From the book "Your money or your life"
We aren't making a living, we are making a dying. Consider the average American worker. The alarm rings at 6.45 and our working man or woman is up and running. Shower. Dress in the professional uniform- suits or dresses for some, overalls for others, whites for the medical professionals, jeans and flannel shirts for the construction workers. Breakfast, if there's time. Grab commuter mug and briefcase and hop in the car for the daily punishment called rush hour. On the job from nine to five. Deal with the boss. Deal with the coworker sent by the devil to rub you the wrong way. Deal with the suppliers. Deal with clients/customers/patients. Act busy. Hide mistakes. Smile when handed impossible deadlines. Give a sign of relief when the ax known as "restructuring" or "downsizing"- or just plain getting laid off- falls on others heads. Shoulder the added workload. Watch the clock. Argue with your conscious but agree with the boss. Smile again. Five o'clock. Back in the car and onto the freeway for the evening commute. Home. Act human with mates, kids or roommates. Eat. Watch TV. Bed. Eight hours of blessed oblivion.
And they call this making a living? Think about it. How many people have you seen who are more alive at the end of the work day than they were at the beginning? .... Aren't we killing ourselves- our health, our relationships, our sense of joy and wonder- for our jobs? We are sacrificing our lives for money- but it's happening so slowly that we barely notice.
People pay lip service to their dreams of freedom, but many feel frightened by it. If I stop making money for any reason whatsoever, no corporate parent will take care of me. This is a frightening thought for most people. No wonder so many of us have grown used to the security of our corporate cages.
Caged animals develop all sorts of neurotic behaviors. A common neurosis is an addiction to the earn-and-spend cycle. We are taught since childhood that our place in society is defined by what we consumed. If you drive a $50,000 car, you are a better, more successful person than someone who drives a $15,000 auto, whereas a neighbor who drives a $120,000 car is a very special winner altogether. The man who dresses at an Armani boutique is a more refined individual than someone who buys his pants and shirts at the corner store. Society waves countless carrots in our faces. The ads sell not food, shelter, or transportation, but a boost of self esteem. An addict feels revived by a fix for only a short time. People spend their entire lives straining to keep up with the Joneses. Those dastardly Joneses do not have the decency to stay in place, and as they climb the ladder, we must climb also.
How do we define right and wrong? So far till now, most right and wrong are based on whether it is for the good or for the bad of the society. Socially correct... but is it really correct?
There's always a hierarchy in society. The base is always wider than the top to be stable. There's always more workers than bosses in this society. Therefore a lot of things are catered for the masses. Our education prepare and mold us to be workers. We were told that working hard is a virtue since young. We were told not to take risk. We were told that not to dream unrealistic dreams.
Does all these really serve the workers? Being hardworking is for the benefit of the company. There r so many people who work long hours a day, sacrificing their personal time for the company. Company earns money, does a part of the earning goes into the payroll of the worker? Working the minimum 8 hours a day and working 24 hours a day gets the same pay.
We were told not to take risk. Stability is the key. Does it really serve the worker? By engraving into the mindset of workers of this ensure that movement of workers is minimise to a minimum. Because everyone is afraid of risk and yield for stability, they do not dare to quit a job for fear of risk and uncertainty.
We were told not to dream of unrealistic dreams. Without dreams, we would still be living in caves and hunting for our survival. What is unrealistic yesterday may be realistic today. Why is it that we, as individual, are discourage from dreaming big while companies and organisations are encourage to dream and come out with computers, aeroplanes, and even going to the moon?
Is there really a conspiracy going on somewhere in this society?
Does history repeat itself? Or is it that human beings are similar?
I read somewhere that history will repeat itself until we break out of it. Unless we manage to break out of it, the same thing will come to us again and again. The bully will always bully the same few people again and again until they stand up for themselves. The same situation always happens, be it in our relationship with friends, love ones, family etc. For example, some people always attracts the wrong kind of friends etc etc...
Perhaps the first thing is not to victimise ourselves. Don't ever thing and allow yourself to feel victimised. Study the problem and solve it. We can't change others, but we can change ourselves. And in the process of changing ourselves, we change the way to respond to it and the whole situation.
Many fights are started with one person hurling abusive words at the other. The other will respond to it with a more abusive words and eventually, it escalates to a fight. But if the first person hurl angry words at the other and the other person smile and walk away, a lot of fights can be avoided. I remembered my sis once told me that sometimes she feels like quarreling with my bro in law but it never happens cos my bro in law just diffuse it by not retorting her at that moment. One hand just can't clap.
