Financial Literacy

The new year cometh

Hello everyone,

2008 is almost over and a new year is just around the corner. A lot of people use the new year to make resolutions to make positive changes in their lives.

This idea of "new year resolutions" got me thinking today - Why do so many relegate potentiality powerful life improving changes to this time of year? If it is a worthwhile investment of time and effort, why wait for a particular time of year?

In the run up to Christmas, I urge you to not wait until the new year, but start whatever "resolutions" you are thinking of adopting now and carry them through to joyous achievement over the holidays and into 2009.

I also wish you a fabulously relaxing Thanksgiving with your families or however you are palling to celebrate it.

Have a great week

Malcolm

Is Shock destroying your life?

Hello,

Do you remember a time you were doing fantastic, feeling great and having more fun than should be allowed?

Then something completely unexpected happened. The previous high mood vanished in a flash. You felt lost, frightened and confused. What was easy becomes hard, you have low energy. You cannot make things go right. You start to settle for less than the best. Pretty soon you forget the wonderful state you were in and accept life as it is, dull and uninteresting

The above scenario is not unique to a few people. It happens to the vast majority.

What you have been subjected to is a Shock. A shock is an event that has not been predicted which has sufficient force to cause complete disruption to your current operating paradigm. A shock may appear have some physical component, but the most damaging component is purely spiritual.

What a shock causes is a complete collapse of your current space, time, energy and manifestations. These collapse in on themselves, trapping much of the power you were using to hold that creation in place. This is the reason why even a minor shock can be so disruptive, making  it is very difficult to continue operating in the area. This is one reason why people move locations, change jobs, find new friends or just "start a new life". A shock has debilitated them so much they want to be as far away from anything that reminds them of it as possible.

One major issue with shocks is that they reduce awareness. Lower awareness reduces the ability to predict, making one more susceptible to further shock. This can very quickly lead to overwhelm and and eventual nervous breakdown.

So, how do you handle a shock? With extreme care, that's how!!!

Putting all joking aside, all it actually takes to handle any shock is to discover the exact sequence of actions that occurred prior to the shock and then run out all the unpleasant sensations resulting from that sequence. This will expose the exact truth behind your reaction to the shock and allow you to recover all the power you invested in the original, collasped, creation. Once the power has been recovered and taken back under your control, the shock will vanish. Now you can start operating at full potential again.

Have a great week

Malcolm

Welcome To My Nightmare

Hello,

Well, the election circus is over and we have a winner. The people have spoken and history has been made. We now have the opportunity to experience how the 'new' administration handles all the issues that were raised so high on the political agenda.

It is a very good thing that all the uncertainty of who will be leader for the next four years is over. Now we all need to get on with our lives and face whatever issues we need to face. Even the radical changes promised by the incoming leadership will not occur overnight. The systems of the world that control the economy very complex ones and cannot be dealt with in a simplistic way. It is somewhat similar to waking up from a bad dream with relief and progressively realizing that real life represents just as big a nightmare!

Even though some of the issues facing us may seem insurmountable, the world has faced similar ones before. Even in the deepest depression of the 1030's, 70% of all Americans still were employed. It was the creative energy of people working together that built the solid foundation for the growth that followed the lean times of the 1930's. In the same way, it will be ingenuity and skill of people like you and I who will provide the impetus and drive to solve the issues facing the world today. Government legislation and handouts do not create futures, it is the creative energies of people who do this.  

So now is the time to ask ourselves "What can I do to create a positive contribution and make more of what I already do; What can I do to make my life better, and encourage others to do the same".

Tough times require tough leadership, and that starts with ourselves and our immediate areas. Rather than blaming politicians for your problems and looking for things to be "fixed" by something external to you, find ways you can take more responsibility for your own outcomes.

In bad times, there are actually many more great opportunities available than in good times. The trick is not being negatively affected by the "gloom and doom" merchants, but instead staying sharp so as to notice and take advantage of these opportunities.

Here's to four years of magnificent growth!

Have a great week

Malcolm

Science or Politics?

Hello,

What does the term 'Independent Scientific Study' mean to you?

Does it imply accurate measurements and statistical analysis performed with great care to get right to the truth in an area by a dedicated group of learned professor types with an impeccable background in painstaking research?

If it does, then you have the conventional view well down.

What if I were to tell you that the above vision is only true for about 5% of all 'Scientific Study'?

What if I also told you that, far from being impartial, the majority of all 'Scientific Research' is sponsored and controlled by the very organizations that benefit most from a favorable outcome of such research.

One thing that is very true of pure scientific research is that it is expensive. Actually, it is very, very, expensive. Billions and billions of dollars are expended each year in universities around the globe. Much of this research to "further" mans' knowledge is in fact sponsored by organizations and groups who would benefit financially or politically from a particular outcome of the research. Once you have sponsors who benefit from specific outcomes, the ethical question of impartiality must be examined very closely.

For example, these is currently a large amount of research being undertaken into the environment and global warming. This playing field is literally crowded with special interest, both commercial and political. There have been many cases where good meaning, ethical scientists have been slapped down for having an alternative viewpoint to the "sold spin". A case in point is "An Inconvenient Truth" by Al Gore. Those attempting to look beyond the hype surrounding the media exposure were given an extremely difficult time when they questioned some of the "facts" cited in that work.

So, how do we ensure impartiality in scientific research?

I would proffer that the only real way is to conduct all such research as a completely independent fashion. Unfortunately, this requires the way research is financed to be radically re-thought. Like many complex systems, there is no simple answer to this. Until we can come up with a workable way of independently funding research, be prepared to always critically ask the question: "Who truly benefits from this research and the possible outcomes?".

Have awesome week!

Malcolm