September 11th: A Lesson in Priorities, Financial or Otherwise
On September 11th, 2000 I started a new job for a company that I now do contract work for. At that point in time I was new to the tech industry and my job was to help the guy in documentation handle the heavy load that he had. Unfortunately a few weeks after I started I was moved onto a web project and I never went back to doing full time documentation. I helped in a few areas but for the most part the web development took over my position. A year later I drove into work oblivious to the world events that had taken place and feeling excited that I had been working for the company for a year. It had been a tough, but good year. My co-worker walked into my office and asked, “Did you hear about the plane that crashed into one of the twin towers?” I had not. What was an exciting day turned into one of the most emotionally intense days of my life aside from marriage and having children.
September 11th rolls around every year and I have a small personal celebration. September 11th this year will be seven years with the company (though now as a contractor), but I will recall the life altering events of my first year anniversary with great intensity. That single event helped me refocus my life so that when I think about what I have to do every day I remember my priorities.
I focus on my relationship with God first, my relationship with my wife and family second, and I take the duties of my job to be integrated with my provision for my family. Finances are a part of my serving my family - they’re a priority because my family matters. I don’t worship the money, I don’t focus on the money as a priority over my family, but I focus on them because my family is a priority. I blog about what I’m learning here because I think that there are others like me who have been distracted by ‘the pursuit of happiness’ but forgetting life and liberty. This blog serves the Internet in an attempt to help remind people that happiness is not through finances, finances are part of life and liberty with an end result that will hopefully include happiness.
Don’t get distracted by advertisements, social pressures, or extended family to be pursuing the ‘new’ American Dream. The drive for stuff. Instead recall the old American dream of independence coupled with interdependence. Take a moment to go encourage someone today. Encourage them to be vigorous and passionate about what they’ve got going on in life. Help remind them of liberty, help remind them about what life is about, and remind them to be focused on their priorities - their children’s children will more than likely be effected.
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