NetWorks –

“If we take steps with one another, it is always a decision for one another. I believe this is how we shape the future.” (Nikolai Fuchs)

Although it may initially sound like a paradox, to be socially competent requires personal independence. Or to phrase it in a way often used to refer to lifelong partnerships, it’s only possible to live together successfully if you can also live alone. The smallest shared unit beautifully demonstrates what commonality is all about: a long way from egoism and in devotion to the opposite party – from the I to the you. In this movement we are constantly required to place our own interests in the background so that the other person, the opposite party, can express themselves in us and through us. This withdrawal requires a conscious decision, i.e. a distinct volition. Only those with a confident individuality can withdraw themselves and step forward again at an appropriate point. This oscillation in togetherness enables synergies to be strengthened. Conflict is also important here, as it offers the only way to also develop ourselves. What’s more, friction creates heat. A partnership is neither about unification nor harmony at any price; rather, it’s about cooperation, taking action together.

This idea of a community made up of self-determining individuals is the original image of Neuguss Group, and so one of its key responsibilities is to consistently strengthen the individuality of its members – because as we all know, a community is only as strong as its weakest link. So what this community has been practising for 50 years is togetherness on an equal footing. With one another and for one another. The model of associative economics was formulated by Rudolf Steiner at the beginning of the last century, and since then has been continually tested and developed in practice – though for much of the time this has primarily been within the anthroposophic community. The understanding that our previous economic system was reaching its limits started to also emerge in conventional businesses and enterprises only when the stock markets faltered with the last financial crisis. The principle of associative economics is built on entrepreneurial freedom and initiatives, and considers its responsibility to be satisfying real needs. For this reason, the question of “What do you need?” is at the forefront. And although we talk of a system alternative, this is also something every individual can engage with in their environment. Here too, the movement is away from egocentrism and towards the opposite party, to customers and partners. If we react to the needs of the other within a network like this, our needs are also considered. That means an economy based on fellowship, in the best possible sense, and as such essentially a social event.