. Consider expectation (EV), not "legend." Separate the quality of the solution and the result.
2. Run a bankroll. Resources: money, energy, social capital. Diversification, cushion, exit scenarios.
3. Filter narratives. Check where the survivors are in front of you and where the full sample is.
4. Antitilt procedures. Pauses, entry/exit rules, decision diaries, counterfactual analysis.
For regulators and media
1. Transparency standards. Risk disclosure formats, advertising labeling, probability demonstration requirements.
2. Financial literacy training. Systematic work with schools and platforms - how to read graphs, understand variance and risk.
3. Responsibility for "miracle plots." Balance success stories with typical outcomes.
11) Cross-cultural differences: one myth - different masks
USA: cult of entrepreneur and "jackpot," readiness for bankruptcy as a "next attempt."
Europe: a stronger demand for sustainability, social insurance and transparency - the myth of excitement is smoothed out by institutions.
Asia: the combination of collective discipline with high-speed modernization - the myth of luck is intertwined with the myth of labor.
Latin America: Entrepreneurship as Social Mobility; the vibrant role of communities and public recognition of "winning."
12) Checklist of a "sober look" at excitement in the economy
Do I understand the probabilities and real variance of the outcomes?
Do I share EV and single result?
Do you consider hidden costs (time, reputation, lost alternatives)?
Do I have limits and an exit plan before entering risk?
Do I replace the value of chasing a metric/hype?
Where I see the full sample, and where - only "stars"?
Conclusion: the myth of excitement and the maturity of capitalism
Excitement made capitalism fast, bold and creative - but also noisy, uneven and subject to self-delusion. Mature society does not root out risk, but manages it: it builds transparent rules, teaches you to count expectation, encourages long distance and respects human limits. Then the myth of excitement works as an engine of progress, not as a trap... and the "game" becomes meaningful - with rules, a fair table and chances that everyone understands.