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“When people have lost their money they strike out unthinkingly, like a wounded snake, at whoever is most prominent in the line of vision.”
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Theodore Roosevelt
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“Can any amount of money mend someone’s perception of the world?
It can only mend its reality.”
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Ok.
Discussing money may be one of the trickiest things I have ever decided to rant <make some observations> about.
Here is the non trickiest part.
Time is money is kind of a bullshit idea.
If you want to pull out one of the gazillion articles written about time is money to say I am crazy … maybe think of it this way:
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If you are employed, why does the company you work for pay you money?
Mistakenly, most people say, “for my time.”
That’s incorrect.
If that were true, you could just come in and sleep.
No, they pay you for the value you deliver during the time you are working.
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What does that mean about money?
Well.
Money is money.
Now.
I will not suggest it is the most important thing in people’s lives <I actually suggest Hope is the most important … and I have research to support that … https://brucemctague.com/money-versus-hope >.
But I also imagine I could suggest without any money … where lies Hope on the scale of ‘must haves’? <somewhere behind ‘I gots to have some money’ I would suggest>.
Hope doesn’t put food on the table … that’s for sure.
Whether you like it or not … you gotta have at least some money.
And whether you like it or not … we can try and say money isn’t important … it is.
It defines wants & needs and attitudes & behavior <as well as standard of living>.
While basic survival needs money … I would suggest that in many ways culture drives, and thrives, on money.
And, yet, it seems like beyond survival and indulgence<the two ends of the money spectrum> we appear to reflect less on the meaning of money to us … than on almost any other aspect in our Life.
And when we actually do reflect upon money I tend to believe we do so because it is such a divisive <and negatively connoted> aspects we have in Life.
We obsess … we hate <that is actually a love-hate relationship> but it is seldom that we actually reflect on how we truly see money … and feel about money <beyond sometimes ruing that it is a necessary evil>.
And then … when we DO reflect money may mean some intangible stuff … like esteem & security & such … but mostly money means ‘stuff.’ Buying stuff, paying for stuff and doing stuff.
Doesn’t it seem a little strange that despite the fact money is something we talk, think and deal with constantly … we just don’t know how to really put a value on it within our lives.
And because we struggle with this whole “life/money value thing’ money becomes maddening. So much so I could suggest in our struggle we just end up giving it too much credit and influence on our life.
Look.
Money is neither as wonderful nor as horrible as we make it out to be.
Most people truly don’t seek to be rich <just comfortable> and absolutely no one actually seeks to be in poverty <unless you are a monk>.
And while many of us struggle to see any nobility, dignity or integrity among the uber-wealthy … we also realize there is little, or no, nobility in poverty.
And while nowhere does money seem to attract passion than a discussion about rich & poor the majority of us just want ‘enough money’ <however enough is defined>.
This all makes our relationship with money is tricky … “I may not be happier rich but am I happy being poor?”
<that was a rhetorical question … the answer is no>
If you actually do reflect on your relationship with money <and I actually suggest we all should at some point> I would suggest it is actually a relatively complex value equation.
The simplest place to begin thinking about money is to stop thinking of it as money.
Huh?
Yup.
Money is actually value.
Just as I stated upfront with regard to employment and paychecks … we always need to keep in mind that money is always a value transaction. Nothing more and nothing less.
All those coins & paper you have <or don’t have> denotes value.
If you buy into that thought then it becomes pretty easy to see the only way to get more money is to either offer more value, create more value or get more people who can give you coins & paper to recognize the value you offer.
More value <perceived & believed by someone other than you in your own mind> the more likely it is that you actually get paid.
Provide more value than actually expected and you most likely will get paid even more. By the way … a portion of that value you just offered & earned receives compensation based not only on the current value … but you also get some ‘I want to retain that value’ value add on. It may not be stated as such but it is part of the compensation value.
Oh.
If you deliver less value than expected … uhm … you stop receiving money.
Money is simply the widget used in today’s world to exchange value. Please note I did not say ‘services provided’ … that is a transaction. People make transactions all the frickin’ time. Oops. And transactions are bad.
The moment the mind attaches ‘transaction’ to money exchanged you are heading for trouble <if not already screwed>.
Why?
Nowhere in that entire thought did I just use the word ‘value.’
The only way to obtain gobs of money is to create gobs of value.
Look.
We all get rubbed the wrong way by people who make it ALL about the money.
And we all get aggravated when someone who has gobs of money starts blabbing about some ‘great business deal’ they uncovered as the secret to the business success <and it is even worse if the business is using inexpensive labor off shore to ‘maximize efficiencies.’>.
Yeah yeah yeah.
It’s legal.
Yeah. It may seem like it is business savvy.
But it is still frickin’ aggravating.
In some way it feels like ‘gaming the system’ to make myself gobs of money.
But set the aggravating assholes off to the side and focus on your own relationship with money.
Do you have a good ‘value relationship’ with money?
Do you believe you receive fair compensation for what you do? <that is productivity value>
Do you believe you receive fair compensation for money you spend on ‘Life stuff?’ <that is ‘savvy value’ or ‘non naivete value’ – Life ain’t cheating me>
Do you believe you receive fair ‘feelings compensation’ for the money you outlay? <that is soul compensation>
Regardless.
Time ain’t money.
Money is money and money is always about value and ultimately a value exchange.
And just as with any value exchange … the equation is ‘value offered’ to ‘value received.’
And while I would like to say that is an easy ‘if this then that’ equation … it very rarely is that simple.
All I know for sure is that if you go back to my three ‘do you believe’ questions and something is out of whack it is because the ‘if this then that’ is not aligned.
And, frankly, when that happens … it sucks.
But whining does you no good.
The only thing that matters is … well … value.
If you want money you need to generate real, and recognized, value.
It never hurts to think about your relationship with money, money in your life and what you want from money.