Author Archives: pbilodeau01

About pbilodeau01

Born in Berlin, N.H.; bachelor of arts, major in journalism, Northeastern University; master's degree in urban studies, Southern Connecticut State University; was an editor and reporter at New Haven Register, an editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and a reporter at The Meriden Record-Journal. Now a freelance writer and editor.

RETIREMENT SAVINGS SHORTFALL PREDICTED

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#retirement #savings #RetirementSavingsShortfall
Most everyone knows or suspects that people aren’t saving enough for a decent retirement.
But a World Economic Forum report spells it out: People are living longer. Investment returns have been disappointing. Therefore, within three decades there will be a $400 trillion shortfall worldwide in retirement savings.
The report was cited in an article by Katherine Chiglinsky for Bloomberg News. It was published June 4, 2017, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The shortfall includes a $224 trillion gap among the six large pension-savings systems: the U.S., U.K., Japan, the Netherlands, Canada and Australia, the article quotes the report.
Employers have been moving away from pensions and offering defined-contribution plans, which include 401(k)s, and individual retirement accounts. Those categories make up about 50 percent of global retirement assets, Chiglinksy writes.
The report warned that the savings shortfall in the U.S. is growing at a rate of $3 trillion a year, and may climb at an annual rate of 7 percent in China and 10 percent in India – countries with aging populations, growing middle classes and a higher percentage of workers in informal sectors, Chiglinsky writes.
So, how are you set for your retirement?
Have you got a pension lined up? If so, it’s entirely possible that it won’t be there when you are ready to take it, or it could be reduced.
Social Security by itself won’t let you live a decent life. And, if Washington doesn’t act, benefits could be reduced eventually. Many experts say we needn’t fear that Social Security will go away entirely. But benefit reductions are a possibility in a few decades.
Think of your retirement planning this way: if it is to be, it’s up to ME.
If you are young, and just starting your career, make retirement savings a priority. If you aren’t raking in big bucks, start with a small percentage of what you are making. Put that money away. Don’t touch it!
Once your savings have grown to an investible amount, say, a few thousand dollars, get it out of your bank savings account and put it into something that will pay you higher rates. Get good advice from a financial planner that you trust. You may want to start with fairly safe – everything outside of insured bank deposits carry some risk – investments, and diversify more as your money grows.
If you are older, you need to put more of what you earn into retirement savings. Young folks have lots of time to balance gains and losses. Middle-aged folks have much less time. Talk to a financial planner about you goals, and let him or her guide you as to how much to save, and in what vehicles to invest.
Of course, cutting spending is a must. Increasing income may give you a leg up on your retirement savings. To learn about one of best vehicles for doing both, message me.
In short, you can take matters into your own hands. It’s all about setting priorities, making good choices and sticking to your plan.
Whatever you sacrifice now, be it $100 a month in lattes, taking too many expensive trips etc., will pay you back in spades when your job goes away. And you don’t have to live in complete deprivation to do it.
Just look for value in what you buy, and make good choices in how you save.

Peter

WHAT WILL YOU DO IN YOUR DASH?

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#TheDash #YourDash #YourLife
Your birth year, or date, and your death year, or date, will likely be engraved on your tombstone.
Between the two years, or dates, will likely be a dash. It could be a fancy dash, or just plain.
But that dash represents what you did between your birth and death.
Linda Ellis has written a poem titled, “The Dash.” The poem is a basis for the book, “The Dash: Making a Difference With Your Life,” written by Ellis and Mac Anderson.
“For it matters not, how much we own, the cars … the house … the cash. What matters is how we live and love and how we spend our dash,” the poem reads in part.
The book also includes testimonials of how the poem has inspired people who have read it.
When someone is speaking at your funeral, how would you like them to remember you? Most of us would probably like to be remembered as one who helped others. We also would like to be remembered, perhaps, as one who was successful.
We all define success differently, but if we can become successful by helping others be successful, we would probably say we hit a home run with our dash.
The verse also talks about change. “So, think about this long and hard. Are there things you’d like to change? For you never know how much time is left that can still be rearranged.”
Are there things in life that YOU can change? Perhaps not some circumstances, but certainly how you react to them.
Are you doing enough to make others successful? If you are looking for a way you could better bring success to others, and, as a result, to yourself, there are many such vehicles out there. To learn about one of the best, message me.
We may also look at life as a dash, meaning a sprint. The poem looks at it differently: “If we could just slow down enough to consider what’s true and real and always try to understand the way people feel.”
Yet, a testimonial by Michelle Landahl, included in the book, says, “It’s important not to save all your energy for the final lap; live your dash so hard it will be impossible to forget.”
Often, it’s the little things that will be most meaningful in life, the poet and many readers say.
So, don’t forget those little things as you, perhaps, pursue bigger things. Between your birth and death, make your dash the best you can make it.
One would rather make a life than a living. The life you make is your dash. Let those who would remember you speak of you as one who inspires them, and perhaps others.
As you inspire others, you will enrich yourself in so many ways. As much as we’d like our dash to be more of a marathon than a sprint, sometimes it doesn’t work out that way. We can’t do much about that.
But we can make the most of the time we have. Live your dash to the fullest.
Peter

DO SOMETHING; THERE IS MUCH IN YOUR LIFE YOU CAN CONTROL

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#DoSomething #IgnoranceInAction #KnowledgeAtRest
Ignorance in action is better than knowledge at rest.
That’s the conclusion reached in the book ,”The Final Summit: A Quest to Find the One Principle That Will Save Humanity”, by Andy Andrews.
Andrews takes a group of historical figures and other successful people places them in a room to help figure out what the world, and individuals, need to do to improve the human condition.
After several tries and great guesses at the one thing that would be most beneficial, they finally came to the conclusion that one must do something, even if he or she doesn’t know what to do.
Careful thought is certainly not discouraged. Neither is constant learning. But thoughts and knowledge only take one so far. Not putting what one knows and thinks into action renders thoughts and knowledge moot.
Certainly, many people have been hit hard by circumstances, either as individuals or groups. Often, when they reflect upon what has happened to them, they tend to look for something, or someone, to blame for their plight.
When they do that, they either fail to see, or fear to take, the action THEY can take to eventually improve their lives.
Fear and blame waste energy that could be used to take an action that will make a difference in one’s life.
Sometimes, though, one might not know about something that they could do to change their lives. There are many such vehicles out there that may be able to do what’s needed, that not everyone may know about. If you’d like to hear about one of the best such vehicles, message me.
Sometimes, fear, or skepticism may prevent someone from checking out something that could be the game-changer they are looking for. Also, for some, if they get the opportunity to check it out, they hesitate to act out of fear, self-doubt etc.
Remember the point of Andrews’ book: do something, even if you are not sure what to do.
Remember, too, that one has nothing to lose by looking. That means, don’t assume you are not going to like something before you check it out.
We’ve all met people who say they don’t like certain foods, but have never tasted them.
Have you ever started a new job, in a new location, and are not sure you are going to cut it the first few weeks? Perhaps the routine is new. Perhaps you have to learn new skills. Perhaps something seems difficult at first, but will get easier with time.
If you have to work, you have to give it your best shot. Time can tame the untenable. Time can often turn drudgery into simplicity. It can help you learn to do things better, faster and easier. Every new situation deserves a little time.
So, it doesn’t matter that you don’t have 100 percent certainty about where you are going and what you are doing. It doesn’t matter that things seem difficult now. Don’t let the unknown keep you from taking action YOU can take to better your life.
Just when it seems the world has gone to hell in a hand basket, perhaps making hand baskets will change your life.
Peter

GENDER ROLES CHANGING IN WORKPLACE

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#workplaces #GenderRoles #WomensJobs #MensJobs
More men are expected to be attracted to “women’s jobs” in the coming years.
However, the reverse is not proving to be a trend.
That’s according to research by Jed Kolko, economist at the job-search site Indeed. His study was quoted in an article by Ana Swanson in the Washington Post. It was also published in the April 23, 2017, edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Kolko concludes that less-educated men may especially face challenges in the job market of the future, the article says.
“In recent decades, fields that are dominated by men and by women have not fared equally. Many men have fallen out of work as increased mechanization has allowed the U.S. to produce more agricultural and manufacturing goods than ever, with fewer people than before,” the article says.
“Jobs that are dominated by women are projected to grow nearly twice as fast as jobs that are dominated by men,” the article quotes the Kolko study, based on figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Fast-growing ‘male’ jobs that require lots of education don’t really help men without a college degree who have been in traditionally ‘male’ jobs,” the article quotes Kolko.
We all have an idea what a “male” job – construction, manufacturing, mining, farming etc. –or a “female job” – nursing, administrative assistant, etc. –is. The article says that computer programming was once dominated by women, but is now heavily male.
It’s been reported many times that men fared worse in the Great Recession than women. The good jobs done largely by men went away more quickly than those done mostly by women.
Kolko points out that some “female” jobs, such as telephone operaters and textile workers, also have been automated out, according to the article.
The broader trend is away from manufacturing and more toward services, which could draw men into jobs traditionally dominated by women, the article says.
So let’s step back and examine this. Good jobs in general are disappearing quickly. Lots of folks, if they are lucky to find new jobs, generally are getting paid less than their previous jobs paid them. Many are not using the skills they were trained for. Those skills, largely, are being replaced by machines. There’s nothing a person can do to stop that!
But what a person CAN do is think about other ways to make money. There are many such vehicles out there for those willing to step out of what’s comfortable, and look at something different. To learn about one of the best such vehicles, message me.
The economy, the recession, downsizing – however you wish to think about it – is not something that will, or can, go away. So, if such circumstances hit you, don’t beat yourself up. Sure, those circumstances will hurt, but by further beating yourself, the pain will be worse.
Americans can be very resilient. Sometimes, tough circumstances require bold action. Sometimes, one has to think differently to better himself.
If you view yourself as a hard-working person, and most do, don’t expect someone to give you something. You may have to look for other opportunities, perhaps completely unrelated to what you’ve done before.
So whether you’ve been doing a “male” job, or a “female” job, and it has gone away, remember that someone you know, or may not yet know, may introduce you to something you may have never heard of. Listen. Don’t dismiss it out of hand. You could be hearing about the light at the end of your tunnel.
Peter

LEADERSHIP AND OZ: BRAIN, HEART, COURAGE

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#TheWizardofOz #leadership #workplaces
Even if you’ve read the book or seen the movie, “The Wizard of Oz,” you may not realize that it offers great lessons in leadership.
Workplace expert BJ Gallagher brings some of those lessons to light in her book, “The Leadership Secrets of Oz: Strategies From Great and Powerful to Flying Monkeys – Unleash Some Magic in Your Management.”
Using actual lines from the book and/or movie, Gallagher addresses how one can build brains, heed your heart and cultivate courage.
To jog one’s memory, Dorothy and her three sidekicks were looking to Oz to provide each with the one thing they thought they lacked. The point is that they didn’t lack that characteristic at all. The wizard helped give them the perspective they needed to see that they indeed had what they needed all along.
Sometimes, when we think we don’t have something, or believe we can never find that one thing that we believe will put us over the top, often it is our perspective that is lacking, as Andy Andrews often writes and speaks about.
Have you ever heard someone say, “if I just had a …, I could do …?”
Perhaps what they don’t have is money. They may have a job, but perhaps live paycheck to paycheck. Perhaps they are overwhelmed with debt.
Perhaps they really want something – a nice car, for example – but believe it takes the money they don’t have to get it.
There are many ways to get money while still working that job that doesn’t pay enough, in a person’s mind.
First: spend less and save more. It’s old advice, but still applicable today. If you are young, you can get your nice car, if that’s your dream, but perhaps not right away. If you skip, say, one trip to the coffee shop every day, and saved the money you would otherwise spend there, eventually you’ll have the money put away for that car. Better yet, buy a container that will keep your coffee hot for a long time, make your own coffee, skip the coffee shop altogether and save what you would have spent there. You’ll be driving those dream wheels even sooner.
By the way, while saving for the car, put a few bucks into an account for your retirement. You never know when the day will come that your job will go away. The more and the longer you can save, as well as invest wisely with good trusted advice, the bigger your smile will be when your job eventually goes away.
Second: take a second job or, better yet, use a few non-working hours to help generate an income that could be even better than that from a second job. Maybe it could even outpace your main income source. There are many such vehicles out to help you do that. To check out one of the best, message me.
One can dictate his own future by the right perspective on each circumstance. The Oz characters came to realize that what they lacked was not lacking at all. They simply lacked the perspective that could help them better see what they had.
We all make choices. We all have circumstances. Sometimes, seeing opportunity amid catastrophe requires merely a new perspective. Sometimes, looking at other ways to do things that may be different from what you are used to can turn catastrophe into a dream come true.
Peter

JOB MARKET GETTING CRAZY

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#JobMarket #employment #SmallBusiness
After years of recovering from the 2008 recession, the job market is starting to look good, even for those who’ve had a hard time finding work in the last decade.
The number of part-time workers who would prefer full-timework dropped by 281,000 in April 2017. Those numbers dropped from 9.2 million at the peak of the job crisis, to 5.3 million in April, according to an article in USA Today by Paul Davidson. It was published May 11, 2017, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
On the opposite side of the coin, many baby boomers who are small-business owners are at or approaching retirement. That may produce a “silver tsunami” of job losses among those who work for those retiring business owners, according to an article by Gene Marks in The Washington Post. That article was also published May 10, 2017, in TheAtlanta Journal-Constitution.
According to Project Equity, many small business owners do not have a succession plan. Therefore, many of those businesses will quietly close forever, the Marks article quotes Project Equity co-founder Alison Lingane.
Let’s examine these two trends together.
Many big employers are finding it hard to find workers. Small businesses may quietly close when their owners retire, putting lots of folks out of work.
“There simply aren’t enough” available workers, the Davidson article quotes Joe Brusuelas, chief economist for consulting firm RSM U.S. “The dynamic has shifted. Labor is going to have power for the first time in years,” the quote continues.
“Since today most family-owned businesses don’t have somebody in the next generation who wants to take over, employee ownership is one of the best ways to keep thriving businesses locally rooted into the next generation,” the Marks article quotes Mark Quinn, district director of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
So, are you finding that your employment prospects are looking better? Do you work for small business with an owner who’ll retire soon, with no plan to keep the business going?
Do you like what you do? If so, enjoy the better job prospects, or become an owner of the company for whom you work. That’s easier said than done, obviously.
If you don’t like what you do, and really need a change, there are many vehicles out there to earn a potentially great income and help others do the same. To check out one of the best such vehicles, message me.
We’re all hearing and reading good news about the economy, but some folks still are not seeing the improvements in their own lives. There are still a good number of folks who, if they are still working, are working a job that paid less than the one they lost. Others just never found work at all after losing a good job, and have quietly left the job market.
In those cases, complaining, blaming various people or entities for one’s plight is not productive. One must take action – perhaps a different action from the one(s) he has taken thus far – to find a better way to live.
Indeed, there is much to be excited and optimistic about out there. Likely, those things may not just land in your lap. Or, if they do, they may do so in the form of a person – someone you already know, or will meet for the first time – who has something to show you.
Don’t be afraid. Check it out. If that person is honest, he’ll take no for an answer. (If he doesn’t, walk away). Saying no before looking could bring you much regret.
Peter

HOPE, INSPIRATION FROM SOME GREAT WOMEN

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#GreatWomen #inspiration #hope
“You may never fail on the scale that I did, but some failure in life is inevitable.”
So said J.K. Rowling, who was once on the verge of poverty, but who went on to write the Harry Potter series of books.
Peggy Anderson has compiled great messages from great women in a book titled, “Great Quotes from Great Women: From Marie Curie to Michelle Obama – inspiring words from women who have shaped our world.”
“The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude,” the book quotes mega TV star Oprah Winfrey.
“If I had to embrace a definition of success, it would be that success is making the best choices we can … and accepting them,” the book quotes Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook, and author of the bestselling book, “Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead.”
These disparate quotes have one thing in common: success involves choices.
That’s a hard concept for some to grasp. Many think they are governed by circumstances. They see very few real choices to make their lives better.
Rowling and Winfrey were each poor at one time. They made the choice to break away from that to do something great.
Sandberg, too, had to fight hard battles to succeed as a woman in a largely men’s world of technology.
The point they make is that circumstances happen, but they don’t have to define or defeat you.
Many folks have had a rough time of it over the last decade or so. Some may have had good jobs that disappeared. If they were lucky, during that time they found other work which more than likely doesn’t pay as well as the job they lost.
With a job loss often comes a loss of lifestyle and, to some, a loss of identity.
Yet, as one looks around, there is so much good to be thankful for.
Once way to get your head right is to focus on what’s good in your life – family, friends etc. Be thankful for what’s good, and the bad in your life will be much easier to overcome.
Also, there may be much good out there that you don’t yet know about. Be on the lookout for that person either in your life or who will come into your life that may show you a way you can better your circumstances. There are many such ways to better one’s financial circumstance and, at the same time, help one grow as a person.
If you are someone looking for something good to come into your life, and are willing to check out something you may know nothing about, message me.
Rowling, Winfrey and Sandberg all found something good to come into their lives. Some might say they were lucky. Most who find great success acknowledge their good fortune, but also believe they put themselves in position for good fortune to come to them. They looked for it, made themselves ready for when it would come and embraced it when it did.
Certainly, they had some talent. But there are ways out there to succeed without any special talent, education or expertise – just a willingness to learn and desire to make one’s life better.
So if you’re tired of your current situation, take on the attitude that if it is to be, it’s up to me. Then, just go for it.
Peter

MILLENNIALS: MORE SAVERS AND SPENDERS THAN INVESTORS

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#millennials #investors #savers #spenders
Millennials don’t see themselves as investors.
According to the 2016 Fidelity Investments Millennial Money Study, 46 percent of the millennials surveyed considered themselves as savers, 44 percent considered themselves spenders and only 9 percent considered themselves investors.
This study was quoted in an Adam Shell article for USA Today, which was published April 27, 2017, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Despite Wall Street’s attempts to woo the nation’s largest generation into the stock market, millennials have yet to embrace investing, Shell’s article says. Only one in three say they invest in stocks, the article quotes a Bankrate.com survey.
A Black Rock study says nearly half of the millennials surveys found the market “too risky,” the article says.
And, four in 10 say they don’t have enough spare income to put away for the future, the article quotes a financial literacy survey from Stash, a financial app.
Let’s break down the facts. If you are a saver, and are putting money away, where are you stashing it? In a bank? Under your mattress?
In this market, the rates of return on that money between those alternatives are not far apart.
Secondly, there is wild and crazy – “risky” – investing, and there is careful investing. Each requires consultation with someone you trust , but here’s a good rule of thumb: as you start investing, look for more conservative vehicles, i.e. relatively safe mutual funds. As your wealth grows, you can diversify and take a few, well-thought-out risks. If you really do well, and want to play, take a very small amount of money and invest aggressively.
Here’s another rule: it’s difficult to have a nice nest egg for retirement just keeping your money in a bank. There are very few, if any, traditional, regulated banking products that are paying decent returns. Banks are wonderful institutions for your checking account, and perhaps a small savings account to cover unexpected expenses.
But to really be a saver for retirement, you have to take SOME risk. And, make no mistake, EVERYONE has to save for retirement. As stock-market-loving baby boomers can attest, you never know when your job is going to go away.
For those of you in the category of not having enough spare money to save for the future, there are ways to solve that problem. First and foremost, you have to make saving for the future a priority in your life. Even if you see yourself as a spender rather than a saver, you have make SOME saving a priority, or the fun you are having today will turn into poverty when you retire, or when that good job goes away.
A suggestion might be to look at the many ways out there to use your spare time to earn a secondary income. To check out one of the best such vehicles, message me.
In short, saving is not just prudent, but necessary. The more you save when you are young, the more you will have, and the better your life will be, when you are older. If you are a millennial, talk to your parents about what to do. However their lives have turned out, there are lessons in their lives that will apply to you. Don’t underestimate their story, or their advice.
As you save, some risk will become necessary. Though the stock market looks scary, over time it has proved to provide the best returns. Find a trustworthy, knowledgeable adviser to help you get started, and who will continue to work with you. Don’t be afraid to ask lots of questions about fees, returns etc., so that you will have a clear picture of how to proceed.
Finally, watch what you spend. Don’t deprive yourself, necessarily, but look for things you can eliminate to allow you to save more money. Remember that a dollar in your pocket generally is better for you than a dollar you put into someone else’s pocket.
Your future could well depend on decisions you make in your youth. You don’t have to depend on things “going right,” if you make good choices now.
Peter

WHEN JOBS ARE SCARCE, PEOPLE LOOK TO DISABILITY PAYMENTS

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#disability #DisabilityPayments #SocialSecurityDisability
Between 1996 and 2015, the number of working-age adults receiving disability payments climbed from 7.7 million to 13 million.
The federal government this year will spend an estimated $192 billion on disability payments, more than the combined total for food stamps, welfare, housing subsidies and unemployment assistance.
The above statistics were quoted in a Washington Post article on the rise in people on disability in rural areas, because of a lack of jobs.
The article, written by Terrence McCoy, with photos by Bonnie Jo Mount, was published April 9, 2017, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The Post analyzed Social Security Administration statistics and told the stories of several working-age adults in rural America with various aches, pains etc., who are not working and have slim prospects of finding work where they live.
Are they disabled, or just desperate? the article asks.
It’s been said that almost anyone older than 40 can find some ailment that could qualify them for disability.
Desmond Spencer from Alabama, who wouldn’t turn 40 for a few months, according to when the Post article was written, struggled with the thought of being disabled.
As he fielded calls from debt collectors, he felt various parts of his body hurting, as he took family members to a pain clinic.
“There’s a stigma about (going on disability),” the article quotes Spencer. “Disabled. Disability. Drawing a check. But if you’re putting food on the table, does it matter?” the article quotes Spencer.
We can debate whether the government should be paying this much out in disability. We can also debate the qualifications to draw disability payments. We can also debate the amount of fraud that may be in the Social Security disability program.
But when one has no job at a relatively young age, and the job prospects are slim, it’s easy to see how otherwise hard-working people can become desperate, discouraged or defeated, as the article puts it.
But in all the misery, there is good news.
For those who prefer not to be on the dole, there are many ways out there to earn an income – perhaps even a better income than one earned while he was working. To hear about one of the best such vehicles, message me.
To sum it up, many jobs that have been lost are not coming back. Many people who have lost good jobs are forced to take jobs that pay less – even considerably less – than the job they lost.
In some rural areas of the country, jobs in general are scarce and many working-age adults must either move or be stuck without a job.
Some who have become unemployed must also take care of family members with health challenges.
The solution: think long and hard about how you want to live your life. If you are depressed, get treated for it. If not, try to look for ways to be as productive as you can. Disability payments are not the best solution, if you are able to do most things for yourself. By the way, some who could legitimately claim disability do not, and would rather not. They prefer independence.
Look for other ways to survive, even thrive. Do it for yourself, and your family. You’ll feel much better if you look for a different way.
Peter

TECHNOLOGY, MANNERS AND TRUTH

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#technology #manners #truth
Has technology begotten rudeness?
Are you tempted to trip someone walking down the sidewalk who is only looking down at his or her phone?
We do know that social media has begotten various versions, or definitions, of truth.
George F. Will, columnist for the Washington Post, took on this subject in a column published April 9, 2017, in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Will quotes from the book “Talk to the Hand: The Utter Bloody Rudeness of the World Today, or Six Good Reasons to Stay Home and Bolt the Door,” by Lynne Truss.
The author, whose book was published in 2005, says we are slouching into “an age of social autism,” Will quotes.
Truss foresaw an age of “hair-trigger sensitivity,” and “lazy moral relativism combined with aggressive social insolence,” Will writes.
Carolyn Stewart of the Hudson Institute, who revisited Truss’ book, says social media’s “self-affirming feedback loop,” encourages “expectations for a custom-made reality,” and indignation about anything “that deviates from our preferences,” Will quotes Stewart.
“We no longer hold these truths to be self-evident, we hold all truths to be self-evident, even the ones that aren’t true,” will quotes Tom Nichols, author of “The Death of Expertise: The Campaign Against Established Knowledge and Why It Matters.”
In other words, technology has made us into a rude society with a significant disregard for truth.
We probably are not all that way. Some of us may find technology just a tool to get things done more quickly. We prefer kindness, personal interaction and proven facts.
Some of us may take great pleasure in doing nice things for other people.
Others of us may resent technology as a culprit for putting us out of a good job. Some may even long to meet other nice people. Some may even be skeptical of what they read and hear.
Technology has certainly changed our world – not always for the good. But we become better people when we seek not just civility, but generosity. We become better people when we use technology as a tool, without letting it run our lives. We become better people when we seek out real truth, and base our opinions on it.
If you are one of those, and a machine has taken your job, there are many ways out there to not just earn an income, but to grow as a person. To learn about one of the best, message me.
In short, don’t assume something is true just because it fit whatever you think you believe. If you walk on a sidewalk, look up from your phone. If you are driving, don’t look at your phone at all.
Seek to be a kind, humble, generous person who respects bona fide science, reads and listens to respected and reputable information and is inspired to help others.
Sometimes, rudeness is best ignored.
Peter