Good or bad, how much do you learn from those you interact with?

Ideally I would like to believe I learn from every single relationship, whether fleeting or solid.  The people who enter our lives can either enrich us or diminish.  From some we learn how not to be and from others we learn gratitude.  Some bring out the best of us and others overshadow us, dooming us to serving their needs while our own needs take a backseat.  

We overlook the benefits or limitations that are encompassed in our lives.  We may feel that our past and its horrors are behind us, forgetting that we are truly a culmination of every experience of our lifetime.  What differs is how each of us allows said experience to be a teaching moment, propelling us to higher levels of success.  The value of our lessons, good or bad, are within our control.

While two people may share an experience, how said experience affects each of them will be at the mercy of other factors that will influences a pull towards one direction or the other.  Lack in our childhood can either teach us to be frugal in our adult life and yet for the next person a degree of recklessness, living for the moment.  No matter what the fundamental influencers are in our lives we can still train ourselves to make the experiences have positive results.

From the very selfish I have not only learnt how to set hard goals but also to keep unwavering focus until I have achieved my objectives.  Fortunately for me I have the beneficial influences of my father's giving nature that helps me to keep balance.  Keeping balance requires that I have an intimate knowledge of my own strengths and weaknesses.  Knowing one's own shortcomings goes a long way in ensuring you not only set realistic and achievable goals but also to recognize under performance.

Remember those who succeed take ownership of their future, leaving nothing to fate.  Even though initially it is fate that either puts opportunities at your doorstep or removes it, it is within your reach to change the course at a minimum.  We all yearn for financial independence as such it should follow that we ensure we are participating at the highest levels possible to build or preserve our wealth regardless of amount.

If you do not believe in yourself or your abilities then you should not expect more of others than your are willing to commit to.  Whether you are negotiating the purchase price of your new home; your salary; or you are  making a presentation to a potential client you need to sell the goods to yourself first.  How good is your pitch when you are putting your skills on the market? In a world that is constantly evolving we need to continue learning to ensure it is the best of us that competing.

Are you a participant or are you living on periphery of a productive society?

As the world changes we are required to change along with it but few see the path ahead clearly enough to know the right time to make said changes.  Sometimes these changes are as simple as switching lanes on an open highway but at other times appropriate timing and not only a clear vision of one's surroundings is required. For most we get caught up living our lives that we neglect to be more aware of the needs of the changing world around us.

I am a true believer of choices.  No matter what limitations we are subjected to through the ''lottery of life" at the core of it all each one of us has choices.  You have choice to work harder in order to achieve your goals or you choose to succumb to your "station in life" and merely exist on the 

periphery of a productive society.  Our choices only come about as a result of how honest we are with ourselves. How often do you take stock of your life?  Or do you just continue on the path you accidentally found yourself on years ago?  Have you ever truly taken the time to assess your true capabilities or do you conform to the box people have placed in?  Do you take responsibility for the choices you have made in life or are you in the camp of those that believe fate happens?  No action is in itself a choice not to change, whether you can see the options in front of you or you take it upon yourself to create options for yourself.

Now that does not discount those of us who are definitely more blessed than others but what of those who soar when life has been everything but giving.  Those who fervently search and claim what nature denied them at birth.  What is lacking in the efforts of those that never reach the “Promised Land” but is found by the few that do fulfill their life's ambitions.  If we are all truly seeking success why then do a few make it and the rest of are left wanting.

If we all want better what then stands in our way? How far back does one need to go to correct things? Was it in high school that we formed bad habits? Or picking our major in college?  Or is simply our personality that stands in our way?  Many people make the crucial error of choosing a career based on high salaries or what is in high demand at the time they are entering college.  So whether there is a high demand for doctors and nurses if you are not a caregiver by nature your success will not only be limited but the chances of you being happy at work are slim. If you are a creative person you will not do well in that job that requires research and thinking.

When making career, retirement investment or big purchases think your choices through.  Research where necessary but more importantly make your choices but do so wisely.   

Stagnation for some while all else is thriving

In the month ended October 31st 2008 the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 14% or 1526 points closing at 9,325.01.   Most of us remember those days as the "dark days" - no light at the end of the tunnel, the misery was pretty widespread.  It appeared the down turn would continue unabated and the fear was commonly felt worldwide.

In the years that have followed some have been blessed to participate in the rise of the stock market. In the third quarter of 2014 the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) expanded at a rate of 3.5%,with the growth being credited to a decrease in imports and an increase in military spending.  (2008 - USA GDP was -0.3%) Year-to-date in 2014 the Dow is up 813.86 points or 4.9%.  Closing the month of October at 17,390.52.  Truthfully very few would have ever imagined that significant a recovery.  It is all very positive but sadly only a very small portion of the population has participated in the recovery.

For the man on the street who does not invest in the stock market, who is still trying to get back to her/his earning capacity prior to 2008-2007 it is all very hard to understand.  The government appears to have had many programs to stimulate the economy but none of those programs appear to have trickled down to main street.  Employers continue to sing the song of hard times.  If we are to believe them it makes the recovery of the stock market a little confusing as one tries to understand exactly whose recovery is being mimicked by the stock market.    

On October 7th 2014 Walmart announced it was cutting health benefits for 30,000 workers.  It sited increased costs and the availability of alternatives for its employees through #ObamaCare.  Now beginning November 1st Walmart is offering "rollbacks" to beat the competitors in attracting shoppers into their stores. This comes with an offer of free delivery for their season's top 100 hottest gifts.  Which all begs the question - were the benefits cut to accommodate the rollbacks?  So what kind of holiday are their employees whose hours were cut supposed to have?

At  some point something has to give for it is unsustainable for large sections of the population not to participate in the economy. This coming week is the elections and we are being bombarded by TV and Radio commercials filled with sound bites that are meant to sway voters.   At their core none really give the voter true insight as most of the things being said do not really apply to #MainStreet.  Those that do will be debated to death but no real resolution will come to be.  Most in the middle class mistakenly feel that the debate on #minimumwage does not really concern them.  Nothing could be further from the truth, for unlike the ineffective recovery of the stock market, a rise for the minimum wage will have positive effect of salaries of the middle class.