What don't you know?

What do you want out of life? It is a simple question.

It seems that many people I have spoken to want all manner of things from more money, to more belongings, better jobs, holidays and people in their world. I can't say that I have ever met anyone that has said they are or seem content in their life.

I have met people that have said that they are completely satisfied with their position but within a few sentences they are complaining about or wanting something else. One thing that I have found very interesting over the years is how little people actually know about the things that they want.

Let's take probably a universal one, money. Have you ever met anyone that would say, 'No, no thanks, I don't want anymore money.' Unlikely as it is one of those things that helps satisfy many of the other wants people have.

Much of the crowd in here is much more knowledgeable than me when it comes to financial areas but this isn't about just money, so bear with me.

If the majority want more money, how much do they actually know about it? How many understand the financial environment in which they operate, what influences them and what they can influence through their own actions?

Most have never picked up a book that broaches economics of any kind, tax law, interest rates or investing. Many that have picked up a book have chosen some kind of 'get rich quick' type thing in the hope that they will be the one that finds the secret to easy money that everyone else has somehow missed. 

Or, 'The Secret' itself, where you just imagine really hard about having what you want and it will be yours. Perhaps I will write a book on a surefire method I have for making easy money. I will outline it here. What you need to do is tap your heels together three times and wish for more money while standing infront of your wardrobe and then, walk through. On the other side is another dimension where money actually does grow on trees and you can take as much as you want. Note, if this does not work, it is not the quality of the technique, it is the quality of your wishing.

Now that you are all wealthy beyond your dreams or didn't wish hard enough, we can continue.

Do those that want more money understand where their money is going now even? Do they understand that there is an opportunity cost for every dollar spent and if a dollar goes on entertainment, it doesn't buy Steem, Ethereum, Bitcoin or a book on what opportunity cost is?

We live in a world where all of the information we could just about ever need is at our finger tips and much of it is for free. Most however limit their knowledge base by only consuming what is easy to consume. 

For most things you want, work under the assumption that to be really good at something, or to get really big gains, unless very, very lucky, the easy information is not going to cut it. If it was, everyone would be successful and highly skilled already, as would you.

Think about all of the things you want in this life. Now, think about what you put in to getting it. How much time and effort do you put into your own knowledge base in the area, how much into building the skill set required, how much into making steps towards your goals?

Now, how much do you put into Netflix, gaming, movies, social media, sitting watching nothing on TV, staring into space, talking nonsense... 

I can almost guarantee that the majority of us that want more or different in life spend a lot more time avoiding doing what is necessary to get it. I am not saying that it is guaranteed if the work is done, but the chances do go up considerably.

I am also not saying that there is no room for entertainment and enjoying a bit of relaxation or playing at whatever takes your fancy. However, in the culture we live in these days, that has taken precedence over building the skills necessary to even have a job, let alone be successful as an individual.

This post is for me too, as even though I do not spend that much time on entertainment, I do spend a lot of time working without necessarily investing enough in my own development. This means that I do improve at what I do, but not necessarily in the ways I want to go.

To understand this, take a step back and work out where you want to be. If that isn't exactly where you are now, you have some work to do. Take another step back (really try to be objective here) and evaluate if what you are currently doing is the likely path that will get you there in reasonable time?

You need not do this alone although you should be very willing to, as the responsibility is completely upon you. There are many ways and many people that are willing to help you and others. Many people here at Steemit if you look hard enough and don't discount them because they are too long-winded and rambling.

But, if you choose to immerse yourself ever deeper in a world of consumptive entertainment, do not get annoyed if people surpass your results or bitter in old age and say, 'I could have done that' because even if you had had the potential, you didn't use it, so you couldn't have done that.

'Could've' is for those that didn't try.

I will repeat; step back and evaluate where you are and where you want to be. After, learn as deep as you can and move as much as you dare to get there. If you do not dare move very far, learn more about yourself so you can. Every step, every move towards what you want takes you closer, every action that keeps you still has a cost.

Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]

The picture is take a few hours ago and of my daughter on the boat for the first time.