The Cost of Avoiding Costs - The Way of Phi in Practice -

Finding harmony in a society, that is doing all in its power to tilt things even further, without recognising the natural balance.

Dear  friend,

The other day, I was speaking with a friend, an established author, about the realities of publishing. He mentioned someone who didn’t want to pay, so I asked him a simple question:

– Who wants to pay? 

He thought for a moment and replied: 

– No one.

And he was right. 

We live in a culture where “paying”, whether with money, attention, or effort, is seen as something to avoid. We’d rather get it for free, pass the cost to someone else, or not deal with it at all.

But here’s the paradox: our society runs on paying. Every transaction involves it. Which means most of us spend our days doing something we don’t want to do. And what happens when you live in resistance to reality, pushing against it again and again? It breeds frustration, disempowerment, even despair.

I see signs of this everywhere. Take traffic, for instance.

Lately I’ve noticed a dramatic increase in accidents: cars, trucks, even buses sliding off the road, bumping into each other, colliding with trees. Often no one is gravely injured, but still, it’s happening more and more. Others have shared the same perception.

Now, statistics tell us that fatal or serious accidents are actually declining in Sweden, which is great. But perception matters, because it tells us what’s building beneath the surface. Push more speed, more recklessness, more intensity, and of course accidents proliferate. It’s common sense.

Traffic, in this sense, is a mirror of society. 

We glorify more: more speed, more intensity, more growth, more stimulation. Our entertainment needs bigger explosions. Our days demand faster results. Our economy expects endless expansion.

Yet life itself doesn’t work that way.

We need balance

Our bodies know this. Even one degree above or below the healthy range, and symptoms appear. A few more, and life is at risk. Nature knows this. Predators and prey, rainfall and drought, growth and decay – all exist to hold each other in check. Without balance, ecosystems collapse.

So why do we keep building a society that rewards and even celebrates imbalance?

Why do we keep demanding “more” while secretly wishing we could avoid paying the cost?

If no one wants to pay, everybody suffers

Balance always requires some form of investment: of attention, of responsibility, of care. When we refuse to pay, whether in traffic, in nature, or in community, the price only grows heavier. And that price is not cheap. It comes as burnout, accidents, chaos, whether in traffic, in nature, in our communities, or in ourselves.

Balance is what The Way of Phi is really about: remembering how to live in balance with ourselves, each other, and the world. Not by rejecting money, speed, or power, but by learning where they belong, where they stop consuming us and start nourishing us.

If this speaks to you, the book is waiting. Not as another thing to “pay for,” but as an opening into a different way of seeing, a different way of being. Click here and when you read the book, remember that it is about You, so make sure you do the exercises, reflect and discuss with others as well. We are connected, especially when we are looking at balance.

And if you are curious about what a greater sense of balance could mean for yourself or for your organisation, please feel free to reach out.

With gratitude,

Christopher