Advice for the Young People?

While on my trip, I had a discussion concerning my advice to young people to go to school, work hard, save money and that will aid them in being a success. My friend's concern is that while that may have been good advice in the past, does it ring as true today? How the heck do I know, I just write this stuff, I don't vet everything I say. I don't have perfect pitch and the damn bell might just not ring as true for an old artilleryman with at least a 20% hearing loss. It feels good, so I write it.

I think young people today have to think differently than they did when I was young. Conditions are different as are businesses. The days of working for one company for a long career may be over. The chance of changing careers is a lot greater than they were and the mobility of workers is greatly changed. This thinking was once described as thinking outside of the box. Today, I think it may take an MBA to describe the box and sure as heck, a fiction writer couldn't even begin to describe the numbers of permutations possible.

Another friend, on our bike ride in Oklahoma, agreed that he and I did want to be the boss in almost every job we had. Moving up in the ranks was one way we felt empowered. On the other hand, Barb has always focused on the main job of teaching the kids in her career. I wanted to ring the bell and direct traffic. She wanted to teach. Why do some people want to be a house painter and some want to own a painting company? Is the additional stress worth the additional money?

This month was a travel month for us. I'm sure that at the end of the month, we will tally up the room charges and find that we have a deficit for the month. Was it worth it? How do you tell? How do I tell that our life of saving has been worth it compared to having a boat and always driving a new car? Will the old saying he who has the most toys when he dies, dies work? Will not spending our last dollar on our last day, work? Who knows?

I am not sure where this post was going and I am sure as hell not sure where I am at the end. I do know that the simple pleasure of riding a bike down a trail is a heck of a lot of fun and wonder why I didn't do more of it earlier in life. I darn sure will continue to wear a helmet and gloves as I ride, just as I will try to not spend everything I have willy nilly.

From the land of confusion, but with a smile on my face. Your Pal,

MUD