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The Harsh Truth: Many of Our Financial Problems Are Self-Inflicted

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This may offend some people. That’s okay. Sometimes the truth is uncomfortable. We spend a lot of time blaming governments, employers, inflation, immigrants, taxes, corporations, and “the system” for our financial struggles. While all of those factors certainly play a role, I believe one of the biggest causes of financial hardship is something far closer to home: Our own choices. Think about this for a moment. Imagine a village of ten families. Each family insists on having their own internet account, their own streaming subscriptions, their own expensive cable package, their own electricity setup, their own water account, their own security system, their own vehicle, and often their own unnecessary luxuries. Then everyone gathers together and complains that life is too expensive. What if the problem isn’t only that things cost too much? What if the problem is that we refuse to share? The Death of Community Economics Our grandparents understood something that many of us have ...
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The Great Conversation Illusion: When Nobody Is Actually Listening

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I sat quietly listening to a conversation recently, and after a few minutes, I started to laugh internally. Not because the topic was funny. Not because the people were unintelligent. But because I realized that nobody was actually listening to anyone else. Every response began the same way: “No, no, but…” And then the speaker would proceed to explain their own point of view. The other person would nod, wait for their opportunity, and then respond: “No, no, but…” And off they would go again. What struck me wasn’t the disagreement. Disagreement is healthy. What struck me was that neither person appeared interested in understanding the other person’s perspective. They were simply waiting for their turn to speak. It made me wonder: How many of our conversations are actually conversations at all? We Don’t Listen. We Reload. Most people believe they are good listeners. In reality, many of us are simply reloading our arguments while the other person is talking. We’re not list...
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