New York Times editor Dana Jennings is coping with prostate cancer and wrote a blog post about his dog. I feel the same way about my dog, Frankie. Here is a snippet:

In spending so much time with Bijou, I began to realize that our dogs, in their carefree dogginess, make us more human, force us to shed our narcissistic skins. Even when you have cancer, you can’t be utterly self-involved when you have a floppy-eared mutt who needs to be fed, walked and belly-scratched. And you can’t help but ponder the mysteries of creation as you gaze into the eyes of your dog, or wonder why and how we chose dogs and they chose us.

Here is the link: Life lessons from the family dog

The economic crisis descending upon us is having a profound impact on many people’s lives. One of the most troubling things to witness is the rise in suicides, especially high profile suicides. The past two days news of US property mogul, Sheldon Good, and the German business magnate, Adolph Merckle, have graced the front pages of newspapers. They join the French investor who was conned by Bernie Madoff, Thierry Magon de La Villehuchet. This news is very sad not just because they are dead, but more sad that they chose to end their lives as if there was no more point to living.

These men were described as honest, hard working and generally good, smart people. I didn’t know know them when they were alive, but they chose to end their lives once their businesses and fortunes collapsed. Why just because your money is gone, your life is forfeit and has no value? How utterly sad is that? How sad is it that these people only defined themselves by business, materiality and money?

There is so much more to life than the material things we accumulate only to give up later when we die or give away before we die. There is family and friends. There is nature and beauty. There is love and goodwill. And most importantly is service to others.

Our ego mind lies to us. It convinces us that what is important is the kind of clothes on our backs, the shoes that we wear, the car that we drive, the house that we live in is paramount in our lives. The ego mind convinces us that our business stature and how other people regard us is what is important. But this is all a lie. Is this what our soul really wants? Is this who we are? Of course not, but years of listening to our ego and worrying what other people think create habits of mind and this is what we become. So that in the end, if suddenly our business, money and fame is taken from us, we are left with nothing. And what else is there to live for?

Imagine instead what these three very capable, very smart men could have done in terms of service to investors, their families, friends or just one person if they hadn’t killed themselves. What lessons could they teach investors? How could they be of help to family members or friends in need of help, advice or just someone’s presence? What help are they now? How much suffering has their deaths caused?

What if even in their hour of darkness, they had broken out to volunteer or do service for another person? This is one selfish reason, I volunteer. In one of my darkest times in 2003, when my love life, business career and health all failed at once, I’m convinced that volunteering at the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta hospital kept me grounded and functioning, and it kept me from the darker thoughts that obviously consumed the three men mentioned above.

In 2008, I had the worst business performance of my life. It was terrible and it hurt me greatly that the clients that had entrusted money to me had lost so much money. And things are very uncertain now in many ways in my life. But what I have learned is that I can only do my best, work hard, learn from my mistakes and move forward. In the meantime, there is way too much for me to do that isn’t business, including: service, volunteering and good deeds. There are friends and family that may need me for a myriad of problems or advice or just to listen.

My advice to those that are hurting economically is to get out of your ego for a moment and do service for someone else. In times like these, I can guarantee you that there are people in circumstances that are much worse than yours. Try to help someone else. And in the end your giving of yourself will end up helping you in ways that are so much more important than material possessions and money. The meaning and the joy that you will receive will make you richer than you can possibly imagine.

This is one of the best things I’ve ever read:

To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen, who play with their boats at sea–”cruising”, it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about.

Little has been said or written about the ways a man may blast himself free. Why? I don’t know, unless the answer lies in our diseased values. A man seldom hesitates to describe his work; he gladly divulges the privacies of alleged sexual conquests. But ask him how much he has in the bank and he recoils into a shocked and stubborn silence.

“I’ve always wanted to sail to the South Seas, but I can’t afford it.” What these men can’t afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of “security”. And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine—and before we know it our lives are gone.

What does a man need—really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in—and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That’s all—in the material sense. And we know it. But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention from the sheer idiocy of the charade.

The years thunder by. The dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed.

Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life?

I got the above from Paul Kedrosky’s blog, Infectious Greed. It is from the book, The Wanderer, by Sterling Hayden.

Here is the link:

P. Kedrosky on The Wanderer

I had a conversation with one of my best friends this weekend and we talked about many things. My friend was commenting on how much I had changed and asked me about some of the steps I had taken to effect that change. And we touched on a very important point that has been of great value in my life.

You are not your job.

How you earn money is not who you are. You are so much more than your job and money making ability. And your potential to be so much more is only inhibited by one person, you. As long as you think and believe that your job, your career and how much money you have are the dominant things and priorities in your life than that is all you will have. You actually make this a self-fulfilling fantasy.

This is your ego mind lying to you. You are more than your job. You are your parents and your ancestors, you are a member of a community (whether you recognize this or not), you are experiences, you are skills and gifts, you are your friends and relatives and finally you are divine and have divinity inside of you.

But if you don’t recognize your potential, or you don’t recognize where you came from and what is actually a part of you including God, than all you are is your job, or money or what kind of car you drive.

Learning this important point liberated me. It freed me from the self-inflicted prison of other people’s desires and society’s misplaced priorities. And I started focusing on what was more important in the world. And that is being of service to other people, especially your friends and family.

Realizing that you are not your job is step one. Step two is to fight your ego mind and your inclination to focus everything on money and career, and the way you do that is to help other people. The minute you start trying to help other people, their concerns, health, safety, dreams, etc. start to become important. And what happens is that your soul comes out and you start living a life of value and meaning. You enrich your life in countless ways that money and career success cannot buy. For me volunteering as a mentor and as a volunteer at a children’s hospital have helped me so much and specifically has helped me get through very tough times.

Other steps you can take to free your mind from having your job and career dominate your life is to study spirituality, to study music or the arts. Also, whom you hang out with and whom you call your friends is very important because they will influence how you act and how you think. Exercise and physical health is also very important too, and getting out in nature for hikes and walks and outdoor hobbies is also excellent as well.

And a funny thing happened to me once I broadened and deepened my life. I actually got better at my job and my career is taking off. In fact, I just had the best month I’ve ever had as a money manager. And while that is very satisfying (especially because this comes on the 10-year anniversary of starting my firm with one client) that is not what dominates my life and thoughts right now. Instead, I’m curious how I can take this success and money and help other people. How can I make the world a better place? These thoughts fill me with purpose and meaning and they make my life so much more exciting and rewarding.