Now despite the negative sounding title, that doesn’t imply that the actual message of this article is going to be so. In fact, it’s simply cut off to abruptly. Instead of using this as a definitive statement or as it’s written above as a pointed question with apparently with some sort of hidden message, instead take it as incomplete.

Right now if I opened up an operating room (all legal issues aside for the purpose of this example =P ) it would only be a matter of time before I realized, “Hey! I don’t know anything about surgery!”

It would be unethical for me to book people in and begin cutting them up without the proper training and a complete understanding of what I am doing. So from this point I have two options to complete my sentence.

Have you ever considered that you are not good enough…

Yet? – Taking this route would mean training, studying, and practice. In the example above we’re going to be doing some serious time to get through med school and becoming certified. Many times it could be something much simpler. Reading some material before a meeting, organizing your thoughts, researching some potential investments, or otherwise teaching yourself something new could be all it takes.

But someone else is? – In the business of operating on people, I am not qualified in any means. I haven’t been trained, certified, or for that matter have the slightest clue what I would be doing with that scalpel. Now what If I went out and found some young doctor who is still trying to pay off his student loans and would love to come operate at my place. I’m sure that he would do a heck of a lot better of a job operating than I would!

Of course most new companies can’t afford to hire specialists and me saying “GO HIRE DOCTORS!” isn’t really helping anybody’s cause. (aside from the doctors that is!) But I’m sure you know of someone who is better at a particular task than you are. Can you ask them for advice? Note that you’re not asking them to complete the project, but simply for their input. Of course this doesn’t always work out so well, as in the case of my operating room example! “Hey Mark, its Todd here. If I was performing an apadextrodomy and I nick the bi-lateral vein and blood is shooting everywhere, what would I do?”

As you can see there it would make sense to not get in over your head, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be ambitious and strive to make you big ideas turn into something real!

Now if you will excuse me, I have to go meet with a programmer who is better at it than I am.

How can we achieve the American Dream if we fall prey to American commercialism which is addictive and consumer-based? Whether it’s junk food, drugs (including cigarettes and alcohol), money, politics, body weight… we are all subject to mass commericalism which convinces us that we simply cannot be happy if we don’t have a particular product that will change our life for the better. Because taxes are so low here compared to our trans-Atlantic counterparts, Americans can afford to buy these products in bulk which means we need to work harder to reduce the impulse to buy. If you are struggling to find a balance between these perpendicular forces in our society, it’s time to take a lesson from the people of Europe and Canada who have much higher taxes than we do and as a result, tend to be more penny wise.

According to a savy friend of mine who has lived in Canada, France, Great Britain, and the U.S.A., people in the first three nations think twice before spending double or triple the amount Americans spend on gasoline, depending on the country. Yes, that is quite expensive, but in exchange for their tax dollars, these countries offer free universal health care and subsidized higher education to all their citizens which gives those governments an incentive to take care of their people- much more so than here. After all, if you are paying for someone’s health care and education, you want to make sure they have a healthy, productive lifestyle so that they can give back to the country in the form of their tax dollars. In Sweeden, there is a 25% sales tax and 50% income tax. Amazing, yes?

People in these countries are more careful about spending money on food and are therefore less obese than Americans and on average have fewer health problems. The tax on cigarettes is much higher than in the U.S. and as a result smokers have a financial as well as a health incentive to quit. In essence, smokers pay for the cost of their chemotherapy through the tax on each pack. European countries make it harder for people to impulsively buy products without thinking twice about the impact on their wallets.

I’m not suggesting that you pack your suitcase and move to France (although that would be nice), but the next time you go shopping, try to put yourself in a European frame of mind. If that product was 25% more expensive would you still buy it? If so, then you probably need it, but if the answer is no, put your credit card back in your wallet where it belongs!

Aridni will introduce you to a different staff writer every Monday. The full staff lineup can be found here.

Katie, age 24

I earned an English degree at Hollins University, a fantastic women’s university in Virginia. Outside of my classrooms, I learned that money makes people feel more important than they really are. No one noticed you at my university unless you carried a Vera Bradley school bag, wore certain brands, and wore pearl strands and earrings everywhere… even with your pajamas to breakfast. I never knew about true wealth’or envy’until I went to a rich girl’s school.

How did I escape the strangling influence of envy? I remembered home. The average income in the State of Montana is $24,000. I earned a business management degree at The University of Montana. The goal of my education didn’t ever seem to be how to make a million bucks. The goal pushed at UM was how to sustain yourself and provide for your family in a rewarding company. In Montana, the quality of life matters more than the quantity in your bank account.

We live. We die. Life is about more than money. Yet a life without money is pretty difficult. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life working for someone else–that feels too robotic. So I try to take risks. I have been married for one year. During the majority of this time, my husband and I have been devoting our weekends to our own investment projects. We’re trying to raise as much capital that can convert to passive income as possible. The work is tough’you’ve never met two people more enthusiastic to start work on Monday morning for the other guy, our bosses. But the greatest motivator for most people is the idea of independence. We make our own schedules and own priorities. The harder we work, the more we benefit. How often do our Monday-Friday bosses reward our extra efforts? They probably pocket the change. Knowing that my intelligence becomes hindered at work because I’m often forced to be a yes man and get paid only per minute that I’m actually doing stuff drives me crazy. Passive income fascinates me!

My decisions aren’t perfect–I did give in to a beautiful Vera Bradley bag! Every successful person confronts failures. And if a person works hard enough, I’m certain she will also confront some level of success. We have to look deep at ourselves to discover what we really want. Having money isn’t enough… well, unless your best friends have less. My husband and I started working on weekends with dreams of money. Then we shifted gears. We want to have the financial freedom to do the things we dream of–he wants to go back to school to study alternative energy and ideas like the electric car. Oil companies and car industries–the wealthiest power in the country–hate people like my husband. We cannot enter his dream career and hope to get rich. We’re looking for the joy and challenge of work in our future, not the cash.

Every night, I try to ask myself, “What can I do better tomorrow to reach my goals based on what I learned from today?” I’m convinced that I won’t have to work for money forever. Instead, I’m going to make money work for me.

Some of the Aridni articles that I find most inspiring in my financial mission include:
What does it really take to make money? finding ways within yourself to define and reach your financial desires
Is it better to let your dreams die or do a poor job? Todd’s had an idea for about a year… but he lacks skill. What do you do?
No longer the bride today a 5-step plan to seeking goals and reaching objectives
Are you climbing to the top when there is no top? examining the corporate ladder at your office
Make your success move from the polls to the ballot Women are starting new businesses twice as fast as men. Three success secrets revealed–
One month to impress Defining your image in one month, step by step

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