Lazy is the Real Mother of Invention
We’ve all heard the phrase "necessity is the mother of invention." Well, I say nuts to that! (what a strange saying). Sure, necessity has generated a number of inventions and improvements over the years. Let’s get real here, though, I contend that lazy is much more effective at inspiring improvements (and especially conveniences)!
Ok, so maybe necessity triggered numerous medical improvements over the years, but lazy triggered being able to see your doctor, walk down the hall to get your blood drawn for labs, and check a special voice mail in a few days to get your results.
We’re too lazy to mail letters, so email was invented. Too lazy to walk over to the phone handset to make a call - here’s a cordless phone. Too lazy to wait until you get home to make a call - here’s a cell phone.
Too lazy to load 45 1.44 MB disks into your computer one after another to install the latest and greatest version of your favorite software application? That’s why we have CDs and now DVDs.
Entire segments of industries have been created to appease our laziness. You can get someone to come to your house to clean it, power-wash it, paint it, replace the windshield on your car, detail your car, or even wash your pet. You can even get your groceries delivered right to your door!
Internet access? Lazy. High-speed internet access? Really lazy. Remote control? Do you even need to ask?!
I think there’s a difference between laziness and indolence
I’ll admit that I am lazy. I don’t deny it, instead I embrace it. I am obsessed with efficiency - doing everything in the easiest and most effective way possible. Why, you ask? Simply because I am lazy.
Now just because I am lazy doesn’t mean I won’t work hard. I want to do even more things than I already have time to do - that’s why I am so lazy (makes perfect sense, right!). It’s 11:09 PM, I have done four things on my evening todo list (working on the 5th as we speak) and have four more things I’d really like to get done tonight. Therefore, I am lazy with each individual item. By that, I mean I want to devote the minimum amount of time to get each one done so I have more time to do more things. Lazy? Yes. Indolent? I don’t think so.
So maybe impatience is a factor as well
As I read back over the post, it strikes me that impatience plays a large role in some of these inventions as well. I still think lazy is the mother. I guess that makes impatience that annoying aunt that is always pinching your cheeks and saying things like, "How are we doing today? Oh, we’re such a big boy/girl now, aren’t we?"
Only a few links this week - guess I was too lazy!
- Bible Money Matters provides a list of 10 things he has learned about money (I wish I knew more of these earlier in life!)
- Take a look at being a good steward of your finances at Keeping the Kingdom First (guest post by Bob from ChristianPF.com )
- Here are some good tips on getting started with a budget (@ Gather Little By Little )
- What is your purchase personality? (@ The Happy Rock ) - I think I am probably "The Middle Man" though I would change it slightly to be more of a value based approach (not "values" based). I don’t necessarily get the cheapest thing, but I do like to find the "sweet spot" of price and value.
Have a great weekend and God bless…
photo credit: heydrienne
What if Everyone only got Paid once a Year?
I have no idea what I was thinking about the other day…but this thought popped into my mind:
"Would people take better care or worse care of their finances if everyone only got paid once per year?"
I like to come up with these strange questions to try to get myself and others thinking - I feel like it stretches my brain somehow (not literally) (I guess this is why I ended up having to answer most of my own questions in that Bible study we used to host in Arizona) (I should really stop talking to myself). I know it isn’t practical and it would never work and all of that - but practicality is not the point of this exercise.
Payday
So, on January 2nd (the 1st is still a holiday) (ok, the first weekday after January 1st - how’s that?), everyone got their single paycheck for the entire year. What happens next?
At first, I thought this would be a complete train-wreck. A number of people would have that money blown by Groundhog day. On the other hand, for fiscally responsible people, this would actually be somewhat of a boon. If you had all your entire year’s salary up-front instead of accumulating it little by little throughout the year, you’d be able to earn significantly more interest during the year.
Taking into account how much credit card debt the average American has, I think it is obvious that some people have a problem delaying immediate gratification to focus on the long term. Therefore, would people flush with cash at the beginning of the year run out and satisfy their every whim? I would say "probably." (you might say, "at least they’re not using a credit card," and this is true…but come the end of the year all expenses would end up on the CC)
But maybe, just maybe, if people knew that they only got this one paycheck and they were not getting any more, maybe they would be inspired to be more careful about their planning and living. Yeah, you’re right, that’s unlikely and it would probably end up being worse than now. Now that I think about it, that large lump sum would probably distract some normally fiscally responsible people and cause them to overspend early in the year as well.
So, I would answer the question like this: for some people it would work out a lot better. For some others, they would be inspired to get more serious about saving and planning. Unfortunately, I’d guess that some people would get distracted by the money, lose sight of the long-term, and end up being worse off. And, of course, I still believe that a number of people would have it all spent by MLK, Jr Day. The bottom line is it would be a lot better for some and a lot worse for others.
What do you think? Better? Worse? Why am I even wondering about this?
This Week in the Blogosphere
- This is just a great post discussing the different stages of how we view the purpose of money (@ The Happy Rock )
- Here’s a post discussing debt, debt myths, acceptable debt, and reasons to avoid debt . There are some really good reasons in his list of why to avoid debt. (@ Bible Money Matters )
- Frugality sometimes gets a bad rap - but I agree with Bob that there is a difference between being frugal and being cheap (@ ChristianPF )
- Tithing! Anyone still here? Here’s a story about someone going through the process of tithing for the first time (Guest post for Gather Little by Little written by Capital Couples Finance )
Have a great weekend and God bless…
Caviar: Really Yummy Treat or Really Poor Financial Decision?
My lovely wife and I, along with our children, recently returned from a vacation to visit my wife’s sister and family in Florida. My brother-in-law is a manager at a very expensive and swanky hotel there (I can’t even afford the family rate). So, one night he brings home some caviar for us to try for fun.
Caviar comes in a really small bottle…
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