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October 12, 2008

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So THAT's who Rudy is. I saw some Rudy print cartoon on a blog and all I knew was it sure wasn't the mayor.

Can't remember the stock symbol, but Rudy had a start up company a year or two ago. Not sure how it turned out. Soda distribution or something like that.

I read somewhere that Rudy charges $10,000 to speak. Hehehe. Kind of makes me want to go try out for Notre Dame. ;-)

The basic premise of the article is good but I really dislike the Rudy story as the reasoning. Stories like Rudy's do happen. But what he doesn't tell you is for every successful Rudy story there are literally 100's of people who tried to do exactly what Rudy did and for one reason or another they came up empty. Reaching financial freedom is not simply about mind over matter. It's not simply about having a audacious nearly impossible to fathom dream and then just saying well what the heck, life is too short and I am going to go for it. If your dream/goal is unreasonable and far outside your reach, going for it is mostly futile. I know that kind of talk makes the eternal optimist unhappy but it's true and most of us know it.

At the same time you can't just say something is too hard so I won't try. Frank from the story above didn't reach for some unbelievable goal like playing football for Notre Dame. He simply did the things that are always preached here on this website. He spent less than he earned and saved well. It's not complicated and it's not an unbelievable goal. What it takes is not unbelievable effort and determination or a never give up attitude. All it takes is knowing the plan that works and then the persistence to stick with it over the long long term. Persistence does not guarantee a Rudy outcome. We all know people who think they are going to achieve something like Rudy did. And we all know that without a miracle, they are not going to achieve it, no matter how hard they try (and truthfully it took a Miracle for Rudy too, most coaches would never have let him on the team, for some reason this one did, and he never played all those seasons until the last game and they let him in simply because of how hard he had worked. And its a great story, but he never was Notre Dame football material and it is truly a miracle that it worked out for him regardless of how hard he tried.)

But the great thing about reaching financial freedom is that it doesn't take a miracle. Most everyone can do it if they just follow the plan. No Miracle is required. Know the plan, believe in the plan, follow the plan. Still no guarantees as the whole world economy could go into a great depression, we all know the risks. But for the most part the plan simply works if you follow it.

But please don't depend on some kind of inspiration like the Rudy story. That stuff doesn't have much staying power because the high it gives you falls flat when you put it into practice and realize that its just an emotional high that doesn't really help you reach your goals.

It may be discipline, it may be drama, but the bottom line is - If you keep on doing what you've always done, you'll keep on getting what you've always gotten.

What if there is not a better alternative?

I get the point being made by Apex, but sometimes it is still important to hold on to your dreams, no matter how impossible they may seem. Someone in my dim and distant past said, "Aim for the stars. Even if you miss, you could still hit the moon."

I found you from the Christian Carnival. Great blog!

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