Rule 9 Keep the River Clean and You’ll Always Have Water
The Power of Contribution and Compensation.
The power of contribution, says for every contribution you make to the river, you will receive an equal or greater compensation. I've seen many people give with the expectation they will receive great compensation. But, that kind of giving is manipulation.
True giving is a gift of love. It is giving to help with no expectation of return.
My grandmother always taught me to leave the beach a little cleaner than I found it. Now, I can clean up the litter along the bank, but I can't keep a paper mill from dumping its poisons in the river. The only way I can do that is to work with others to pass clean water legislation and make sure the legislation is enforced.
The "drilled baby drill" people don't care about the consequences of drilling. As long as they have cheap gas in their tank, they either don't look to the future, or they don't care what kind of mess they leave to our kids. The irony of this is we can't drill our way out of the problem. By drilling, we may be able to give ourselves enough time to develop alternate kinds of fuel. But oil is finite and we have gotten all the easy oil.
The free, unregulated market only works when the buyer and the seller bargain on an equal footing. If we buy cheap products from China, our local businesses can't compete without exporting our jobs overseas. This whole financial meltdown is a result of banks being able to sell their mortgages so they can take the risks of those mortgages off their books. When they're not responsible for the quality of their mortgage, their motivation is to sell mortgages. They don't have to worry about whether or not the buyer can afford the mortgage. When interest rates began adjusting upward, people started default.
The law of contribution and compensation hit them with a vengeance. They planned on living in the house for a year and a day, selling the house for a half million dollar profit and paying a 15% capital gains on the money they made. When the housing bubble burst, a lot of people got caught in a financial squeeze. They defaulted on their mortgage. When people saw their financial companies reporting, billion-dollar losses. The value of those companies plummeted, and investors converted their stock to cash.
Credit dried up, the stock market crashed, and we haven't seen the bottom yet. The problem was created by low interest rates, by skyrocketing housing costs, and by lack of federal oversight of the financial institutions. CEOs of these companies are still being compensated with millions of dollars a year. They haven't been fired and the federal government is using $750 billion of our money to try to keep these stock market manipulators from going bankrupt.
The law of contribution and compensation doesn't work when the only contribution is selling fraudulent stocks to unsuspecting investors and the compensation for doing that is a multimillion dollar reward. White-collar criminals shouldn't be rewarded; they should be jailed.
The bottom line on contribution and compensation is we give what we get, and we get what we give. Give hate and get hate back. Give love and love will come back to you.
"Turn the other cheek" does not mean you want to accept a beating. It does mean that you control your own boat and choose your own course. Recognize the difference between manipulation and true giving. Give yourself to make sure the river is clean, and you'll always be able to drink.
From “A River Worth Riding”, by Lynn Marie Sager, www.navigatinglife.org
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Decisions
My daughter has a problem. She is caught in a financial whirlpool.
She was teaching at a community college, but, like so many state and local government organizations, her school had to cut programs in order to balance their budget. My daughter didn't have tenure, so she was one of those who was thrown out of the boat.
She was raised in Hawaii, and she wants to come home. But, she has established a life and friends on the mainland. Coming home will involve building a new boat. That's never an easy thing to do. She has lived independently for 30 years, and giving up that independence to live with her parents is not the best of situations. On the other hand, it looks like she has a choice of living on the streets or coming home and living with us until she is able to put her financial boat in order.
Her ambition is to make a living helping other people to live a better life. She has developed a great website which provides some ideas about navigating life. She has also developed a really fun way of helping parents become involved in their children's education. Because her business is based on a website, she can continue to build that business regardless of where she lives.
She and I both believe that it's better to be the captain of your own ship then crew on someone else's. Coming home will give her time to build her business and will remove some of the pressure of trying to make a living.
I stood on the bank of the Fraser River and watched the whirlpools of Hell's gate. Those whirlpools would develop into a monstrous swirl, and then lose strength and pop up in a different part of the river. People on the river have a choice between a very difficult land portage and taking their chances on the river. It is possible to avoid the whirlpools, but doing so depends more on luck than skill.
I have been telling my daughter to read her own book. She has been teaching people how to navigate life. Now she has to apply what she's been teaching to her own life. Converting what you teach, or have been taught, into meaningful action is never easy. Sometimes you need a navigator who can guide you through the rapids. Just remember that it's the captain who is responsible for the ship. The navigator can only suggest a course.
Climb to a high point where you can see the river, determine the course you have to take to get through the rapids, then shove off bravely in the rapids. Procrastination will leave you sitting on the bank and getting nowhere. You might even be sitting on quicksand.
She was teaching at a community college, but, like so many state and local government organizations, her school had to cut programs in order to balance their budget. My daughter didn't have tenure, so she was one of those who was thrown out of the boat.
She was raised in Hawaii, and she wants to come home. But, she has established a life and friends on the mainland. Coming home will involve building a new boat. That's never an easy thing to do. She has lived independently for 30 years, and giving up that independence to live with her parents is not the best of situations. On the other hand, it looks like she has a choice of living on the streets or coming home and living with us until she is able to put her financial boat in order.
Her ambition is to make a living helping other people to live a better life. She has developed a great website which provides some ideas about navigating life. She has also developed a really fun way of helping parents become involved in their children's education. Because her business is based on a website, she can continue to build that business regardless of where she lives.
She and I both believe that it's better to be the captain of your own ship then crew on someone else's. Coming home will give her time to build her business and will remove some of the pressure of trying to make a living.
I stood on the bank of the Fraser River and watched the whirlpools of Hell's gate. Those whirlpools would develop into a monstrous swirl, and then lose strength and pop up in a different part of the river. People on the river have a choice between a very difficult land portage and taking their chances on the river. It is possible to avoid the whirlpools, but doing so depends more on luck than skill.
I have been telling my daughter to read her own book. She has been teaching people how to navigate life. Now she has to apply what she's been teaching to her own life. Converting what you teach, or have been taught, into meaningful action is never easy. Sometimes you need a navigator who can guide you through the rapids. Just remember that it's the captain who is responsible for the ship. The navigator can only suggest a course.
Climb to a high point where you can see the river, determine the course you have to take to get through the rapids, then shove off bravely in the rapids. Procrastination will leave you sitting on the bank and getting nowhere. You might even be sitting on quicksand.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Rule 8: The Power of Responsibility
The river will always be wet. So, stop complaining and learn to pack a towel.
We've all seen people floating down the river on their soapboxes. Modern technology has allowed us to crowd more and more soapboxes onto the river. The Internet is filled with soapboxes. Television and the Internet are filled with political distortions and outright lies.
Even our president has been caught in so many lies that most people no longer listen to him. The biggest lie of all is the idea that we have a war on terror; that we have to fight them in Iraq in order to keep them from coming to the United States. Consider that 9/11 was carried out by less than two dozen people, and you'll understand that the only thing they can protect us from terrorists is excellent intelligence and very coordinated police work. Even then, a small determined group can strike whenever and wherever they choose.
There is very little we can do to influence world events. The only thing we really can do is to go with the flow of events we cannot control and make sure we take responsibility for our own lives.
The fiscal meltdown is carrying us over the falls. Some of us will landed in the plunge pool, comes the surface and fight our way through the rapids to calmer water. Some of us are going to land on the rocks and be wiped out.
For over a year, I've been sure that we were floating closer and closer to the waterfall. I've been telling my friends they needed to be invested in gold and treasury bonds. They needed to be sure that their assets were protected. Successful investors ride the waves and pull out before the waves break on the shore.
I went to a political meeting the other night. One of the candidates was railing against the Republicans who he said had led us into this mess. He complained he had lost enough money in the past two days that he could have bought a luxury BMW. At least he would have had the car. He wouldn't be able to buy gas for it, but he would have it.
I certainly sympathize with all those people who are about to lose their homes and whose 401(k) has lost three quarters of its value. I am taking a tax class. I heard my instructors discussing whether or not they should pull their retirement funds out of their company. Of course, it's always good to be diversified, but they are already too late. They needed to take action a year ago, when any close observer of the stock market could see that we're in trouble.
So, the bottom line is, how can we control our life in these turbulent times. The river gives us 3 choices:
One. The current is beyond our control. Don’t worry about what you cannot control.
Two. We can influence the river; we can damn it, we can dredge it or we can build dikes. But what can we do that in real life? Choose your captain carefully.
Three. Our choice is to keep complaining, or paddle like mad to get through as best we can. We choose the boat and handle paddles. We can control where, on the river, we choose to paddle.
In this current financial mess, you can choose a captain to manage your money, or you can be your own captain and control how your funds are invested.
Just understand that if you choose a captain to manage your funds, choose a captain who has your interests in mind rather than his own. A financial planner, whose income is based on the commissions he gets for the productsh the financial planner, whose income is based on the commission she gets for the products sells you, is motivated to sell you products that gives him the best income rather than products that give you the best return.
Personally, I need a navigator, not a captain. I take responsibility for my own life. My navigator will provide guidance and teach me what to look for, but I'll make my own financial decisions.
For an investor, stops are vital. They are the anchor that keeps you from going over the falls. No one should have ridden over this waterfall. If you set your stops, you would have gotten out at the top of the falls and not at the bottom.
I take responsibility for my own life. If I chose a captain who took your the falls, I was responsible for that choice. The best thing I can do is to do can do is to become your own captain.
We've all seen people floating down the river on their soapboxes. Modern technology has allowed us to crowd more and more soapboxes onto the river. The Internet is filled with soapboxes. Television and the Internet are filled with political distortions and outright lies.
Even our president has been caught in so many lies that most people no longer listen to him. The biggest lie of all is the idea that we have a war on terror; that we have to fight them in Iraq in order to keep them from coming to the United States. Consider that 9/11 was carried out by less than two dozen people, and you'll understand that the only thing they can protect us from terrorists is excellent intelligence and very coordinated police work. Even then, a small determined group can strike whenever and wherever they choose.
There is very little we can do to influence world events. The only thing we really can do is to go with the flow of events we cannot control and make sure we take responsibility for our own lives.
The fiscal meltdown is carrying us over the falls. Some of us will landed in the plunge pool, comes the surface and fight our way through the rapids to calmer water. Some of us are going to land on the rocks and be wiped out.
For over a year, I've been sure that we were floating closer and closer to the waterfall. I've been telling my friends they needed to be invested in gold and treasury bonds. They needed to be sure that their assets were protected. Successful investors ride the waves and pull out before the waves break on the shore.
I went to a political meeting the other night. One of the candidates was railing against the Republicans who he said had led us into this mess. He complained he had lost enough money in the past two days that he could have bought a luxury BMW. At least he would have had the car. He wouldn't be able to buy gas for it, but he would have it.
I certainly sympathize with all those people who are about to lose their homes and whose 401(k) has lost three quarters of its value. I am taking a tax class. I heard my instructors discussing whether or not they should pull their retirement funds out of their company. Of course, it's always good to be diversified, but they are already too late. They needed to take action a year ago, when any close observer of the stock market could see that we're in trouble.
So, the bottom line is, how can we control our life in these turbulent times. The river gives us 3 choices:
One. The current is beyond our control. Don’t worry about what you cannot control.
Two. We can influence the river; we can damn it, we can dredge it or we can build dikes. But what can we do that in real life? Choose your captain carefully.
Three. Our choice is to keep complaining, or paddle like mad to get through as best we can. We choose the boat and handle paddles. We can control where, on the river, we choose to paddle.
In this current financial mess, you can choose a captain to manage your money, or you can be your own captain and control how your funds are invested.
Just understand that if you choose a captain to manage your funds, choose a captain who has your interests in mind rather than his own. A financial planner, whose income is based on the commissions he gets for the productsh the financial planner, whose income is based on the commission she gets for the products sells you, is motivated to sell you products that gives him the best income rather than products that give you the best return.
Personally, I need a navigator, not a captain. I take responsibility for my own life. My navigator will provide guidance and teach me what to look for, but I'll make my own financial decisions.
For an investor, stops are vital. They are the anchor that keeps you from going over the falls. No one should have ridden over this waterfall. If you set your stops, you would have gotten out at the top of the falls and not at the bottom.
I take responsibility for my own life. If I chose a captain who took your the falls, I was responsible for that choice. The best thing I can do is to do can do is to become your own captain.
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