Chasing Enough: How Greed and Vanity Keep Us Spiraling in the Pursuit of More
Back in July I wrote a post about greed titled, Greed Is An Exception. Greed is one of the seven deadly sins and I was writing the post as part of a series about the deadly sins. Yesterday, after visiting a very dear friend that I always kid about being a bit vane, I heard the great Royale Lynn song, “Greed”. The song, that you really do need to listen to (or better yet watch the video I’ve linked here for you), got me thinking about the crossover between vanity and greed. Both can stem from a desire for superficial or materialistic gains—vanity focusing on appearances and external validation, while greed centers on accumulating wealth or possessions.
A couple of lines really jumped out at me in Royale Lynn’s song. The first was, “And you’re never satisfied; There’s nothing that you won’t do.” When driven excessively, vanity can lead individuals to prioritize their image above all else, sometimes at the expense of ethics or humility, which can resemble greed’s obsession with accumulation. If you’ve ever encountered a vane leader, you know how this can hinder the effectiveness of this individual.
The other lines, “Feed on the greed that makes you; When it’s gonna be too much; When It’s gonna be enough; You always want more” highlight the relentless nature of greed and how it can drive individuals to continuously seek more, often without regard for ethical boundaries or personal limits.
Relating this to the crossover between vanity and greed, these lyrics suggest that vanity—an excessive pursuit of beauty, status, or admiration—is fueled by a similar insatiable desire. Both traits involve an underlying craving for validation, control, or recognition. Just as greed pushes for material accumulation beyond necessity, vanity pushes for external affirmation beyond genuine self-acceptance.
The lines also imply a point where fulfillment is never truly reached (“When It’s gonna be enough”), reflecting how both greed and vanity can become addictive, leading people to perpetually chase after more—more wealth, more admiration, more power—making it hard to recognize when they have enough. This interplay underscores how both traits can intertwine, often reinforcing each other in a cycle driven by a need for control, recognition, or superiority, rather than genuine fulfillment.
Tending To Your Experience
Yesterday my son and I spent the day on Kentucky Lake fishing. It was incredible to be on the lake together enjoying this beautiful part of the world. We were very successful catching 16 Crappie, a Blue Gill, and a Yellow Bass. I was then multi-species angler of the team. Besides the multitude of subjects we discussed on this brisk and sunny day, it was when we were cleaning the fish that we got into a deep philosophical discussion. We were watching a little girl throw bread crumbs to the seagulls. The birds were so busy competing and paying attention to what each other was getting, that they were missing bread. Sound familiar?
Heath and I discussed how we can get so caught up in paying attention to what others have, the contracts others are getting, or what others are doing that we miss out on great opportunities (bread crumbs) right in front of us. Hopefully you caught the metaphor thing I did right there. William James argued, “My experience is what I agree to attend to.” He wrote this in 1890 in The Principles of Psychology, Vol.1. Think about it: what we pay attention to determines the experiences we have, and those experiences determine the success and significance in the life we live.
Now I am not suggesting that we bury our head in the sand. I am a huge believer in having a competitive advantage, but we must stay focused on our own experience. What are the bread crumbs available others are missing? Where are the bread crumbs we want? We need to beware of going after the bread crumbs others already have. Don’t worry about what brand of vehicle someone else drives, or what label is sewn on their purse (you ever thought about how stupid that is?), or the billion other things we use to compete. Those are all vanity.
So, remember it’s about substance over form. In our society today it is very easy to become focused on appearances both physical and attitudinal, because we are constantly subjected to the temptation of developing a public persona stoked by vanity. Remember, to have a competitive advantage we need to be aware of the competition, but not obsessed. I compare all the people on social media like a flock of seagulls all so focused on the bread crumb that the other seagull has they miss the one right in front of them. Find your bread crumb and go after it; don’t let anyone else distract you from getting it. It is your experience, no one else’s.
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