#DemographicShift #demographics #certainty #SureThings
“We’re on the cusp of a demographic, generational handoff that will test whether we are a tribal nation, or truly believe in – not what Thomas Jefferson did —but what he wrote in the Declaration of Independence.”
So wrote Jim Galloway, political columnist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, who is retiring after a 41-year career at the paper. This passage is from his last column, published Jan, 17, 2021.
“There’s no escaping this. The only question is how we embrace it,” he continues.
Galloway, who started as a religion reporter, also conveys these lessons: “Don’t ask a Baptist why he isn’t Catholic, and don’t ask a Jew why she isn’t a Latter-day Saint.”
Conversions from one belief system to another are rare, he continues. Those that occur do so more often by experience, or an event, rather than an argument.
Then he adds, “as religiosity has declined in the U.S., … tribalism has increased.”
Though Galloway writes from the perspective of politics, particularly Georgia politics, his point can be universally applied.
First, rather than seeing a belief system changing in a person, it may evolve over time. Some people let the beliefs from which they were raised dictate how they think about everything. Such beliefs are based on faith, meaning they don’t have to be proved to be true. But, as people learn, and witness different worlds, beliefs can evolve.
Younger people, especially, can still believe in their ancestral teachings, yet adopt lifestyles that may not match what their ancestors would have wanted for them.
The same can be applied to work and money. Though one’s ancestors would advise him or her to seek security and “sure” things, people learn that sometimes taking risks can make dreams come true.
The demographic handoff to which Galloway refers is not just political. The new generation – younger and more diverse — that is taking the handoff may have more of an entrepreneurial, or risk-taking mentality that may have been honed as they witness “sure” things becoming more uncertain.
Others – and here’s where the tribalism to which Galloway refers comes in – fight to have old ways prevail and make “sure” things “surer,” even as events around them prevent that from happening.
So how do you fit on this spectrum? Have you seen your “sure” thing disappear, or, at least, become less certain?
Do you see the only way to achieve what you want in life is to look at what may be lurking outside of the “sure” things?
If you’ve acquired, or cultivated, such openness, know that there are many programs out there that allow you to potentially mitigate uncertainty, and eventually give you what you may want from life.
You don’t need specific education, experience or background – just a willingness to look for something to make things “surer” in your life.
To check out one of the best such programs, message me.
Meanwhile, the shift, or handoff, to which Galloway refers cannot be stopped, no matter what you do.
You can certainly keep, and follow, ancestral beliefs if you choose. But know that the world is changing around you. The successful believer will meld that change with his or her ancestral beliefs. That combination can assure, if not prosperity, much less uncertainty.
Peter
Monthly Archives: January 2021
FOCUS LIKE A DOG ON A SQUIRREL
#dogs #squirrels #focus #goals
When you walk a dog, and it sees something it wants to chase, say, a squirrel, it will focus on the squirrel.
If you want the dog to keep walking, you have to somehow distract it from said squirrel.
Unlike dogs, most humans are more easily distracted, and linger in – even enjoy – the distraction.
We would actually see said squirrel as a distraction, and, had we been focusing on something else, would glance at the squirrel for a moment of distraction, perhaps just for a break.
The point here is that animals can focus more easily if they want something badly enough.
People, by contrast, may want something badly, but often find focusing on what to do to get it difficult. Distractions gleefully multiply.
Perhaps we can learn a lesson from dogs, or other animals.
It all starts with wanting something badly enough.
Many of us go through life as a grind — work, home and back to work again. Psychologists sometimes call folks like that carousel riders — going round and round, but going nowhere.
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Some of us opt for contentment rather than prosperity.
Contentment can be achieved with relatively minimal effort. Those seeking contentment can be easily distracted from more difficult tasks that may get them a much better life.
If you ask such a person how he or she is doing, they may say “OK,” or “I’m getting by.” They take the life they were “given,” and make the best from it.
However, the person who aims for prosperity, or some other lofty goal, figures out what he or she has to do to get it, and focuses on those things. He or she may vary his or her course based on circumstances, but he or she will never stray from the goal.
He or she will focus, like the dog on a squirrel, on that goal.
He or she may be dealt some bad hands in life, but that person never stops focusing on the goal.
If you are that type of person, and may be looking for something that will help you achieve what you want, know that there are many such vehicles out there.
To check out one of the best such programs, message me.
Meanwhile, if you are drifting, or even if you are just content, know that you don’t have to stay there. YOU can get yourself out, if you choose.
You just have to keep your mind open, your heart full and your focus keen.
Peter
RESOLUTION: MAKE YOURSELF BETTER
#NewYearsResolutions #ABetterYou #HelpingOthers
In the upcoming year, live a life with purpose.
“Put simply, your talk might not match your walk, You will applaud giveaways for the wealthy while casting services for the poor as socialism. You will proclaim your love for your neighbor while refusing to give up your right not to wear a mask, the one thing that can protect them from the coronavirus. And you will consistently seek your own while refusing to help those in need.”
That quote comes from Gracie Bonds Staples, from her Jan. 7, 2021, “This Life” column in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
To paraphrase her, helping others gives you purpose.
There are many ways to help others — some obvious, some not so much.
There are little things you can do that take no skin off your back.
Holding the door for someone, letting a struggling person move ahead of you in line etc.
Other ways include helping others in physical or financial distress, or volunteering your time toward a worthy cause. They involve effort or sacrifice.
What if you could find a way to help others that also helps you?
There are many programs out there that allow you to advance yourself only by helping others.
To learn about one of the best such programs, message me.
So, the message is to plan a new year in which you will do for others more than you will do for you.
If you do that, the blessings you’ll receive will be tangible.
Good people give and get. Lesser folks only take.
“Research shows a strong sense of purpose is associated with slower development of age-related disabilities, reduced incidence of cardiovascular disease, improved cognitive health and longer lives,” Staples writes. “Finding purpose can promote energy, satisfaction and preventive health behaviors,” she writes.
Purpose gives you prosperity in many different ways. It will change the way you look at things, open your mind and introduce you to things that could change your life.
Learn and strive to find purpose this year.
Peter
2021 IS GONNA BE GOOD
#2021 #NewYear #NewYearGonnaBeGood
“Got a feeling ’21 is gonna be a good year.”
This lyric by The Who, from the rock opera “Tommy,” is appropriate for right now.
“With any luck, 2021 might not suck.” That paraphrased a promo for CNN’s New Year Eve show, with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen.
So how do you see 2021?
Do you see bigger and better things for you? Or, do you just believe that anything would be better than 2020?
If the former feels better to you, you are probably an ambitious, hard-working person who KNOWS he or she can make things much better.
If the latter suits you better, you are passively waiting for something to happen – or, as it were, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
To be sure, the beginning of 2021 with be challenging. We still will have to wear masks in public. We’ll still have to avoid crowds and gatherings. We will have to keep our distance from others. And, we will have to keep washing our hands frequently.
But while we cope with those challenges, we can still prepare for the bigger and better life we intend to create.
If you are that ambitious, hard-working person who is looking for ways to create that better life, there are several programs out there that can allow anyone, regardless of education, background or experience, to do it.
A person just has to be open enough to look at them. Once you find one you like, devote a few part-time hours a week to it and see how your life will change.
To check out one of the best such programs, message me.
In short, work on YOU this year.
Decide to embark on something that no pandemic, or other circumstance, can take away from you.
First and foremost, when it’s your turn, get a vaccine.
You’ll run into life challenges for sure, pandemic or not. But your strength is determined not by what befalls you, but how you rise above it.
If you already have that strength in you, use it to the fullest. If you don’t , find a way to get it, grow it and maximize it.
The year 2021 is here, and it’s gonna be good.
Just say yes to determination, and no to deterioration. Don’t wait for someone to give you something. Look for someone who will show you something. They are out there to be found, but only by open eyes and an open mind.
Let not the travails of 2020 overwhelm your 2021. Be patient to begin the year, and take on a sense of urgency for the remainder.
Let 2021 bring you all the good things you deserve.
Peter