by Lucas Trottier
You don’t have to look far these days for whispers of growing economic troubles brewing, Are they true? And if so, what can you or I do about it? These are very important questions. The markets are at best unstable, investment especially in housing is down, international trade is taking more good jobs away, and the dollar is losing ground more and more. The world seems at many levels to be at a crossroads, and this really hits home at the global markets, and trade, as well as the development of reliable jobs in average communities. An obvious solution is getting involved in an already successful company like MOR Vacations. Right now many people are questioning for the first time the foundations on which the economy is built. I’ve heard so many people question what the role the Federal Reserve plays in our current economic bubble. As well , oil is becoming an obvious crutch and we’re steadily getting used to paying more for less, for oil, and food, and virtually all other things.
What can be done, or more important, can we as individuals do anything about it? I think the answer is ” yes we can”, but it isn’t easy. It means some real honest evaluations of our collective priorities, and that is a heavy thing to consider. Now, most people would agree that money plays a major role in their lives. but very few people think of it as a moldable concept, that we can change if the need arises. Let’s consider what money is at it’s most basic function. I think it’s acceptable to say at the core, money is a medium of exchange, so that everyone can have access to all the products and services that are offered. This is the level that shows money to be not only necessary, but also something that should create a level playing field, as neither ones background nor beliefs affect the value of any dollar spend. It is however on the topic of the value of a dollar spent, that the issues generally arise.
In my understanding, it used to be that the dollars value came from two basic things. First,was known as the gold standard, and second was the rate of inflation and trading values on the stock market. The idea behind the concept of the gold standard is, that for every dollar, there was an actual physical precious medal “attached” to it. The idea was because gold or silver were and are fairly reliable measurements of value, that it would keep the value of the dollar at a relatively steady level. It also meant that there was a limit to how many dollars could be in circulation at any given time. All of this was to insure the dollar had a fair and reliable value to every citizen ,so their wages and savings could provide the security we all (in my mind at least) deserve. This is no longer the case in the US, or most other countries in the world. At the moment the US dollar is whats known as a fiat currency. Which means it’s value comes from the fact that the law will enforce it’s value and nothing more.
The second idea was the value was based on the value of trade in the stock market, coupled with the inflation rate. Now I am not an economist and so don’t feel comfortable going into details, but will say this. I believe in a “free economy”, as it allows the people trading commodities to decide the value, based on the all important laws of supply and demand. This ideally keeps inflation to a reasonable level, as is a result of of the competition of supply and demand. Now unfortunately, the federal reserve has done away with both the gold standard ,and the markets being able to control inflation based on supply and demand. Now, not only is the currency simply a legal tender, whose value is based solely on the fact it’s transactions are enforced by law , but the inflation rate is artificially controlled by the federal reserve. Now I don’t want to get into the politics of the federal reserve but do feel the need to make sure you, who are reading this article know, the federal reserve is a private bank and not a part of the government in any way.
So now that we’ve learned a bit about what our money is, and what it’s based on, lets look at what can be done. First of all, if you find anything about our current system disagreeable, then to affect change, you must on your own, get involved in the policy making at some level. This is for you do on your own, and I assure you, there are a myriad of ways to get involved, and I do encourage you to do so. But I am not interested in leaning towards any particular side of the political spectrum. However as an individual there are some ideas I will put across as things to do, in order to gain some control over your hard earned money. Again it really makes sense to look into owning a business.
First learn about it. Now that may seem redundant ,but it really is the key to most things. In order to take control, you need to know about what your taking control of, and as I’ve said, there are many ways to learn and get involved. There are a few things I’d like to mention as a place to begin. One, is learn about investing. It is really a fascinating world in it’s self anyway, but also is a great way to increase your bank account ,with little more than making a few good choices of investments. I personally dislike speculation, and junk bonds, but do like getting involved with companies of high ethical and environmental backgrounds. The other thing is to consider owning a business. Now I know this is really quite a can of worms to open, but I really believe in this, so I’d like to explain why.
Owning a business, first of all means your taking control and this is one of my main themes, I good friend and teacher of mine often says “it’s better to be the captain of a rowboat than first mate on the Queen Mary”. I believe this. The only drawback is you can’t blame anyone else for your results, but when it becomes successful, you get to enjoy the pride of knowing you’ve gotten control your life. So many people are willing to be subservient to someone or something else and take comfort knowing that as long as they show up regularly on time, they will continue to get by. Unfortunately there are some major limitations to what can be accomplished this way. While owning a business means or should mean that, the sky is the limit, and the only restraint is your imagination. (see my other articles). Just some basic ideas, however, are that you get to take many deductions off your income that you can’t do without owing a business. You decide the hours you basically decide everything. A good start is to seriously look into some business’s like this MOR Vacations and see for yourself how well they stand up.
I like to think of this metaphor, as to why, in life, it’s better to be responsible for yourself, than to be allowing others to make decisions for you. Think of your life as someone sledding down a hill. You’re on a fairly narrow path, full of twists and detours, and on either side are brambles, but at the bottom is all the things you want, success,cars, whatever. Now, what most people don’t realize is that they zipping down the hill regardless of whether they want to be ,or not, that essentially is life itself. There are ways to steer, but for some reason, a lot of people are willing to let others guide them, and keep there own eyes closed. This is a huge gamble, because some people will want you to crash into the thorns, because it makes them laugh, though fortunately there aren’t many people like that out there. The real problems is, you,re moving fast, and even with the best intentions, people at the top of the hill can’t always time their turns perfectly, and eventually at some of the more intense ones, the inertia takes over and you crash. Of course the best chance you have is to open your eyes and take control of your speed, and direction. You can even let people give you insight as to whats coming up. In fact ,I’d say that’s a good idea. The point is ,that unless you open your eyes, and take control, that even with the best intentions, things can happen that could be avoided, if you weren’t being lead by another.
I know there is a lot to think about in this article, but I know that the information has some value. I also invite you to check out the other articles on my blog I’d love to answer any questions.
Sincerely Lucas Trottier
No Comments »
Filed under: Business