HEY, ME! GET OUT OF MY WAY

by David Stoddard, © 2001

How often it is we give up wanting to do something even before we give ourselves an honest chance of succeeding. Perhaps, we begin writing our autobiography. We get the table of contents and the introduction written, then we let it sit because we don't think anyone will care. We begin a diet over a weekend. Within a couple of days, we are back to our normal habits because we didn't see any immediate results.

Maybe we want to start a desktop publishing business. We get it started and the clients start coming in sooner than we expected. Because of our past experiences where we have been so good at what we did, we only remember getting bombarded with more and more work when we wish we could have taken a break. We may see how this can end up, so we slack off and let the business of our dreams fade away. Or maybe we have this idea of having our own place on the Internet. We create a page, then we have different ideas to put on it. Then we think of starting a business with it. Then we also want to have a newsletter for people. Then we want to do web pages for others. Then we go back and work on ways to get people to read our newsletter. But we need a better web site. So we start from scratch and the circle continues. Having too many things we would like to do can stop us as well.

Personally, I've become an expert at getting out of my own way when it comes to doing things. After all, I have gotten in my own way over and over and over again for years. I still fit the last one. So many different areas that interest me, I have jumped from one thing to another to another. Like many of the books on the bookshelf at home, I don't think I have ever finished one of them all the way through.

We stop ourselves in any number of ways.

• I'm not good enough: Well, on Monday, a group of students will be given a lecture by the worst teacher. The worst actor will star in a made-for-television movie. And the worst boy band will put on a mini show for friends and family in their garage. - No one will be interested: Just look around at some of the things you see on television or read in newspapers or books or magazines. It is amazing some things have lasted this long. - I don't have the time or money: Need to evaluate priorities. Are the things which take up your time more important that what you would like to do? Can you begin slowly to change things in some ways to save more? This one will take a bit of work and some sacrifice if you really want to do something else.
  
  
• I'm too old/young: Colonel Sanders was in his eighties when he began his Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant. Anne Frank was a young girl when she wrote her diary which is still published and read to this very day throughout the world.
  
  
• I don't know what I want to do: You may not know exactly what you want to do, but there is something in the back of your mind that is important. Especially if you know you're not happy in what you are doing now, you know there is more you want out of life.
  
  
• I want to do too much: No one says you can't do a little of everything. Just have to pick one that will set the groundwork for the others. Find what is the common thread in the things you would like, and start there. You can branch off once that foundation is in place.
  
  
• The universe is out to get me: Ummmmm. Not at all. Once you make up your mind and begin heading in some direction, the universe will open up in ways you can't see right now. People will come into your life, events will take place, and you will begin to see a bit further each day. But you have to make the first moves.
  

Motivational speaker Les Brown in his book "It's Not Over Until You Win," tells a story of a keynote speaker at a National Speakers Association conference he attended. The speaker was perhaps the worst speaker Les had ever heard. The man spoke in a monotone voice and was dull as a butter knife. By the end of his presentation, more than two-thirds of the audience had walked out.

The speaker, noticing this said something that pretty much sums up this column. "The reason I am up here (Doing) and you are sitting down there (watching) is because I represent the thoughts you have rejected for yourself."

Give yourself a chance and get out of your own way.

Expensive vs. Inexpensive Colleges

Courtesy of: MomsBudget.com, © 2001

Most parents today do whatever it takes to pay for the college of their kid's choice. They think it's their duty to give their kids an advantage in life. But is there really an advantage to an expensive college?

On the parents side there is really no advantage. The parents are often left in a financial disaster after they've taken a second mortgage, liquidated their 401(k), and even taken second jobs. And now a study has been released by the National Bureau of Economic Research that answers the question "Is there an economic advantage to attending a selective college?"

The research team tracked the 1976 freshman class of 30 schools ranging from prestigious Yale University to public schools such as Pennsylvania State University. They compared the earnings of students who attended such prestigious schools with kids who were accepted to those schools but chose to attend the cheaper schools.

The results are not surprising if you think about it. Based on SAT and other scores, the smart talented kids who attended no-name schools, are doing just as well in their careers as the kids who chose the Ivy League schools. The only difference: the kids who went to the cheaper school aren't as far in debt.

Starting your life after college is hard enough without having to worry about paying $40,000 in school loans when you only make $30,000 a year. Keep in mind also that a degree from Yale doesn't ensure your child's success. An employer is more concerned with your child's ability to do the job, than where their degree is from.

If your child is bright, it doesn't matter what school she attends, she'll likely do well. Evaluate the merits of the school your child wants to attend against the costs and make an informed decision.

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