Generation Post-COVID-19: The Time for Anti-Economics Has Come: Health, Minimalism and Rest

This paper makes the heterodox economic case of missing attention to health, minimization and rest in business, finance and economics. The COVID-19 pandemic has been addressed as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to a Great Reset. Started at the end of 2019, COVID-19 has been spreading around the world for over a year by now and no clear end is foreseeable yet. While vaccination and medication opportunities to cure the disease have improved impressively and steadily, the COVID-19 healthcare crisis also entails around 10 to over 30% of previously COVID-infected to be suffering from long haul symptoms. While our first understanding of post-COVID infection long haul symptoms, impetus and cure is still missing, there is hardening evidence that the newly emerging Generation COVID-19 Long Haulers may comprise of 0.3-1.659 billion previously infected with recurrent symptoms of fatigue, headaches and breathing problems as well as a set of debilitating memory fog and emotional distress. With this generation of COVID-19 Long Haulers, who are by around 70-75% female and of a median age in their 30s and 40s, a dramatic shift to demand for health, minimalism and rest is predicted to emerge. Neoclassical ideas of business, finance and economic research have a limited understanding of health. Maximization pledges of productivity driven industries in business, finance and economics do not account for minimalism. Foremost behavioral economics started to address cognitive overload and decision-making failures in a too complex world. There is no appreciation for rest in finance and economics. All these trends of attention to health, minimalism and rest the COVID-19 Long Haulers generation may change lastingly.