Wanting

Mimetic Desire: How to Avoid Chasing Things You Don't Truly Want

Luke Burgis

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English

SWIFT PRESS
31 August 2021

Psychology; Popular psychology

Gravity affects every aspect of our physical being, but there's a psychologicalforce just as powerful - yet almost nobody has heard of it. It's responsible forbringing groups of people together and pulling them apart, making certaingoals attractive to some and not to others, and fueling cycles of anxiety andconflict.

According to French polymath Rene Girard, humans don't desire anything independently.

Human desire is mimetic - we imitate what other people want.

This affects the way we choose partners, friends, careers, clothes, and vacationdestinations. Mimetic desire is responsible for the formation of our veryidentities. It explains why Peter Thiel decided to be the first investor in Facebook,the enduring relevancy of Shakespeare's plays and why our world isgrowing more divided as it becomes more connected.

Drawing on his experience as an entrepreneur, teacher, and student of classicalphilosophy and theology, Burgis shares tactics that help turn blindwanting into intentional wanting - not by trying to rid ourselves of desire, butby desiring differently. It's possible to be more in control of the things wewant, to achieve more independence from trends and bubbles, and to findmore meaning in our work and lives.

The future will be shaped by our desires. Wanting shows us how to desire abetter one.

By: Luke Burgis
Imprint: SWIFT PRESS
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 153mm,
ISBN: 9781800750562
ISBN 10: 1800750560
Pages: 304
Publication Date: 31 August 2021
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

LUKE BURGIS has co-created and led four companies in wellness, consumer products, and technology. He's currently Entrepreneur-in-Residence and Director of Programs at the Ciocca Center for Principled Entrepreneurship at the Catholic University of America, where he also teaches business. Luke has helped form and serves on the board of several new K-12 education initiatives and writes and speaks regularly about the education of desire. He studied business at NYU Stern and philosophy and theology at a pontifical university in Rome.

Reviews for Wanting: Mimetic Desire: How to Avoid Chasing Things You Don't Truly Want

'A spellbinding read.' Adam Grant 'Luke Burgis makes Girard's ideas come alive for those of us who don't have a Ph.D. in literary studies. This fascinating and playful book will be of particular help for anyone who leads or manages people.' Jonathan Haidt 'By helping us understand the destructive power of mimetic desire, Burgis offers a way to extricate ourselves and our communities from its harmful grip to form a more human, empathetic, and value-based world. Stephen Hanselman, co-author of Lives of the Stoics 'Luke Burgis has produced the go-to book on this topic' Tyler Cowen