+++ Thursday 23 July 2026 +++

Re: True Hacker Versus Growth Hacker
====================================

Today I read the phlog post "True Hacker Versus Growth Hacker"
by Ben Collver [1], which talks about internally motivated and
externally motivated people, and about marketing.

It reminded me of the book I recently read, "To Have or to Be?" by
Erich Fromm.

This book is 50 years old.

In this book the writer explains the differences between "being
mode" and "having mode", and that most people, certainly in "the
west" spent most of their time in having mode. Spending time in
having mode will not lead to happiness, but will lead to alienation.

When the having mode becomes the dominant mode in a culture the
economic system no longer is based on what good is for humanity, but
based on what good is for growth of the system. The system leads to
selfishness and an endless class-war, and the system will leaders
who value personal success more highly than social responsibility.

We don't have to look very hard to find examples in our current time.

The writer explains that continuing a society based on having mode
is the path to self destruction and that we should switch to a
society where being mode is the dominant mode. But also that this
switch is very hard, for example because from the very beginning the
big corporations will use their tremendous power to try to fight
such change. Change must come bottom up, from people who understand
the need for it.

Posts like the one from Ben remind us what is important.


[1]: gopher://tilde.pink/0/~bencollver/log/2026-07-22-true-hacker-vs-growth-hacker/readme.txt


Last edited: $Date: 2026/07/23 19:22:56 $