Just Stay Focused

DISCLAIMER: This is my first post on GBJ in nearly two months. I will gladly accept the proper amount of responsibility, should it happen to suck in any excessive manner. However, due to my limited exposure to this venue in recent weeks, I have not been kept fully abreast of current issues, events, or actions. Therefore, I have limited knowledge of any wrongdoing and am not fully able to take responsibility for any significantly sucking that this blog post creates for GBJ or its affiliates

Any comments related to the content of this post which may help future posts will be duly noted.

Thank you,
J2S, Hanau, Germany 2009-03-21

Public Opinion

Anybody who has read my blog knows that I'm chock full of opinions about politics - and that neither the Democrats nor the Republicans can rightfully lay claim to my heart, mind, or soul. I love to think, listen, speak, read, write - I practically eat, drink, and sleep politics. It's not that political decisions, themselves, are exciting. It's because political decisions can affect so many people. It's the scope of influence that has me hooked.

If you've read, listened to, watched, or talked about the news in the past few weeks, I'm sure AIG executive bonuses were a part of the discussion. A lot of people have been outraged by the fact that $165 million tax dollars were lined up to pay some executives for losing billions of dollars. A good number of people were on the other side of the room saying the bonuses were a part of their contracts and that they had to be paid. Other people, still, were discussing ways in which the money could go where it rightfully belonged, based on their viewpoint. I even shared my opinion about this on Twitter.

The most effective people during these past weeks weren't spending a lot of time taking sides in an event that will probaby get much uglier before it is cleaned up. It's not because they were trying to keep their hands clean or stay out of other people's business. It's because they were focused on finding or creating a solution to something. The most effective people don't waste their time complaining about things they have no control over. The most effective people look for ways in which they can make a difference. We all have problems and the most effective people find ways to solve the biggest ones.

If the US dollar is significantly devalued in the global currency market due to the increased circulation, and if America's unemployment rate skyrockets, I want you to do one thing: fight the good fight. Don't spread fear or hate - it might feel good to be heard, but it only adds to the problem. Don't take sides in a battle in which you have no control. Make yourself an impact player and become part of the solution. We all have problems, and some of our problems are much more dire than those of others. The objective is not to determine who has the biggest or the most problems. The object is to identify whatever problems face us and work towards solutions to solve them.

Just about anybody can complain about something, and practically all of these people can help develop a solution for whatever problem they identify. The problem, as I see it, is that most people stop well short of this second phase.

Hopefully, this blog post will be used as a stepping-stone to persuade people to change their behavior from reactive (merely noticing problems and complaining about them) to proactive (developing solutions to the problems they notice).

Will you be part of my solution?