Scott's Thinking - Page 153 of 173

Thank Goodness For Doctors And Politicians

Posted on July 31, 2020

Some people know what they want to be when they grow up. Some never figure it out. Thank goodness for doctors and politicians. Whether they fell into the roles, or they were determined from their youth, they are making it happen.

There are also a lot more people I am grateful for everyday. These include military personnel, coroners, public transport drivers, police, teachers and engineers.

Actually, there are so many more people I appreciate. I am grateful that there are enough people interested in, or willing enough, to take on all the different roles in our society. I am grateful for all of them!

You see, when I was younger, I knew I didn’t want to be in many of these professions or have those jobs or careers. They didn’t interest me. Fortunately, other people were drawn to those roles. Also quite fortunate is that most people are reasonably good at their job.

Of course there seems to be a normal distribution for everything. There are people who are exceptionally good at what they do. There are also people that are clearly not up to it. And of course, each industry has that 0.01% ish that might even have bad/criminal intent.

Thank goodness for doctors and politicians and every other job out there. Most jobs are necessary and few are easy. I appreciate every one of you because my life, in general, is better because of you.

Action Financial Observe Reframe your thoughts

Becoming A Billionaire

Posted on July 30, 2020

Now, you may be the type that is curious as to how to do it or seething that becoming a billionaire is even allowed. Either way, or somewhere in between, it seems everyone has a view on billionaires.

Your reaction to the idea of a billionaire will say a lot about you and your relationship with money. That may or may not be a good thing. You will have to think it through. Be brutally honest about how money makes you feel.

There are generally two roads you can take if you are intent on becoming a billionaire. The first is to have the money given to you. This can be from inheritance, divorce, donation, charity or a very good friend. Alternatively, you can earn the money through providing a product or service for a very large number of people (c. 87% of billionaires).

Bill Gates sold software. Many estimates suggest that there are over one billion PC’s running a version of Windows. If it cost $100 each to have that software on the PC’s, the company’s revenues would be $100 billion from that one software alone. Not only has he provided a valuable service to many people, hundreds of thousands of people have earned their livelihood with his company.

I’ve willingly given more than $100 to Microsoft, from which Mr Gates has benefitted. It has definitely been worth it and then some.

Action Time

Blast Through Your To-Do List

Posted on July 29, 2020

I believe many people have a to-do list that seems ever-growing. Of course, it could be just me. If you do to, blast through your to-do list every once in a while. See how much you can delete, delegate or get it done.

The more things you have or are involved with, the more there is to do. I do try to limit new items, events and commitments now, as there can be just too many to-do’s with them. One new commitment can bring 5-20 new to-do’s with it.

One way to deal with your to-do’s is to batch them all for a certain time or day. Wednesday’s from 9am-12pm is our time for to-do’s. Some things need to be dealt with when they appear. However, for those things that can wait, we let them simmer until Wednesday.

Occasionally though, too many items pile up and you need an extra session. We had a good one of those today. We didn’t get it all done. But we sure did get quite a few things into the rubbish and recycling. There were even quite a few items completed too.

Standing up and having two of you work through the list together can be a great and effective way to blast through your to-do list.

Good luck!

Reframe your thoughts

An Ad Hominem Reply

Posted on July 28, 2020

If you are going to have a discussion, the focus should be on the content. Unfortunately far too many people today use an ad hominem reply. That is to say, they attack the character of the person rather than try to understand or discuss the other person’s point of view.

Unfortunately this is a weak debating tool or tactic. It may be effective in the immediate term but it rarely advances any cause.

When someone uses an ad hominem reply, I tend to think less of that person. I will also give extra weight to the other person’s perspective. By sticking to the detail of the discussion point, the focused debater sounds more intelligent and becomes more persuasive.

Not everyone sees it that way.

Sometimes people will ‘pile on’ and cheer the negative personal attacks. They may even add their own insult or character challenge.

One may feel better in the moment for attacking someone this way but it is not helping to further discussions. Be mindful not to fall into this trap.

You are better than this.

If you do not agree with someone’s opinion, you can try to understand it by asking curious questions, not sarcastic ones. You can also simply let them have their opinion. Finally, you could politely explain why you hold a different opinion and then leave it there.

Action Financial Health & Fitness Think About It Time

Plan Ahead

Posted on July 27, 2020

It’s a good idea to look out beyond the hour, day and week. Some people plan important events years in advance. When you plan ahead, it changes your perspective on life, time and prioritisation.

Our life insurance broker rang me today. He wanted to check that I was happy with the cover we had. Was it the right amount, coverage and term (length of time)? All seemed fine.

However, it did get us running a few scenarios. How old would we be in 10, 20 and 30 years? We also needed to calculate how old the kids would be on those dates. The other point to consider was specific life moments falling in those time periods. Big events we considered were; helping with the children’s university costs, business start up costs and/or potential wedding costs.

Planning ahead does make you confront some brutal truths. In particular, it reminds you that you will either be much older one day, or the alternative. And you should consider that ‘much older’ comes with more than simply more candles on your birthday cake. Your health and wellness is likely to change somewhat.

You plan ahead for things that you want such as holidays, concerts and sporting events. So you should also plan ahead for those events that are inevitable, like ageing and the alternative.

Do it now.

Gratitude Think About It Time

I Like Hanging Out With People Like Me

Posted on July 26, 2020

It always depends on the moment and what I am interested in at the time. However, I like hanging out with people like me. It seems like a natural feeling.

When I listen to rock music, it’s more fun if I am with people who enjoy the same bands. It’s less fun if the people with me don’t enjoy the bands or music genre. And certainly it is not very enjoyable if they simply criticise it or complain about it.

When I go running, I prefer to go with people like me. I prefer to go with people who like running. And ideally they are ready to go in the early morning which is what I prefer. Additionally, it is better going with someone who runs a similar distance and pace too. Though I’m happy to be pushed to go further and faster.

Whether it’s food, sport, holidays or almost anything I can think of, I like hanging out with people like me.

And those people are oftentimes different people for each thing. This is great because they can bring other aspects into the mix too.

It’s great to get different perspectives. But when I want to enjoy myself, I like hanging out with people like me.

Financial Gratitude Think About It

Winning £1 million

Posted on July 25, 2020

It has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? Most people would be pretty pleased with that sum of money. Winning £1 million seems to be the magic number for a lot of people.

Songs have been written about having a million dollars. People talk about how life would be different if they could just, ‘win a million’. And many people have dreamt about what they would do if they had a million dollars, pounds or euros show up in their life unexpectedly.

Although today £1 million wouldn’t put you in the exclusive group it would have in 1970, it is still an exciting amount of money to most people. Even for someone who has a net worth of £30 million (i.e. assets less liabilities), this amount would probably be warmly received. This is in part because those assets might produce £3 million in income. So an extra 33% more would likely be welcome.

What would you do if you had £1 million turn up in your bank account? Whether it was from an inheritance (long lost Auntie?), a lottery ticket or some fascinating philanthropist doing things differently.

Wouldn’t winning £1 million be an exciting thing? Would you do something exciting and novel? Or something sensible and pragmatic? Perhaps you would do a little of both.

Well, I hope you get to find out sometime soon!

Action Reframe your thoughts

Selective Memory

Posted on July 24, 2020

It is fascinating what we can remember and what we can forget. Having selective memory can be both an advantage and a disadvantage. But if you train your mind, you can make it work better for you.

Women can use selective memory to forget the pain of child birth. I have met several women who said they would not have a second child after the physical pain of the first. However, in some cases, there were more children after that. This is one of the advantages of selective memory. At least it has been for the continuation of the human race.

We can also use this concept to fondly remember ‘the good ole days’. This means we remember the great and good things in our past and tend to forget all the little painful incidents. We remember winning the match but not so much the pain we felt during or after. We remember the graduation but not the mind numbing hours of studying required to obtain the marks for it.

However, we can select poorer memories if we wish. We might focus on unhappy or unhelpful instances. Most people will have a variety of moments they should forget. Especially if it was something they did which didn’t go well.

We should not dwell on our own or other people’s shortcomings or bad moments.

We can use this selective memory power for good. Do not use this to beat ourselves up over something. Nor should we chastise others.

Action Progress

Are You Ready To Go All In?

Posted on July 23, 2020

Have you been holding back recently? Or maybe even for a long time? I am sure there is something on your list. Are you ready to go all in?

There is often something we hold back on. We are getting ourselves ready. We may be preparing the plan or researching some key elements. However, at some point we know we need to get things moving forward with some massive action.

This might mean a late night or two to crack through something. Or maybe it involves doing something we are not as comfortable with. For some, this is marketing and phone calls. Other people may be hesitant to spend a certain level of money.

But today is the day to bite the bullet. It is the day to take massive action and put your plans into high gear. You need to get over that hurdle in front of you. You do not want to still be in this position in 2021. Since, you have the ability, make it happen!

You will never feel 100% ready. But if you are 70% ready, you should just get moving. You will make up more of the plan while you are moving forward. Take the step. Make the call. Feel the sense of accomplishment!

Observe Progress

Marking Your Progress

Posted on July 22, 2020

How do you know you are moving forward? Some situations are more obvious than others, such as moving up a year group at school. Marking your progress outside of school becomes more difficult.

It isn’t impossible. It usually just requires more effort because you have to do your own assessment and tracking. Then you need to judge your level and prepare for the next step.

At school, the teachers prepare the training exercises and become your accountability partner. They also assess your work and keep track of your test scores and engagement level. The department of education maintains the structure. For example, we know that after your 3rd year at school, most children move along to their 4th year.

In a work environment, your immediate boss takes the place of the teacher. They set the work to be done, assess it and keep track of your performance. The company directors determine pay and organisational structures.

Your personal development is usually up to you to organise. And what your next role will be is also in your hands. You may choose to stay in the company or try a different company or industry. Sometimes people try something entirely new.

Whatever it is you are doing, marking your progress is important. On a scale of 1-10 for each category, where are you with work, relationships, wealth, health and fitness? Now make note of where you want to be and plan how to close those gaps.