Why not see the market the way many see the homeless?
I agree giving money to a homeless person may not be the best way to help that person because that person now has cash, but no accountability to this new capital. Accountability is something America is founded upon, just look to the way the government is set up. Three branches each trying to hold one another accountable to the others. Congress makes laws, Presidents enforce laws, Courts interpret laws. No one branch can do it all.
And yet, when it comes to commerce in America we seem totally against any sort of accountability to the Market. It is as though the only thing holding the Market accountable is individuals. But this is only possible if individuals are rational.
People are not, I am not, always rational.
I appreciate the Libertarian movement, but I wonder who is holding the Market accountable?
This report from New York Times is a series of videos talking about the way Private Equity Deal makers take advantage of the market for gains for the investors but many times at the great expense of the long term health of the company and the employees.
How Private Equity Deal makers Can Win While Their Companies Lose
And yet, when it comes to commerce in America we seem totally against any sort of accountability to the Market. It is as though the only thing holding the Market accountable is individuals. But this is only possible if individuals are rational.
People are not, I am not, always rational.
I appreciate the Libertarian movement, but I wonder who is holding the Market accountable?
This report from New York Times is a series of videos talking about the way Private Equity Deal makers take advantage of the market for gains for the investors but many times at the great expense of the long term health of the company and the employees.
How Private Equity Deal makers Can Win While Their Companies Lose
Ego + Journaling - Social Skills = Blogging
I was asked the other day if I kept a journal. I said that I blogged. This person's head tilted and asked, "Why do that? Is there anything personal about blogging? Isn't it all just 'out there'?"
Yes. Yes it is.
And for me, that is what makes blogging greater than journaling. Because it is out there for people to read keeping the blog fresh or posting new posts is vital. If it were not kept up then not only am I not journaling anything but also readers are not reading.
Thus anyone who stops by this humble blog is keeping me accountable to the discipline of journaling. It is almost as though, for me, blogging is journaling PLUS accountability.
And so, I blog in order to keep my mind working and looking for posts. I blog so that people can read and post so that I would keep blogging. This cycle keeps me from dropping the blog/journal discipline all together.
So for those of you out there who may feel guilty for not journaling, I submit that you try blogging. Your readers will keep you from dropping the discipline.
Yes. Yes it is.
And for me, that is what makes blogging greater than journaling. Because it is out there for people to read keeping the blog fresh or posting new posts is vital. If it were not kept up then not only am I not journaling anything but also readers are not reading.
Thus anyone who stops by this humble blog is keeping me accountable to the discipline of journaling. It is almost as though, for me, blogging is journaling PLUS accountability.
And so, I blog in order to keep my mind working and looking for posts. I blog so that people can read and post so that I would keep blogging. This cycle keeps me from dropping the blog/journal discipline all together.
So for those of you out there who may feel guilty for not journaling, I submit that you try blogging. Your readers will keep you from dropping the discipline.
My Buddy and Me
Do you remember those dolls that they marketed to boys called "My Buddy"? Here is a quick commercial I found on YouTube...
Well, I never had a "My Buddy" but my wife and family for graduation gave me my own "My Buddy". It is called a Kindle.
For all that is good and holy, I love this thing. I do not want to turn this into a Kindle commercial, rather I think what I like about it so much is that it actually will force me to read more!
I used to journal. I would hand write out my thoughts and keep them in these cool books. It was a dream to have a wall full of these journal entries like "Indian Jones". Needless to say my handwriting sucks and I am cannot sketch cool things onto the pages of these journals other than stick men on skateboards, standing oddly on uneven ground.
So I blog now. And I find I write a lot more. Additionally I am able to search this site and read the "handwriting" of the keystrokes. Blogging has enabled me to write more and the few people who read this babble hold me accountable to keep writing. It has been very good for me.
The same is true with the Kindle. I can search the notes I make on the books I read and can carry around 1500 books at a time. My Kindle library is small for the time being, but I know it will grow. Additionally, in order to justify the cost I need to read 40 books (saving around $10 a book). This monetary drive keeps me accountable to keep reading. And finally, the thing is just cool.
What I have learned about blogging and the Kindle is this: if I can find those things that nudge me to change, hold me accountable and are easy to access, my behavior and life patterns change.
So I am curious to know, what are some of the things you do or use or have that help make you a "better" person?
Well, I never had a "My Buddy" but my wife and family for graduation gave me my own "My Buddy". It is called a Kindle.
For all that is good and holy, I love this thing. I do not want to turn this into a Kindle commercial, rather I think what I like about it so much is that it actually will force me to read more!
I used to journal. I would hand write out my thoughts and keep them in these cool books. It was a dream to have a wall full of these journal entries like "Indian Jones". Needless to say my handwriting sucks and I am cannot sketch cool things onto the pages of these journals other than stick men on skateboards, standing oddly on uneven ground.
So I blog now. And I find I write a lot more. Additionally I am able to search this site and read the "handwriting" of the keystrokes. Blogging has enabled me to write more and the few people who read this babble hold me accountable to keep writing. It has been very good for me.
The same is true with the Kindle. I can search the notes I make on the books I read and can carry around 1500 books at a time. My Kindle library is small for the time being, but I know it will grow. Additionally, in order to justify the cost I need to read 40 books (saving around $10 a book). This monetary drive keeps me accountable to keep reading. And finally, the thing is just cool.
What I have learned about blogging and the Kindle is this: if I can find those things that nudge me to change, hold me accountable and are easy to access, my behavior and life patterns change.
So I am curious to know, what are some of the things you do or use or have that help make you a "better" person?
Be the change by Jason Valendy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.