Ant and the Grasshopper - Whats good for the economy?

I remember the story of Ant and grasshopper as two diffrent versions.

One in the primary school which tells about why hard work is important and another (the version I enjoyed better) from high school from Somerset Maugham, which tells the story of two brothers, the "hardworking ant" elder brother and the "spend thrift & happy go lucky - grasshopper" yonger brother. Ironically, the younger one finds a rich old lady, marries and she dies leaving all the fortune for him to enjoy. hmmmm wonder what the moral is??? I guess this is life's reality.

I was reminded of this story today for many reasons, as the economy is slowing down we are all tightening our belts. With lesser investments in employee training and education...my income is not looking great. But, I have a long list of items to spend on. Some are essentials and some are not. But will soon become essential. I may have to change my lifestyle and I am not ready yet.

So who makes the economy better? The ant or the Grasshopper. When I was doing my economics paper last year I was thrilled to look at a simple calculation. A 1000 rupees put in the bank and given out as loans can create a cash flow of 10K in the market (ideally).

So, How can we create wealth? My simple mind says only two ways
1. Innovation - Have we dried out of simple innovations that has lost adding efficiency to our lives?
2. Ant + Grasshopper - Work hard , Party harder. More cash flow. More wealth. But ofcourse match demand and capacity. When will we see the balance?

I dont seem to contribute to point 1 and 2a :). I am blissfully married and hence cant dream of the grasshopper life as told by Somerset(ha ha haaaaa)...

So what does the leave me with ???