Killing Sacred Cows Blog

By Chris Miles  

This is an essay I recently wrote about independence which I feel pertains to our discussion of overcoming myths and becoming financially free.

Could independence be no more than freedom from oppression and domination? Conversely, is independence merely unobstructed freedom to do anything we desire with no fear of intentional or unintentional consequences? Absolutely not! The more freedom we expect, the more responsibility we inescapably accept.

Today, we see a pandemic paradigm governing humans to blame anyone when things go awry. Thomas Jefferson proclaimed, "Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty." Why do we shrilly scream for independence and utter whining whispers at the first sight of responsibility?

To many, independence means to be "in dependence." They fancy others slavishly sowing so they can slothfully reap. They "fight" for freedom, but ultimately, beg for bondage. They want what has never existed - freedom from consequence. Indisputable independence is the freedom to pioneer one's path and be accountable for the destination.

My challenge is to consider what areas of our life and finances are we not taking on responsibility. Are we blaming market events, investors, financial institutions, oil companies, politicians, etc for our problems rather than creating solutions? Why can we see so clearly others' errors which are somtimes trivial and are so blind to our own destructive faults? What possibilities would arise if we focused the energy we waste complaining and repeatedly pointing out others' mistakes towards production and creating greater happiness and financial freedom through discovering soul purpose? What blessings are we failing to see because we focus more time and energy on the lack thereof? I challenge each of us to objectively ponder these questions, journal our responses, and identify ways to further focus on our financial independence.

Click Here to See the Building Walkthrough Garrett Mentions in the Video

"Always make your contribution bigger than your reward." -Dan Sullivan

When it comes to your personal prosperity, one of the most important things you can learn and internalize is the critical difference between Consumers and Producers. The decision to become a Producer, no matter what life throws at you, will determine your prosperity more than any other factor.

Read the definitions below and identify areas in your life where you may be consuming more than you produce, and strive to reverse that. Furthermore, think of how your current Consumer mindset in those areas may be influenced by scarcity thinking, and strive to cultivate the abundance mindset instead.

Consumer: One who consumes more value than he or she produces. Because consumers focus on what they get instead of what they can give, they avoid responsibility, they depend on others for their happiness, and they rarely create real value.

Consumers operate in scarcity, so they view the world through eyes that see poverty and limitations. They think there isn’t enough to go around, so they should get what they can before it all runs out. They take and leave nothing in place of what they take.

They often feel victimized by other people and external circumstances when they don’t get what they think they should. They believe that material things, not people, have intrinsic value.

Because they feel entitled to everything that is given to them, they are poor stewards and allow their human life value to degenerate.

Security to consumers is based on things outside of themselves and their choices. It is anything and everything they can think of: the government, their bosses, their company, their parents or grandparents, their 401(k), etc.

When things go wrong, nothing is ever their fault—they place blame and avoid responsibility. Security to them is the expectation that someone somewhere will always take care of them and make things right somehow. They believe in luck and misfortune, not choice and accountability.

Consumer Condition: A worldview that emphasizes scarcity, win-lose transactions, fear, selfishness, dependence, ownership, accumulation, destruction, luck, and entitlement.

Producer: One who produces more value than he or she consumes. Producers are the responsible, innovative, and creative people who create all of the products and services that we buy and use.

They are more concerned with giving than with receiving. They practice enlightened self-interest, the belief that the way to bring ourselves the most happiness is to serve others.

They are happy, wealthy, and successful, or they are on their way to becoming so. Producers lift, bless, serve, and contribute to everything good in the world. Producers always leave things better than they found them, even if they weren’t responsible for the destruction that they fix.

Producers know that people, not material things, have intrinsic value. They love people and use material things to serve others. They operate in abundance, and they view the world through eyes that see limitless possibilities for value creation.

They are wise stewards over everything that they have been blessed with.

Producer Paradigm: A worldview that emphasizes abundance, win-win interactions, faith, service, interdependence, stewardship, utilization, creation, accountability, and value creation. 

“We have no more right to consume happiness without producing it than to consume wealth without producing it.”    -George Bernard Shaw

Scarcity Mindset: The belief that resources are limited, and the world is a stage for a zero-sum game of accumulation. In a zero-sum game, anything that another wins is no longer available to all others playing the game. Further, these winnings are not replaced or transformed into anything of equivalent or greater value that remains in the game, available to other players. In scarcity, ownership by another means the loss of opportunity for oneself.

When our actions are based on a scarcity mindset, we are acting on fear: fear that we won’t get our fair share, that somebody else will reap rewards that we won’t, or that we’ll have to fight tooth and nail against others to achieve the level of success or prosperity we desire. And this fear causes us to make irrational decisions (especially when it comes to our finances) that limit our potential rather than enhance it.

In a world of possible freedom, joy, abundance, and service, a scarcity mindset cripples us and aids us in seeing not much more than limitations, suffering, poverty, and selfishness.

Abundance Mindset: The belief that there are more than enough resources to fulfill the desires of all the people within a society. At the heart of abundance is a belief in human ingenuity and human value, and a dedication to applying as much of your own value and ingenuity as you can to improve your society and reap the rewards.

The abundance paradigm helps you see the possibility of and the value in win-win exchanges and transactions. People who are operating in abundance know that by serving the wants and needs of others, and thus creating happiness in the lives of others, they actually bring more happiness to themselves. The goal is to serve others, not to exploit or dominate them. They are able to serve wholeheartedly and completely because they know that by so doing, they aren’t in any way diminishing their own happiness; in fact, they are generating more happiness and success in their own lives.

In an abundance paradigm, we fulfill our needs and wants by helping others fulfill their own; transactions are always win-win. In abundance, all of our thoughts, words, emotions, and actions are motivated by contributing to our personal success and the success of others. In abundance, no one is jealous or envious of another’s money; there is infinite wealth to be created and put to use.

 

“Riches secured on the competitive plane are never satisfactory and permanent; they are yours today, and another’s tomorrow. Remember, if you are to become rich in a scientific and certain way, you must rise entirely out of the competitive thought. You must never think for a moment that the supply is limited. Just as soon as you begin to think that all the money is being “cornered” and controlled by bankers and others, and that you must exert yourself to get laws passed to stop this process, and so on; in that moment you drop into the competitive mind, and your power to cause creation is gone for the time being; and what is worse, you will probably arrest the creative movements you have already instituted.” - Wallace D. Wattles

How does your paradigm affect how you treat yoursef and others?

Scarcity is characterized by adversarial, win-lose relationships. When people compete in scarcity they try to do so at the expense of others. Those in scarcity say or believe things like, "It's a dog-eat-dog world," or, "If you want a piece of the pie, you have to take it from other people." They feel they have to take from others to get what they want. They believe that there are never enough resources to serve all human desires.

In abundance, however, you fulfill your needs and wants by helping others to fulfill theirs; it’s always win-win. In abundance all your thoughts, speech, emotions, and actions are motivated out of love and faith. You look for opportunities to serve and give, rather than to take. You know that helping others to get what they want is the best way to get what you want. You know that there are always enough resources to fulfill all human desires.

Scarcity leads to pride, jealousy, envy, selfishness and covetousness. Abundance, on the other hand, leads to humility, confidence, and service. You cannot be jealous or envious of someone’s looks or money in abundance because you know that there are infinite forms and expressions of beauty, and infinite wealth to be accessed and utilized.

Those in scarcity often feel threatened or insecure when people disagree with them. Those who are the most secure are enjoying a high degree of the abundance paradigm. When you are in abundance, you don’t feel insecure about anyone disagreeing with your views, even if they are wrong and are at direct odds with principle.

The more abundant you are the more secure you are, and when you feel secure you are more able to get outside of yourself and listen to and deeply understand others. This in turn dramatically increases your ability to get others to listen to you. As James Allen said, “The more tranquil a man becomes, the greater his success, his influence, his power for good…The strong, calm man is always loved and revered.”

Become a "strong, calm" man or woman by ridding yourself of scarcity thinking and embracing the abundance paradigm.