Take Active Control and Put It All Back On Track - Holiday Edition

The beginning of this blog said "WELCOME ONE WELCOME ALL". I wrote:

This site is the populist fight back by ordinary people and small businesses against all kinds of scams, programs, giveaways, and bailouts that use your money and assets.

Well, this holiday season helped me realize why a blog like this is important. The holidays are usually a time for collective activity with family, friends, or even time by yourself. It's also a time of giving to those who you care about and to those who need help. It's a time for reflection on your position in life. For myself, I am thankful that there is support from my wife, family, friends, clients and readers of my words. It is the support that is most important. We all need it.

Yet, I am in deep reflection right now. Through a series of self-made choices, I find myself in a very difficult position. A position that requires accepting full responsibility for my actions. I am constantly asking “How must one accept responsibility for one’s actions?” Perhaps I could lower my head, beat myself up, be angry and full of regret. Rack my mind with "Why? Why? Why did I do what I did” and “How could I have let this happen”. Living in fear of the future. The feeling of being chained to the problem with no escape. This weird feeling of dread because I want to bury my head in the sand. Well, to tell you the truth, I TRIED IT and WENT THROUGH IT. I played into self-pity, disappointment and loathing. I became irritable and angry. LET ME TELL YOU FIRST HAND…IT DOESN'T WORK. It left me breathless and weak. I WAS FROZEN AS TIME WENT BY.

What I did find that worked was… TAKING ACTIVE CONTROL AND PUTTING IT ALL BACK ON TRACK. I committed to real action to make things better. It required a deep breath, a confident posture, and the knowledge that it can and will get better because I wanted it to. I did my LIFE MATH and found that the good was greater than the not-so-good. It required daily prayer, meditation, strong words from wise people, and the belief that I can get up from any fall. It also demanded complete honesty about my mistakes to those who love and depend on me and to myself. It required a discipline and commitment to the right action. The right action that would improve my position.

It demanded a show of strength so grand, that even I could not believe it at first. I am a believer now.

There are some many people I have counseled and talked to who are taking their personal financial problems painfully. For many, it becomes an internalized personal failure. It has left some desperate and depressed. It has left all stressed. It has created this air of defeat…this idea of…”How Could I Have Let This Happen To Me”. It has frozen so many in time.

You are not the first or the last person to have financial problems. Especially now. I have worked with doctors, lawyers, policeman, business owners, teachers, accountants, financial advisors, retirees, the unemployed, real estate professionals, mortgage brokers, and other workers and professionals. I have counseled family, friends, and even acquaintances at events. I have worked with all types of people representing various races, ethnicities, and spiritualities. all spanning the socio-economic spectrum.

What I am trying to say is “You are not alone. We are all in this together. There is way forward.”

Everything you find on this blog and other blogs referenced here, are intended to keep you moving the right way on your financial path with confidence and the knowing that you can TAKE ACTIVE CONTROL and PUT IT ALL BACK ON TRACK. You are in control of your life.

I thank you for reading this holiday post and thank you for being an outlet for some of my feelings. The New Year is upon us. I am confident it will be good for you too.