JUST DO IT!

#JustDoIt #success #FindingSuccess #TakingOnTasks
Nike’s trademarked tag is “Just Do It!”
It can be interpreted two different ways.
If you have tasks that are unpleasant, but necessary, like, say, cleaning your house, putting it off won’t make the job go away. Just do it.
The sooner you start, the sooner you finish. The finish is the reward.
The second interpretation is probably more what Nike’s marketing folks had in mind.
It involves just doing something that will bring you success.
These success tasks may involve some uncomfortable things. An example might be a firefighter having to go into a burning building to save people.
In that case, there is no hesitation. No procrastination. He just does it, without regard for his own safety.
But you don’t have to be a firefighter, or any other professional who routinely confronts danger, to perform success tasks.
Nike undoubtedly was referring to athletes when it came up with its tag.
But there are other tasks you, or anyone, could perform that will bring you success. Indeed, some of those tasks could make you uncomfortable, at least at first. But they will not risk your life.
If what you are doing now is not giving you what you want from life, you may be looking for something that will.
If you are, there are several concepts and programs out there that can bring you the success you are looking for. All you have to do is be open to looking at them. If you like what you see, then just do it.
You may find the tasks involved are not what you are used to doing. Perhaps you never saw yourself doing this. But these tasks are not life-risking, but they can be life-changing.
To check out one of the best such vehicles, message me.
Anyone can find success if he or she is willing to look. There’s no need for special skills, training or a “big idea.” You just have to be coachable, and willing to perform the necessary tasks honestly.
The tasks may be simple. They may not necessarily be easy for you. But they will get easier the more you just do them.
Much of life involves tasks we hate. Many jobs can be difficult, boring or otherwise unpleasant. And all that unpleasantness may not reward you to the extent that it should.
If that speaks to you, explore your options. That may involve doing something totally different. It may involve checking out something you’d never dreamed would come into your life.
The first step to finding it is being open to looking. After all, when life presents you with lemons, lemonade may not be the answer. You may have to look for something sweeter.
You can settle for what is, or dream of what could be.
If you dream of what could be, you need a way to get you there.
You have to find that way, and when you find it, just do it.
Peter

FINANCIAL DEPENDENCE

#FinancialDependence #millennials #YoungAdultsStillLivingAtHome #jobs #employment
Many of us can remember as children dreaming of the day we could live on our own, without our parents’ rules.
For today’s younger generation, that is getting harder to do.
Janna Herron tackled this subject for USA Today, in article also published April 19, 2019, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“Most millennials define adulthood as being on their own financially, but the majority still depend on Mom and Dad for money, even into their 30s,” Herron writes. She attributes that to a new Merrill Lynch/Age Wave survey.
“Finances are the No. 1 stressor in young adult lives,” Herron quotes Lorna Sabbia, head of retirement and personal wealth solutions at Merrill Lynch.
It’s not just the kids who don’t move out of their parents’ house. Some of them live in their own place, but depend on their parents for money to pay for cellphone service, food and groceries etc., the article states.
A quarter of all young adults have moved back home, while a third get help with rent or mortgage payments. Two in five who own homes get down payment money from their parents, the article quotes the Merrill Lynch survey.
The young folks are hardly high-fiving each other over this, the article quotes Sabbia.
What’s a young person to do?
First, let’s presume, as the article does, that young folks don’t like their situation. Sure, there are some who will want to live at home with Mom and Dad for as long as their parents are alive. But, for argument’s sake, let’s say most young adults WANT to be independent.
Second, let’s look at the reasons they got there. High college debt could be one. Getting a job that doesn’t pay enough to cover all their “necessary” expenses could be another. Living expenses for people today have risen far beyond those that their parents paid when they were young.
Finally, a lack of job security may deter some of them from really putting down roots. At the rapid pace of change in the corporate and business world, it’s hard to know where one may be five years from now. And, it doesn’t matter whether the person is good at what he does. A company, if it sees an efficiency or has an economic need, will lay off ANYONE.
So, let’s take the solution in steps. First, strive to be good at what you do. Be personable, kind, coachable and willing to do things outside your job description. Become a self-starter, if you aren’t already. You want to be in a position to get good recommendations if you have to go elsewhere to find work.
Then, be open to looking at situations that may be outside your comfort zone. There are many entities out there that can enable a person to spend a few, part-time, off-work hours doing something that is not a “second job,” but does involve work. The income from that could surpass any they would earn at a traditional job. To check out one of the best such entities, message me.
In short, you can’t control you work circumstances. If you like your job, stay as long as they will have you, or until you want to leave on your terms. But don’t bank on that job being there for as long as you want it. You have to have your eyes always open for new things.
For the young adults still depending on Mom and Dad to live, be diligent in looking for ways – cutting spending or earning more – to break that financial dependence. You’ll find your life will be so much better when you do.
Peter

NO SECRET TO SUCCESS

#success #WantingVsWishing #PersonalGrowth #WorkEthic
Many books talk about the “secret” to success.
Despite the title of the Earl Nightingale’s book, “The Strangest Secret,” there is no secret to success.
It’s all about desire, dedication and doing whatever it takes to be successful.
It’s simple, but not easy.
It has to start with WANTING something. That’s not just WISHING for something. The difference is the willingness to do what you need to do to get it. If you are willing to do what you need to do, you WANT something. Otherwise, you are just wishing for something.
Yes, there are things you may not be able to do. For instance, without the God-given talent and training, you may never become part of the Metropolitan Opera, no matter how badly you want to or how hard you are willing to work.
But there are other forms of success that are achievable. After you decide you want something, and that want is powerful enough for you to do whatever it takes to get it, you have to be willing to look for the right way to get it.
That requires an open mind. You may not be able to get what you want, doing what you are doing now. You may have to look outside your current box.
It’s like planning a big trip. You have to first decide where you want to go, figure out the best way to get there, then decide what you are going to do once you arrive.
Now that you want something, and you’ve decided to look for the best way to get it, then you have to commit to the right vehicle once you find it.
There are many vehicles out there that will get you to success. You just have to know where to look for them. To check out one of the best, message me.
Along with the wanting, looking and doing comes the growing.
Success is tangible, but achieving it also involves working on YOU.
It’s been said by many experts that if you grow as a person, through reading the right things, hanging around and listening to the right people and doing things that will improve you personally, success will find you.
Certainly, the path to success does not ascend in a straight line. There will be setbacks, there will be failures and there will be bad circumstances along the way.
That’s why the path to success may seem simple, but very likely will not be easy.
Your personal growth and the desire to get what you want will enable you to deal with those setbacks, because you are dedicated to the big prize.
So how do you define success for you? It shouldn’t be money alone. It should be based on what you can do with money, presuming money is in the equation.
If you have the talent and training to excel in the arts, music etc., money may just be a byproduct of your success.
Whatever you call success, much of your shot at getting it is how you train your mind. Desire, tenacity and work ethic are all part of your mental well-being.
So work on you as you work your success plan. A better you can be the difference between achieving success and not.
Peter

HIGHER EDUCATION IN CRISIS

Featured

#HigherEducation #GoingToCollege #CrisisInHigherEducation #CollegeCosts
College is getting too expensive.
Many times, students are learning relatively little.
And, what students expect to get from a college degree, in terms of employment, don’t match labor market realities.
So says Richard Vedder, professor emeritus of economics at Ohio University, in his new book, “Restoring the Promise.” Walter E. Williams discussed Vedder’s book in a column published May 15, 2019, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Let’s start with the first premise. Colleges and universities “are vastly too expensive, often costing twice as much per student” when compared with institutions in other industrialized democracies, Williams quotes from the book.
“High college cost not only saddles students with debt, it causes them to defer activities such as getting married and starting a family, buying a home and saving for retirement,” Williams writes.
He also writes that, quoting research by the Federal Reserve Banks and the National Bureau of Economic Research, each dollar of federal aid to college leads to a tuition increase of 60 cents.
Secondly, very little improvement in critical reasoning skills happens in college, Williams quotes from a study titled “Academically Adrift,” by Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa. Adult literacy is falling among college graduates, he adds.
Thirdly, quoting from a Federal Reserve Bank of New York 2018 report, many students are not only saddled with debt, they are underemployed, Williams writes. Many are filling jobs that only require a high school education, he adds.
We’ve discussed here before that despite universal encouragement to get a college education, college is not for everyone.
In these modern times, it becomes important before deciding whether to go to college to do some math, and give it a lot of thought. Ask yourself first, what are you going to do with the degree when you get it? How much do you believe you can earn by using that degree? How much will you have to borrow to get it? When will you be able to pay it back? What else could you do with that money that might be more profitable?
Certainly, no education is a waste, despite some opinions to the contrary. But if you are not going to earn a better living with a college degree, is it worth the expense?
For their part, colleges have to cut expenses, pool resources, offer more online options etc.
For the prospective student, unless he or she plans to study the STEM curriculum (science, technology, engineering, mathematics), job options are limited. If he or she wants to go to college to major in, say, the liberal arts, he or she will probably have to find a way to make an income that is unrelated to their degree.
There are many vehicles out there that allow a person, by devoting a few part-time hours a week, to produce an income that could even exceed what they might be paid through a job. To check out one of the best such vehicles, message me.
These vehicles require no specific education, background or experience. They only require a willingness to check them out, the ambition to do what you need to do and the ability to be coached or taught.
College is not for everyone, and, given the state of higher education today, should not be pursued as a matter of course. Fortunately, opportunities can be found with or without a degree.
Peter