Learn to control money but do not allow it to control you

williamD1964

FW, words are not adequate to express the kindness and good wishes I have recieved from everyone on MSE. Whatever happens, your friendship is priceless. Thank you everyone

Firewalker

I wonder how William did today. Hope all is well and he is sitting at home, with his wife next to him and they are finally talking.

Today I completed two of the three items on my ‘to do’ list. There is still much to be done in this direction, though. Having established the discipline of doing my ‘to do’ list in the evening, keeping to a small piece of paper so there can’t be too many items there are two pressing things to approach. One of these is the matter of time wasters – I still have not put down on paper the five main things I indulge in when not starting to do the ‘important’ thing(s). This will be done tomorrow and should not take long.

And second, I still have to deal with a number of dichotomies: being productive vs. being busy; effectiveness vs. efficiency; and core vs. peripheral (important – un-important). This is trickier because to specify those I need to decide what I want (where do I wish to be in different aspects of my life) and to analyse it through the 80/20 rule. This is about focus – and focus is something I have never been very good at. There is always a start...

I also believe that today the Universe sent us another message. We were hoping that we could pay a considerable sum off the negative wealth by using a pot that OH was building but is pretty pointless (a small private pension). It transpires that it is £300 over the limit allowing us to take it out and probably we will not be able to do that. What is the Universe saying, you may ask?

“Remember that what you have to do is to increase your net wealth!” – it is shouting. It is true – moving this fund around is not going to increase our net wealth; but it would have felt good. Discomfort will make us even more determined to generate wealth rather than move funds around.

Good night and hope you all sleep well. Tomorrow I would like to write about the different kinds of laziness – and why we all recognise physical laziness but display considerable intellectual laziness; some even take pride in it.

Firewalker

savingwannabe

Tomorrow's topic sounds useful for me. I hope he is ok and sleeping and resting it has been such a long day for him, a kind of Armageddon. I hope he is well.

Firewalker

I had this idea to write about laziness tonight. But it does not matter how much I try the words simply won’t come. No point, therefore, not ready yet...

But maybe, just maybe, the point I wanted to discuss is not really about laziness as such but about something a little bit different. It is about most of us keeping busy, extremely busy, most of the time, doing things that really do not get us where we need or want to be. Why do we do it? Because we believe that keeping busy, keeping active is what matters; because we live in a culture that consistently rewards effort and activity and not achievement and results.

What used to happen when you were at school? For my part most teachers were interested in how hard we work and not so much in how much we learn. Currently, university lecturers are expected to ‘teach’ and teaching is monitored, assessed etc. Well, I believe that it would be much better for everyone if university lecturers are encouraged to enable learning.

One is conventionally lazy when they do not appear to be active. But keeping active all the time can easily lead to a different kind of laziness – intellectual laziness. Thinking how to be parsimonious? How to achieve the same, or even better result, with less effort? How do we raise our children so they are not intellectually lazy?

Firewalker

savingwannabe

If the same level of effort is achieved whilst avoiding waffle and non-essential activity then surely that is progress. But that rather depends whether one enjoys the learning process or whether the aim was a specific amount of knowledge is required as an end result.

It depends on what is being learned i suppose. I enjoy the process of education but enjoy finding a speedy end result for things i consider to be non essential.

I have learned to use the most basic functions of a mobile phone (surface learning) but i adore studying and learning the intricacies of economics (a much deeper learning). I will study for the rest of my life but I dont think i will ever achieve Mastery learning - it is about perception anyway. What i consider to be surface learning others may consider to be a deeper learning.

I do not know if human beings can agree on what is essential learning for them. Are we scientists, social scientists, linguists?

Learning means different things to people at different times. It is soo complex.

Oooh firewalker one day we will have a cup of tea and cake together and when you get me thinking I shall surprise you by giving you the biggest hug to say thank you.

It has been such a long time. I miss my university. I wish i had never left.

Marru

From my experience as a student over time I think it is about added value. Meaning that can the teacher give you something in the lessons that you wouldn't be able to go and find out yourself. When I was in animal care college we had only one of these tutors. On the other lessons I was merely bored and restless thinking that I am wasting my time.

About activity vs achievement. If you asked from a bus driver what it is that he does for a job there are two categories. The ones that drive a bus from A to B and the ones that transport passangers. Doesn't sound like a big difference but when you think about it, it really is huge difference.

Aesop

I love reading posts by you Marru and Firewalker. you challenge me intellectually and that is something that I have not had for a long time. I think I have lost quite a bit of myself over the last few years.

Firewalker

Marru wrote: »

About activity vs achievement. If you asked from a bus driver what it is that he does for a job there are two categories. The ones that drive a bus from A to B and the ones that transport passangers. Doesn't sound like a big difference but when you think about it, it really is huge difference.

Exactly! Absolutely spot on, your example, Maru. One does different things depending on whether they drive a bus or transport passangers.

I have been thinking and it seems that there is the old matter of efficiency vs. effectiveness showing itself here. There has been a drive for efficiency but there comes a time when efficiency damages effectiveness. Doctors can spend only 10 min per patient - very efficient. One outcome is that they more often mis-diagnose or plainly miss. Teaching efficiently at universities today means teaching undergrads in 500 and over classes. Can you ebable learning in this conditions? I doubt it.

Where is the optimal intersection between efficiency and effectiveness? How do we work it out for ourselves?

Firewalker

Firewalker

Aesop wrote: »

I love reading posts by you Marru and Firewalker. you challenge me intellectually and that is something that I have not had for a long time. I think I have lost quite a bit of myself over the last few years.

Aesop, we all lose big chunks of ourselves with time and circumstances. These are different, though. I recently realised that most of the time I go through life without noticing it. But one can change things...

Firewalker

PS: For instance, after NL mentioned that I use 'try' far too often I have got in the habit of watching for it and deleting all 'try's.

Aesop

well it is funny, but recently things have been pushing themselves into my life, being friends with someone intelligent, who knows someone very intelligent and reading their comments, mentally challenges me. Reading your diary, Marru's, and wanting to study again, but need to find my certificates first...

so the Universe is pushing me to find that part of myself