Tag: controversial
Why you Must Challenge The System to Grow as a Person
Do you feel lost sometimes?
Is there a lack of excitement in your life?
Are you fed up with spending 90% of your time doing the things you have to do and only 10% of your time doing the things you want to do?
If any of the above applies then I have the answer for you. However, it doesn’t involve travelling the world, retraining at university or quitting your job.
No, this solution is more dynamic, explosive and adventurous than all of the above. It gets right to the core of what prevents us from being who we want to be and living the lives we want to live.
For some, it may seem a little scary. It might even appear to carry with it the potential for disaster. However, hear me out because I’m going to explain why challenging the system is not only the path to a life of adventure, meaning and fulfilment, but also the route through which humanity evolves.
The Challenge
Before we start, it’s important to understand exactly what we mean by challenging the system. This isn’t about rebellion for rebellion’s sake. In fact, this challenge applies as much to the apparent conformist as it does the rebel. This is because, irrespective of our different dreams, the system will always act as a block between us and their realisation.
Therefore, it’s not a case of looking for something to challenge, but simply being true to your desires.
Let me explain.
The system is always trying to stuff us in boxes. For example, you’re from a middle class family with a good education, therefore you should have a respected professional occupation and become a lawyer, doctor or accountant. You’re a woman from a non-descript background so who are you to be setting your sights too high or daring to think you can compete with men for some of the top positions? Or perhaps you’re born into a ghetto or slum and are constantly being told that your only options are a life of crime or professional sport if you’re exceptionally lucky.
But what happens when we don’t want to play the role the system gives us?
I need to make this absolutely clear – there is absolutely no one on the planet who is defined by their so called nationality, race, religion, class, gender or sexuality. We are always so much more complex (and greater) than the labels the system gives us.
This means it’s impossible for us to live a happy and fulfilled life by conforming to the path presented to us by our parents, teachers, peers, religious institution, media and the government. Even if we do come from a so called ‘middle class’ family and do have a passion for law, they’ll be some part of it we want to change or leave our unique mark on. Perhaps we loathe the idea of defending people we know are guilty or want to take on more pro bono cases than our firm allows. Whatever the case, the narrow roles the system urges us to play only ever end up restricting both our freedom and talents. Therefore, to bridge the gap between a mediocre life and the one of your dreams, you have to challenge the system and break free from what it wants you to be.
What Does this Mean?
The implications of challenging the system are not what they seem. This isn’t necessarily about violence, confrontation and anarchy. In fact, at its core, challenging the system is much softer and inspired by love. As Che Guevara said, “At the risk of sounding ridiculous, let me say that the true revolutionary is guided by feelings of love.“
You’d do well to remember this quote because your entire life will play out as a battle between two competing forces. On the one side you’ll have your heart, conscience or inner voice. On the other, the system or what you feel you’re expected to do. The choice is really that simple. The difficulty lies in making the right and brave decision.
Too many people hide from this challenge out of fear. However, right now, I want you to approach this dilemma as if you don’t have a choice. Our feelings are there for a VERY important reason. To deny them brings all kind of disharmony, disease and pain into our lives.
So I want you to ask yourself who you REALLY want to be and what you REALLY want to do. And don’t limit yourself. If your heart throws out some answer like the President of your country or discovering the cure for cancer then so be it. The system is going to tell you it’s impossible. You know this already. However, the thing you absolutely MUST remember is that the system’s voice does NOT represent the truth. Countless individuals have challenged the system and overcome the apparently insurmountable odds.
You can be one of them.
Need further motivation?
Here are some final thoughts . . .
How Humanity Evolves
This is bigger than you! It isn’t just about you getting rich or being happy. There’s something much more important at stake. Ultimately, if people like YOU don’t challenge the system and start living out their truth then the human race will perish.
Sounds a little extreme?
Not so. You see the problem with the system is that it’s hell bent on maintaining the status quo. Unfortunately, this works against the laws of nature where you either evolve or die.
We can see this conflict play out with some of the outdated beliefs humanity still accepts to this day. The unquestioned assumptions that nation states should be pursuing economic growth above all else, and the necessity of maintaining mass armed forces, are both bringing us to the brink of disaster. We need inspired individuals to begin challenging these (and many more like them) status quo beliefs not just so that we can continue to evolve, but also to survive.
This is what Galileo did. This is what Martin Luther King did. This is what Steve Jobs did. You can join them as one of history’s greats but you need to start setting your sights higher than what the system tells you you can be.
Over to You . . .
How are you going to challenge the system? What’s your great idea or injustice that you want to see righted? Let us know in the comment section below.
Also, do you know anyone who’s struggling to find their way? Breathe some life back into them by sharing this post by email.
(Image taken from Poetgrafie’s photostream flickr.com)
How to Fight Back When you get Screwed by the System
Its gonna happen sooner or later. You can follow all the rules, keep your head down and work hard but you’re still going to get shafted. Whether it’s forced redundancy, a bank collapsing and wiping out your savings, somebody getting promoted above you because they’re better at playing ‘the game’, the decline of your vitality as you give endless hours to a job you hate or petty regulations stopping you living the way you want, the system will screw you at some point.
So what can you do?
Right now, it may feel like you’re in a position similar to Edward Norton’s character from Fight Club in the picture above. He presents us with the archetype of an individual disillusioned by the system yet unable to find a way out. Fortunately for him, he had Tyler Durden and his ingenious life philosophy to help.
While I can’t compete with the brilliance of Chuck Palahniuk’s creation, I have got answers.
So if you find yourself bored living a life primarily focused on the material, feel that there’s so much more you could be doing with your potential or fed up with having to compromise your ideas and desires then continue reading.
What I’m going to give you is an easy to follow 3 point plan for escaping all the bullshit, backstabbing and stress of the system’s world and a means to finding and creating a life where you determine the direction you’re going.
STEP 1: Question Every Assumption
We have to start here. If you want to live a life where you’re free to pursue your inspiration and express all of your talents and ideas then there is some conditioning that you must first overcome.
For the purpose of brevity, we’re going to focus on 2 key assumptions that the system influences us to believe in and why they must be challenged.
1. Money makes the world go round. It doesn’t seem to matter much when we’re kids. However, as we get older, it’s no exaggeration to say that the quest to make money becomes the most important focus of our lives.
This happens for two reasons. 1. We’re conditioned by advertising, peers and the media to think that greater wealth equates to a happier life. 2. We’re taught by parents, teachers and the media that a lack of money makes you a less valuable person.
Both of these assumptions are WRONG. In fact, statistics suggest that people in the highest wealth bracket are only 3% happier than average and that an income above $20,000 per capita yields a minimal increase in happiness. However, most people don’t realise this. Instead, they continue to get caught up in the hype and spend their lives ignoring their health and well-being in pursuit of greater pay days or avoiding taking any risks for fear of financial disaster.
You must not let this happen to you!
Inspiration not remuneration has to be your driving force. It’s only by following your heart that you’ll find your true place in life and feel a genuine sense of fulfilment with the success you accomplish.
2. Authority knows best. This is a big one. We spend far too much of our lives revering authority figures and believing that they actually know what they’re saying or doing.
I’m questioning everything and everyone here.
- Governments and politicians who continue to make economic growth the main focus of their policies even in the face of impending worldwide environmental disaster.
- Doctors and scientists paid by huge pharmaceutical companies to promote drugs which have little healing value, while at the same time, discrediting genuine alternative forms of treatment that might help.
- The education system and teachers who are more concerned with league tables and figures than actually teaching anything that will develop an individual.
All of these authority figures MUST be questioned.
Why?
One of the worst mistakes you can make is to believe that you are inferior to anyone. To live a life where you determine the direction you’re going you HAVE to believe in your own judgement and instincts. Be easily swayed by others, believe that what you want is not possible because some authority figure tells you so or doubt yourself and ask the terrible question, ‘who am I to challenge anything‘, and the strength needed to stand alone will always elude you.
STEP 2: Get a Dream
Creating a dream for your life is the ultimate security against the whims of the system. While everyone else is subject to the ups and downs of the economy and the disposable nature of most jobs, you’ll have something that can never be shaken.
This dream must be fiercely authentic to have the power to protect you from the system. It’s about what YOU want to be and do with your life. Even if this sounds ridiculous to others, you must go with something that you feel connects with your purpose in being alive. And don’t judge your dream by the system’s standards of wealth and status. If spending all day every day creating oil paintings and selling your work to support yourself brings the greatest amount of joy into your life then go for it. You determine the value of your life.
Of course, other people may mock your dream and say it’s impossible but these naysayers are overlooking one hugely important fact. A dream creates meaning – a quality we crave above all else.
You see part of the reason modern western societies have such huge rates of depression and suicide is that the majority of us unconsciously feel we’re living meaningless lives. The system conditions us into making money our God but try as we might, we can never fill the hole in our soul through the accumulation of riches and consumer goods. We need something more and this can only be found through living a life that brings out the deeper emotions of love and joy and the knowledge you’re having a positive impact on the world around you.
STEP 3: Start Living It
I don’t need to say this, do I? You MUST MUST MUST start acting on this dream.
It’s hard, I know, but without taking the steps necessary to realise your dream you’ll be trapped in a horrible place. Fully aware and completely dissatisfied with what the system has to offer, yet for fear of failure, lack of belief that it’s possible or whatever other reason it might be, unable to pursue an alternative.
You don’t want to be here.
This may sound harsh, but its best you know this right now. You’re either in or your out when it comes to escaping the system and realising your dreams. You can’t cling onto the security and comfort of the system while wanting the adventure and joy of pursuing your own unique destiny. At some point you must make a choice.
In anticipation of you making this decision there’s one thing I want you to remember – there’s no such thing a guaranteed security. Both sticking with the system and pursuing your own destiny carry their pitfalls.
I ask you, then, to look at what you stand to gain and answer this question.
Can you really give up your one opportunity to make a genuine, positive difference to this world for the meagre promise of comfort and luxury?
Over to you . . .
Do you know anyone fed up with having to play the system’s game? Email this blog to them and point them in the right direction.
Also, let me know your own experiences in the comments section below. How has the system screwed you and what have you done to reclaim your life?
(Image taken from saganass photostream flickr.com)
Why Positive Thinking doesn’t Work: And why you need R.A.G.E instead
“Think Positive”
“There’s no such thing as failure”
Three cliched statements you’ll read or hear on any personal development blog, school or thousand dollar seminar.
Not here.
You see while each statement has value, they’ve become so overused and misunderstood that people generally have no clue what they’re talking about when saying them.
After all, what does ‘think positive’ really mean?
Non-stop thoughts about achieving your desires?
How does someone keep that up all day?
While I don’t mean to rubbish the concept of positive thinking (I believe an optimistic outlook is fundamental to success), I do feel it has its limits.
First and foremost, most positive thinking is unable to stir the emotions. You can visualise success but if all you’re doing is running images over in your mind then nothing sinks into the subconscious to make a change. There must be feeling to back up your thought and this is where positive thinking fails.
Of course, you could practise long and hard and get to that level, but what if there was a quicker way to connect with the motivation needed to get your dreams off the ground? What if there was a way to super charge your drive so that you kept every commitment to yourself and your business and work as if your life depended on it?
Well it just so happens that there is.
Read on to discover how . . .
Let the R.A.G.E Free
To ensure that you have the conviction needed to follow through on all your intentions and dreams you need R.A.G.E.
But this isn’t rage as most people know it. What I’m talking about has nothing to do with mindless aggression. Instead, it’s about raw emotion. In fact, that’s the first part of a definition which continues thus;
Raw emotion
Attached to
Goals and dreams
Every day
It’s this ‘must achieve my dreams at all costs‘ attitude which separates those that merely dream and those that end up living them. To get to this level, you need more than positive thinking. You’ll need to reach deep into your being and remind yourself why it’s SO important that you attain your goal. Ironically, these feelings are most easily accessed in a moment of failure or when facing the possibility of all your hard work amounting to nothing.
At this point, a little R.A.G.E seed will start to grow inside you but your positive thinking brain may try to quell the fire. Don’t let it. Instead, stoke the R.A.G.E. Let it grow until it becomes a monster. Shout if you want to. Break something if it makes you feel better, but do it with the clear intention that you are going to get to where you want to be.
This channelling of your raw emotion can bring about amazing changes. It puts you in a state even stronger than desire. It takes you to a place where you MUST achieve your goals.
Get to this level and there’s no question of veg’ing out in front of the TV or putting something off till tomorrow. You’ll find yourself driven by an almost insane hunger to right what feels like a wrong.
‘Ragers’
Have I piqued your interest a little?
Or perhaps you think I’m talking nonsense?
Well here are examples of a famous, and a not so famous (that’ll be me!), ‘rager’ that have used this quality to drive them towards their dreams.
- Michael Jackson. You remember Off the Wall right? Some critics cite it as Jacksons best work (I prefer Thriller) but he felt it didn’t get the credit it was due. Although most artists would be ecstatic with a Grammy award, he was devastated. You see that was the problem, it only won one. He felt (probably rightly so) that it should have won more and as a result of only receiving a paltry two nominations, didn’t even attend the ceremony. Instead, he watched from home and his family reported rage at the outcome and the repetition of three words over and over again, ‘I’ll show them.‘ Clearly, he did (Thriller won 8 Grammies) but would he have gone on to create the greatest selling album of all time if he hadn’t been fuelled by R.A.G.E at the lack of recognition for his first?
- Me. My journey to realise my dreams began with a moment of R.A.G.E. I was in my final year of what had been a miserable and dull university experience and I was telling my parents about my plans to become a hypnotherapist. ‘No way,‘ they responded. ‘What kind of money are you going to make doing that?‘. That was it for me. I’d spent 3 years studying a course that had bored me out of my brain and now, if I chose the conventional path, faced the prospect of a lifetime feeling the same. I’d already had a careers advisor telling me that a career in hypnotherapy wouldn’t work and when my parents reinforced his statement my mind flipped. I remember being in my bedroom, pacing around and gesticulating, saying, ‘Get me out of here’ again and again. I didn’t really know who I was directing this towards but my plea was heard. The very next day, I discovered a book that was to have a profound impact on my life. Although my subsequent journey has had more than its fair share of struggle and failure, I can honestly say that my life has been moving in a positive direction ever since that day.
These two examples of R.A.G.E depict a moment where the emotion was felt most keenly and then used to propel the individual to greater heights. However, it’s not always the case that a defining moment will indeterminately propel you forwards and provide lifelong motivation. Instead, you’ll need to summon this feeling daily.
Besides a moment of failure, the best way to do this is to dwell on the righteousness of your cause. Although the system influences us to ignore it, we all have a strong sense of justice. Tap into what you feel is good and right about life, and your motivation will soon become clear. Michael Jackson often said that what drove him was seeing people happy through the enjoyment of his music. Being denied the opportunity to do this through lack of recognition clearly hit a raw nerve. For me, the thought that we have to spend our lives working without any real purpose makes me furious. I believe we all have so much to offer but end up wasting these talents when conforming to the system’s notion of how our life should be.
My task for you is to find out, and define within two senteces, what challenges your sense of justice (let me know in the comments section below). Do this, and you’ll have access to a powerful source of motivation that will propel you into a life where you right this wrong.
(Image taken from Abi Skipp’s photostream flickr.com)
How to Succeed in Life:The REAL Answer
Have you ever noticed how life is all topsy turvey?
It’s crazy. Deceit and dishonesty seem to be rewarded. Good people get taken advantage of and the ones who deserve a lucky break never get it. Hard work doesn’t equate to success and doing your best often isn’t good enough.
Then there’s society as a whole. To quote Howard Zinn from his 1970 speech on civil disobedience, ‘Things are all wrong. The wrong people are in jail and the wrong people are out of jail. The wrong people are in power and the wrong people are out of power. The wealth is distributed in the world in such a way that doesn’t require small reform but a drastic reallocation of wealth.’
Or, as 2Pac put it, ‘They got money for wars but can’t feed the poor.’
Crazy huh?
So how are you going to succeed in life when all is not what it seems?
The Conventional Answer
The system would have us thinking along these 3 lines;
- Money is the clearest measure of success. Almost everyone falls into the trap of making financial considerations the driving force of their decisions. Have you ever noticed how people talk about having a ‘good job’ when what they should really say is a ‘well paid job’? It’s crazy. You could have been working at Goldman Saachs, directly contributing to the economic crisis of 2008, and people would have revered you as a success. ‘He’s working for one top investment banking firms in the world; he’s on a great salary. What a success.’
- Marriage and children are a pre requisite. Almost all of us are raised on images of the nuclear family being the ideal. It’s acceptable. It’s right. It demonstrates that you are a normal and reasonable person who is capable of being loved. The opposite, to be alone, to be gay or a single parent or to have kids too old or too young, invites the possibility of failure. The unspoken assumption is that you can’t possibly be happy that way. After all, true love can only be enjoyed between a man and a woman who have made a lifelong legally binding agreement.
- Always be in control. We live in a system where appearance is more important than what’s real. The aim of the game is to always look as if you know what you’re doing, enjoying yourself and getting things right. It doesn’t matter so much whether you are, just so long as you can maintain the facade. Pulling off such an act requires a great deal of self-control. Never show your vulnerability, always tell people that you’re ‘fine’, exaggerate your successes and hide your failures. Follow these rules and you’ll be able to convince enough people of your success that you may even begin to believe it yourself.
Unfortunately, these rules will only enable you to enjoy a superficial level of success. Making financial considerations the driving force of your decisions will rob you of all vitality as your passions and interests are routinely neglected. While the desire to experience love will enrich your life, the belief that you must do it conventionally may pressure you into a relationship with the wrong person and result in years of bitterness and regret. Finally, the need to appear in control will prevent you from acknowledging your failures and taking on board the lessons that could see you experience genuine success.
The Real Answer
While the system would have you following all of the above, you’ll have to break free from this conditioning and realise that success works counter intuitively. Here are 3 rules to get you started;
1. Seek Inspiration not Remuneration. This may seem dangerous, but getting to the top of the ladder is pointless if it’s leaning against the wrong tree. I would even go so far to say that you’re better off working for free in a job you love than being paid to do something you hate. You just never know where your inspiration could lead. You might start a blog, giving great free advice on a subject that fascinates you and discover that a year down the line you’re in a position to monetize and make a living from your work. Equally, you might get a placement as an intern doing something you love and find that the company hires you because of the enthusiasm you bring to the job. Of course, this isn’t guaranteed (although following rule 2 will greatly increase your chances) but the logic is sound. A person inspired by what they’re doing will find creative solutions, present themselves dynamically and work harder. Who can’t succeed when bringing these qualities to the table?
2. It’s not what you DO; it’s who you ARE that counts. So many people get this one wrong. They enter a new field (be it work, sports or even dating) and seek every ‘expert’ piece of advice they can find (sometimes to the point of overload). They think there’s a magic formula that all the pro’s know and if only they can discover it then they will share a similar level of success. I’ve got news for you, though, there isn’t. This may surprise you but there is no secret to success. Any path you take will get you there so long as you bring enough energy to the endeavour. So stop making what you’re doing (improving SEO, getting the perfect follow through on your golf swing, using the right NEG when approaching a girl you like) the focus. It’s not that some expert advice isn’t valid, but you can tick all the boxes and still not succeed. Therefore, to take your life to the next level you’ll need something extra. This X factor is your personal dynamism and it’s developed by feeling rather than thinking. Trust your intuition, believe in your ability and raise you emotional state to the point where you’re buzzing. Follow these steps and your success will be far swifter than the person who has plan for every outcome and think through every decision they make.
3. Let go of the Need to Control. For most people, this is the hardest rule to follow. The need to control is so ingrained in our psyche’s that we don’t believe success can occur other than by exerting the maximum amount of effort and will. However, this approach tends to backfire or at best, take a long time to deliver results. Therefore, you’ll have to adopt what may feel like an uncomfortable and dangerous stance and stop trying to control your outcomes. Stop forcing yourself to appear normal and successful in an attempt to win friends or clients, stop muscling your swing as you struggle to hit harder and stop trying to force yourself back to sleep. It may feel like you’re giving up but what you’re actually doing is demonstrating faith in your ability to succeed. Do you ever see a champion fretting, rushing and panicking over what they’re trying to achieve? No. They know they’ll be successful so they approach their task with calm certainty. The universe responds to this kind of faith. Allow it to work with, rather than against you, by trusting yourself.
(Image taken from alter1fo photostream flickr.com)
Stop Living Like you’re not gonna Die!
My grandma is 96 years old and she’s still deeply concerned by the cost of a loaf of bread. Despite being a danger to herself and other road users, she’s only just stopped driving because she didn’t want to pay a nominal taxi fee for the 5 minute journey into town for her weekly grocery shop. She treble checks bills, worries about the hot water being left on too long and nags my mum over insignificant spending. In short, she is absorbed by the minutia of life.
This penny pinching isn’t the result of being close to poverty or the onset of senility though. Far from it, she has money to burn and my mum tells me she’s always been this way.
Then what is it that drives a person of far advanced years to spend the last of them absorbed by life’s trivialities?
A Common Disease
In diagnosing this problem we have to realise that this affliction stretches far beyond the elderly. In fact, it has spread so far that it has probably touched all adults and some adolescents at some point in their life. Some people are stymied by it and for others, it comes and goes. Although it can’t be spread by physical contact, it is highly contagious. Seeping through the collective consciousness, it is a disease of mind that leads the individual to live their lives as if they’re not going to die.
What do I mean by this?
Here are some of the symptoms;
- Putting everything off
- Veg’ing out in front of the tv for hours on end
- Focusing on just getting by
- Worrying about what other people think
- Being afraid to take risks when presented with an opportunity
- Aimlessly surfing the internet
- Sweating the small stuff
- Taking life for granted
It’s not that people living with this affliction believe they’ll live forever; it’s just that they’ve lost ALL grasp on what life should be about. Life is way too short to partake in anything on the above list. To do so demonstrates an attitude that thinks your time on earth isn’t important – that you have the luxury to waste it on things that really don’t matter.
Life’s Greatest Tool
If you’re still not convinced about the dangers of living your life as if it’ll always be there then perhaps you’ll listen to Steve Jobs. In his 2005 Stanford Commencement Address, he describes his daily awareness of the fact he will one day die as the greatest tool he had in making big decisions. He said that,
“Remembering you are going to die is the best way to avoid the trap of thinking that you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”
Ironically, the acceptance of an event we’re taught to fear can actually free us to really LIVE. Adopt Job’s attitude and you’ve got the ultimate measure of what truly matters.
Try this
The next time you’re really troubled by something, unsure of what to do or holding yourself back through fear of failure, grab yourself and march to the nearest mirror. Now, get up close and personal, look squarely in your eyes and either say out loud or in your head, ‘One day I will die.’
How do you feel now?
Like you haven’t got a moment to waste? Do other people’s opinions matter anymore?
Has, ‘How could I possibly quit my job and pursue my dream?’ turned into, ‘How can I not?’
The Shock of your Life
Think of this as a metaphorical defibrillator – you have to shock yourself back to life. It can become all too easy to live on autopilot. We have smart phones, newspapers, radio, music, magazines and television constantly fighting for our attention and a workplace where we perform the same role day in, day out. An event like death, marriage, the birth of a child or promotion at work may remind us that the clock is actually ticking but how often do these occur?
This is why it’s so important to be aware of your mortality on a daily basis. It gives each day a sense of energy and urgency. Steve Job’s once said that, since the age of 17, he would ask himself that if this day was to be his last, would he want to be doing what he was about to do. When the answer to that question was ‘no’ for too many days in a row, he knew he had to make a change.
Perhaps you may also adopt Job’s approach. However, don’t be too disheartened if, initially, you record a lot of ‘no’s’. Just an awareness that you need to change is a good starting point. From there, you can begin to find the answers that will alter your response to a resounding ‘yes’.
Attack it with a fanatical zeal though. In the words of another great (Chuck Palahniuk – author of Fight Club),
“This is your life and it’s ending one minute at a time!”
(Image taken from Celestine Chua photostream flickr.com)
Get a Life not a Career: Become a Hero not a CEO
Our outlooks are all skewed. We live in a system where the amount of money we earn and the status we attain is prized more highly than our levels of happiness and the good we do. It may sound crazy, but you’ll be held in higher regard if you’re the CEO of a colossal company, making decisions that wreck the lives of thousands and cause untold damage to the environment, than if you’re a charity worker looking to save the lives of the system’s rejects.
At least you’ll have millions of dollars in the bank and people will covet your job, right? After all, that’s what we’ve been taught to want for our lives.
Unsurprisingly, there is a massive fallout from living in a world with such an insane outlook. A huge dependency on all forms of drugs, scary suicide rates, the breakdown of the community and mass apathy are just some of the symptoms of this warped system. Even if none of the above apply to you, it’s likely that you’ve been struck by the meaninglessness of it all.
So what can you do? Carry on playing the system’s game believing there’s safety in numbers. Or, play a different game, get a new set of objectives and discover what happens when you refuse to accept what the system tells you you should want.
If you’re ready to take the plunge then here’s how.
Career Crisis
The first step to living a more rewarding life is to reject the ‘career mentality’. The thing that your parents, teachers and careers advisors tell you is so important to being a fully functional and responsible member of society is only going to drain you of all vitality and leave you a burnt out husk of the person you could have been.
For many, a career can mean;
- Most of your adult life spent doing something you don’t REALLY want to do
- Performing a role you have no real belief in
- The daily compromise of ideas and opinions for the sake of playing the game
You don’t want that! And that’s why you have to start shifting your focus towards getting a ‘Life’.
This means;
- Your inspiration (rather than fear or perceived necessity) guides your decisions
- Your success is measured by how good you feel rather than the money you make
- Your joy is gained by giving to other people rather than using them as a means to your advance
If you can shift your focus to these standards then you will begin to make the change.
Are you a What or a Why?
Understandably, though, you’ll want to know what the payoff is. To some, it may appear that you’re purchasing a one way ticket to a life of poverty and unemployment. Sure, it sounds like a great way to live, but we all know that the demands of ‘The Real World’ mean that your life could never be this way, right?
Wrong!
Choosing a life rather than a career gives you the most vital resource known to man – ENERGY. With this quality, supporting yourself is easier than you think. You see, there’s a common mistake that most people make when thinking about the world of work and the practicalities of making a living. They feel bound to the career model because they believe the flow of money can only be accessed by WHAT they do i.e. If I work as a doctor/office worker/salesperson/plumber etc . then I will receive a financial reward.
What they don’t realise is that people actually get paid (or get paid the most) for WHY they do something ie: I worked as a tennis coach because I loved seeing kids have fun and helping their games develop – Tennis and Coaching just happened to be a vehicle for this. Whether you’re a person who operates from a WHY or a WHAT (for a more in depth explanation of this phenomenon please follow this link), the point is that money flows in abundance to the people who have a reason (beyond financial reward) for what they do.
This links perfectly to the idea of having a Life rather than a Career. It’s the synergy of being inspired to do something combined with the high energy levels you bring to your work. Ironically, this will place you on pay scale above people stuck in their ordinary careers.
Find the Hero Within
If having a Life is what you should aim to live, then who should you aim to Be? While the system would point you in the direction of being a powerful member of society with a title like Manager, Director or CEO, to live a truly exciting and fulfilling life, you have to draw your inspiration from a completely different source. Movies are going to be more helpful than careers advisors and childhood fantasies will serve you better than following the footsteps of your peers. It may sound strange, but you’ll need to connect with the Hero you were meant to be.
Here are 3 steps on how to do it.
1. The ’cause’ has to be greater than the individual. Think Braveheart. William Wallace valued freedom even at the expense of his life. Therefore, your mission has to be about more than personal gain. Making a difference to the world is a great place to start.
2. Overcome all odds. Few things inspire people more than overturning a stacked deck. To become a hero, you must succeed in spite of everything that is thrown at you. Therefore, don’t look for the easy path. Instead, look for the right path and fight anything in your way.
3. Speak Up! Hero’s aren’t goody goodies. If something aint’ right then say it, no matter whose nose you put out of joint. Just remember that Hero’s often have to take the heat to create changes that benefit everyone.
Follow these 3 steps and great things will happen. In a world where people struggle to look at themselves in the mirror, you’ll be one of the rare exceptions who are proud of who they are.
Why you Should Feel Happy about being Depressed
Life Imbalance
- Endless hours spent working in jobs we largely don’t enjoy.
- Our spirits crushed as we’re strongly influenced to make the pursuit of money our main life objective.
- The disconnecting emptiness of a system that’s leading us away from our natural community sharing state into overpopulated isolation.
All of the factors, and many more, make depression almost unavoidable. It’s ironic, but you’re probably saner and more alive if you ARE feeling depressed.
3 Steps to Freedom
If, like me, you’ve felt the dark clouds of system induced depression blackening your outlook, then you’ll want to be free. So, I’ve put together a radical 3 point plan to help you understand and use this emotion.
Step 1: Rejoice. Congratulations, you ARE alive. What’s more, there’s nothing wrong with you for not fitting in or feeling depressed. In fact, in some ways, it’s the key to a much greater and far richer life. Your natural guidance system (feelings) is working and now it’s just a case of using them to find an avenue that lifts you up.
So feel good about your depression. Don’t see yourself as a victim to something beyond your control. In fact, reframe your experience so that it becomes a calling to something greater. You weren’t built for a mediocre life and that low energy feeling is just a reminder that you need to set your sights higher.
Step 2: Just say No! In all but the most extreme cases, I would advise NOT taking any form of medication. Your feelings are there for a reason and to have them medicated away masks the underlying problem. Some of the most brilliant people have suffered from depression.
Winston Churchill is a prime example. Fortunately for Churchill, though, he lived in a time before medication. Would he have been the same force in World War 2 if he was constantly popping pills that numbed and dulled his senses? It’s unlikely, and that is why you need your feelings. As well as sometimes dragging you down, they contain the keys to your brilliance.
Step 3: Think Big. I hope the message has sunk in by now. It is my fervent belief that most cases of depression occur because people simply aren’t living a life. The opportunities that the system presents are SO dull that they will fulfill only the most robotic of personality types.
You are going to need something else. Most importantly, you’re going need something bigger. The moment I committed myself to the pursuit of an uplifting dream, my depression began to lift. You will need to find something similarly grand. It may be a dream or an ideal but the most important thing is that you look beyond the confines of what is considered normal. In this space, you’ll find what your heart desires and the energy this provides will make those dark days a distant memory.
(Image taken from photostream of Voodoochild 10588 flickr.com)
Why Becoming a Millionaire DOESN’T Make you Rich Anymore
If your salary was $160,000/£100,000 per year would you consider yourself poor? Probably not, but Felix Dennis, publisher and owner of Dennis Publishing (Maxim, The Week) would certainly think so. He is also an author, and it’s in his book, How to Get Rich, that he outlines exactly how much money you need to be rich. Before you dismiss his claims as yet another multi-millionaire looking down on what society considers as a good income, first listen to his theory.
His book doesn’t seek to mock or brag, but instead flips the lid on what it means to be rich. You see Dennis would only consider you rich if you owned between £15 – £35 million in quickly realisable assets (£75 – £100 million in Total Assets)*. He describes those with a total asset value of between £1 million and £2 million as ‘The Comfortably Poor.’ (Below £1 million doesn’t even get a mention!)
His reasoning for these seemingly inflated values? Part of it is to do with ease in which you could access these assets, part of it is to do with the taxation you would pay on those sums, but his main point is that you need a vast sum of money to buy two priceless qualities – time and financial freedom.
So what does this mean?
At first glance, Dennis’s views on what it means to be rich could easily be dismissed as the ramblings of an eccentric multi-millionaire. Although he makes it clear that these figures apply to western societies only, the percentage of people with such assets is so low that it would barely even register. Even the salary figure given above is well over what most people will ever earn (UK average family income is estimated to be around £40,000 a year*, US individual income $26,000 per year*). So how can Dennis claim that you need a vast fortune to just be ‘rich’?
While I would reduce the size of the sums that Dennis uses, I can’t help but think that he has a point. Even when earning a salary that, society would consider, makes you rich, you won’t be financially free. You will still be tied to your job, constrained by your mortgage and preoccupied with setting money aside for your retirement. At best, you’ll be ‘system rich’ – wealthy enough to be the envy of those around you with your bigger house, more powerful car and improved holiday options. However, you will never have the kind of money that grants you the freedom to do what you want with your life.
Return on Investment
So if the people society considers rich are really not that rich at all, where does that leave you?
In a surprisingly positive position. You see, you can take one of two views on Dennis’s revelation about what it means to be rich.
Number one; adopt a ‘go for broke’ mentality. If you’re still not going to be rich whether you’re earning £20,000 or £100,000 a year, you may as well go for that crazy idea you have about making your millions.
What have you got to lose?
The chance to live in a better house or drive a flashy car? Even though the difference between those two salaries seems vast, there’s a good chance it will not improve the quality of your life as much as the figure would suggest. However, what would, both materially and personally, is if you were to be successful in turning one of your ideas into reality.
This is exactly what Felix Dennis did, going from penniless street seller to presiding over a £500 million plus publishing Empire. This kind of wealth, Dennis assures us, does improve your quality of life!
Number two; pursue your passion, not wealth. Again, if those who the system wants us to believe are rich, aren’t, then why play the game?
Time and financial freedom are two qualities that Dennis highlights as being priceless, yet you don’t have to possess a vast fortune to claim them. If you do the work you love, then you’re making optimal use of your time (regardless of the amount of money you make). There’s no looking at the clock, wishing you were somewhere else. There’s no regret or frustration at the lack of meaning in your work. Instead, you get to live each day feeling alive, knowing you wouldn’t want to be doing anything else with your precious time.
Furthermore, financial freedom is a state of mind. Of course, being rich in Dennis’s terms means you never have to worry about money again, but no matter how little you have, you don’t have to worry about it.
Conclusion
Although the figures Dennis presents may seem untouchable, they are, in fact, liberating. In setting the bar for wealth so highly, Dennis frees us from the need to fight over the scraps from the system’s table.
Some of us may get more than others, but, when playing by the system’s rules, are we really ‘rich’ in any sense of the word?
*Figures taken from How to Get Rich, Felix Dennis, Ebury Press 2006 p.3 -5. *Figures taken from BBC NEWS MAGAZINE 30th November 2011 ‘Is £40,000 really a liveable income for families in the UK?’ *Figures taken from Huffington Post 5th October 2012 ‘US Median annual wage falls to $26,364 as pessimism reaches 10 year high.’ (Image taken from 401 (k) 2012’s photostream flickr.com)