June 16, 2010

Somebody do something



It’s a story that, except for its troubling and tragic ending, might sound like an SNL parody of a Canadian stereotype.

The story goes like this,

For the third time in almost as many weeks, a young moose wanders out of the wilderness, and straight into an Ottawa residential area.

That part sounds kinda like the intro to an unoriginal joke, doesn’t it? Predictable, maybe. Hackneyed, even.

The tragic part is, for the third time in almost as many weeks, Ottawa police cornered, shot and killed the disoriented animal.

Not so funny anymore, is it?

What is it about a moose on the loose—typically so harmless and benign—that prompts a police force to act with such savagery?

Well, in each case, the moose, so it appears, was in an frantic and frenzied state.

Unpredictable, muddled and, therefore, potentially dangerous.

And, each case, so it appears, demanded that something be done.



Something be done…



Deal with it

Do something

Anything

Just get rid of the problem.



Why are we so preoccupied with having to do something?

Why are we so eager to take charge, be in control, look busy?

What’s wrong with slowing down, waiting it out?

Because, maybe, there are times when being busy, acting like we’re in control, doing something, is precisely the wrong strategy

And maybe it’s a good idea to remember that, sometimes, unforeseen events will just take care of themselves.

Ideas? Suggestions? Questions? Please leave a comment.

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March 16, 2010

Are we broken? Can we be fixed?



I read the news today, oh boy…

Yes, John Lennon at his finest.

Unlike Lennon though, my news—this morning—didn’t include a story about a lucky man.

No, plastered in my news, this morning, were voices—forceful, compelling, convincing.

And yet, the voices were confusing and contradictory too. Urgent, cautious and dire in their assessments, their predictions.

You know those voices.

You hear them every day.

They’re the voices telling you; things go better with a Cola.

They’re the voices convincing you; even though you haven’t thought about it, you’d really be happier in a Nova.

They’re the voices urging you; NOW is the time.

NOW is the time to buy stuff—more stuff—bigger and better stuff.

It’s good for the economy.

But.

They’re also the voices telling you; NOW’s the time to think about retirement.

Save for retirement.

Don’t spend, the voices tell you.

Invest.

But have you noticed those same voices—now more formal, now more grave—also telling us to be careful.

Telling us the jig’s up?

Telling us; People, face it, we’re broke.

All of us, broker than broke. Paupers in a pauperdom.

Individuals. Businesses. Government. Broke and barely admitting it.

Yes, those voices say, go ahead, buy, spend, invest, but, please, don’t go into debt.


Memo to voices: can you explain how we’re supposed to do that? Buy all that stuff, spend all that money (so the economy can pick up again), salt away money (for that future la-la land called retirement), all without getting deeper into debt? If we’re broke, and in debt, then how can we do all that? Can you please explain it to me?


Lookit, I’m sorry if this might upset you, distress you.

But it’s in the news and it’s ridiculous.

And besides, it’s not my intention to agitate.

My intention is to offer an option—a way out.

But first, I needed to point out the imponderable landscape—the vacuous, illogical insanity of it all.

The news, so irreconcilable, so inconsistent, tells me the model is broken, kaput. And there aren’t enough of us noticing.

Don’t you see?

The model says work hard, make money, spend, spend, spend.

But remember, the model cautions, to put something away for the future. And remember, too, to stay out of debt (even though you’re already broke).

Other than, that go for it—work, spend, save, stay out of debt.

And then…

Kick back.

Enjoy retirement.

Go on, enjoy it.

It’s all yours. You earned it. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.

But what if?

You don’t enjoy retirement?

What if?

You work hard.

For decades, you work hard, maybe at a job that sucks the life right out of you, only to find that…

You don’t enjoy retirement. It’s boring.

What then?

Well, the model provides a solution—offers a recommendation.

Rejoin the workforce.

After all, big-box stores do need greeters.

No? Not your thing?

Volunteer then. Babysit, drive a school bus, keep busy.

Just find something to do, dammit.

….Like I said, illogical insanity. We’re supposed to sacrifice 30 or 40 years doing something we may not enjoy, we’re supposed to be mindful of our finances (all the while trying not get tripped up by the conflicting minefield of debt, investment and disbursement), and we’re then supposed to sail into  the allegorical sunset…

And that’s why I’m invited to Halifax.

Because I disagree with that vision.

Because I’m proposing a rethink.

Offering a new solution.

A solution I’m calling The 5 Myths of a Working Life.

Which I’ll outline in my next post, I promise.

And, by the way, if you’re the impatient type, it’s in the book. What I’m presenting in Halifax is a subset of what’s in my book, The Net Present Value of Life. Obvious plug, I know, but the experts tell me to keep doing that shameless self-promotion stuff (and to not be so damn apologetic about it).

I’m working on it.

And so, what say you? Is the model broken? Let me know what you think. Please leave a comment.

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March 4, 2010

The perception of free



There’s a bit of buzz on twitter.

It’s about Free.

No, not freedom. But free—as in whether we, the self-employed, should even think about taking a non-paying gig.

On her blog, Susan Murphy tackles The Culture of Free and offers up compelling thoughts about what needs to change (and why it needs to). Susan makes especially insightful comments, too, about entitlement and about managing time—and your clients’ expectations.

All of which brought me to a post by Nancy Kenny called The Value of Me.

With thought-provoking references to money, self-worth and the courage it takes to ask for compensation, Nancy struck a chord that should resonate with all freelancers.

But what hit home was the clear, unequivocal stand that Nancy took vis-a-vis her perception of money and the role it played in her life. It’s not often that someone speaks so plainly, so concisely, about this kind of stuff. And it left me wondering; how many of us have done that, addressed our beliefs about money?

Meanwhile, getting back to the question, the business theorists—the number-loving analysts—might quickly suggest we all consult some sort of bell-curve chart with a formal-sounding title like; Earning Expectations for Self-employed Entrepreneurs…

However, I know (believe me, I really know) that the problem with such an analysis is it assumes that business people all—and always—act with clear-thinking logic and analytical decisiveness.

But as Nancy so evocatively demonstrated, for most of us, there’s an internal debate that gets played out, day-in, day-out. A debate about self-worth, about doubt, about what will people think.

And, let’s face it, as much as business theory likes to assume we’re all robotic automatons—modern-day Mr. Spocks forever making decisions based on analysis and reason, the truth is we’re a walking, talking sack of neurons, emotions, feelings and perceptions, and it’s from that pile of primal goo  that many of our decisions originate.

So should we work for free?

To arrive at an answer, maybe we should start by addressing our individual sense of self-worth and our own personal relationship with money. I’m guessing if we do that, and do it successfully, we’ll find that the answer is, quite often, fuhgeddaboutdit.

Whether you you agree, disagree, or think this whole “free” thing is no big deal, I’d love hearing from you. Please let me know what you think by clicking the Comment link to the right of this post’s title.

Thanks.

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June 19, 2009

Why do it?

Why write?

That nagging question’s been popping into my head for a long time. A really long time. I mean, I doubt there are many who write fiction for the money. If you don’t believe me, check out Seth Harwood’s tell-all podcast, The Truth in which he explains the numbers behind his blockbuster novel Jack Wakes Up. Go ahead, give it a listen. I’ll wait……

You’re back? what did you think? Pretty obvious that money’s not a driving force, isn’t it? So why do it?

Paulo Coelho had an interesting observation.  To paraphrase, he surmised that writers write in order to be read. That’s pretty obvious when taken at face value. But dig deeper and more meaning begins to tumble out of Coelho’s comment. Writers, I think, want to exercise self-expression, want to make a contribution, want to share opinions and feelings, and writers want to, I believe,  grab their readers’ attention. Depending on their motives, writers want readers to learn, to laugh, to cry or to just ponder a previously undiscovered  premise.

That last one is my motive for putting my book together (although getting people laughing would be pretty cool too). Oh, and there’s one other reason. I believe that when any of us tries something new, a door opens. Where that door leads is, of course, unknown–a complete mystery. But once it opens, it’s then our duty to walk through and find out what’s waiting on the other side.

And that’s something I can hardly wait for.

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