Survival against all odds by harmonizing and adjusting with nature.
Showing posts with label surviving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label surviving. Show all posts
2/1/12
Thriving In The Inhospitable
Joshua Trees live after eons of adaptation...
Survival against all odds by harmonizing and adjusting with nature.
Survival against all odds by harmonizing and adjusting with nature.
1/11/12
I Want To Be Like A Tree
With skills to adapt wherever I am...
A Palo Verde adding value to the universe surrounding me.
A tree with a deep taproot for lean years and shallow surface roots for abundant years to sustain myself under different circumstances and keep the earth around me from eroding. With a trunk that is sturdy, sinewy and strong, protected by bark and able to withstand high winds and stormy weather. With a system of stems to support tissue and disseminate cells for good health and a reason to be optimistic about the world that surrounds me. Branches that grow long and hardy with twigs to grow leaves rich in oxygen production and carbon dioxide reduction.
It would be alright by me to be any tree, deciduous or evergreen, large or small, rainforest or desert, any climate in between. In a climate with a lot of rain opportunity is almost always there to make the most of. In an arid hot and dry one using resources wisely is paramount and advantageous.
My choice though is to be like a Palo Verde tree that has overhanging and sweeping branches that provide shade in the hot desert. My capital would be spent wisely and stockpiled for the dry spells and in rainy seasons bloom yellow flowers to germinate. I would live hundreds of years, see epochs of history, provide shade and shelter for people and animals, survive and thrive to benefit the geography of life that surrounds me.
A Palo Verde adding value to the universe surrounding me.
A tree with a deep taproot for lean years and shallow surface roots for abundant years to sustain myself under different circumstances and keep the earth around me from eroding. With a trunk that is sturdy, sinewy and strong, protected by bark and able to withstand high winds and stormy weather. With a system of stems to support tissue and disseminate cells for good health and a reason to be optimistic about the world that surrounds me. Branches that grow long and hardy with twigs to grow leaves rich in oxygen production and carbon dioxide reduction.
My choice though is to be like a Palo Verde tree that has overhanging and sweeping branches that provide shade in the hot desert. My capital would be spent wisely and stockpiled for the dry spells and in rainy seasons bloom yellow flowers to germinate. I would live hundreds of years, see epochs of history, provide shade and shelter for people and animals, survive and thrive to benefit the geography of life that surrounds me.
12/17/11
11/7/11
Survive Like A Desert
Save and invest for the future...
In minimalism endure drought and thrive after the rainy season.
There is a lot to be learned from the desert. Millions of people whoosh by it on the Interstate on a journey from one place to the next viewing it as a vast wasteland to pass through as quickly as possible. They are unaware the desert is the ultimate example of ages of adaption of not merely surviving but thriving. Everything in the desert is put to good use, stored for when it is needed, an investment in the present and savings for the future to survive well in the harsh times and thrive in the good ones.
We could do well as people by learning how the desert survives hot dry summers with a sparse rainy season. When a summer storm comes it is a gully washer that seeps into the ground and every plant large and small has grown roots deep to pull in moisture for use and storage since it will soon be dry again. All types of animal life scurries about to either drink in the water or absorb the moisture for later use. In the winter seasons when the weather is cooler all creatures and plants, great and small, take advantage of every opportunity to enjoy what nature has provided them in abundance.
The lesson is desert plants and animals have learned to acclimate and change to the environment and make the best use of what is available. There is no complaint because everything that is needed is provided when it is needed. The inhabitants save and store for the future and invest by growing deep taproots and storage spots of water and food for the future. The desert is prepared to make the best of what it has and turn it into something of value, useful, functional and form with a beauty of its own.
In minimalism endure drought and thrive after the rainy season.
There is a lot to be learned from the desert. Millions of people whoosh by it on the Interstate on a journey from one place to the next viewing it as a vast wasteland to pass through as quickly as possible. They are unaware the desert is the ultimate example of ages of adaption of not merely surviving but thriving. Everything in the desert is put to good use, stored for when it is needed, an investment in the present and savings for the future to survive well in the harsh times and thrive in the good ones.
The lesson is desert plants and animals have learned to acclimate and change to the environment and make the best use of what is available. There is no complaint because everything that is needed is provided when it is needed. The inhabitants save and store for the future and invest by growing deep taproots and storage spots of water and food for the future. The desert is prepared to make the best of what it has and turn it into something of value, useful, functional and form with a beauty of its own.
3/16/11
Thinking Out Loud
Working for yourself...
Even if you have an employer who doesn't appreciate you.
There are careers, jobs, employment and being an entrepreneur with your own business. Not everyone is able to have their own business and run it themselves, some people have careers, but most people have jobs and are employed.
Careers and jobs can be enjoyable and fun and others can simply be employment. With employment your employer only cares that you show up, do what you're told and discourages any independent thinking or initiative. Those jobs are harder when there are also difficult people to deal with daily. I held one once for well over a decade during a previous bad economic era, as soon as I was able, I left it. While doing that job though, I learned as much as I could even though my employer discouraged it, as well as during my time off I earned formal education and did things I enjoyed doing. Most importantly I figured out how to handle being around difficult people.
During this challenging economic period, many people are enduring careers and jobs they would like to get out of but aren't able to due to current conditions. If that is the case, then the best option is challenging yourself to learn as much as you can from that job, which may not necessarily be the skills of the job itself, but other self-development accomplishments such as dealing and coping with problematic people. Additionally also taking the time to learn something else outside of that work to improve your chances for better opportunities in the future. It is difficult, I know. I never thought my work era between 1978 and 1983 would ever end in anything positive. In 1993, ten years after I had left, I had the perspective to look back and appreciate how much the extracurricular work I had done decades prior had paid off. I also recognized that the coping skills and ability to deal with unpleasant people went a long way and were lessons for life.
Coping mechanisms are the key to the door to get what you want.
Right now I have a job that has potential to become a career. I like what I do very much and the people I work with, the one exception is a difficult manager. There's really no other way to state it: she's cranky, irritable, hypercritical and never gives praise; she finds everything that is wrong and nothing that is right. I don't believe she's a mean person, she does have good qualities and for brief periods of time she can be somewhat pleasant. My peers feel the same way as I do about her, therefore I know it's not a personal thing with me.
There are days when it is hard for me to take, especially since I do like the work itself, what I'm learning from it and the potential for growth. It's an exercise in not only learning a new line of work but also something else just as important, recalling how to deal with difficult people. The first lesson I'm still re-learning is not taking it too personally, which is tough. The second is realizing that the other person is probably doing the best they can to cope under the circumstances they're dealing with in life. For the person I'm referring to, the problem is the same as it usually is for other difficult people, their complex, bewildering, problematic behavior is rooted in their own insecurity and doubts about themselves.
The schooling here is coping and overcoming to gain some peace within myself to not let this person bother me and interfere with where I want to go. In order to do that I have to reach back in time and recall skills that I haven't had to use in quite awhile. It's a work in progress but the past has also taught me that in the long term, it is worthwhile and to my advantage. The other person I can do nothing about, they will have to live with themselves, I can only deal with how I control myself within the circumstances.
Even if you have an employer who doesn't appreciate you.
There are careers, jobs, employment and being an entrepreneur with your own business. Not everyone is able to have their own business and run it themselves, some people have careers, but most people have jobs and are employed.
Careers and jobs can be enjoyable and fun and others can simply be employment. With employment your employer only cares that you show up, do what you're told and discourages any independent thinking or initiative. Those jobs are harder when there are also difficult people to deal with daily. I held one once for well over a decade during a previous bad economic era, as soon as I was able, I left it. While doing that job though, I learned as much as I could even though my employer discouraged it, as well as during my time off I earned formal education and did things I enjoyed doing. Most importantly I figured out how to handle being around difficult people.
During this challenging economic period, many people are enduring careers and jobs they would like to get out of but aren't able to due to current conditions. If that is the case, then the best option is challenging yourself to learn as much as you can from that job, which may not necessarily be the skills of the job itself, but other self-development accomplishments such as dealing and coping with problematic people. Additionally also taking the time to learn something else outside of that work to improve your chances for better opportunities in the future. It is difficult, I know. I never thought my work era between 1978 and 1983 would ever end in anything positive. In 1993, ten years after I had left, I had the perspective to look back and appreciate how much the extracurricular work I had done decades prior had paid off. I also recognized that the coping skills and ability to deal with unpleasant people went a long way and were lessons for life.
Coping mechanisms are the key to the door to get what you want.
Right now I have a job that has potential to become a career. I like what I do very much and the people I work with, the one exception is a difficult manager. There's really no other way to state it: she's cranky, irritable, hypercritical and never gives praise; she finds everything that is wrong and nothing that is right. I don't believe she's a mean person, she does have good qualities and for brief periods of time she can be somewhat pleasant. My peers feel the same way as I do about her, therefore I know it's not a personal thing with me.
There are days when it is hard for me to take, especially since I do like the work itself, what I'm learning from it and the potential for growth. It's an exercise in not only learning a new line of work but also something else just as important, recalling how to deal with difficult people. The first lesson I'm still re-learning is not taking it too personally, which is tough. The second is realizing that the other person is probably doing the best they can to cope under the circumstances they're dealing with in life. For the person I'm referring to, the problem is the same as it usually is for other difficult people, their complex, bewildering, problematic behavior is rooted in their own insecurity and doubts about themselves.
The schooling here is coping and overcoming to gain some peace within myself to not let this person bother me and interfere with where I want to go. In order to do that I have to reach back in time and recall skills that I haven't had to use in quite awhile. It's a work in progress but the past has also taught me that in the long term, it is worthwhile and to my advantage. The other person I can do nothing about, they will have to live with themselves, I can only deal with how I control myself within the circumstances.
3/14/11
Geography of the Mind
Just when you thought...
Nothing else could happen, something does and we all know about it immediately.
For a moment in time, the year 2010 seemed to give us and the world a brief respite. It felt as if, although thinking people realized it wouldn't take hold, we may not be in a fully sustainable economic recovery but at least there was a pause or suspension of things getting worse. We were lulled by overkill of good news of small magnitude. The wishful hope I think most of us had was that the economic crisis would not get too much worse and we could stabilize as a people and begin the laborious task of slowly rebuilding. It seems though the dawn of 2011 has brought home to society the realization that we are not going to get out of this universe changing crackup so easily. On the economic front in the United States, a large segment of Americans now recognize that we are indeed in a genuine depression. We'll likely skip spring and head straight into long, hot summer afternoons followed by cold fall and winter nights.
We've been recently jolted by big, bad news. Another shoe may drop. Anything can happen. Things happen in threes. We will all know about it at the same time.
There are uprisings all across the Middle East, which at a minimum threatens our oil supplies and is bound to cause global economic problems. Even larger than that, the turbulence of the Jasmine Revolution, is far from over and more is to come. There is now the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, taking a terrible toll on the people of that country. Worse, nuclear meltdown is a very real possibility, bringing to the people of Japan the horror of revisiting a different nuclear disaster reminiscent of the Second World War. Japan is the third largest economy in the world and this event will have a financial effect on all of us.
What is next? One of the Four Horsemen? Conquest, War, Famine or Death? We will know within minutes if a White, Red, Black or Pale horse arrives.
Any number of things could bring another cataclysmic event to us soon. The debt of the European nations and the US government is one. The Currency Crisis could suddenly make itself obvious as the insolvency of governments reveals itself. Is a widespread incurable global disease possible in this day and age? A technological meltdown? Food shortages everywhere, including first world nations?
No one knows. Nothing could happen since so much already has. The world is random. Everyone will be aware of it instantly.
In the long course of history, Classical Ancient, Middle Ages and Modern, humans have suffered and thrived simultaneously but in the first two periods, news and knowledge was local and took a long time to spread. In the Modern era globalization began and technological progress, for better or worse, advanced and is omnipresent in our lives. The breadth of communications that span the globe is a critical component of input into our minds with a subliminal effect. The social web is the epitome of oversharing personal thought.
This is the period of Too Much Information. Media Saturation. Information Overload. Whatever you prefer to call it, I maintain one of our highest priorities should be managing the flow of current material that enters into our brains. We may be people of the latest Modern age but I'm not sure that as mortal souls most of us have caught up with the rapidity of the advances science and technology have made. Especially those of the last thirty years.
I believe the effects of instant connections have altered the psychology of the larger population, affecting the economic crisis and the way people perceive and react to it.
Mass marketing of mass communications isn't necessarily good for the masses. It's unlikely that progression of widespread communications is going to slow down. The effect of globalization, technological innovations and communication has been one of the major reasons why the impact of this economic depression is different. Prior to the 1929 stock market crash and the Great Depression of the thirties, drastic economic downturns were referred to as Panics. Just a Panics came to be called Recessions and Depressions, the nomenclature of economic crisis has changed to Disruption, due to instant messaging. This is not only an economic depression and change of a way of life but also a disruption of great magnitude because we are at a zenith of communications. The progression from local news and knowledge to global information is made complete. All that remains is improving the tools that transmit it.
Know your own mind. Guard and protect it as securely as you would your body. Consider what you feed into your head as much as you consider what you should eat.
Understanding that this economic disruption is not only a life-altering physical endurance contest, it also is a groupthink mental challenge, is pivotal to understanding how to survive relatively intact. Stress is a demanding thing, it eats you up, that is why it is important to learn how to cope with it and prevent it from distracting you as much as possible. Learn it, live it, to do more than survive it, but thrive in it.
1/1/11
Thinking Out Loud
2011...
A new decade in a new economic, social and geopolitical world.
The year 2010 turned a page into a new chapter of my life in momentous ways that I did not expect but could not have hoped for a better outcome. Life is much better now. I clearly remember New Year's Eve and Day 2010 because it was a long and difficult weekend with a pending decision weighing heavily on my mind. On Monday, January 4th, I went into work for a few hours and then confirmed my instincts by resigning from my job. It was the right choice but difficult in these economic times and seemingly unwise from a personal financial standpoint. I had to do it to be free to move on in a new year, the last in a Biblically epic long decade in my life, that began in 2000 when my life was radically altered also by a work decision, one I did not choose. Like hundreds of thousands of others I was "separated" from the company I worked for almost 30 years.
The Economic Crisis started early for me, in hindsight I am very glad, it gave me a long running head start on what was to follow in this country and is not over yet.
This past year has been extremes of highs and lows, ups and downs and everything in between. At times I was in complete control of my situation and in others I was not. In the dead heat of summer I was struck by a virus that kept me bed-ridden for two weeks and during that same month I serendipitously found a job that suits me perfectly. It was a classic time that epitomized the characteristics of the entire year, simultaneously flowing triumph and disaster.
In the end it has been a richly rewarding and fulfilling year furnishing me with optimism, positive thinking and confidence. Regardless of what 2011 and the next decade brings I have at last returned to the summer roots of my inner self and in harmony with my true nature, after a decade of a mostly estranged winter. I say that with an assurance, that I did not have but was yearning for, this time last year. I knew then where I had been for a decade and did not want to continue but rather move on to another journey and I can say that I have.
One of the best decisions I made at the end of 2009 was to set a goal to begin posting to this website blog daily and start creating and uploading videos on YouTube again. It was part of documenting my life that served as a release valve, a steadying constant, as well as a confidence builder and confirming my ability to be original and self-reliant. Through expressing myself it reminded me I am a unique individual in my own right.
Another good determination made this past spring was to get off most of the social web, especially Twitter and Facebook. I never cared for Facebook and was reluctantly coaxed into it and Twitter became a time-killer, full of unwashed masses bubbling out a constant stream of babbling junk. That is not a judgment on other people who choose to be on those sites, those sites just weren't right for me at the time or even now. That choice, by it's very nature, also meant limiting my interaction online but I've found the remaining interaction to be of better quality.
The time I had spent online and with other things I chose to stop doing was spent reading good books in a self-designed "Great Books" list. What a wonderful determination that has turned out to be. My mind has not only been enriched but it has had an unexpected but welcome calming of my soul.
"He not busy being born is busy dying"
How very fortuitous it has turned out to be that on that day, Friday the 13th in October 2000, I was surplussed and laid off from the company I had worked for since high school, through my college degrees and experienced my thirties and forties. My involuntary "separation" (their term) actually was not accompanied with anxiety but rather rejoicing at being freed from the institutional madness of the only place I had really ever worked. That does not mean there was not angst of learning as I traversed down the road in the decade ahead. It prepared me in too many ways to enumerate to cope with the new world of 21st century economic, social and geopolitical circumstances.
Although this year and this decade has ended with a finality specific to me, it does not mean an end to always learning and facing new challenges moving forward. Now I look ahead to them with a renewed freedom I once had and have revived. It is certain that the Great Disruption that became obvious to the world in mid-2007 will continue and perpetuate the economic distress that challenges us all and disturbs other social institutions. We live in an exciting time as our universe is reborn anew once again, following in the footprints of world history. That does not bother me since I know that as an individual I have the determination, will and ability to overthrow adversity. Also I have a perception of others difficulties and an ability to understand what some may need help in learning to cope for themselves.
If there is anything I am able to impart to others, it is that we all have something within us that allows us to rise above and overcome. My hope is that in my own small way I can do that.
"He not being busy born is busy dying" quote from "It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" [Dylan]
A new decade in a new economic, social and geopolitical world.
The year 2010 turned a page into a new chapter of my life in momentous ways that I did not expect but could not have hoped for a better outcome. Life is much better now. I clearly remember New Year's Eve and Day 2010 because it was a long and difficult weekend with a pending decision weighing heavily on my mind. On Monday, January 4th, I went into work for a few hours and then confirmed my instincts by resigning from my job. It was the right choice but difficult in these economic times and seemingly unwise from a personal financial standpoint. I had to do it to be free to move on in a new year, the last in a Biblically epic long decade in my life, that began in 2000 when my life was radically altered also by a work decision, one I did not choose. Like hundreds of thousands of others I was "separated" from the company I worked for almost 30 years.
The Economic Crisis started early for me, in hindsight I am very glad, it gave me a long running head start on what was to follow in this country and is not over yet.
This past year has been extremes of highs and lows, ups and downs and everything in between. At times I was in complete control of my situation and in others I was not. In the dead heat of summer I was struck by a virus that kept me bed-ridden for two weeks and during that same month I serendipitously found a job that suits me perfectly. It was a classic time that epitomized the characteristics of the entire year, simultaneously flowing triumph and disaster.
In the end it has been a richly rewarding and fulfilling year furnishing me with optimism, positive thinking and confidence. Regardless of what 2011 and the next decade brings I have at last returned to the summer roots of my inner self and in harmony with my true nature, after a decade of a mostly estranged winter. I say that with an assurance, that I did not have but was yearning for, this time last year. I knew then where I had been for a decade and did not want to continue but rather move on to another journey and I can say that I have.
One of the best decisions I made at the end of 2009 was to set a goal to begin posting to this website blog daily and start creating and uploading videos on YouTube again. It was part of documenting my life that served as a release valve, a steadying constant, as well as a confidence builder and confirming my ability to be original and self-reliant. Through expressing myself it reminded me I am a unique individual in my own right.
Another good determination made this past spring was to get off most of the social web, especially Twitter and Facebook. I never cared for Facebook and was reluctantly coaxed into it and Twitter became a time-killer, full of unwashed masses bubbling out a constant stream of babbling junk. That is not a judgment on other people who choose to be on those sites, those sites just weren't right for me at the time or even now. That choice, by it's very nature, also meant limiting my interaction online but I've found the remaining interaction to be of better quality.
The time I had spent online and with other things I chose to stop doing was spent reading good books in a self-designed "Great Books" list. What a wonderful determination that has turned out to be. My mind has not only been enriched but it has had an unexpected but welcome calming of my soul.
"He not busy being born is busy dying"
How very fortuitous it has turned out to be that on that day, Friday the 13th in October 2000, I was surplussed and laid off from the company I had worked for since high school, through my college degrees and experienced my thirties and forties. My involuntary "separation" (their term) actually was not accompanied with anxiety but rather rejoicing at being freed from the institutional madness of the only place I had really ever worked. That does not mean there was not angst of learning as I traversed down the road in the decade ahead. It prepared me in too many ways to enumerate to cope with the new world of 21st century economic, social and geopolitical circumstances.
Although this year and this decade has ended with a finality specific to me, it does not mean an end to always learning and facing new challenges moving forward. Now I look ahead to them with a renewed freedom I once had and have revived. It is certain that the Great Disruption that became obvious to the world in mid-2007 will continue and perpetuate the economic distress that challenges us all and disturbs other social institutions. We live in an exciting time as our universe is reborn anew once again, following in the footprints of world history. That does not bother me since I know that as an individual I have the determination, will and ability to overthrow adversity. Also I have a perception of others difficulties and an ability to understand what some may need help in learning to cope for themselves.
If there is anything I am able to impart to others, it is that we all have something within us that allows us to rise above and overcome. My hope is that in my own small way I can do that.
"He not being busy born is busy dying" quote from "It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" [Dylan]
9/29/10
Standing On Solid Ground
Maintaining strong character built on solid ground...
Our society has developed large deserts of shifting sand,
Our personal selves must be able to withstand sandstorms.
Now more than ever we must root ourselves in a solid foundation of a strong sense of self, keep our values in the forefront and be strong in the face of constant change and adversity. Allowing external events to shake us for more than a brief moment in time will erode our ability to cope in a rapidly changing world. This is easier said than done and for many of us we are having to work at strengthening our selves and any weaknesses in our constitution.
Some days it is difficult to put one foot in front of the other but it cannot be said enough: to stop or pause and tarry too long risks the chance of never getting started again. It's a personal mantra.
One thing is certain for most of us is that everything we knew on how to operate and the rules to play by on three major fronts, employment, living arrangements and healthcare, are shifting in ways that are unclear at best and in constant flux. We see it in our jobs, whether we own a home with a mortgage or lease with a property manager or landlord, in our healthcare. Everything seems subject to change in a flash.
It's key to remember that we have little control over the large changes going on in society right now. What was the method one week for handling things may change the next without notice. We also have to learn to accept that a lot of things important to our feeling economically and psychologically secure cannot be counted on to remain stable. We may think that our jobs are relatively safe only to find the next week that our hours have been reduced or worse, have been eliminated. The deal we thought we had with a mortgage broker or property manager may suddenly be changed, regardless of what we thought was a legal contract. We can suddenly discover that a medication is no longer covered or our health insurance has been cancelled.
There is nothing consoling about any of these things, all of them and more have happened to me, they were all unsettling. It is the product of a social order that has been disrupted by an economic crisis, political winds and social and technological change. Everything is subject to change in ways that are not comfortable and most of us are creatures of habit one way or another. There are moments I wonder if I have what it takes to carry on until I realize the alternatives are not good options.
It can seem as if only the strong survive and the weak fall by the wayside and there is some truth in that. We must make a personal choice to stay as strong as possible.
More than ever, it is critical to have built into our character assurances of our own selves, our own identity and know that no matter what happens, the fundamental principles of our inner selves are built on sound foundations, held up by solid pillars with a sturdy roof and strong walls, to shelter us from the storm. Otherwise we will be tossed around in the wind with each change that hits us. Now is the time to resolve any lingering personal issues, work on self-doubt, seek support if necessary to build and maintain an internal foundation on solid ground, to avoid the proverbial Biblical building our personal spiritual house on shifting sand. That is our only real assurance that external events will not whipsaw us into feeling we are out of control of our lives.
Our society has developed large deserts of shifting sand,
Our personal selves must be able to withstand sandstorms.
Now more than ever we must root ourselves in a solid foundation of a strong sense of self, keep our values in the forefront and be strong in the face of constant change and adversity. Allowing external events to shake us for more than a brief moment in time will erode our ability to cope in a rapidly changing world. This is easier said than done and for many of us we are having to work at strengthening our selves and any weaknesses in our constitution.
Some days it is difficult to put one foot in front of the other but it cannot be said enough: to stop or pause and tarry too long risks the chance of never getting started again. It's a personal mantra.
One thing is certain for most of us is that everything we knew on how to operate and the rules to play by on three major fronts, employment, living arrangements and healthcare, are shifting in ways that are unclear at best and in constant flux. We see it in our jobs, whether we own a home with a mortgage or lease with a property manager or landlord, in our healthcare. Everything seems subject to change in a flash.
It's key to remember that we have little control over the large changes going on in society right now. What was the method one week for handling things may change the next without notice. We also have to learn to accept that a lot of things important to our feeling economically and psychologically secure cannot be counted on to remain stable. We may think that our jobs are relatively safe only to find the next week that our hours have been reduced or worse, have been eliminated. The deal we thought we had with a mortgage broker or property manager may suddenly be changed, regardless of what we thought was a legal contract. We can suddenly discover that a medication is no longer covered or our health insurance has been cancelled.There is nothing consoling about any of these things, all of them and more have happened to me, they were all unsettling. It is the product of a social order that has been disrupted by an economic crisis, political winds and social and technological change. Everything is subject to change in ways that are not comfortable and most of us are creatures of habit one way or another. There are moments I wonder if I have what it takes to carry on until I realize the alternatives are not good options.
It can seem as if only the strong survive and the weak fall by the wayside and there is some truth in that. We must make a personal choice to stay as strong as possible.
More than ever, it is critical to have built into our character assurances of our own selves, our own identity and know that no matter what happens, the fundamental principles of our inner selves are built on sound foundations, held up by solid pillars with a sturdy roof and strong walls, to shelter us from the storm. Otherwise we will be tossed around in the wind with each change that hits us. Now is the time to resolve any lingering personal issues, work on self-doubt, seek support if necessary to build and maintain an internal foundation on solid ground, to avoid the proverbial Biblical building our personal spiritual house on shifting sand. That is our only real assurance that external events will not whipsaw us into feeling we are out of control of our lives.
9/2/10
The Taproot Of Ethics, Values, Integrity
Drawing from the well to reach peak optimism again...
A deep strong taproot replenishes the surface
Last spring I predicted that the period between May and November of this year would be a turning point in the economic crisis and correspondingly in the social and political arenas in our country. This summer has proven that my instincts were right, unfortunately it has been the disappointing summer I hoped it wouldn't be but expected.
You only need to read or listen to the media, the blogs or hear people's personal stories to know how bad the situation is. It is not necessary to recount them here, you already know the direction our economy, politics and social world is taking. Any media story that is seemingly positive is in the context of how bad things are generally. If you think things are ok, you're not listening or in blissful ignorance.
Since the summer of 2007, the beginning of the turn for the worst in this ongoing economic crsis, I have been determined to remain optimistic and rise above the adversity I was facing, knowing that more would follow. So far, so good. This summer though has been difficult for me to keep that spirit alive due to several factors in play. The primary one is I'm feeling overwhelmed by the energy it takes to stay positive in a world of people who do not want to be positive. They'd rather be nitrous oxide happy and fat and there is a world of difference between that and being positive and forward-thinking. While they behave badly as what they perceive as their rightful entitlements are being taken away, I have been smacked upside the head with just how many Americans have either taken many things for granted or expect that they deserve a certain lifestyle just because. I am simultaneously disappointed at my underestimating this phenomenon all these years and profoundly disgusted at a large segment of the American population. The dearth of values in things other than material goods is far worse than I had imagined.
On the other hand, some very good and positive things have happened to me in several areas of my life this summer. They were dampened by several medical things, all resolvable, but extremely inconvenient and not quite healed over yet. They were made even more irritating because this has also been an exceptionally hot, humid and long summer that is not over in this desert yet.
The sum total of this summer brought me to an ebb of my optimism. As I survey the economic situation of the country, my state and city, myself and people I know, I have to wonder: "What happens next?" The big picture is grim in the 5-10-15 year term and although I have faith that somehow we will pull through, the future seems...well, disconcerting.
There is no point in dwelling on all this in the negative. My experience in life has been that even in the worst situations I've been in (and there have been a few), things always seem to somehow work out and usually in the best possible way for the situation. My biggest difficulty has been getting over that I have been playing by "the rules" all these years. That is, I didn't overextend myself in credit, which meant I didn't have the big house, the fancy cars or the toys. I was comfortable and happy but I am aggravated that people are "walking away" from houses and repudiating debt with little consequence. In many cases, such as short sales, some people are actually being rewarded. For a few moments on occasion, I feel like a stupid idiot but eventually come to my senses...I still have my self-respect intact.
It is incumbent on me to recognize I have no control over people who abused credit and that they chose to ignore common sense and took the money and fled. I only have to live with my conscience, not theirs. My integrity, ethics and morals are intact. It does make me realize that we are permanently entering a new and different phase of this society. I am now working to raise my level of optimism back up to the top based on my values, in order to keep a strong gait in a social world full of people with weakened character.
Keys to surviving with strong virtues in a society of crumbling values
A deep strong taproot replenishes the surface
Last spring I predicted that the period between May and November of this year would be a turning point in the economic crisis and correspondingly in the social and political arenas in our country. This summer has proven that my instincts were right, unfortunately it has been the disappointing summer I hoped it wouldn't be but expected.
You only need to read or listen to the media, the blogs or hear people's personal stories to know how bad the situation is. It is not necessary to recount them here, you already know the direction our economy, politics and social world is taking. Any media story that is seemingly positive is in the context of how bad things are generally. If you think things are ok, you're not listening or in blissful ignorance.
Since the summer of 2007, the beginning of the turn for the worst in this ongoing economic crsis, I have been determined to remain optimistic and rise above the adversity I was facing, knowing that more would follow. So far, so good. This summer though has been difficult for me to keep that spirit alive due to several factors in play. The primary one is I'm feeling overwhelmed by the energy it takes to stay positive in a world of people who do not want to be positive. They'd rather be nitrous oxide happy and fat and there is a world of difference between that and being positive and forward-thinking. While they behave badly as what they perceive as their rightful entitlements are being taken away, I have been smacked upside the head with just how many Americans have either taken many things for granted or expect that they deserve a certain lifestyle just because. I am simultaneously disappointed at my underestimating this phenomenon all these years and profoundly disgusted at a large segment of the American population. The dearth of values in things other than material goods is far worse than I had imagined.On the other hand, some very good and positive things have happened to me in several areas of my life this summer. They were dampened by several medical things, all resolvable, but extremely inconvenient and not quite healed over yet. They were made even more irritating because this has also been an exceptionally hot, humid and long summer that is not over in this desert yet.
The sum total of this summer brought me to an ebb of my optimism. As I survey the economic situation of the country, my state and city, myself and people I know, I have to wonder: "What happens next?" The big picture is grim in the 5-10-15 year term and although I have faith that somehow we will pull through, the future seems...well, disconcerting.There is no point in dwelling on all this in the negative. My experience in life has been that even in the worst situations I've been in (and there have been a few), things always seem to somehow work out and usually in the best possible way for the situation. My biggest difficulty has been getting over that I have been playing by "the rules" all these years. That is, I didn't overextend myself in credit, which meant I didn't have the big house, the fancy cars or the toys. I was comfortable and happy but I am aggravated that people are "walking away" from houses and repudiating debt with little consequence. In many cases, such as short sales, some people are actually being rewarded. For a few moments on occasion, I feel like a stupid idiot but eventually come to my senses...I still have my self-respect intact.
It is incumbent on me to recognize I have no control over people who abused credit and that they chose to ignore common sense and took the money and fled. I only have to live with my conscience, not theirs. My integrity, ethics and morals are intact. It does make me realize that we are permanently entering a new and different phase of this society. I am now working to raise my level of optimism back up to the top based on my values, in order to keep a strong gait in a social world full of people with weakened character.
Keys to surviving with strong virtues in a society of crumbling values
- Maintain high values, ethics and keep your integrity intact.
- Build strong relationships with people who share your values.
- Use those relationships to build a group to reinforce those values and mutual support.
- Brace yourself for the decline and failure of infrastructure and public systems.
- Clear out the debris of life, be steady and grow a strong taproot.
- Everyone is a leader in their own way, be one in yours and follow good leaders.
8/23/10
Quote of the Day: John Mauldin
Embrace the challenge...
On how to get through this mess
This is a far different environment than we've had the last 70 years. Using past performance to predict future results when the future environment is significantly different than the period in which the data was collected is misleading at best and worthless at worst, leading to bad decisions. Much better to deal with reality.
[T]he 70s were a real bitch. I woke up many times in the middle of the night with real pains in my stomach wondering whether to pay the rent or make payroll. So did a lot of people. But look at all the new companies that came out of that era and changed everything: Microsoft, Apple, Intel,etc. Cell phones. The Internet. The list is long.
Yes, we have to make our way in this Muddle Through World. It will be challenging, but I can almost guarantee you that when we do there will be other challenges. If it was easy everybody could do it and there would be no money in it. Embrace the challenge!
from "How We Get Through This Mess"
John Mauldin
The Big Picture
On how to get through this mess
This is a far different environment than we've had the last 70 years. Using past performance to predict future results when the future environment is significantly different than the period in which the data was collected is misleading at best and worthless at worst, leading to bad decisions. Much better to deal with reality.
[T]he 70s were a real bitch. I woke up many times in the middle of the night with real pains in my stomach wondering whether to pay the rent or make payroll. So did a lot of people. But look at all the new companies that came out of that era and changed everything: Microsoft, Apple, Intel,etc. Cell phones. The Internet. The list is long.
Yes, we have to make our way in this Muddle Through World. It will be challenging, but I can almost guarantee you that when we do there will be other challenges. If it was easy everybody could do it and there would be no money in it. Embrace the challenge!
from "How We Get Through This Mess"
John Mauldin
The Big Picture
8/14/10
A Sonoran Desert of the Mind
Arid economics...
It occurs to me that in this era rules of the desert apply:
How to Build a BioSand Filter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7iGLSTZY84
It occurs to me that in this era rules of the desert apply:
- Carry your own water, lot's of it. Keep your eyes peeled for water sources.
- Careful where you tread. Watch for black widows, scorpions and rattlers.
- Respect cactus. They're survivors and have thorns and spines.
- Know where you are. Have a map and GPS, the desert can be disorienting.
- Avoid the spotlight of the sun. Stay in the shade, wear a hat.
How to Build a BioSand Filter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7iGLSTZY84
8/12/10
POTS: Tip and Ring, Grounded
The Summer of my Disconnect...
In analog copper telephony ("Plain Old Telephone Service") two wires run together, one is the positive ground side (ring) and the other side is the negative battery side (tip), with a switching machine acting as the brain. Basically two wires connect and people talk.
Throughout this economic crisis, signaled to me in 2007, I've been able to stay grounded, keeping battery going and charged and maintaining a positive connection in my brain. There have been difficult times, periods when I wondered how I was going to continue to personally financially keep my head above water, treading water if necessary. My main focus was at a minimum break even, increase income if possible, reduce and not fall behind in expenses and continue to avoid all debt. So far, so good.
I'm not sure exactly when a different way of thinking started evolving within me but it was sometime around the Fourth of July. Then suddenly I felt the heaviness of the trouble our country was in economically. It was no longer a matter of my knowledge of economics, southward Leading Economic Indicators, Stock Market bubble and other factors that in my brain were things that did not add up to a sustainable recovery. Up until then a lot of intellectual discourse in my head was on how to best move forward personally with that knowledge and stay relatively financially intact with a positive outlook.
No...this was deep in heart and soul. I suddenly felt what my grandparents had felt, during the Great Depression, at approximately the same age as I am now. It explained them perfectly to me. With clarity I now understood why my parents, aunts and uncles, who grew up as kids and adolescents in that era, held the values they did about debt, savings, managing money and resources.
It was a very hefty oppressive feeling that I'm still reconciling. Somehow, simultaneously I had disconnected, tip and ring and had no battery, but my brain wasn't switching anything off. Neuron synapses weren't signalling and if they were, weakly and the distance between axon and dendrite was so great it grounded them out, without connection. There was hum on the line but at the same time, the network was still operating on another level that was different.
This has caused me to reevaluate how to proceed in what looks like a 5, 10 and 15 year economic recovery cycle. Experienced, educated professional economists, as well as people directly involved in some way in the economy that I know, all privately tell me the same thing. We're in for a long haul of piecing things back together, no matter the tack taken to repair the damage, this will still take time. Fortunately the financial piece for me personally is somewhat settled in my mind, primarily I'm as prepared as I can be, considering the situation.
Now the work for me on all levels, is realizing the effects on people and society, accepting that there will be many difficulties, while doing what I can and preserving my own state of mind. When I was young I lived for an extended period in third world places with a small middle class and large disparity between wealthy and poor people. I'm not suggesting America is going to become third world but the conditions will be present in some areas. Due to my experience, I know there is an entire psychology that comes with that, one that I think the majority of Americans are ill-prepared for.
Keeping myself physically healthy and my mind sharp is paramount to maintain to me for future shock. I am of no use to others if I am not in shape, physically and mentally. It is for that reason I disconnected from the social web for the most part, limit my quota of media and news, avoid most comment sections on the internet (they've become largely peanut galleries). Now I tend reduce my time on the web to use it as a resource and for carefully chosen entertainment. I determined that the axiom "the internet has ruined my attention span" is certainly true for me and am making a point to read books. Paper ones, not e-books, long ones.
It's been engaging. Reading for extended periods is tougher than it used to be for me. I'm also re-discovering and meeting people who also understand current events and enjoy conversation. I'm relearning when to listen, really hear and speak in full sentences articulately. I'm more active and having more fun. At the same time I'm learning I need to disengage from some activities and people that aren't moving forward because that isn't much fun, it's counter-productive.
Above all else, for me it is about raising the bar to keep yourself level-headed and staying positive in an extremely challenging, yet at the same time exciting, era.
In analog copper telephony ("Plain Old Telephone Service") two wires run together, one is the positive ground side (ring) and the other side is the negative battery side (tip), with a switching machine acting as the brain. Basically two wires connect and people talk.
Throughout this economic crisis, signaled to me in 2007, I've been able to stay grounded, keeping battery going and charged and maintaining a positive connection in my brain. There have been difficult times, periods when I wondered how I was going to continue to personally financially keep my head above water, treading water if necessary. My main focus was at a minimum break even, increase income if possible, reduce and not fall behind in expenses and continue to avoid all debt. So far, so good.I'm not sure exactly when a different way of thinking started evolving within me but it was sometime around the Fourth of July. Then suddenly I felt the heaviness of the trouble our country was in economically. It was no longer a matter of my knowledge of economics, southward Leading Economic Indicators, Stock Market bubble and other factors that in my brain were things that did not add up to a sustainable recovery. Up until then a lot of intellectual discourse in my head was on how to best move forward personally with that knowledge and stay relatively financially intact with a positive outlook.
No...this was deep in heart and soul. I suddenly felt what my grandparents had felt, during the Great Depression, at approximately the same age as I am now. It explained them perfectly to me. With clarity I now understood why my parents, aunts and uncles, who grew up as kids and adolescents in that era, held the values they did about debt, savings, managing money and resources.
It was a very hefty oppressive feeling that I'm still reconciling. Somehow, simultaneously I had disconnected, tip and ring and had no battery, but my brain wasn't switching anything off. Neuron synapses weren't signalling and if they were, weakly and the distance between axon and dendrite was so great it grounded them out, without connection. There was hum on the line but at the same time, the network was still operating on another level that was different.This has caused me to reevaluate how to proceed in what looks like a 5, 10 and 15 year economic recovery cycle. Experienced, educated professional economists, as well as people directly involved in some way in the economy that I know, all privately tell me the same thing. We're in for a long haul of piecing things back together, no matter the tack taken to repair the damage, this will still take time. Fortunately the financial piece for me personally is somewhat settled in my mind, primarily I'm as prepared as I can be, considering the situation.
Now the work for me on all levels, is realizing the effects on people and society, accepting that there will be many difficulties, while doing what I can and preserving my own state of mind. When I was young I lived for an extended period in third world places with a small middle class and large disparity between wealthy and poor people. I'm not suggesting America is going to become third world but the conditions will be present in some areas. Due to my experience, I know there is an entire psychology that comes with that, one that I think the majority of Americans are ill-prepared for.
It's been engaging. Reading for extended periods is tougher than it used to be for me. I'm also re-discovering and meeting people who also understand current events and enjoy conversation. I'm relearning when to listen, really hear and speak in full sentences articulately. I'm more active and having more fun. At the same time I'm learning I need to disengage from some activities and people that aren't moving forward because that isn't much fun, it's counter-productive.
Above all else, for me it is about raising the bar to keep yourself level-headed and staying positive in an extremely challenging, yet at the same time exciting, era.
7/26/10
No One Knows What the Future Brings
History and current events are a good guide...
New Years Day 2010 was not so long ago and I still remember the collective sigh of relief people shared that the previous decade was over. There was hope for a fresh start, a new beginning, a chance to right the ship and correct the course we just raced through.
At the beginning of March, as businesses were closing every day along the primary streets, road traffic got noticeably lighter and and stores had fewer shoppers, I started researching the underlying core of the Leading Economic Indicators using multiple resources. Looking at the root causes and potential for solutions, none of them looked particularly strong for the short to intermediate term. The phony propped up Stock Market bubble, the Mainstream Media and Political Class's visions of sugar plum Recovery predictions, Stimulus and Quantitative Easing aside, a sea change storm brewing was evident. Efforts for a quick fix to the trouble we were in was not working as predicted and it seemed highly likely that it was going to get worse before it got better.
1. Unemployment: high unemployment and underemployment is a continuing vexing problem and likely to remain that way for a long time. Most importantly, unemployment and underemployment is directly related to people's income. Income is crucial to a recovery.
2. Debt Overhang: Individuals, businesses and governments are deeply in debt and it will take years to deleverage. The amounts on all fronts are staggering and must be reduced because it is subtracting from income.
3. Real Estate: A second wave of defaults in residential real estate is coming for these reasons:
Lenders have allowed borrowers to stay in houses with partial or no payments for longer than the average period of extensions and some borrowers have deliberately stopped paying. This is reaching it's end.
Alt-A mortgage holders are beginning to default and expected to become full blown.
ARM mortgage rates are going to reset in the September - October time frame.
Commercial real estate has declined in value on average a minimum of 50% in the past year but has not crashed yet. When it does, it will be about the time residential real estate hits it's second wave.
4. Retail and Consumer Goods: Most people are not in the position and/or the mood to be buying anything but what they consider the essentials. Maslow's theory comes into real life play: Food, Shelter and Clothing are priorities, everything else is secondary.
5. Production: The rate of producing goods, manufacturing and providing services is way down and not likely to increase until the other factors are resolved. Businesses are hoarding cash.
My prediction then was that May through November would be the period that how this great economic disruption will proceed will become more obvious. We are midway through that period. I also predicted we will be in an economic slowdown for a long haul of 5 to 10 years; I am more convinced of that now.
A few weeks ago I felt this Economic Depression deep in my being, a perception of what it is like to live in such an economic era, that hit me head on as more than intellectual theory. It made me sad and somewhat personally depressed and I had to take a deep figurative breath. I know I'm going to survive this, I've prepared for it as best as one can but that doesn't mean that I won't be taken aback by how it all plays out.
I see it in the faces of other people that they feel it now also. It depends on where you are in life on how good you think your chances of survival are. That also depends on your attitude and your ability to withstand the unexpected. There is a mid-term General Election coming in November and after that, what happens is anyone's guess. It is time to be ready for anything.
We are in a significant economic downturn that is more than the historical economic depressions that occur every 60-80 years (the average person's life span). No...we are in a 150-500 year historical Disruptive Event on the magnitude of the Gutenberg Printing Revolution, the American Declaration of Independence, the US Civil War and the Industrial Revolution. This is a historically exciting time to be alive in and we may as well embrace it.
The message for me personally has not changed. No matter how good or bad you feel, if you want to make it, no matter how hard it is, you have to keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep going. To stop is to risk never getting started again. Never underestimate the power of helping other people and them helping you. Now is the time, more than ever, that we need to think creatively, be passionate about maintaining our dignity and rising above adversity, to right the ship to sail on to a better day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUKB3PxG-0E
New Years Day 2010 was not so long ago and I still remember the collective sigh of relief people shared that the previous decade was over. There was hope for a fresh start, a new beginning, a chance to right the ship and correct the course we just raced through.
1. Unemployment: high unemployment and underemployment is a continuing vexing problem and likely to remain that way for a long time. Most importantly, unemployment and underemployment is directly related to people's income. Income is crucial to a recovery.
2. Debt Overhang: Individuals, businesses and governments are deeply in debt and it will take years to deleverage. The amounts on all fronts are staggering and must be reduced because it is subtracting from income.
3. Real Estate: A second wave of defaults in residential real estate is coming for these reasons:
Lenders have allowed borrowers to stay in houses with partial or no payments for longer than the average period of extensions and some borrowers have deliberately stopped paying. This is reaching it's end.
Alt-A mortgage holders are beginning to default and expected to become full blown.
ARM mortgage rates are going to reset in the September - October time frame.
Commercial real estate has declined in value on average a minimum of 50% in the past year but has not crashed yet. When it does, it will be about the time residential real estate hits it's second wave.
4. Retail and Consumer Goods: Most people are not in the position and/or the mood to be buying anything but what they consider the essentials. Maslow's theory comes into real life play: Food, Shelter and Clothing are priorities, everything else is secondary.
5. Production: The rate of producing goods, manufacturing and providing services is way down and not likely to increase until the other factors are resolved. Businesses are hoarding cash.
My prediction then was that May through November would be the period that how this great economic disruption will proceed will become more obvious. We are midway through that period. I also predicted we will be in an economic slowdown for a long haul of 5 to 10 years; I am more convinced of that now.
I see it in the faces of other people that they feel it now also. It depends on where you are in life on how good you think your chances of survival are. That also depends on your attitude and your ability to withstand the unexpected. There is a mid-term General Election coming in November and after that, what happens is anyone's guess. It is time to be ready for anything.
We are in a significant economic downturn that is more than the historical economic depressions that occur every 60-80 years (the average person's life span). No...we are in a 150-500 year historical Disruptive Event on the magnitude of the Gutenberg Printing Revolution, the American Declaration of Independence, the US Civil War and the Industrial Revolution. This is a historically exciting time to be alive in and we may as well embrace it.
The message for me personally has not changed. No matter how good or bad you feel, if you want to make it, no matter how hard it is, you have to keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep going. To stop is to risk never getting started again. Never underestimate the power of helping other people and them helping you. Now is the time, more than ever, that we need to think creatively, be passionate about maintaining our dignity and rising above adversity, to right the ship to sail on to a better day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUKB3PxG-0E
5/12/10
Guidelines of Money
Personal finance and money have their own commandments...
If you're doing what you should be doing with money, then money will fall into place for you.
Everyone has their own relationship with money but it is important to understand that money has its own relationship and commandments that are outside of the individual. If you take control of your money, you will not feel out of control of money. The way you relate to money says a lot about you and what you value. Keep foremost in your mind the understanding that money is an illusion, especially today's money that is printed off presses with no real value, like gold or silver, behind it. The value of money can quickly change depending on economic, political and social circumstances, so it's critical to not let your values be based on the value of money.
That is not to say that having money is not important in our society. It clearly is. The problem comes when our concept of money is not clearly defined with our concept of ourselves. It is alright to like money but it shouldn't affect who you are. If that is clear, you will have the money you need (and probably more) because you are clear about managing the money you have, leveraging it to the best advantage, which then leads to comfort with money and the rest follows. That's because your mind is in the right place with it. You will have the things you need and be in a position to gain things you want.
Assessing the personal value of money:
1. Acknowledge that your personal values have to be enduring concrete values, not based on material goods but autonomous and existing separately of money.
2. There are intrinsic agendas in the world you exist in and how you relate to it and them. They should be consistent with your way of life and include monitoring your money and your attitude about it.
3. Money should not be the driver or the destination, it is the result of achieving something of real value. If money is the only goal, misery follows.
A lot of people are in personal turmoil because of the relationship they've had with money and not understood what it really was worth and the damage it could do to them. Personal finances sooner or later, if not properly handled and misunderstood, eventually require reconciliation. How someone copes with that is dependent on their values, their willingness to reevaluate their affiliation with money and if they want to change. Money is fundamentally a relationship with things in the world and how you view things is important in understanding your relationship with money. There is nothing wrong with having things, whether your desires are modest or ostentatious, as long as you purchase them in an ethically correct manner.
It is a fact of life that some people have more money than others and it's not always due to what is fair, how hard one has worked or sometimes how well they've handled money. Nor does it have anything to do with your value as a person. Circumstances just are what they are and coming to terms with them in a harmonious way depends on harmony with personal values. There may be struggles with money but they can be relatively free of strife. Struggle is different from strife.
It's essential to control your money so it doesn't control you.
Enduring commandments of money:
1. Take charge of your finances, manage them yourself, never abdicate control. It is your money and peace of mind.
2. Live within your means: budget, monitor expenses, do bookkeeping and maintain records of your money. This does not have to be complex, it can be a notebook or an envelope system.
3. No debt is key. Exceptions might be a car, a house or property but only if it makes practical sense. Use credit sparingly; preserve your credit score.
4. Maintain a significant enough amount of savings for a backup and emergencies. Pay yourself first, preferably five to ten percent, or any amount, even if it's a few dollars or pocket change.
5. Avoid emotionally based financial decisions. If in doubt, don't do it, trust your instincts to avoid fear of finances and disastrous results.
We are entering three years of economic crisis and for most people, except the uber-rich, the end is at least three to five years away. Every indication is a second wave has started and it is even more important we take care of our money. If you are in a situation where you made money mistakes and it is causing you difficulty, own up to them and find relief in working towards solutions. Invest in your peace of mind by doing that and as much as possible, follow the commandments of money. Once resolved, following all of them will likely be easier due to lessons learned. If you are not in financial trouble and not following the guidelines of money...Start NOW!
If you're doing what you should be doing with money, then money will fall into place for you.
Everyone has their own relationship with money but it is important to understand that money has its own relationship and commandments that are outside of the individual. If you take control of your money, you will not feel out of control of money. The way you relate to money says a lot about you and what you value. Keep foremost in your mind the understanding that money is an illusion, especially today's money that is printed off presses with no real value, like gold or silver, behind it. The value of money can quickly change depending on economic, political and social circumstances, so it's critical to not let your values be based on the value of money.That is not to say that having money is not important in our society. It clearly is. The problem comes when our concept of money is not clearly defined with our concept of ourselves. It is alright to like money but it shouldn't affect who you are. If that is clear, you will have the money you need (and probably more) because you are clear about managing the money you have, leveraging it to the best advantage, which then leads to comfort with money and the rest follows. That's because your mind is in the right place with it. You will have the things you need and be in a position to gain things you want.
Assessing the personal value of money:
1. Acknowledge that your personal values have to be enduring concrete values, not based on material goods but autonomous and existing separately of money.
2. There are intrinsic agendas in the world you exist in and how you relate to it and them. They should be consistent with your way of life and include monitoring your money and your attitude about it.
3. Money should not be the driver or the destination, it is the result of achieving something of real value. If money is the only goal, misery follows.
A lot of people are in personal turmoil because of the relationship they've had with money and not understood what it really was worth and the damage it could do to them. Personal finances sooner or later, if not properly handled and misunderstood, eventually require reconciliation. How someone copes with that is dependent on their values, their willingness to reevaluate their affiliation with money and if they want to change. Money is fundamentally a relationship with things in the world and how you view things is important in understanding your relationship with money. There is nothing wrong with having things, whether your desires are modest or ostentatious, as long as you purchase them in an ethically correct manner.It is a fact of life that some people have more money than others and it's not always due to what is fair, how hard one has worked or sometimes how well they've handled money. Nor does it have anything to do with your value as a person. Circumstances just are what they are and coming to terms with them in a harmonious way depends on harmony with personal values. There may be struggles with money but they can be relatively free of strife. Struggle is different from strife.
It's essential to control your money so it doesn't control you.
Enduring commandments of money:
1. Take charge of your finances, manage them yourself, never abdicate control. It is your money and peace of mind.
2. Live within your means: budget, monitor expenses, do bookkeeping and maintain records of your money. This does not have to be complex, it can be a notebook or an envelope system.3. No debt is key. Exceptions might be a car, a house or property but only if it makes practical sense. Use credit sparingly; preserve your credit score.
4. Maintain a significant enough amount of savings for a backup and emergencies. Pay yourself first, preferably five to ten percent, or any amount, even if it's a few dollars or pocket change.
5. Avoid emotionally based financial decisions. If in doubt, don't do it, trust your instincts to avoid fear of finances and disastrous results.
We are entering three years of economic crisis and for most people, except the uber-rich, the end is at least three to five years away. Every indication is a second wave has started and it is even more important we take care of our money. If you are in a situation where you made money mistakes and it is causing you difficulty, own up to them and find relief in working towards solutions. Invest in your peace of mind by doing that and as much as possible, follow the commandments of money. Once resolved, following all of them will likely be easier due to lessons learned. If you are not in financial trouble and not following the guidelines of money...Start NOW!
4/29/10
Invest In Yourself
Engage in self improvement in turbulent times...
Invest in yourself while seeking shelter from the storm:
This era of Great Disruption due to technology and the internet, economic difficulties, political divisiveness and social problems can be disturbing to even the most even keeled of us. The world at large is in chaos of one order or another and it is difficult to remember that we have little control over much of it. We do have control over how we observe it, engage with it, cope with it.
I'm reminded of the era between 1968 and 1974, when in the US everything seemed turned upside down with racial tensions, university student disruptions, the draft resistance movement, urban riots, Kent State Shootings and Watergate. There were times when it seemed society was hopelessly mired in social ills with no end in sight. Who knew that Deep Throat was feeding Woodward and Bernstein information that would ultimately bring down Nixon? That was the beginning of the end of scary times during which many of us felt this country was dead-ended. Nothing lasts forever, change always happens.
Where we go from here in this time period is not within my foresight, although I have some ideas of what could happen. This time healing and recovering is going to be a long and deep process for most of us. The best thing to do in times like these is seek shelter and stay out of the storm, while observing for change in the weather. Staying out of the social storm doesn't mean personally stopping though. Engage in self-improvement, take care of things you've been meaning to, prepare yourself by building a foundation out of methods that have stood the test of time.
These six items seem to be good on an agenda:
1. Take control of your life.
2. Invest in (formal and informal) education and your mind.
3. Improve and maintain your physical and mental health.
4. Build solid relationships with good people - people good for you and people you're good for.
5. Devote energy to your business or career and/or make plans if you currently don't have one.
6. Think positively, turn away from negativity and engage in good self-talk.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Invest in yourself while seeking shelter from the storm:
This era of Great Disruption due to technology and the internet, economic difficulties, political divisiveness and social problems can be disturbing to even the most even keeled of us. The world at large is in chaos of one order or another and it is difficult to remember that we have little control over much of it. We do have control over how we observe it, engage with it, cope with it.I'm reminded of the era between 1968 and 1974, when in the US everything seemed turned upside down with racial tensions, university student disruptions, the draft resistance movement, urban riots, Kent State Shootings and Watergate. There were times when it seemed society was hopelessly mired in social ills with no end in sight. Who knew that Deep Throat was feeding Woodward and Bernstein information that would ultimately bring down Nixon? That was the beginning of the end of scary times during which many of us felt this country was dead-ended. Nothing lasts forever, change always happens.
Where we go from here in this time period is not within my foresight, although I have some ideas of what could happen. This time healing and recovering is going to be a long and deep process for most of us. The best thing to do in times like these is seek shelter and stay out of the storm, while observing for change in the weather. Staying out of the social storm doesn't mean personally stopping though. Engage in self-improvement, take care of things you've been meaning to, prepare yourself by building a foundation out of methods that have stood the test of time.
These six items seem to be good on an agenda:
1. Take control of your life.
2. Invest in (formal and informal) education and your mind.
3. Improve and maintain your physical and mental health.
4. Build solid relationships with good people - people good for you and people you're good for.
5. Devote energy to your business or career and/or make plans if you currently don't have one.
6. Think positively, turn away from negativity and engage in good self-talk.
__________________________________________________________________________________
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