Hacking Happiness

Today I am departing from my normal subject to cover something important to us all






WALL ST IS NOT CAPITALISM


The recent Occupy Wall St and the viral wave of sympathy occupy demonstrations have no finally received global media attention after being virtually ignored and in my opinion suppressed by the main stream.


The message from the Occupy activists is not that clear and cohesive as there are so many different groups involved but I think we can say that the general tenor is that we have let down by governments which have either allowed or in collusion with the bankers created a society where only a tiny proportion " the 1%"  have benefited hugely from the false profits and left billions of people on the side or in the dirt. 


Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs received total pay of over $54 million ( yes thats right) in 2006 based on the alleged profits of GS. GS subsequently received $10 billion of taxpayers money in 2009 to bail them out and paid out $19 billion in bonuses that same year! Blankfein kept his 2006 bonus and received yet more in 2009


It is because of this and many other dubious cash handouts that one of the main calls from the Occupy movement is for more socialism and the end or serious control of capitalism. They blame uncontrolled capitalism for the current terrible situation but they are wrong.


The current system is not capitalism. Let me explain why.


Here is the dictionary definition of capitalism


“An economic system in which the means of production and distribution are privately or corporately owned and development is proportionate to the accumulation and reinvestment of profits gained in a free market. “
Source: Dictionary.com


The key part of this is the term FREE MARKET. 


We have not had a free market and here is why.


Successive governments going back decades have used teams of advisors taken from the major financial institutions. In the USA these have been predominantly from Goldman Sachs. These “advisors” have “advised” on a structure of financial regulation that is set precisely to benefit the banks and more importantly its executives. In other countries the story is similar.


In the USA in key areas such as the repeal of Glass/Steagall Act, tax breaks on derivatives and offshore corporate banking, the bankers arranged a framework in which they could make super profits, pay little or no tax and hide billions offshore. In addition they were allowed to leverage to utterly ridiculous levels with no backstop and little real underlying security.


This is what bought down our economies but..


This is not  FREE MARKET CAPITALISM. 


This is a rigged game. In a free market these banks would never have been able to leverage up this much. In a free market they would have failed and gone bust. In a free market the executives and shareholders would have not been able to shield themselves from the bankruptcy and walk with the cash whilst the taxpayer pays the price of their dishonesty.


Lets not forget when Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson ( ex GS ) told the USA that the taxpayer had to bail out the banks to the tune of 800 billion dollars (TARP) because if they didn't the banks would not be there to provide finance to fire the recovery. 


What happened , they took the money “with no oversight” and kept it, paid their big bonuses and didn't lend to anybody.


They have rigged the game from top to bottom in their favor and that is NOT capitalism.


What we need is a return to a true free market where those with capital risk it fairly with no bailouts on the horizon. That way they take calculated risks, with their money, not exponential risks with ours, and this creates sustainable prosperity.


The only way out of the current depression is Free Market Capitalism not Socialism, that just makes us all equally poor! 

Yesterday, like millions around the world, I sat and watched the Rugby World Cup from New Zealand.


A good boys BBQ of steak, sausages,some good friends and plenty of cold beer set us up for a fine afternoon

The old saying goes


"If you fail to plan you are planning to fail"


or


"If you have no definite destination for your life  - you are guaranteed to arrive"


Setting a set of goals is the single most important part of achieving anything in life, however most people either don't do this or don't even know how.


Here are some simple rules and a methodology.


First take some time out to sit quietly with a paper and pen and think about what you really want from life, big ideas and small ones too. Ideas from work to play to family


Write out what your heart would most like to happen. write lots of ideas.


Next review them and ask how they would effect your life, for good or bad. reject those that have a negative effect.


Contemplate which ones hold the most meaning for you. and reduce the list accordingly.


Write each goal as a specific, with a time date by when you want to achieve it.


IE "I want to own my own my own surf shop in 2 years time"


Do this for each one.


Now expand each one and put more detail in that means something to you.


You should have goals that are both long term and short term.


Now decide what are the steps you need to make in order to make this dream come true? Put these in time order in three categories, 3 months , 1 year, 3 years. If you want you can have even shorter timestamps. right down to weekly goals that form part of the overall picture and  journey to the big goals


What are the hurdles along the way?


Who do you need to help you?


What do you need to learn, what courses do you need to take etc, set these as mini goals.


Now when you have all the goals, rewrite them. apply this test to them.


They should be SMARTER goals. Your goals should be:


This time rewrite them in the now.


IE Today is 26th October 2013. I have my own surf shop on Venice beach California. I have 3 staff and I make $100,000 a year net profit. I have a great lifestyle, really enjoy my work and work with some really cool guys. I get to surf almost everyday, life is good.

Remember


Specific
Meaningful and Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time stamped
Enticing, juicy
Rewards


Visualize your goal in full rich colour. 
What does it feel like, 
What does it sound like , 
What does it taste like. 
Live it.


why is this important ?, 


Because you create your own future and so many people visualise disaster, bad times, and failure in full rich colour and texture everyday, so guess what they have in their life?


When you have the list of goals, copy them out into different places.


Like


Stuck on your bedroom mirror.
On the opening page on your computer.
On the back of the toilet door.
In your phone
use post it notes, pictures, anything to remind you of what and why you are doing something everyday.


Now write an action plan for the next week and the next month on how you are going to get the first short term goals achieved. Update this weekly, stay on track and adjust as things change. 


This is how big business gets things done so if its good enough for them it has to be good enough for you.


Now go and do it.


Nothing is achieved without action and purpose in life. Act as if you already have your goals, live them and be congruent with them and they will come true.


If you don't have any real goals and vision then you are condemned forever to work for somebody else that does.


You help them get theirs!