We each either are, or know someone who could use a little more money in their month. Right? I don't mean much, or even a lot of money--just a little more. If you were to find a $1 on the ground tomorrow, would you feel lucky? Justified? Worthy? How about if you found a $10 bill? How about if you found a $100 dollar bill on the ground, and no one was looking? Would it matter to your month? I hope you will follow me just below the squggledoodlethingey fold, because I'm doing something about it, and I want you to help me.
Let's begin with this whole notion of employment. To be employed is to be paid for the time you spend doing things for someone else--even if that someone else is you. It's generally a trade, although there are many different opinions about whether or not that trade is a fair one.
There's a bit of reality which must be faced here. In the past two years, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has risen more than 2,000 points. While there are surely some, I highly doubt that most of those who will read these words today have the slightest notion of what that means in terms of wealth accumulation for those who do not earn a living from work.
The net result is a wider disparity between the ever-increasing net worth of the 1%, and the continuing decline net worth of the 99%. When you do not depend on someone else's output for your net worth, nothing which affects those who DO depend upon their output for THEIR net roth affects you. You are innoculated, and insulated from conditions which affect the worker's net worth. And, when you see multiple hundreds of points rise in the market where your money makes money, your net worth is doubled, tripled, or more at an alarming rate.
Meanwhile, back at the kitchen table....
Success is a matter of perspective. For a growing population in our country, success is measured in hours, not years. Outcomes are measured in the provision of the three necessary components of life: eat, sleep and warm. Everything else is an unnecessary (and, for many unattainable) luxury. I'm not worried about the 1%. They are doing very much more than handsomely, thank you very much.
I am, however, very much interested in the 99% of Americans who do not have to "offshore" or "shelter" their wealth. Back to the story of discovery at the top of this diary.
There are those who DO actually work forty or more hours per week for pay. It's humiliating, and extremely discourteous to compare their wage per hour to how many cups of coffee they could buy at Starbucks. If, however, their answer would be less than 5, finding one of those bills on the sidewalk would change their month. I know, because I'm one of those. I don't go to Starbucks, for several reasons. First among them is that I cannot afford to drink their coffee, either in person or from a bag of beans. I live on a Social Security Disability Income. From what I am told, I should be grateful, and silent lest my slackery be found out, and dealt with.
On today's episode of "Progressive Politics:Tennessee Style" (PPTS), I'm going to begin a series that will help you find some of those bills. Depending on your particular level of financial embarrassment, the cost will be between $11 - $150 per month in investment expenditures to you. But, I can also tell you how to find the $1, $10 and $100 bills lying on the ground in front of you. Every month.
Yes, there are $1,000 and $10,000--and even $100,000 bills, too. Others are snatching them up before you can find them. I'm not worried about them. I have a solution for you. It can really add money to your month. How much? It depends on what you need, and what you can afford. And, trust me. There is a solution for you, if you will take it.
In my business, I have a saying:
"When you land upon the shores of success...burn your boat. Succeed or die."
This is the mantra of the 99%.
I'll bet nobody ever told you that before, did they?
Join us at PPTS at 2:30 PM (Central Time) today. Bring a clean screen and an open mind. There are plenty of bills fluttering around, right in front of us. Let's scoop some up. That's what I'm going to do about it. How about you? What are YOU going to do about it? When?
Don't go looking just yet. Let's talk about how it looks, this whole success thing.
Okay?