Today I’d like to take a break from our 12 Keys to Black Wealth series and share with you a little story that frequently circulates self-help and financial empowerment circles:
Looking to escape the hustle and bustle of big city life, a family moved to the quiet country roads of a far flung suburb.
Each summer morning the father would take his small son on a walk around the neighborhood. Prime daddy – son time. Every morning they’d stroll past a neighbor’s old golden brown dog, howling at the top of his lungs.
Day after day the father and son would pass the howling old dog.
One day the young boy looked up at his father and asked, “Daddy, why does the dog howl like that?”
The father unsure replied, “I don’t know son, let’s find out.”
So the two strolled to their neighbor’s door and rang the bell. A weathered old man peeped from the other side of the door, “Yes, can I help you?”
“Mister”, said the little boy, “Why is your dog howling like that?”
“Well” said the old man as he slowly opened the door and knelt down next to the little boy, “See dat der dog is howling because he’s sitting on a nail.”
The boy surprised, asked with a child-like simplicity, “Why doesn’t he just get up?”
The old man slowly turned toward the dog, sighed, and then slowly turned back to the little boy, “The nail doesn’t hurt bad enough yet.”
How many of us complain about our circumstances yet do nothing to change them? We sit there howling like the old dog about our weight, our lack of money, or our poor health.
How much does the nail have to hurt before we actually take charge and do something about it?
It’s easy to complain. In fact, I think some people get a certain amount of perverse pleasure out of complaining, telling anyone who’ll listen their “woe is me” stories. Yet they do nothing about it.
Are you sitting on the nail of debt, money trouble, or out of control spending? Are you howling to wind? What will it take for you to get up off your nail?
Once we understand the true nature of wealth we can start making our money work for us instead of against us.
Personal finance is about more than math. It's about behavior. Change your behavior and you change your financial situation.
When we spend money we're really exchanging time spent on the job (our life energy) for a product. Understanding this leads to better buying decisions.
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