The Things You’re Willing to do for the Things That You Want to Do…

Value is almost always intrinsically linked to cost. Both the intangibles and tangibles that we hold dear tend to come at a high price: a price worth paying. Why? Because the things we consider to be “quick and easy” are most of the time cheap, ultimately unsatisfying, and relatively worthless.  Think about it.  Getting that Big Mac and fries from McDonald’s drive through is cheap (less than $5), ultimately unsatisfying (it’s nothing to write home about), and relatively worthless (the nutritional content is non-existent); yet, we still find ourselves waiting in that drive through line and having a “meal on the go” because in the midst of our busy lives, we chose convenience over quality.

In our culture, we have become prone to taking the path of least resistance. We like things quick. We like things easy. We like things cheap. Why take the stairs when you can take the elevator? Why cook when you can go out to eat? Why go to the mall when you can have whatever it is that you want delivered right to your doorstep? While convenience undoubtedly makes our lives a little bit easier, it doesn’t necessarily make it satisfying.

Ever heard of that saying, “Nothing worth having ever comes without a fight?” While we wish it wasn’t, we all know it’s the truth…

Whenever I think about this proverb, I am always reminded of this one time I had gone shopping at Kmart. There was a little girl standing in line in front of me with a boxed Barbie in one hand and a giant jug of pennies in the other. When it was her turn to check out, she handed the Barbie to the cashier. He scanned it and said, “That will be $14.99.” The little girl replied, “Ok.” She then dumped her entire jug of pennies onto the counter and started counting, penny by penny, $14.99. The cashier ultimately turned off his check-out light. I always admired that little girl. She wanted that Barbie so bad that she neither minded the time it took to count out all those pennies, nor the time it took to save up all of those pennies.

While I can’t help but laugh at this story, it also makes me sad. These days, it doesn’t seem as if we are willing to do WHATEVER IT TAKES to get what we want.  I find this especially true when choosing a career.  Instead of taking the time to truly know ourselves, we let our resume tell others what we can do, or let companies decide what they will allow us to do.  When is it going to be time to choose for ourselves? If we are capable of choosing the car we drive, house we live in, and life partner, there is no reason in the world why we can’t use that same drive and determination to select the qualities we want in a job and go after it!  Not sure how to go about it alone?  There are people out there that can help!

So…What are you saving your pennies up for?

 

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