Intangible Wealth (IW)

In this video, speaker Barry Schwartz discusses the need for us to implement practical wisdom. I couldn’t agree more with the statements made in this speech. Listen to it for the principles he discusses – they are very important. Each of us has the ability to be great citizens of our country and members of our family and communities. Developing and implementing our practical wisdom will determine the extent to which we become great contributors to our society.
Below, I listed some points that struck me as I listened to the speech. I encourage you to listen for yourself. Are there any points that strike you most?

My Notes:

Practical wisdom is the combination of moral will and moral skill

A wise person knows:
          1. When and how to make the exception to every rule
          2. How to improvise
          3. How to use moral skills in the service of the right aims

A wise person is made not born

You don’t need to be brilliant to be wise; but without wisdom, brilliance isn’t enough

Any work you do that involves interaction with other people is moral work. And any moral work requires practical wisdom.

The single most important thing kids need to learn is character. They need to learn how to respect themselves, they need to learn how to respect their school mates, they need to learn how to respect their teachers, and most important they need to know how to respect learning.

Practical wisdom is the virtue we need above all others because it allows other virtues – honesty, kindness, courage, and so on – to be displayed at the right time and in the right way.

continued from How Are You Educated? Part I…

It occurred to me that the difference between Kim, with her two Masters and Doctorate, and Jane, with a high school diploma, was not their intelligence; both of them are very educated.  Rather, the difference lies in what Kim and Jane chose to study.  The difference is in what each of them are educated in.  You see, while Kim was spending years earning her Masters in the Sciences, Jane was investing years Mastering the Money Game.  While Kim was learning how to get all of her work done on time, Jane was learning how to have other people get all of her work done on time.  Do you see the difference? 

Institutional Education vs. Self Education.

Kim excelled in institutional education, which consist of our elementary and high schools, colleges and universities.  She invested years of study to get her Master’s and Doctorate.  We are all very familiar with institutional education, for better or for worse.  It’s the path we’ve all been taught to follow, and with good reason.  It is now more necessary than ever that we all excel in institutional education. 

Jane excelled in self education, which is structured around life experience, trial and error, and self study.  And, in her case, she invested years of study to learn how to master money and build a business.  However, self education is much more unfamiliar to most of us.  Most of us have not been taught to follow this course of study.  However, if we don’t add this to our life’s curriculum immediately then our future will be severely damaged. 

I’m not critical of the Kims or the Janes of the world.  I take the opportunity to learn from them and challenge my own beliefs and perspectives. 

The fact is we need to excel in both institutional and self education.  Those of us who invest the energy to do this will be rewarded very handsomely, and be able to impact our society incredibly.   Once you begin to invest in your self education you will witness a sharp increase in your awareness and ability to influence. 

How are you educated?

With varying degrees, all of us are institutionally educated.  But to what degree would you say you are self educated?

My conversation with Kim made me wonder about these things.  I ask myself, how much energy have I invested in my institutional education?  How does that compare to what I have invested in my self education?  How can we make sure that we place our intelligence in the areas that matter most? 

What do you think?

The other day I stopped and spoke to a friend of mine, Kim.  I was on the move and there wasn’t much time for me to talk.  I let her know this before we began our conversation since I only had a few moments to chat.  However, I hadn’t spoken to her in a while so I at least wanted to engage in a brief conversation to exchange pleasantries and get a quick update on how she is. 

Kim began to tell me how she was really feeling squeezed by the current economy.  She joined a network marketing business a couple years ago and has been working hard in it since.  Unfortunately though, despite her hard work and diligence in the business she has yet to earn the type of money she would like to.  Her cash flow has been minimal, and she’s been left with too much month at the end of the money.  This scenario is not too uncommon, wouldn’t you agree?  I’m sure many of us could relate.  I could hear the grief in her voice and see the disappointment in her face as she spoke. 

I took a glance at my watch to check the time.  I had about another minute’s worth of listening before I had to get in my car and leave to avoid being late for my appointment.  

As she continued, she began to complain about her network marketing business and how it’s not working.  “The economy is bad,” she said, “people are not buying!  It’s so hard.”  Frustrated, she said, “I’ve got two Masters degrees and a Doctorate; yet, there are people in the network marketing business, like Jane, with no college degrees at all making 100’s of thousands of dollars!  I don’t get it!  These people are uneducated making all of this money and here I am with two Masters and a Doctorate, making pennies!” 

She began to calm down as I let her know I had to leave to avoid being late for my appointment.  I told her that I could probably help her with her business.  Not so much financially but more so from her mental approach, which may eventually help her financially.  She agreed and we promised each other that we’d pick up with our conversation in the near future.  We exchanged good byes as I hopped in my car and drove off to my next destination.

Later that day I reflected on our conversation.  Here is Kim with not one, but two Masters Degrees and a Doctorate.  She’s been working her network marketing business for two years and hasn’t been able to generate a consistent positive cash flow every month.  Yet, other network marketers in her business, like Jane, with no college degree and only a high school diploma, are earning 100’s of thousands of dollars per year.  Why is that? 

Does that really make any sense?

To be continued…How Are You Educated?  Part II