Invisible Hand, Individual, Collective

In the contemporary popular imagination, the Invisible Hand is a principle governed by an Individualistic ethos, insofar as income is conceived as reflecting the worthiness of its recipient.  However, as, as Smith conceives it, its primary role is to achieve equilibrium between Supply and Demand, it is independent of the conflicting self-interests that require resolution in order for an exchange to take place.  In other words, income is an expression of the subordination of the interests of the involved parties to compromise.  Thus, according to Smith, the principle is governed by the well-being of the collective, which requires the smooth interactions that it facilitates, contrary to the presumption of contemporary Capitalists.