Finite and Infinite Games

Today's episode is about the concept of finite and infinite games. It was developed by religion scholar James Carse, a longtime professor at NYU. He wrote a book of the same title in the mid 1980s and the idea is really generative. In a finite game, there is a clear winner and loser, the rules are static and the game ends. In an infinite game, the purpose is to simply continue the games, the rules change over time and there are no winners or losers. This reframing has helped me understand the work of building the beloved community differently, and given me strength to keep on keeping on. Feedback? I'd love to hear from you at [email protected]. Thanks for listening, friends. You are loved and never alone!