Financial Literacy

The continued importance of persistance

Hello,

Over the past two days I have again realized the immense power of persistence connected to two very different areas of my life.

The first involved building a retaining wall for a raised flower bed in the yard, something I am relatively new to. I started the job two weeks ago and got some way with it. As I was new to the process of digging out, making level, putting down drainage rock and then leveling sand before laying the bricks, I got somewhat impatient with it. However, I persisted and made fair progress before we left on a week long vacation.

This weekend the weather has been very hot and humid, and this contributed to making job considerably more time consuming. Yesterday I also had a rather bad headache, mainly caused by the heat and humidity, and only managed to lay a small number of bricks before it started raining.

Today I resumed, with some very timely help from Liz, the weather being even more hot and humid than yesterday. However, we decided to persist and make the best of the time before the rain that was forecast came. The persistence paid off and we were able to lay and level all the bottom layer of bricks before the rain started. When the rain subsided, we went to the store for the remaining bricks we needed and finished laying the entire wall, surprising ourselves. We were even able to dig over the area inside the retaining wall before we stopped work, very satisfied with the days progress.

The second piece of persistence involved a very subtle issue with our home computer network that has driven me almost to distraction since we returned from vacation last Wednesday. Suffice it to say, my own patience was wearing quite thin after I had tried every thing I could think of to cure the issue. Here again persistence paid off. Instead of just giving up, I searched the internet extensively for a solution and read a lot of documents covering all kinds of network issues ad how to solve them. Finally I discovered the basic reason why the issue was occurring and was able to put in a fix. Again persistence was the key.

May the persistence be with you!

Malcolm

Planning - The key to sucess

Hello,

This last weekend my wife and I worked in our yard. We are in the process of putting in flowerbeds as a part of transforming our relatively new yard into a "proper" English Country Garden.

The current yard is very open plan with no natural boarder between ours and our neighbors yards. As we intend to put flowerbeds very close to the edge of our property on both sides, we really needed to know where the edge of our land was so we are sure where to put the flowerbeds. So the very first job we did was employed a registered surveyor to mark out the property line. The first part of the plan.

The next part of the process was what we tackled over the weekend. Putting in drainage on one side of the property. Again we needed a plan. In order to work out what materials were required, we measured out all the distances and calculated runs and depths. This gave us the amount of materials. Once we had this, I drew a rough sketch and was able to estimate the quantities of material. We then went off to the garden center and made the purchases. because of good planning, re-checking measurements we were able to complete the drainage in the time allowed with complete success. Now the river that used to run down the side of our property is no more!!!

So, even with something a mundane as yard work, a good plan ensures good execution and a good result.

Here's to your plans all coming to fruition!

Have a great week

Malcolm

Have passion!

Hello,

What are you passionate about?

Is there something that you so love to do that you would do it all day everyday without regard to being paid?

I have a friend who is doing just that. He recently started a business that he is so excited and passionate about he energizes all those around him. If he hits a snag, he work diligently and tirelessly to find away around it. He is always focused on the positive and making more. He continuously reads and practices to improve his skills. He has surrounded himself with powerful successful people. He is a cheerleader for everyone he comes into contact with and is totally committed to his own personal development and it shows in every interaction. Every failure is treated as an opportunity to improve. In his early 20's, he has already failed in business once and is prepared to fail as many times as it requires to learn how to be a success. For him, just being in the game pushing forward is enough reward. I am constantly challenged by the searching questions he asks to obtain as many viewpoints as possible, not just his own. By his own admission, although he would love to make tons of money from his business, this is not the primary reason for doing it. It is to get to be the best he can be.

In the short time he has been on this journey, he has already taught me a great deal and I intend to stick with him so I learn a lot more. I urge you to do the same. Search out those who are going somewhere and are totally enthusiastic about doing it. Give freely of your time and expertise to these people. You will never regret it.

Have an awesome week

Malcolm

Sometimes you just need to ask!

Hello,

I have been swimming three time a week with resonable consistency for the past six months. Each Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning I swim breast stroke at my local YMCA for around an hour.

Around a moth ago I decide to up the distance I was swimming from a mile to 2000yds. At first it was difficult to complete this in the same 1 hour period, but after a week, I was able to do it no problem, except for feeling rather tired at the end.

I mentioned this to the lifeguard at the pool and she immediately commented that I was "snatching" at my stoke, and not really relaxing at any time. She encouraged me to swim with fewer stokes, stretch out during the stroke and relaxing more towards the end of each stroke. She assured me that this would foster a real improvement.

Not really believing it, I none the less tried it out the next time I swam. The results were very encouraging. On the first attempt, my time for 2000yds dropped to 53 minutes. The very next time I swam I started to really practice what the lifeguard suggested. This time the improvement literally blew me away. I swam 2000yds in 48minutes with less effort and felt fantastic into the bargain. This was not a fluke either; I was able to duplicate the performance the next this I swam.

I now routinely ask the opinion of the lifeguard every time I swim, and I have already gotten some further very sound advice that has again improved my efficiency.

Now I am asking for advice in more areas of my life and some interesing manifestations are occuring. Asking for advice that you are prepared to act on can give you some unique opportunities to improve in ways you never believed were possible.

Have a great week.

Malcolm

Winning at all costs

Hello,

A couple of events this week reminded of the difference in attitude and outlook between people who have been programmed by their environment and upbringing that life is competitive and is is essential to have winners and losers, and others who, even at a comparative disadvantage, naturally have a totally opposite viewpoint.

One event was the story recounted by a friend about how his son's school soccer team are driven by the coach and teaching staff to be totally competitive, completely ignoring the fun aspect of the game. Every match against another school is taken very seriously. There must be a winner and a loser and each team must win and not lose. At first this seems to be preparing students for the "big wide world" where almost everything is competitive. However, it is just perpetuating a society where winning is everything. By making everything so one-sided, it completely removes attainment of mastery. The quest for mastery requires the student to make mistakes and have many, many failures. Winning at all costs has no part in the attainment of mastery. His story identified the massive mood swings experienced by the members of the team, coaches and parents between having a goal scored against them; dejected and crest-fallen, and scoring themselves; elation and cockiness. Such wild mood swings remove all joy from the process of learning a game, making it totally serious and highly stressful.

The other story is from our local Special Olympics where I was MC for the opening ceremony this weekend. It was such a joy to experience the high mood and genuine friendship of the athletes, coaches and volunteers.The Athletes Oath for Special Olympics is very powerful and completely exemplifies the point that winning is not everything:  

"Let me win, but if I can not win, let me be brave in the attempt"  

This oath was played out fully in last years local games where there were several athletes lined up for the 100 meters race. When the starting pistol sounded, all but one got off to a good start. This athlete fell just off the starting line. The other athletes seemed to sense this, first one stopping and then all the others.They all walked back to the fallen athlete, picked him up, and then walked arm in arm to the finish line.The applause from the other athletes, coaches and spectators was defining and went on for a full 5 minutes.The mood level for the rest of the games was through the roof which kind of says it all.

So, winning is never everything. What is more important is the sharing of experiences and the joy of progressively attaining mastery by simply doing your best. The only competition should be you against yourself. That is a game everyone can win.

Have a great week

Malcolm

Are you an "inny" or an "outy"

Hello,

I know the title for this post seems strange. Bear with me, all will be revealed.

Have you ever felt really in control and on top of your game? Everything you do goes really well, nothing is any effort. Life is a breeze. Lots of laughter and enjoyment.

Now contrast that with time you have felt completely overwhelmed and much smaller than what you are involved in. Almost everything you do is filled with difficulty, nothing goes smoothly. Life is hard and no fun at all.

What is the fundamental difference between these two situations?

In the first situation above, you are external and bigger than the entire scope of the area you want to control. By staying external, you are able to maintain your relative size and remain unaffected by the "little details". You are an "outy". External to and bigger than the entire sphere you are influencing.

In the other situation, you are interiorized into the problem and smaller than it. From this viewpoint it is impossible to control even the smallest aspect of the area. You fell powerless and insignificant. You are an "inny", stuck inside the problems, unable to get a clear view of the overall scope of the area.

So, you ask, what is the way forward if you find yourself in or tending towards the second viewpoint?
Well the simple approach is to find something about it you can control. Even if what you can affect seems totally irrelevant, it is one area you have some influence over. Next, find another area you can affect. Pretty soon you will start to fell more positive about other parts of the area, which you then find you can control and / or contribute to.

it is amazing how quickly you can turn from being an "inny" to operating at your peak as an "outy".

Have a great week

Malcolm

Keeping the focus off yourself does not make less of You

Hello,

Of all the activities I do in my own time, one of the most rewarding is the time and fiscal support I give to the Rotary Club I belong to.

Rotary is a global organization of individuals who have decided to give back to their communities through service projects. These projects can range in scope from supporting local youth sports team, scout troops and other charitable organizations; to tackling the eradication of hunger, thirst and disease across the world.

I have had the privilege to meet and associate with Rotarians from all over the world. One thing they all have in common is great self-confidence and belief in themselves. In apparent contrast, they also share an equal ability to focus on others. Experiencing this common trait has taught me that the ability to flow help outwards always comes from our inner strength. This inner strength must be there first. Humility is often equated with weakness, It is nothing of the sort. In my opinion, it can only exist when a person is very, very sure of themselves.

Thus, keeping the focus off yourself does not make less of you. It actually makes more of you.

Have an excellent week.

Malcolm

Why people get stuck

Hello,

"For any problem to be a problem, it must contain an unknown"
Alan C Walter.

I was working with a client today who has been stuck in a particular non-optimum situation for a considerable time. As we worked together, something came to view that at first seemed totally innocuous. However, as we pulled it apart, it became apparent that this seemingly tiny occurrence was right at the core of the entire situation. The real issue was that the area contained a lie that the client had bought hook, line and sinker.

Whenever someone is stopped, the truth is it is always because of a unknown. If the cause was known, then the problem would resolve immediately. So if you or anyone else is stopped, just look for something that is being unknown. I say "being" because there are no victims, everyone is in the condition they are in because of what they are actually doing.

The key to finding the unknown is to go back to the point where things were going well. This will be just prior to the unknown manifesting. Once you spot the exact point where the assumption or lie occurred, the mood will rise, as some truth has been uncovered. Once the lie is revealed for what it is, the problem will vanish.

In the case today, the result was dramatic, with a huge upward shift in ability and action level.

Have an awesome week

Malcolm

Nails In The Fence

I believe the original author of this piece is unknown.
It definitely resonated with me.

"There once was a little boy who had a bad temper.

His Father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time
he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the
fence.

The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence.

Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger,
the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He
discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those
nails into the fence.

Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at
all.

He told his father about it and the father suggested that the
boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold
his temper.

The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his
father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by
the hand and led him to the fence.

He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in
the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say
things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can
put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many
times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there."

A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one."

Have a great week!

Malcolm

A Very Powerful Quote....

My friend Jayne Johnson posted this very powerful quote:

"Some wisdom I learned from Lawrence West: If a person's mood is low, encourage them to produce something positive, beneficial or of value & their mood will raise immediately. It could be producing a clean closet, producing 2 miles on the treadmill, pulling weeds, or offering to help someone else. Any productive action will raise a person's mood level & the world will look ever so much brighter. It works. :-)"

I applied this yesterday while volunteering on a highway clean up. I really does work!

Have an awesome day

Malcolm