Sorry Folks, Life Doesn't HAVE an "Easy Button!"
Although I generally tend to have a fairly optimistic outlook on like, I sometimes get frustrated with people's moaning and groaning about life, living, money and how "hard" everything is.
For example, I belong to another site for writers, where people earn part of the site's income for their contributions. As a result of Google's constant search algorithm changes, the site has become stricter and stricter about the quality of content we're allowed to post.
Oak Creek, near Sedona, AZ
Waaah... my Life Is so HARD!!!
Of course, in the discussion forums there's endless whining and griping about the new rules... but who is doing the griping? The loudest voices belong to the people who joined the site in search of "easy money," and who bring expectations that they can just toss a few random words and pictures together and "get paid." Now they actually have to work to get a reward, they are quite upset.
Money for Nothing... (and Chicks for Free?)
Reading their griping made me thing about our changing world, and then about the many ads I see online for "programs" that will earn people money for "doing something" online.
Because I am at least marginally involved in cryptocurrency trading I also see lots of ads for making money with Bitcoin... promising returns of 1,000%, 10,000% and even 50,000% in a month.
Lower part of a Red Hot Poker in bloom
Of course, the reviews and articles about these "earnings opportunities" are an almost inevitable-- and very predictable-- stream of complaints and accusations that "the site IS A SCAM!" But once I read between the lines, it becomes evident that the sites are not really scams... the complainers tend to be those who (somehow) subscribe to a school of reality that there are actually programs in the world that'll pay you $500 a week to sit in a chair and pick your nose. GET REAL!
In a sense, we even see it a little bit here on Steemit. Over the last month, I've been noticing an uptick in a posting pattern where a newcomer will create 5-10 posts of dubious merit... and then start complaining that there is something "wrong" because they are not getting the same rewards as someone who has been blogging here for six months and creates consistently good content.
Again... GET REAL!
But It's not Just Online...
I even consider our own kids, who are now in their 20's, even nearing 30.
The sun setting on reality?
Even though they were raised with a pretty decent work ethic... they seem to often complain about "how hard" life is, and "how unfair" it seems that they can't just work their part-time jobs and have it be enough to pay all their bills and have money left over to "buy stuff" and hang out and play games most of the time.
I don't know whether it's a "sign of the times," or overall societal values and expectations have changed. When I was a kid, I was taught that life is mostly hard and and there are no "free lunches" and "nothing comes from nothing," and "choices have consequences." Have those values become old fashioned or even out-of-date?
Now, I'm not saying all this because I'm a proponent of "MY values," and feel everyone else should agree with them... but as someone simply observing changes in greater society.
"Scoring Big?"
It just feels like more and more people put their focus on-- and their energy into-- "scoring the big deal," rather than just knuckling down and doing the work.
Purple flowers in our garden
More and more people seem focused on trying to invent the product that'll be the next "As Seen On TV" fad, so they can make ten million bucks in a month. More and more people are scouring junk shops and garage sales in hope of finding an unknown Picasso so they can "get rich and not work." More and more people seem to take "crazy gambles" for the chance of making a lot of money, fast. And just look at the proliferation of gambling, itself. There may be a long-term recession happening, but the gaming industry is growing by leaps and bounds, and more lottery tickets are being sold than ever.
It seems to me that these days more attention than ever is being focused on trying to find "Life's Easy Button."
I sometimes fear for us, as a species, if we depend too much on such things... and somehow I can't help but think that this kind of thinking actually is what lies behind part of the gradual development of "The Rich get Richer, while the Poor get Poorer" trend we are seeing.
The options people consider-- and choices made-- increasingly seem centered around "It's the BIG score or NOTHING for me" thinking. Sadly, it doesn't really do much good... because even though we'd like to think we can make it big, the vast majority of the time the "cards" of life are stacked against us... and we'll actually end up worse off.
What do YOU think? Does it seem to you that people focusing more on "lucky breaks" and "making it big" than they were 30 years ago? At the same time, does it seem like there's a growing cultural subtext that life should be easier than it realistically is? Does it seem like there's growing trend towards "all or nothing" thinking? Leave a comment-- share your own experiences-- start the conversation!
(As usual, all text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is original content, created expressly for Steemit)
Excellent post!
I was thinking about this myself when I put together a post trying to explain how (and why) I've done well on Steemit. I realized I have been blogging for over 13 years. That's a lot of practice and effort doing something I never got paid once to do! I do think there's a lot of entitlement mentality going around (I've written about that also). Hopefully more posts like this will help people grow out of that mindset and into an attitude of providing value to others. Work is about changing reality and providing value. It's not a bad thing.
Luke, thanks for the comment! Strange synchronicity-- this post is really a "side shoot" to another post I started from considering the functional expression of these words on your own profile: " I want to help create a world we all want to live in."
It has been an inspirational statement that keeps seeding new ideas. With this comment here, you answer an important question hundreds (possibly thousands?) of Steemit newcomers might be asking themselves "Why does this @lukestokes character earn upwards of $100 for most of his posts?" Well... because he has "paid the piper" for 13 years. It's said that it takes +/- 5 years of applied effort to become an expert at most things... so you're basically an expert level blogger. And the marvel of Steemit is that you get a fair reward for that experience.
A while back, I wrote about kindness, and how being kind to others is also a kindness to ourselves. I believe-- in a similar way-- that working in service of something or someone or an ideal... is not just a service to others, but also a service to ourselves. Everybody wins. And maybe that's the very shortest answer to the kind of world we want to live in... we all contribute our best, and everybody wins.
I'm happy you commented on my Joshua Tree post as it brought me to this conversation.
To your point about providing value to something or someone, I agree, that is key. To earn the respect of your peers in any field, it's usually imperative that your heart is in it. Because only with perseverance and heart will someone get to the point of excelling at something, and doing it in a way that provides deep satisfaction.
Perseverance alone isn't enough. Take the sweatshop example made by @automaton. Sure, the sweatshop worker may be persevering his or her butt off, but there's an element of freedom, creativity, and compassion that's missing. Are people who actually wind up winning the lottery or getting their "quick and easy buck" the happy ones in our society? I highly doubt it. I think the happiest are those who have managed to spend their time in a way that fosters their most cherished values: love, respect, attention to detail, intelligence, humor, creativity (those would be mine).
The way our society works these days, I think a lot of important values are not promoted in the workplace. Working tedious jobs with tedious hours with quotas to be met and bonuses received could lead to a mentality where it's all about cramming as much work in as possible to make enough money to live off of. This goes back to what you posted about: That people feel as though they need to work longer hours and make more money to sustain their households. It makes sense that people would turn to get-rich-quick schemes when they are persevering their butts off with little returns. Therefore I think it's important that employers in our society do what they can to ensure that no job is merely a numbers game without any outlets to promote important elements of life (humor, friendship, and compassion, etc). There's much more to be said but this is certainly an interesting topic. Thanks for posting!
Thanks for adding your perspective... and a lot of wisdom there, too.
It does seem like we are not really taught much in terms of simply having pride in "a job well done," and you're right... more and more people in employment situations end up feeling like automatons... tedious jobs, long hours, have to meet "benchmark standards" that in no way contribute to much of anything... other than creating a somewhat hostile environment.
Great post @denmarkguy - I pretty much agree with everything you said and you put it so well.
I have also noticed this "easy money" attitude and I wonder where it has come from and when did it begin?
Like yourself I was raised to understand that hard work and dedication gets results and life does not owe us anything.
I suspect the digital age has something to do with the problem because for a generation now people have learned how to get things for free so easily by just downloading stuff off the web. Like Napster for example, people could get misic for free instead of buying Cds. In the early days of Photoshop etc you could literally just copy the program. Its much harder to copy software now but still think how people just take photographs off the web whenever they want. Also I think modern parents have perhaps been a bit too "soft" or spoiled their children a little, or a lot. They learned that they can get what they want when they want and it becomes ingrained.
I definitely think it is a modern phenomenon, but at the same time I do see some younger ones who are very focused and do work hard and are dedicated. The problem is that those who are like that seem to stand out, which suggests that they are rare. Whatever the case, these "moaners" will soon learn that life is not a game or as easy as they first thought.
Very though provoking post - it did make me laugh too ha ha
Well..life can be easy and it's truly what you make of it. "Hard work" does not always equate to success. If you don't believe me ask someone working in a sweat shop.
Yes of course, I agree on that point, hard work itself does not equate to success.
I think perhaps what my father meant was that if you work hard on your dream, or if you start a business or at your university degree, then you will get better results than if you did NOT work hard.
@arthuradamson, thanks for the thoughtful comment!
I could probably write an entire dissertation on the underlying reasons... from where I am sitting, it's really, really complex.
Certainly, there's the generational thing... generations often tend to swing a bit in the opposite direction from the prior generation. And yes, there's the technology, as well.
Personally, though... I think the biggest issue is the slow erosion of what we get for our efforts. On paper, everything looks great, and we're wealthier than ever. But something is wrong. In 1955, "Dad" could go to work at his steady job for 40 hours a week, and that "bought" the model lifestyle of the day-- "Mom" stayed at home and raised two kids; there was a car in the garage and a house in the suburbs; a couple of kids and an annual vacation somewhere.
In 2017, Mom and Dad both go to work for 50-60 hours a week, but even though they make much MUCH more money (inflation adjusted) than in 1955... they now have a HUGE basket of goods they "have to" buy in order to have the "model lifestyle" of today. A "model lifestyle" that is much larger and more complex than it used to be. Sure, "on paper" we're way better off and we should be happier... but are we really? Or are we just trying to kick more and more goals on a goal that gets further and further away?
So how does that come back to the current dialogue? People get increasingly frustrated and worn down, and they feel like they NEED that big "money for nothing" break; almost like a sense that we can't afford to work hard for things because it's not enough.
That's my off-the-cuff analysis... don't know how "right" it may be...
Very good points.
Of course the real criminals are the banksters who have created this whole idea of getting money for nothing and of course they have created the environment of a debt based society so that both mom and Dad HAVE TO work because everything has gone up in price, including house, but wages have not, except for the fat cat CE0s.
I have longer thought about the way it's often the "go-betweens" who end up with all the wealth/benefits... the banksters are that "layer" between us and "things" and "industry." Elsewhere, there are "priests" and "Churches" between between people and God (or whatever spirituality you may have). When I was in the import/retail business... the real "fat cats" were the bulk import agents who paid someone in a 3rd world country a pittance and charged 1st world retailers a "really low" wholesale price that was still 34 times what they had given the producer in Viet Nam or Thailand.
And somehow, they also become the ones nobody ever seems able to "put the squeeze" on...
i think you pretty much hit the nail on the head with that analysis @denmarkguy - I have never heard it explained so well. You have a wise mind.
You read my mind! LOL I did a video on this yesterday on my YT channel. I called it Is the Younger Generation More Soft?
It seems to be a growing belief of entitlement. I hate to say it, but I have steadily seen this ideology creep in to all areas of life here in the States. I know I was raised in a culture that you NEVER wanted to depend on the kindness of strangers. It still guides my life.
Yeah, that pressure treated lumber is heavy... but the question back to you is this: Are they actually softer or do they just have a lower discomfort threshold? Which isn't just about heavy lifting, but also about having the patience to handle something tedious without stopping and so forth?
"Depend" is the key word for me. The "kindness of strangers" was something I was taught was a privilege, not something you depended on.
The modes of nature are described in the Bhagavad Gita As It Is. the mode passion means unlimited desires, never satisfied, has to be bigger, better, louder, newer, etc. it's described like a wave that sweeps over everything. Feels like the world is pretty much under the mode of passion. "Consumer" economics fueled by the nasty reserve banking system. There are 2 other modes... The mode of goodness. peaceful, clean , self controlled, honest, maintaining things... and the darkest mode. ignorance...illusion, madness, substance abuse... laziness, destructive.. This is a link to some text discussing this https://prabhupadabooks.com/bg/14/1
I am interested in these things and my posts are about higher consciousness for the most part.. Thanks for a thoughtful post... and opening discussion.
In the ethereal realms, what you say is entirely true... meanwhile, our everyday lives are increasingly driven by whatever little shots of dopamine we can get to the brain; many of them related to the "more, bigger, faster" you mention.
Of course, awakening from the trance requires us to first be aware that there is a trance, so we can step outside it and observe how we are caught in it.
Thanks you for your thoughtful comment!
Great post (as per usual from you)! You left out lawsuits. I and my company are on the receiving end of lawsuit originating from a real estate transaction where everything was transparent and nothing was immoral, illegal or unethical. Yet the other side got creative and hired a dirtbag lawyer on contingency because they think they see a quick way to make a big score without working for it. Sadly, many think that they are just one lawsuit away from retiring to umbrella drinks and Bermuda shorts. These people that are suing my company have been so creative in their scheming. If they would put half of their efforts of creativity into a legitimate business opportunity, they would be just fine. But, opportunity often comes dressed in overalls and looks too much like work.
Ah yes, lawsuits!
"I made my fortune the old fashioned way... I SUED someone!"
Having been on the receiving end of that sort of activity, I know well what you mean... and it feels like part of the greater "lottery effect" I am seeing around the world. It's all about "making the big score" and then sitting on a beach with little umbrella drinks. And don't get me wrong, my parents also wanted to sit on the beach with little umbrella drinks... except they understood that took 40+ years of hard work to reach.
Yeah I agree people appear to be much more impatient these days regarding building wealth. Well at least we got cryptocurrency to help us get there... for the rest good luck. Resteemed this great article
It's just interesting how much it is everywhere. It's not even about hard work, all the time... I meet people who totally know they need to work hard to get from an entry level job to vice-president of the company... but they get depressed when a process that might require 10 years isn't complete in six months.
Thanks for the comment and resteem!
Yes, you are telling it like it is. Entitlement mentality. Many are soft and spoiled. The hard times are coming and most people will not be prepared. It will be a shocker.
Thanks for trying to get people to think.
Yes, I think a lot of people will be ill-equipped to deal with a prolonged economic downturn... I'm glad I still know how to get a LOT of cheap food out of dried beans, rice and those 50lb sacks of potatoes.
This post really opens the door to reality of life. These lines "life is mostly hard and and there are no "free lunches" and "nothing comes from nothing," and "choices have consequences." are the essence of it. People wanna short cut or even do not want to go out of their comfort zone.
Unfortunately, we seem trapped in a bit of a negative spiral... in order to attract people in the first place, both colleges and employers overstate the benefits people will get; then they underdeliver because of unrealistic expectations, as a result of which people look for even more extreme promises...
I love the way you blend in the words to capacitate the flowers in the content.
Thank you!