CHOICES!!!

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CHOICES!!!

5/14/09


ALL choices have consequences, whether it's positive or negative. Every aspect of our lives is affected by our choices, which can lead to either success or failure in whatever we get involved in. Neither success or failure happen overnight, the little choices that we make add up to it. I have often wondered if people know enough to make wise decisions when they make their choices. Every decision that you make is based on knowledge to some extent, whether it's right, wrong, or not enough.

Whatever criteria that you base your decision on, that decision will be born out of that knowledge and it will take you to a place. Just to keep it simple, I'll just focus on failure and negative consequences. Like I said earlier, failure is not an overnight thing, it's the inevitable result of an accumulation of errors in judgement and bad choices. Another way to put it, failure is errors in judgement repeated everyday, and they get repeated everyday because the person responsible for these choices doesn't think it matters.

On their own, the little things we do everyday don't seem to be all that important. A small oversight, a wrong decision, or a few wasted minutes normally won't have an instant or serious impact. More often than not, we escape from immediate consequences of our actions. One simple example I can use is smoking ;One pack of cigarettes probably won't kill you, but a pack a day for 30 years might. I'm quite sure most smokers realize that they are contributing to a future health problem, but the joy of the moment overshadows the consequences of the future. The pain and regret from these bad choices and errors in judgement have only been delayed for a future time. Consequences are seldom instant. Instead, they keep piling up until the inevitable day of reckoning comes and you have to pay the price for your bad choices.

The worst price to pay for bad choices is when you already know better and STILL make the mistake anyway. The worst part is not that you made the mistake, it's that you KNEW what would happen and you did it anyway. Then you ended up paying the price you KNEW you would have to pay for the mistake. It even says in the Bible that it's better to not know the truth than to know better and still do what you want to do, because your punishment for that would be TWICE as harsh. Foolish decisions are not only foolish, but they are also costly. Every foolish decision you make, you have to pay. Every foolish decision you make outside the Word of God will cost you some money. (ex: It might cost you to lose your temper. You end up in jail and miss 2 or 3 days of work, they decide to fire you for missing critical time at work.)

Failure's most dangerous attribute is it's subtlety. Since nothing happened to us and there are no instant consequences to get our attention, we go day to day, making the same mistakes, thinking the wrong thoughts, listening to the wrong voices and making the wrong choices. With better concentration and a better effort, we become more aware of our mistakes and more aware the each error in judgement reallyDOES matter.

10 Common Tricks Stores Use On Customers

10 Common Tricks Stores Use On Customers

10/22/07

1.) Keep 'em in the store longer- The single biggest factor in determining how much a shopper will spend is how long they stay in the store. Stores will do whatever they can to slow you down-they use things like soft, soothing music and lighting to relax you and slow down your pace. The less shoppers blink, the more relaxed they are, and the slower they go. The reason the aisles of the produce section wind all over the place is so people will slow down and buy more.

2.) Increase the number of impulse buys- More than 2 out of every 3 items we purchase are impulse buys. Stores are set up by retailers to encourage shoppers to buy more stuff on the spur of the moment. Examples: The candy display at the checkout counter, and in the produce section, shortcake and whipped cream are displayed next to fresh strawberries.

3.) Sell to the kids, and the parents will buy- Studies showed that pet treats and cereals are often picked out by kids. These items used to be on the top shelves and kids used to climb the shelves to reach the boxes. When the stores moved the cereal and pet treats to the middle shelves where kids could reach them, sales went up overnight.

4.) Exploit the human element- The number one thing shoppers look at is other people. That's why some of the most effective signs in fast food places are the ones sitting at eye level on top of cash registers. When customers look at the cashier, they see a sign. Smart sign placement is a definite way to increase sales.

5.) Mix up the merchandise- With there being many different varieties of soup, possibly hundreds, on display at the soup section, you would think stores would alphabetize the soups so we could find what we wanted more easily. Stores mix up the different soups on purpose, so shoppers will have to scan all over the shelf for the flavor they want. In the meantime, their eyes light on all kinds of specialty soups they never knew existed.

6.) Silence the cash registers- The noisy cash registers have been replaced by a register that hums instead of clangs. Purring cash registers and buy-now, pay-later credit cards soften the impact of spending, which means higher volume per customer for stores (and higher credit card debt for customers.)

7.) Communicate in sign language- Think of a store as a 3-D TV commercial. In effect, the store is a walk-in container for the words, thoughts, messages, and ideas that stores want shoppers to receive. Well-placed signs and strong messages can dramatically increase a store's profits. If everything inside the store is working right, the signs grab the shoppers' attention and induce them to look and shop and buy some more. The job with the signs is to figure out what to say and when and how to say it.

8.) Make 'em walk but not wait- Buyers who are on a mission won't take time to shop until their mission is accomplished. That's why stores put their pharmacies in the back of the store. Customers looking to pick up a prescription will go straight to the back, ignoring every sign and display until their mission is accomplished. It's futile to try to sell them anything until they complete their task. Once customers get their prescription, they have to walk all the way back to the front of the store. Savvy stores place signs and displays facing the back of the store so that people coming from the pharmacy will be tempted with impulse buys.

9.) Feed 'em for "free" and they'll line up to pay for it- Watch out for people in supermarkets handing out "free" samples. Up to 90% of shoppers who try certain products will buy them (impulse buy). Guilt plays a factor in shoppers who feel obligated to buy a product they just received for "free". Stores don't care how sampling works, they just know it increases sales.

10.) Start 'em young- stores are like tobacco companies- they want to start you young and hook you for life. That's why so many stores are designed with kids in mind. Junk food, cereal, cookies, and snack foods are displayed about 4 feet off the ground, right at a child's eye level.

The 7 Reasons People Reject You

The 7 Reasons People Reject You

10/7/07

1.) You Are A Threat To Their Lack Of Performance

-A winner mentality threatens other people whose approach to life is different. If they are lazy or don't want to take a risk, your positive attitude will annoy them, and then they make excuses. Some may even do all they can to try to bring you down and keep you from reaching your goals.

2.) Jealousy

-We have a serious problem in society. We cannot increase the standard of living for everyone without generating more wealth, and at the same time we hate on whoever is generating the wealth. Business owners are the very ones who create jobs and build whole industries, who put their heart and soul, blood and sweat into a company to produce something that can help thousands, even millions of people.

3.) Reluctance To Change

-Some people prefer the certainty of misery instead of the uncertainty of change. For some people change itself is an enemy. When you come along and challenge them to take a definite step toward changing their situation, you put them in a position where they have to make a choice. That's the one thing they don't want to do, so they come at you with resistance or rejection to avoid the confrontation of change.

4.) Misconceptions

-People don't know what they don't know. They reject what they don't understand. Sometimes it's the only reason why a person rejects you. So many people don't take the time to understand the dynamics or principles involved in what we represent. Instead of doing their own research, people prefer to make judgments based on fragments of hearsay. The unresearched judgments are a form of laziness that results in undeserved criticism and rejection of things they don't understand. This happens ALL THE TIME. No one can make an intelligent appraisal of what you do without accurate information.

5.) Mistrust

-It could be your reputation.

6.) Dislike

-If people don't like you, they don't want to believe you. That's why first impressions are so important.

7.) Experiences Of Personal Rejection and Disappointment

-Some people reject you because they have been rejected themselves. Sometimes people can have so much pain and disappointment that they fear their dreams can never come true. People are afraid of disappointment. If you keep believing in them and their dreams until they can start to believe with you, great things can happen.

Your Job DOES NOT Love You

Your Job DOES NOT Love You!!!!

I had to speak in front of a small crowd 11 years ago, when I was 22 years old, and this is an essay that I wrote for part of my speech. I was kind of nervous because I wasn't used to speaking in front of groups of people, and by the end, I was pleasantly surprised by the reception I got from everybody.

Keep in mind, I was only 22.

March 3, 2002

Your Job DOES NOT Love You

Financial freedom is a matter of choice-YOUR choice. Professionals, executives, blue collar workers, and everyone else is trying to get ahead by trading time for dollars.

You have 2 income-producing capabilities with your body:

1.) multimillion dollar income capability- from the neck up.

2.) $6.50/hr. income capability- from the neck down.

The problem is that everybody is so busy trying to make money, that most of us miss the opportunity to create wealth. People need to ask themselves "What's the highest salary I can expect from a job?" because by having a job, you only earn what SOMEONE ELSEwill allow you to earn. This country offers a gift called free enterprise. ANYONE can own their own business and set their goals and achieve whatever they want. There is a money-making, time-generating system of modern marketing perfect for anybody who is ready to choose financial freedom.

People make different choices, with the most common one being a JOB, where they get told how much they would make. It won't matter how hard you work, you will still be paid the same hourly rate. You only get paid for what you do. When your production is tied to your ability and your income is tied to your production, you will be limited in what you do, and you can only do so much because you only have 24 hours in a day.

People have a false sense of security with their jobs. They think that's where the security is. Worst of all, if a company is mismanaged, they just downsize you. People deserve better than going to work and making sure they don't say the wrong thing to the wrong person because they can DESTROY YOUR FINANCIAL FUTURE. As long as you have a job, you will always face limits to your earning potential. If you are on salary it's even more restrictive, so even if you work more hours you STILL make the same amount. YOU GET PAID LESS PER HOUR TO WORK MORE HOURS.

The system is set up for you not to make it on a job. Not only do you pay taxes on everything so much, but the government purposely reduces the value of money every 10 years, not counting all your taxes. You can't make enough salary increases to make up the purchasing power that you lose. Also, when you get occasional raises on your job, the raises can't keep up with inflation, so you are WORKING HARDER TO JUST TO STAY IN THE SAME SPOT.

You won't make it on a job because you won't use your ability or stretch yourself the way you would for yourself.- THAT'S WHY YOU WIND UP BROKE. Anybody who has a job is right near poverty all the time, and when you get older, you can't save enough money to take care of yourself at your old age because there is not enough money to take care of the sickness created by people that don't stretch themselves and use their talents and abilities.

What also won't matter is who determines the amount you make because as long as someone else determines your salary and potential, you will ALWAYS be under rewarded. You should always want to be in a position that allows you the freedom to reach your full potential. the only way to do that is to participate in the free enterprise opportunities of business ownership. The free enterprise system and financial freedom IS NOT designed to learn in school. You learn it from people who made it happen.

YOUR JOB DOES NOT LOVE YOU!!!!

My Definition Of RETIREMENT

My Definition Of RETIREMENT

7/16/07

First of all, I want to start by saying that the first thing we all need to do is to look at what we have been programmed to believe and what we bought into all this time.Retirement, the way we were taught and the way society defines it for us, means that you work to pay the bills for the bulk of your life while you put off all the things you really want to do until around age 65. I just have one question, Why would anybody want to spend 2/3 of their lives trying to earn to privilege of being free one day? I don't get it. Why not be free TODAY?

Here are the 3 biggest myths about retirement that keep people from enjoying the abundance, overflow, and the freedom that they could have otherwise:

Myth 1- Retirement Comes During The Last Part Of Life

That's FALSE, Nothing could be further from the truth! We have been programmed and manipulated into thinking that labor and leisure are separate events that happen at different stages of life. Forget about what our passion is, what our real interests are, or where we feel most capable. Just do the 40-40-40 plan without question. The plan is this, work 40 hours a week for 40 years, and when you retire you live off 40% of your income (if you get lucky). Then, while you work so hard for all that time, you secretly wish you had the money to go somewhere with the vacation time that your boss might or might not approve.

Myth 2- Retirement Means You Don't Work

When you live a life that lacks purpose, direction, and aim it runs contrary to what it means to be human.

Myth 3- Retirement Means Sudden Wealth

First of all, your real wealth is not measured in how much money or assets you have, it's all about how much you have between your 2 ears. Henry Ford was a multimillionaire back when $1 million was still a lot of money. Somebody once asked him what he would do if he lost everything and his response was, "I'd have it all back in less than 5 years." By having an abundance mindset and knowing what it takes to make that kind of money, if you were to ever lose it all, It wouldn't take you nearly as long to get it all back as it took you to get it in the first place. People naturally associate early "retirement" with some kind of financial windfall. Somehow, they believe that the only way to get away from living the life that they hate is to get rich first, then and only then can they do what they really want to do. This is the biggest example of how we need to change our thinking and elevate our understanding of success in general. This is a CRIPPLING concept that makes people scared to get old. There is no need to gauge your happiness according to a timeline that was set by somebody else.

Now, here is what retirement means to ME:

1. Taking on the responsibility to make a contribution with your gifts. This contribution pays for the space that you take up on earth.

2. The freedom to design the life YOU always wanted, to show your appreciation to God for giving you life in the first place.

3. When you move into your own sense of fullness and purpose, doing something that imprints your time here and says that you didn't wait until a certain age to live meaningfully.

Why settle for the crumbs in life when you can have the full meal?

You have to allow yourself to have new beliefs in order to create new opportunities, options, and possibilities for your life (Mark 9:23). Also ask yourself, "What's possible for my life if I change the way I have it all set up in my mind?" You can't fix the problems in your life until you fix the mindset that created them. One other thing, helplessness will remain available as an option for those who choose to have it.

How We All Pay For Our Inadequate Educational System

How We All Pay For Our Inadequate Educational System

10/14/07

1.) Business and government leaders who cannot think. Our business schools create MBAs who are creative in accounting so that a business can look good on paper even when profits and growth are diminishing. They offer training in the art of finance and acquisition, which when put into actual practice causes stock prices to jump and then crash. An MBA degree is often a ticket to the top, allowing people to avoid essential work experience. These new leaders lose touch with employees as people, and business becomes an accounting job. The company's "bottom line" becomes the sole concern and people are treated as little more than troublesome but necessary resources.

2.) Exploitation Of Resources. Western business only believes in what it can see, touch, smell, and taste. It thinks only in terms of tangible objects such as land, oil, gold, trees, crops, machinery, etc. Western society teaches only about the visible. It almost ignores the invisible, those less tangible aspects of our lives such as morale, motivation, self-esteem, trust, the spirit of a group when they are working well together. It has yet to develop a way to teach people how to make use of the invisible world.

3.) A nation of co-dependent wimps. More and more people blame the government for their problems, and increasing numbers of people spend their spare time submitting their resumes to other companies, always in search for a better job and benefits package. Everyone seems to be looking for a job with more pay and less work. That is a contributing factor to our tax burden going up while less and less gets done.

4.) An education that fails those who need it most. Since we punish those who don't do well in school, they often drop through the cracks and are ignored by the system. When you tell them to get a job that will only keep them at or below the poverty level, the sense of self-worth diminishes. When a person's sense of self-worth goes down, the desire and ability to work decreases too. Through this system we literally create hundreds of thousands of welfare-dependent families and people who have no hope for a better life.

What Is Security?

What Is Security?

10/22/07

I'm still wondering when people will wake up and realize that there is no such thing as job security. I personally believe that job security hasn't been around since Dwight Eisenhower was president. People still cling to old beliefs and methods that don't work today, and unless we get a change in our mindset, we won't get a change in our situations.

Let me break it down for you:

What People THINK Security Is:

Security (traditional things people have been programmed to make them feel secure)

- A high paying job (Having money to cover all your wants and needs.)

-Working for the government (You'll probably never get fired.)

-Working for a large corporation (The benefits are great and there's a lot of room for advancement.)

-Money in the bank (Nice to have a cushion in case things go wrong.)

-Investing in stocks and bonds (Extra income without having to work a lot of extra hours.)

-A retirement plan (Great to be able to look forward to that day when you won't have to work anymore.)

-Medical and life insurance (If you get sick or are injured, there won't be any financial worries for you or your loved ones.)

-Working for a small company (where everybody knows everybody else, and you'll pull together, working cooperatively.)

-Working for yourself (More control of your own financial life.)

-Marrying somebody rich (You'll never again have to bother your own head about making money.)

-Having a gun in your house (The police department is so overworked, self-protection is becoming a fact of life.)

-Owning real estate (Legend has it that you can never lose there.)

-A burglar alarm system (You need to protect what you have.)

If you master the art of business, you will no longer have to be a slave to a job or dependent on the stability of the economy. A truly good business person can make money doing anything. Also to be a good business person you have to be a kind and open human being.

What Security REALLY Is:

1.)Working when I want, where I want, and with whom I want.

2.)Knowing how to enjoy prosperity whether the general economy is up or down.

3.)Being willing to lose everything and knowing I'll be wiser for it when I get it back.

4.)Not having to work at anything I don't want to.

5.)Not spending hours each week in commuter traffic.

6.)Achieving everything I want without damaging myself, my family, the environment, or anyone else.

7.)The ability to increase or decrease my income at will.

8.)Freedom from all money worries.

9.)Freedom to live where I choose.

10.)Traveling with pay and enjoying frequent vacations.

Why The Principles Of Money Are Not Taught In School

The 4 Biggest Reasons Why The Principles Of Money Are Not Taught In School

10/7/07

1.) If everyone knew the principles of money, education would be forced to let go of its biggest lie-that you have to go to school to be successful. That lie could be the most successful PR job in the history of advertising. People have continued to believe it despite OVERWHELMING evidence to the contrary. Nobody has EVER proved that there is a direct correlation between formal education and success.

2.) If people knew the principles of money, schools could no longer use fear tactics to motivate students to study and memorize irrelevant, boring subjects.

3.) Businesses of the world would lose their cheap labor. If everybody understood money they could easily make all they wanted or needed without ever becoming an employee There would no longer be any paycheck slaves (check chasers), and the companies that depend on them would have to shut down.

4.) The educational system honestly does not know about the principles of money.

There are SEVERAL hard facts to back up claims about how our ignorance of money affects our financial futures.

-According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, only 4 out of 100 people in the U.S. reach financial independence.

-Out of every 100 people who start careers, at age 65: 25% are dead; 20% have incomes below the poverty level; and 51% have incomes above the poverty level, but below $35,000 annually. Of that 51%, most would be described as:

a.) struggling financially but too embarrassed to ask for help

b.) receiving extra support from their families

c.) dependent on government support

The success of our educational system can not be measured in terms of our academic standing on the day of graduation, but we must measure it according to how it serves us for our lifetimes. The habits that you need to learn to become a millionaire are no more complex than the rules for playing Monopoly.

How We All Pay For Our Inadequate Educational System

How We All Pay For Our Inadequate Educational System

10/14/07

1.) Business and government leaders who cannot think. Our business schools create MBAs who are creative in accounting so that a business can look good on paper even when profits and growth are diminishing. They offer training in the art of finance and acquisition, which when put into actual practice causes stock prices to jump and then crash. An MBA degree is often a ticket to the top, allowing people to avoid essential work experience. These new leaders lose touch with employees as people, and business becomes an accounting job. The company's "bottom line" becomes the sole concern and people are treated as little more than troublesome but necessary resources.

2.) Exploitation Of Resources. Western business only believes in what it can see, touch, smell, and taste. It thinks only in terms of tangible objects such as land, oil, gold, trees, crops, machinery, etc. Western society teaches only about the visible. It almost ignores the invisible, those less tangible aspects of our lives such as morale, motivation, self-esteem, trust, the spirit of a group when they are working well together. It has yet to develop a way to teach people how to make use of the invisible world.

3.) A nation of co-dependent wimps. More and more people blame the government for their problems, and increasing numbers of people spend their spare time submitting their resumes to other companies, always in search for a better job and benefits package. Everyone seems to be looking for a job with more pay and less work. That is a contributing factor to our tax burden going up while less and less gets done.

4.) An education that fails those who need it most. Since we punish those who don't do well in school, they often drop through the cracks and are ignored by the system. When you tell them to get a job that will only keep them at or below the poverty level, the sense of self-worth diminishes. When a person's sense of self-worth goes down, the desire and ability to work decreases too. Through this system we literally create hundreds of thousands of welfare-dependent families and people who have no hope for a better life.

Issues That Make You A Victim Of Education's Hidden Curriculum

Issues That Make You A Victim Of Education's Hidden Curriculum

10/9/07

Here are a few scenarios that might point to you being a victim of education's hidden curriculum:

1.) Income Plateau- You lack the ability to generate more income, though you want to buy a home, pay for your kids' education, put money away for retirement, or pay medical bills. You might work harder and longer, but the growing needs of your family start to outweigh your income.

2.) Promotion Plateau- You are beginning to notice that people younger than you are getting promoted while you seem to have gone as far as you can go. Your new supervisor is somebody that either has less seniority than you or was hired from outside the company. Sometimes these new supervisors might even be half your age.

3.) Professional Obsolescense- You studied hard to learn a particular skill, trade, or profession. But suddenly, the need for your special qualifications or skills is diminishing, or there is a growing number of people with your training-increasing the competition for your line of work and reducing your value in the workplace. The saddest part about this is, a lot of college students today could very well be going to school for a profession that might not even be around by the time they graduate.

4.) Right Ladder, Wrong Wall- You have carefully planned your career path and have committed your life to one company. Your ladder to the top of the corporate structure is strong, but there is one big problem: The wall where you placed your ladder is crumbling.

5.) Low Pay, Love The Work- Your work is satisfying, but your family is paying the price. They are afflicted with the proverbial "sacrificial lamb" syndrome. You are often heard saying, "Money isn't everything." Meanwhile, you and your spouse lie awake every night wondering how you will manage to pay the bills. You feel guilty about your inability to provide a better life for your children. And you know that your retirement will be a nightmare-not the dream you were taught it should be.

6.) High Pay, Hate The Work- Three types of people fall into this category. But they all share certain themes, characterized by statements such as: "I can't afford to quit", or "I'm doing it for the kids", or "Only a few more years until I retire. I can put up with anything that long."

The first type is the "prostitute syndrome". If you are a member of this group, you sacrifice your body, soul, and mind for money. You don't care what you do, as long as it brings in a lot of money.

The second type is a little more complex. This is the "lost interest" group. If you are a member, you make a lot of money, maybe even at a job you once enjoyed. The only trouble is that your interests have changed. Many professional people belong in this group, probably excelled in school and made their career choice early in life. They went to college with a specific career in mind, then past the age of 30, their interests begin to change, often around the time their careers accelerated and their income started going up.

The third type is the "traditionalist". Members of this group followed in their parents' or a close family member's footsteps, taking up a line of work or a business either because of family pressures to do so or because they never stopped to consider any alternatives. These people may find themselves lying awake at nights, realizing they never pursued any of their own genuine interests.

7.) Low Pay, Hate Work- The worst casualties of the educational system fall into this category. This may be the largest group and the main reason our methods of teaching require emergency attention. These people spend their lives at jobs they hate while being underpaid. Sometimes called "the working poor", they live one step above slavery.

8.) The Perennial Freshman- When the promotions don't come or their dreams don't immediately materialize, life becomes boring for these people. They become impatient and decide that the solution is to go back to school, but no matter how many times they go back, they never seem to get anywhere. The only thing that these people have to show for their efforts is a wall full of degrees and educational certificates, and a growing list of disappointments.

9.) The Future Lottery Winners- The only thing that resembles financial planning is the lottery, race track, or casino. Psychologists have discovered that the more people feel frustrated in their efforts to be successful, the more they are encouraged to "play the long shots". It's not that successful people don't take risks; as a group they are the biggest risk takers of all. Our highest achievers are educated risk takers, only taking risks calculated to work in their favor. These people believe that only through a "lucky break" that they will realize their fondest dreams.

10.) The Criminal- There are street criminals and white-collar criminals. Many white-collar criminals are highly educated, greedy people working in important businesses and government. ome people actually choose crime as a career path, but also desperation can force many innocent people into lives of crime. The tragedy is that if people only knew how easy it is to make money we would have far fewer criminals in our world. Education could be our greatest deterrent to crime. Much of what is taught in our schools today actually INCREASES crime.

11.) Options Diminish With Age- This is one of the most crucial of all long-term effects of education. Instead of life getting more exciting as we grow older, opening up greater options and more freedom, life gets narrower with age. Retirement income can't keep up with inflation. The costs of clothing, food, and simple home and car repairs all continue to rise, becoming major financial burdens. Health care costs weigh heavily on the minds of people as they age. For these people, the world seems to get larger, faster, more expensive and more threatening by the moment. When they talk about their youth, they almost always have feelings of regret.

12.) Leisure Class- This group has plenty of time and money on its hands, with the largest portion being people over 50. They control 70% of the total net worth of U.S. households-more than $10 trillion of wealth. These people are in the highest income brackets, and all too many of them contribute little or nothing to the society which as made "the good life" possible for them. There are a few notable exceptions, but our society desperately needs even more of their help: their knowledge and wisdom as well as their personal time and financial support. All too often, the people in the highest income brackets of this population spend their time frequenting country clubs and cruise ships, talking to their stock brokers, or running "cute businesses" to fill their time. The theme for this group is "I've done enough, let someone else handle the problems." They often donate money or are seen at fundraisers, but they give little of themselves/ The distance and alienation from the problems we face today is a byproduct of our educational system's teaching methods. The problems we face today need money, but even more they need personal involvement and genuine compassion.

13.) Living Life Through Your Children- Many parents, unsuccessful themselves, put pressure on their kids to accomplish what they failed to do in their own lives. When they feel these pressures, many kids rebel. They know they are not being valued for themselves but only for their utility in fulfilling their parents' dreams. Their rebellion may surface in any number of negative and self-destructive ways, by turning to drugs, crime, or sex. They don't know what else to do to escape the pressure and the not-so-subtle denial of who they are, and there is nothing in their education that helps them to make better choices.

14.) Love Work, Lots Of Money- This is a small, but growing group. Many people claim to be in this group. But we have to ask, "What is it they really love? Do they love their work because it brings in a lot of money?" How many would answer yes if asked,"Would you continue to work if you were not paid?", or "Do you love what you do enough to do it for free?"  We might get a few convincing yesses to this question, but also much hemming and hawing, with justifications such as, "Well nobody works for free."

I caught on to several of these myself when I was still in school, and this is exactly why I lost all respect in my early teens for the educational system and the way it's set up. This is also why I'm not in a rush to go back to college and finish. You'll be hearing more from me about this stale and crooked educational system.