The Slow Money Movement: Cultivating Patience in a World of Instant Gratification

We live in a world of relentless acceleration. Information flows at the speed of light. Fortunes are made and lost in the blink of an eye. The capitalist assemblage, like a hyperactive hummingbird, flits from one opportunity to the next, its insatiable hunger for profit and growth driving a constant cycle of innovation, disruption, and creative destruction. But what if there’s another way, a different rhythm, a slower, more deliberate approach to economic activity? What if, instead of chasing instant gratification, we cultivated patience, nurtured long-term relationships, and invested in the well-being of our communities and the planet? This is the promise of the slow money movement.

The Tyranny of Speed: The Capitalist Assemblage’s Relentless Acceleration

The capitalist assemblage, as Deleuze and Guattari would say, is a desiring-machine, constantly producing and consuming, driven by an insatiable appetite for more. It thrives on the logic of speed, efficiency, and scale, prioritizing short-term profits over long-term sustainability. This relentless acceleration has created a financial system that resembles a high-frequency trading algorithm, where vast sums of money are moved across the globe in nanoseconds, seeking out the slightest arbitrage opportunity, disconnected from the real needs of people and the planet.

This tyranny of speed is woven into the fabric of everyday life. We are bombarded with messages urging us to consume more, work harder, and constantly upgrade our lives. We’re encouraged to seek instant gratification, to prioritize immediate rewards over long-term goals. This has created a culture of impatience, where the future is discounted in favor of the present, and the consequences of our actions are often ignored or downplayed.

The Slow Movement: A Counter-Narrative of Patience and Purpose

In response to this frenetic pace, the slow movement has emerged as a counter-narrative, advocating for a more deliberate and mindful approach to life. This movement, which has its roots in the Slow Food movement that originated in Italy, has spread to various domains, from slow travel and slow cities to slow parenting and slow design.

The Slow Money movement, inspired by these principles, challenges the dominance of the capitalist assemblage’s financial system, advocating for a different approach to investment:

• Patience: Slow Money investors prioritize long-term investments that support sustainable and regenerative businesses, rather than chasing quick returns.
• Place: They focus on investing in local communities, building resilient economies that meet the needs of the people and the places they live.
• Ethics: They prioritize investments that align with their values, supporting businesses that create social and environmental good.

The Slow Money movement recognizes that the capitalist assemblage’s pursuit of endless growth is inherently unsustainable. It advocates for a shift towards a more balanced and holistic approach to economic activity, one that prioritizes the well-being of people and the planet.

DisCOs: Cultivating Patience in the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

DisCOs (Distributed Cooperative Organizations), with their focus on the Commons, democratic governance, and social and ecological justice, are uniquely positioned to embrace the principles of the Slow Money movement. Here’s how DisCOs could cultivate patience in the entrepreneurial ecosystem:

1. Building Trust Through Transparency: DisCOs operate with transparency, making their financial records, decision-making processes, and value flows accounting systems open and accessible to all members. This transparency fosters trust and accountability, creating a foundation for long-term relationships with investors and stakeholders.

2. Decentralizing Ownership and Governance: DisCOs distribute ownership and decision-making power among their members, creating a more equitable and participatory model that encourages long-term commitment and reduces the pressure for quick exits or profit maximization.

3. Prioritizing the Commons: DisCOs dedicate a portion of their resources and labor to the creation and maintenance of commons, both digital and physical. This focus on shared resources fosters a long-term perspective, recognizing that the well-being of the community and the environment are essential for sustainable prosperity.

4. Embracing Alternative Currencies: DisCOs could utilize alternative currencies, such as local currencies or time banks, to facilitate exchange within their communities, encouraging a more relational and less speculative approach to economic activity.

5. Cultivating a Culture of Patience: DisCOs could actively promote a culture of patience within their organizations and networks, encouraging long-term thinking, valuing the process over the product, and celebrating the slow and steady growth of sustainable businesses.

Slow Money and the Five Assemblages: A Multi-scalar Transformation

The Slow Money movement and DisCOs challenge the dominant logic of the capitalist assemblage, but they also engage with other assemblages, creating a multi-scalar transformation:

1. Territorial Assemblage: DisCOs, rooted in specific territories, can partner with local Slow Money chapters to build resilient, place-based economies. This could involve creating local investment networks that support sustainable businesses, revitalizing rural communities, and fostering a deeper connection between people and the places they live.
2. State Assemblage: DisCOs can advocate for policies that support the Slow Money movement, such as tax incentives for long-term investments, public procurement programs that favor sustainable businesses, and regulations that limit the speculative activities of the financial sector.
3. Nomadic Assemblage: DisCOs can connect with and learn from Slow Money initiatives in other parts of the world, sharing best practices, building transnational networks of solidarity, and fostering a global movement for a more patient and ethical approach to finance.
4. Postcapitalist Assemblage: DisCOs, as part of the broader postcapitalist movement, are building a future where money serves the needs of people and the planet, rather than the other way around. The Slow Money movement, with its focus on long-term thinking and ethical investment, is a key component of this vision.

Conclusion: A Seed of Hope in a World of Speed

The Slow Money movement is a seed of hope in a world where the capitalist assemblage’s relentless pursuit of speed and profit threatens to unravel the very fabric of life. DisCOs, with their commitment to the commons, cooperation, and a re-enchantment of labor, are uniquely positioned to nurture this seed and cultivate a more patient, ethical, and sustainable future. By embracing the principles of slowness, they can help us reclaim our economic autonomy, build more resilient communities, and create a world where the future is not discounted, but rather invested in with care and foresight. It’s time to slow down, breathe deeply, and plant the seeds of a different kind of economy, one that values patience, place, and purpose above all else.