What Price

"For greed all nature is too little." -Lucius Annaeus Seneca

When is too much not enough in life?

In the 1987 movie Wall Street, the main bad guy Gordon Gekko pronounces "Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures, the essence of the evolutionary spirit." Greed is about never being satisfied with what one has. It is always wanting and expecting more. It is an insatiable hunger.

When put that way, we see those same descriptors are the driving forces behind success, behind achieving your goals in life. So when we become selfish, to the exclusion and detriment of others, greed becomes a negative force in our life. And greed doesn't happen just when it comes to wealth. We can become greedy with relationships, work, in nearly any facet of our lives. When we become selfish in one area of our life to the exclusion of others, we have developed a level of greed.

There are unpleasant effects on our inner emotional lives when it comes to greed. Anxiety and restlessness will be felt when we focus solely on the craving for more or that one desire. What results is a false assurance that once we obtain that desire it will put us at ease or make us satisfied. But greed only creates that vicious circle in which "...all nature is too little."

What becomes of us when greed succeeds?

The cycle of never having enough can become destructive in your life and many times does. It leads to creating a second secret life in which you try to maintain a public appearance but that second life is feeding your greed. That second life gets nurtured more and more becoming a larger part of who you are. Eventually the second secret life can no longer be hidden. It is found out and all that you had will start to unravel in various forms.

We have seen and read it hundreds of times; the benevolent money manager has been skimming funds to feed his/her greed or any number of other greed fueled lives. Sex, money, sports, exercising, even religion can all develop into greed or addictive behaviors to the exclusion of everyone else in your life. Eventually it can fall in upon itself from the weight of selfishness.

So what price are you willing to pay for unlimited success? Will you find enough in your life once you have achieved success? Will you fall prey to the greed of success?

These are not easy questions to answer. And merely focusing on the negative light of greed, maybe you can focus on the positive force of generosity. Allow the light chase out the darkness of greed. When we focus more on being self-less, when we serve others, then success will fuel the non-greedy forces in your life.

A vessel filled will never contain all the world. But a vessel that continually pours into others will always have room for more. And that is your life; a vessel meant to pour into the lives of others.

Stay inspired my friends!

And for your amusement, here is an example of greed gone too far.

Bridge the Divide

“Whenever you're in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. That factor is attitude.” -William James

There are many times in our lives when we will encounter conflict with another person. Usually it is someone that you know, a co-worker, friend or family member. It is those times which will test you and your commitment to making the relationship work.

Take the story of 'The Two Sisters' by H.E. Bates and their growing independence from each other but a yearning to keep themselves close. The wants of each can be in conflict with each other and result in hurt feelings and separation.

But each has the ability to determine their own attitude and not allow pain to develop in the relationship. Each can let a good attitude rule the day, to be happy for each other in their decisions and adjust accordingly.

So many times an issue can develop between two people that creates a canyon-wide divide in their lives. Many years can pass before they each are willing and can fill in that divide which keeps them apart. If they do repair and come back together they each find that the time lost is more precious then what had caused the divide in the first place.

Rise above the situation in your life and allow your life to be deepened with greater fullness. Do not allow that which will eventually be deemed petty to take away your time with others. Be happy in each other and happiness will be returned to you.

Stay inspired my friends!

Change the World

"No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world." -Robin Williams

Are there ways that you can make a change in this world, ways to make things better for others and for yourself? The answer is yes and it does not require you to have millions of dollars or legions of people.

The only thing it requires is you.

Using your ears to listen closely to hear what your heart believes.

Using your eyes to see the possibility of what your heart is revealing to you.

Using your voice to speak what your heart believes in such a way that others will listen.

Using your actions to show others what your heart will do for them.

Change starts inside of you and flows outward to touch the hearts of others. Change starts with you.

Stay inspired my friends!

Courage to Journey

"Courage is the discovery that you may not win, and trying when you know you can lose." -Tom Krause

Amazingly we find out in life that there are no guarantees. We are suddenly shocked to find that a great relationship, great job, great car, great home, lots of money and excellent health are a given. The dreams we have for success and accomplishment sometimes do not happen.

What we do find out is that life is just life, happening all around us and only giving us opportunities to achieve our dreams. We also find out that life creates challenges to confront and confound our efforts.

Either way, we have to keep trying.

We need to have the courage to step out into that world every day and work towards our dreams. It means overcoming the hurdles placed in front of us; of combating those things which could keep us from achieving those dreams.

It also means never being satisfied with partial success. When we achieve a small amount of success, there is a tendency to "rest upon the laurels", which means to be satisfied with a small degree of success and refrain from any further effort.

We must also be aware of the hidden courage that exists within each of us. It is the courage one needs to pursue our dreams. We go forward with the unspoken knowledge that we may never achieve it.

It is this hidden courage that keeps us moving forward.

What you will find is that most of us do attain our dreams. The results may not look exactly as we first envisioned. Just know it is the journey that becomes the accomplishment. If you give yourself the courage to take that journey, then you will achieve great things.

Stay inspired my friends.