''Cost of Living''
my friend was known to say
And had no qualms in mind or heart
with viewing life this way
His view of life's transactions
revolved around the cash
And traded time and energy
for C-notes in a flash
"There is another option,
my friend, might I suggest
Life offers more than ways
to feed the fiscally obsessed."
For when you work for money
your dreams take second place
And winner though you'll be
you might be running the wrong race
Consider rating options
based not on what you earn
But seize the opportunities
that offer ways to learn
Desire, wisdom, knowledge
are the currency of dreams
Time spent on less depletes your stash
though lucrative it seems
Time is the cost of living
you give to life your days
No job can ever buy you more
no matter what it pays!
COMMENTARY:
I assume that you have goals. I assume that while some of those goals can be measured directly in terms of accumulated cash (buying a home, paying for kids tuition, savings, etc.), that there is a vision of yourself and what you've been sent here to do, that you cannot attach a dollar value to. If that's so, then please recognize that living that vision is just as important as paying the bills.
In business, and in every aspect of life, we are presented with requests for our time and talents. Some appear to be worthwhile, and others do not. Too often, however, we use only one type of yardstick to measure the options before us. There may be much more being offered that we may not recognize unless we realize that opportunity is often the master of disguise. The chance or us to live our dreams may not immediately appear alongside a huge paycheck.
A business acquaintance (I'll call him Joe) and I were both approached by a client to help with a project. Joe asked, "What do you need done? And, how much are you willing to pay?" When he discovered that there was no money allocated to the project, Joe saw a client with big dreams, but no budget and turned the offer down.
I asked, "What do you need done? And then asked myself, "Can being a part of this help me to achieve my grand vision?" "Or maybe," I thought to myself, "this is simply a chance to rack up "universal karma points" by doing a good deed. I mulled it over for a while from several different angles, and, based on the client's willingness to share in some tangible and intangible assets he also possessed, I created an opportunity to help myself move forward on a path I was already on, and I accepted the project.
Now
there's no right or wrong to this story. I'm sure Joe had some immediate cash needs and time constraints that made taking on the project a drain onhis resources. And not every opportunity is right for everyone at every time. And I, too, am running a business, with cash needs and time constraints. But, I've learned that the way I spend my time is what's really important to me. I'm no longer willing to spend the days simply accumulating cash. So when presented with requests for my time, I ask myself, "If I do this, will I spend my days doing something that is fulfilling and/or that helps me paint the bigger picture of my vision of myself and my life? If so, I'm there!
P.S. That doesn't mean I've started doing my workshops and speaking engagements for free! So put that telephone down! :-)
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