How People Make Cents

I bet you looked at that title with the first idea of how to make money or make more money, right?  Sorry to disappoint, but this is not that type of entry.  However, it is one on human investments.

You see, investing in people is like investing financially, although there is more to lose.  Not only do you lose time or money, you lose trust, respect, you lose emotions that you never knew existed while allowing yourself to be completely naked beyond physical structure (framework), and your realize the risk of your vulnerability.  So what happens to a company that fails financially?  What happens to a person who fails with the personal investment in another?  Do you pull your stock or do you wage a bit longer to see if you can break even?  Personally, even though based on some random events in my life that say I should have won the lottery by now had I bought a ticket, I am not the type to gamble big even though I have been careless in my past (if not recently).

What makes for a good investment?  Dedication, loyalty, communication, maturity, maybe responsibility, sugar, spice, and everything nice? (Oh, sorry.  Got off track there.)  No matter the case, it takes work.  For instance, lack of loyalty creates distrust or lack of communication may create a lack in respect, but apparently investments come in multiple forms, some even unhealthy versions.

You may laugh at this a bit, but I love watching social media sites.  Everyone wants their "fifteen minutes of fame" or two-sentenced-cry-baby-verbal-vomit moment to gain attention. Oh no, my boyfriend broke up with me.  I hope he dies an awful death. Um, yeah, I totally feel your pain (enter the voice of Ben Stein).  My friend is a b****, but I can't say that word, so I'll just make it look pretty with stars.  Excuse my while milk comes flying out of my nose.  Oh and then there is the "like" stalker.  This is the person who "likes" everything one in particular person posts, but seems to miss anything else that might actually be life changing, thus becoming hypocritical.  For lack of a better phrase, I call this digital proximity because you feel like you are "near" that person as you "support" the individual.  (Palm to forehead) How do I say this gently?.....GET A LIFE!  Talk about an investment with no return.

So why is it that a part of us never seems to grow beyond "bad investments"?  Do we enjoy torturing ourselves?  Is there some morbid desire in rejection?  Could be just be too stupid to operate without some form of dysfunction?  Yes.  We are human, it is what we are known for, and it is what we do best.  That does not mean that all of us become victims to our own emotional self-mutilation, but it does reflect a bit of darkness in humanity. 

Then why is it so hard for us to change even though we are aware of this shortcoming?  I could take the cheap easy route and say "we are human," but I feel the need to point out that things in life are provided by choice.  You have a choice to be angry at someone, you have a choice to sit and wallow in your own self-pity, and you have a choice to act like an immature child in an adult body.  It is not that hard to find a resolution instead of complaining about it.  I know I have mentioned this before, but if you do not like something, change it (Don't you hate when your mother's voice pops in your head every so often?)  

One loss is....it is an investment that needs to be taken to the trash because of how toxic it has become.  You get angry because you feel stupid, you refocus because being angry is not worth the time, and move on to new goals.  And when you are done you Facebook stalk the person and find out how crappy they are without you.....Just kidding.  You can Google them instead :P  (Sorry folks.  If you did not know by now, I cannot seem to keep a topic serious.  Life is too short not to have fun and laugh at it every once in a while.)

In lieu of the above, someone once told me the person's favorite quote was "Be the change you wish to see in the world"-Gandhi.  I would like to counteract that with a thought this person should consider, "Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself"-Leo Tolstoy

So where does the investment start to make cents (sense)? With ourselves.  We can choose toxic or we can change and move on.  I don't know about the rest of you, but I feel "change and move on" provide more opportunities in life...just sayin'. ;)

Three of Life's Considerations.

In the last month a few thoughts, statements, or dare I say "theories", have been tossed my way leaving me to reexamine the time that has passed.  Obviously a new year is about to start and I am taking the necessary typical precautions to hash out mistakes to improve upon because we all know that is what we are "suppose" to do; however, something feels different this year.

1)     Sporadic choices.

         This year I came upon crossroads only to repeatedly bang my head against the sign (about a million times) before I sprinted down the path I am currently travelling.  You see, life supplies a safety net and safety bars for you to grab indicating you are in the right place at the right time and when all safety features disappear you grab onto the nearest rock on the cliff, from which you are dangling, and make the choice.  Do I let go and jump to the unknown below or do I play it safe and climb up to the top of the cliff? (Giving that I know how to rock climb, which I do not at this time.)  So me, have a bit of a rebellious personality, let go.  I let go of all security measures, praying that at the bottom I would not die, that I was making the right choice, or even that there was the inevitable “something more” waiting for me at the end. 

          Let’s just say, I will let you know when I get to the bottom considering my questions have yet to contain any clear answers.

2)       Be the change…

          I am sure many of you have heard the saying “Be the change you wish to see in the world” in reference to a quote by Gandhi.  This quote has been stuck in my head for some time for a few different reasons.  One, apparently the New York Times published an article stating that Gandhi was misquoted, which makes me ask if any “quote” is actually a quote at all considering how literature is rewritten and people are misunderstood. (Anyone remember the ‘telephone game’ from grade school and how one message got misconstrued?). 

          Two, I do not think ‘change’ is the word I would use.  What happened to inspiring someone?  Like, “I want you to do better.  I want you to take this idea and run with it.  I want you to grow from this experience.  I believe there is more to you no matter anyone else’s doubt.”  I try to believe the best in people and have felt that sometimes I might be a stepping-stone to greatness because I push and I challenge people.  You want someone to be the devil’s advocate?  That is right, look at me, right here, BRING IT ON!!  For me, when I invest in a person or I tell that person I believe the individual has more to offer, I would hope that person takes this as a great compliment considering it is rare for me to put forth any effort in something/someone.  In time you realize the things that need an investment, given the opportunity, and you realize when you are just wasting your time by how much that individual is choosing to invest in you.  I question a couple recent incidents and if I am wasting time, but my belief is always that ‘time will tell’.  I just wish I had a bit more patience if not a preview into the future for delegating such time.  :P

3)       Life sucks.

          I do not know about any of you who just read those two words, but they provide me with a giggle and a bit of acknowledging truth considering the person who recently made the statement.  I think this is out of context as well.  The proper way to look at it is probably best stated in the 90s sitcom Boy Meets World, which is a realistic point of view of a title if you think about how we live our lives, but the statement of truth is that ‘Life is tough, get a helmet’ (Grier).

          There are two ways to look at this statement.  One, personally I am a bit of a klutz who falls walking, so I might need the helmet along with knee pads, elbows pads, and while you are at it…just wrap me up in bubble wrap.  Actually, delete that last part because I would then fall on purpose to pop the bubble wrap, but you get my dementedly twisted ideal train of thought.  Two, yes life is tough unless you have purpose.  I have made my own purpose.  I am not living for myself anymore, but for others.  I wake up in the morning and try to find something that I have not done or tried, partially because it makes for a great story when I do something completely awkward.  Whether or not this can be accomplished or not is a different story, but then I like to find something new to experience in the people around me.  Life is an adventure to which we offered only so much, that if we choose to let opportunity pass, we lose out.

          So what do you do when…

          …a person’s grocery bag breaks and the contents are spread all over the floor?

          …when a man cannot get his scooter through the snow because someone did not scoop it in accordance with city regulations?

          …when an elderly person engages in conversation with you, of what you view as nonsense, because the person is lonely and sometimes we all just need to talk?

          …when a person needs acknowledgment because the individual feels invisible to the rest of the crowded world?

          …when you are given a choice and do not take a risk?

So where does all this leave me?  Exhausted!  One of these days I will, again, be able to just let go and trust that in my new environment I will be caught because it takes a lot to hold everything together.  I will hopefully, once again, find that one puzzle piece I have been missing instead of just going through the motions because I feel that is what I am to do.  With big risks, they say, come big rewards (not to be a pessimist, but so come big losses), so onward I proceed finding adventure in the nooks and crannies that are commonly overlooked in the first place.

Grier, Emily. Everything I needed to know in life I learned from ‘Boy Meets World’. 19 July 2011. Web. 21 December 2015.

MORTON, BRIAN. Falser Words Were Never Spoken. 29 August 2011. Web. 21 December 2015.