The Economy is Mind-Bogglingly Huge
“Space is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly hugely mind-bogglingly big it is.”
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Like space, the economy is vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big.
Like space, we tend to create a mental wall that stops us from thinking about how enormous it is, so we don’t spend all day wondering at it. We spend most of our time like Michael Scott:
Keeping our blinders on, focused on our little corner of the world.
Space is mind-boggling because of how large it is, but the economy is mind-boggling because of how deep it is. No matter how deep you look, there is always a new level of detail.
I know this first-hand. The previous two generations of my family worked exclusively on distributing and servicing force-measurement equipment to industrial manufacturers in Michigan. Engineers need machines to measure precise forces (compression, tension, torsion) of their equipment or products. Those machines need to be repaired and re-calibrated constantly. There you go, a new level of detail!
When we peek outside our corner of the world, it feels like a glimpse of the vastness of space:
When we meet someone who sells shower curtain rings to hotels in central Missouri.
When we read about a treasure hunter in Santa Fe
When we watch a documentary about guys who buy helicopters from corrupt soviet officials and sell them to drug cartels.
These stories about one tiny portion of the global economy endlessly fascinate me. Especially as they get bigger. One person is one person. Finding a $100 million business that does something I’ve never even thought of before is a profound moment for me.
I was talking to the owner of a scale (to weigh things) business in the Midwest. People ask him "Is that a full-time job? Is that industry big enough to support you?"
His response: "Look around this room. Everything you own, everything you see, and everything you eat has been weighed. Multiple times."
When a product (let’s say flour) is farmed and processed, it is weighed. When it is packed into shipping containers, those are weighed. When they are unloaded from the ship, they are weighed again. When the truck is loaded with pallets it is weighed again. A customer buying flour may weigh it again while they’re making their recipe, and then weigh themselves after eating their cookies.
Have you ever thought about how many times your flour is weighed? How many scales are built, sold, repaired, and serviced in the supply chain of just your flour?
The economy is mind-bogglingly huge. I get endless joy out of wondering at the vast depth and complexity of it.
And, I find the vastness of the economy deeply reassuring — because it indicates an infinite frontier of opportunity. But that’s another post.