Say you love tulips, how much are you willing to pay for a tulip bulb?
Will you pay a price which is equal to buying a house?
In the 1600s, people in the Netherlands did exactly that during the period called ‘Tulip Mania.’ The prices of tulip bulbs shot up, not because tulips were actually worth that much, but because of crowd mentality.
Tulips had just been introduced to Europe, and they quickly became a trendy luxury item in the Netherlands. Soon, everyone wanted them, and the prices started going up. People saw others making money by buying and selling tulip bulbs, so they wanted it too. The more people bought, the higher the prices went, creating a cycle of hype and greed.
It led to Crowd Mentality: The Power of “Everyone Else Is Doing It”
When tulip prices eventually crashed, many lost everything.
Crowd mentality can sometimes lead us to good things, like discovering new music or trying a fun activity. However, it’s risky to allow popular opinion to cloud our actions… specially in today’s world where it’s easy to be influenced by social media.
Lessons from Tulip Mania:
✅ Think for Yourself: Just because everyone’s doing it doesn’t mean it’s right or valuable. Ask yourself why people are hyped about something and if it actually makes sense.
✅ Beware of “FOMO”: The fear of missing out. Tulip Mania shows us that FOMO is powerful and giving in to it can lead to poor decisions. Remember, there will always be other opportunities.
The next time you feel the urge to jump on a trend, take a moment to think: “Is this really for me, or am I just following the crowd?”
Mad over tulips
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