Maybe the Biggest Rip Off of All

What is it that would vociferously steal most of our money, time, and efforts for most of our lives? It sucks our very life from us as we toil and toil at jobs we don't like. It thrives in our neighborhoods and at our social clubs. It rips us off on a daily basis? What is it?

Taxes? Good guess, maybe thats number 2.

It is our definition of sucess and our appetite for being "rich". It is our very own appetite for our version of financial success that rips us off of what give our lives meaning. What does it take to be rich? It varies by the individual and almost always depends on your peer or work environment. Take a look at what it takes for a NY investment banker to feel rich down to a small business owner in middle America.

Its fascinating to see what different people need to feel rich and what they believe they need to do to get there. We become mired in our thinking and believe we must follow convention or others to achieve our level of success. Bertrand Piccard, speaking of his recent globe circumnavigation had some advice recently on this: "...`The definition of success is if you try just one more time.'' Asked why he and his team succeeded when his competitors failed, Piccard said, ``We had the strategy of the wasps. Our competitors had the strategy of the bees.'' He explained that bees die as they try to enter through terrace windows as they attempt to enter through one pane of glass. They are stuck in their ways.
Wasps, on the other hand, adapt and learn to test each pane of glass until they find an opening."

Challenging our old way of thinking about leadership and success is step one. This week's Newsweek has an article on business innovators and new business thinking. "Many realize that today the best way to become a leader isn't to spend 20 years slogging upward at a corporate behemoth—it's to strike out and start your own gig, which you'll lead from day one." Hmmm, sounds like those slogging might be missing something.

Adjusting our appetites might be the best way to avoid the rip off. It doesn't take much for some people to feel "rich". Some of the happiest people I know are blue collar workers. Look at this survey in Britain that shows blue collar workers more satisfied than white collar workers. Adjusting spending habits, saving more, and consuming less might just be the road to happiness.