Sterling Terrell

smart ideas from books

Soul-sapping Approach To Life

Soul-sapping Approach To Life

I believe that the biggest soul-sapping thing that there is, might be trying to live without a purpose.

And here is the kicker. Money and things play no part of this discussion.

I heard a podcast just the other day when a popular entrepreneur – worth about $100 million – publicly said, I’m paraphrasing: “Eventually you just sit down and ask what’s the point?”

He is not alone. I mean, you could make a list of all the wealthy celebrities that have killed themselves.

The point is that there is a hole in your heart – in your soul if you will – and money will not plug it.

For how does love, and value, and morals, and ethics, and compassion, and reason, spring from determinism?

Most people can imagine how much better their life would be with some sum of money, how it would free them and allow them to travel and be all-around happier people. What such thinking misses is that money without some purpose in life is soul-sapping.

-Paul Sullivan, The Thin Green Line

Parents Being The Provider Of Money

Parents Being The Provider Of Money

We as parents should probably always be careful being the provider or money.

By that, I mean just handing it over without issue at a young age.

Daughter wants a new random toy – maybe she needs to come up with half the money.

Son wants his own car when he turns 18 – maybe he needs to be responsible for the payments.

See, the value of money, and the ethic of working for it, are both teachable points.

As parents, we do a great disservice to our children by not showing them these ideas softly and kindly (action->consequence) before the world teaches them in its own blunt way.

If your kids are grown though, finished school, have a job, and turned out right – well – I mean, give them all the money you want to.

“Parents make the mistake of wanting to be the provider of money,” Grubman said. “It goes all the way back to childhood and allowances. If a child wants to go off to Guatemala or wherever, they need to have some skin in the game. The mistake many wealthy families make is to subsidize it.”

-Paul Sullivan, The Thin Green Line