Self Government 101

DEAL WITH PROBLEMS IMMEDIATELY

If you have a stack of scary bills and you haven’t looked them over or made a couple of phone calls, do it now. Sooner is always better for YOU in theses matter than later. Many errors are made in billing, in medical, in insurance. I found out the other day the 500 ER bill that was gnawing at me for a month was a simple clerical error…they sent the bill to the wrong insurance provider. Man, I let that one get to me. I spent all of that time worrying about something that was nothing. Make the call. Even if you do owe, after you have dealt with the situation you will know what you have to come up with. 

IT DOESN’T MATTER WHERE YOU START OUT

I saw a lady on Oprah years ago. She raised her son under difficult conditions. No Father in the home, terrible neighborhood, gangs, poverty, bad schools. She decided that she was going to do something to make her son build into his future and not get stuck so she implemented the mandatory book report. She herself, was illiterate but her son did not know that.

She made him read a book and write a book report on it on a regular schedule. She wasn’t able to read or correct them but she made him do it anyway. He had gotten a scholarship and gone off to college at the time of the show. She didn’t even have reading to give him, but she gave him what she had, and she made him do it, and enforced it.  I’m sure he gave her the business from time to time about this, but you see, she was doing something daily, weekly, monthly as a non-negotiable in order to make him sow into his future man. 

IF YOU ARE NOT WORKING TOWARDS A FUTURE POINT, YOU ARE IN A STALL

Do something every day to build in to your future idea or plan. Get library books, talk to people who do what you want to do, take a class, find an on-line book, get a job working for someone that can teach you the ropes. Which leads me to:

PERMISSION AND DENIAL

You must deny yourself certain things. You are the only one who can do it. No, I will not watch that show tonight, I am going to the library to research. Yes, I will help my neighbor with his stuff free of charge, because he is a great source of wisdom and life experience.  You will likely have to deny yourself many things, in order to save up some money to use in rolling out you plans. This is investing in the thing you REALLY want to do, versus keeping yourself happy in the current place. There is nothing like building into a future plan to keep you happy and grounded in the current one, because you are not stuck. No, you are choosing to use this crap job in order to build a future that you want.

IMMEDIATE VS PERMANENT

Don’t spend all of your time consumed in the immediate things you want. They only last for today. If you are not devoting some of your time and energy to the more lasting and important goals, you will fall into a funk and forget why you are here. Pretend that there is no one to bail you out ever. No such thing as unemployment pay. No such thing as a credit card. Nobody anywhere who will lend you any money. Only you and your decision made over this fixed, tiny bit of pay. If you are stupid and spend your money on something you just have to have right this second, you will not have food for 3 days. 

I believe America is STILL a giant lemon-aid stand, full of people who have scrapped their way into creating the life that they dreamt of. You can start anywhere, and you can finish anywhere, and there is no one stopping you but yourself. Go for it, pilgrim, you have something to offer, you have something that someone else needs. Keep it about heart and soul and community and giving and you will get there.  Don’t ever let it decompose into simple money because that will never satisfy your inner man.