The Future is always here and already exists in our minds

The last time i put up a post in this blog was more than a year ago and at that juncture i had formally made up my mind to risk the waters of self employment. I was awaiting my December 31st, 2012 deadline to say "adios" and Goodbye to the employment sector.
Between that time and now - a lot of water has passed under the bridge and it has been an adventure - one with mixed feelings and if honestly asked if i would do it again - I would probably hesitate before i gave my answer.

On one hand, questions like "are you mad?" and "what the hell do you think you're doing?" rang through my mind like a bell tolling in the silence of the early morning. It shatters peace and often brings the battle of ideals to the forefront. The core aspect that really scared me was the loss of financial certainty (that dependency on a fixed income salary that would keep coming so far i "met" my employment obligations and while of course the company was still "solvent")
I was repeatedly question by former colleagues about my plans and if i had gotten "employment" else where - the answer was very much "No" but they couldn't as of yet understand why I would take such a seemingly foolish of stupid decision.

Fast forward to the present day - By this time I have survived more than my first year in the jungle of self employment and moving into the second and i will tell you a plain and honest truth - it isn't exactly like the movies.

There are those lingering moments of doubt and self re-cremation, there are those conversations that can now take place without the the undue influence of frustration and anger or even despair. Sometimes when i start to have money worries  - just at the verge of lashing out at myself - I remember the ideals of why i started out this journey.
When I talk with any of my former colleagues - they still ask the same questions; as if they want confirmation that it isn't as frightening and vicious as they feared. Alas our values in life and our fears or aspirations takes us in different paths.

I have one fundamental objective and that is to give life to my ideas and mental aspirations in one form or another either independently or part of a collective that shares the same aspirations.
I was tired of burying them or passing them over to meet conformance in the "work-place".

The more i stayed, the more i saw, the more frustrated i became and one of my key realisations was that the organisation does not have the employees best interests at heart.
The core requirement is to generate and sustain profit levels through any legal means possible.

While I have no illusions or misgivings of how i was used or how i used elements of the system; i soon came to realise that there is no real long term plan for people who chose to remain in such a system.
The current economic trend does not even guarantee a long career or the associated benefits that used to be part of the retirement benefits of our fathers and their fathers before them.

My choice was to strike out on my own while there was still time and youthful vigour to actively pursue my aspirations. The result is an involvement in various companies and initiatives in one capacity or another over the last two years. There will always be new things that catch my fancy and i will always pursue what i consider to be parallel interests so far a chance of intersecting might occur.

I am a strong advocate of a service platform - this addresses the various needs of people, clients and businesses and once such a need exists; the opportunity to earn an income by bridging or meeting that need is also available.

I saw the future and i believed in it well enough to take a chance or risk in pursuing it. I abandoned safety of paid employment and staked the part of myself in need of security. Learning is paramount and I will continue to update myself with new facts and details.

The future rewards foresight and courage and while it is easy and SAFE to stay with the majority; when an upheaval comes - you will still be forced to learn the lessons you denied yourself. 

The Future begins from the simple seeds of a dream and the exciting journey that unfolds with equal parts of the good, bad and ugly will shape us into who we become and what gifts we offer to the world now and in the near future.

What is in this thing called life

The crowd does not always cheer wildly. Sometimes there is no crowd to begin with. Just you and those seeming insecurities that plague our thoughts. It seems like so many things rising up to overwhelm and scuttle our dreams but that's life - its a teacher that prefers the often rough and rugged route to impact you with the best learning opportunity BUT only if you chose to see it that way.

It has always been about perspective and attitudes. perspective could be likened to a viewpoint - the better it is the more of a larger area you can see and perhaps it also helps in the decision making process (don't ask me how). Your attitude is the rocket propellant that will see you through the various stages - the rough patches as well as the smooth.

But yet there is more...
Sometimes we feel we have been singled out for special punishment - we may even feel that we do not deserve it and maybe that's true as well.
So many sudden events befall you - death of a loved one, the loss of a job, a relationship breakup, a business loss - its all out there and sometimes it can push us dangerously close to our breaking points.

That's when we are tempted to throw in the towel and yell from the top of our lungs: I Give Up!

However that's when you shouldn't give up - that's precisely the point when you should ask - why all this effort to discourage me?
(if you knew the answer then there would be no need for this missal now would there?)

Life is a game show - it is its own reality.
Life is human's attempting to make sense of the maze that they find themselves in - self made mazes and other mental conditioning and trappings. Life is course with its set of rules on how to play and what to do.

Life is what we make of it but that depends on how we think doesn't it?
How much of life is made up and how much is real depends on a large extent to how we see it and how we react to its various ploys and plays.

It will make us sad, angry, frightened, afraid, fearful, joyful, ecstatic, passionate, humbled, exalted, confident, love, hate, dislike, arrogant, disdainful, spiteful and vengeful and yet these are mere reactions - our reactions to life and all that it throws our way.

A man only truly knows or understands life if he sees the REAL big picture.
This REAL big picture is simply this: we are all interconnected and interrelated in this journey - every action and reaction has a seeming impact on the life, fate and fortune of others directly or indirectly.

Do not be weary because you can still make a difference to someone. Smile and focus on those little joys - your life is not merely a sum total of your failures or successes - it is a sum total of the impact of our collective actions and the long lasting benefits it has brought to others who may not be connected to you directly.

We are all a part of life - as life is all a part of us.

Life's Road Map - An Elixir of Wealth

I have found the elixir of wealth...
*Pauses to savour the ensuring silence that prevails.*

Everyone seems to have ideas and everyone thinks they may just luck it out but the truth is that it was never a secret to begin with - it was there all along hiding in plain sight.

I remember an adage that goes (and this is me paraphrasing of course so I don't expect you to get your knickers in a twist if It doesn't come out the right way...) the best way to hide something is to conceal it in plain sight - that's the first place where NO one will think to look.

Alas that's the same principle that has been at work with man - we always think that the more complex an issue/idea is the surer the answers and that form of thinking is what causes many brains and brain cells to heat up and boil away into mist.

Wealth, power and fortune are all principles.
They can be learnt and applied judiciously and the best way to do this is to look at people who are successful and emulate them - THAT'S IT!

There is no need re-inventing the wheel; even though that form of learning has its own advantages but in the long run - there is the loss of precious time (another scare resource that is gradually corroded away).

Stand on the shoulders of giants as often as you can and gain the perspective needed to see the bigger picture.
Solve the problem of the rat race - that mindless run that convinces you that your effort is the key to success.

While you're on it here's another adage thrown in for free: Work Smarter; Not Harder!
Why you ask?
Because results are rewarded NOT effort.

Don't spend time wishing - spend time dreaming.
After fixing your focus on those dreams - WORK to actualize them - use as reference people who have done something similar - by all means borrow ideas and concepts as often as you can - evolve them to suit you plan but keep evolving with what already exists - proceed from the known to the unknown - one step at a time with an eye on the future where the reference of the past provides a sure foundation.

I hope that you go to bed today with a head full of dreams and wake up with eyes lit up with determination, focus and drive! Let your Future Start now.