Tag: #grind

WORKING TO DEATH: HOW OUR WILLINGNESS TO EARN IS KILLING LVES.

Man With Hand on Temple Looking at Laptop

“Give it a rest.”

work no play

A lot of Americans in this country work not just because they want to, but have to work. The there are the people who work not because they have to but love their careers. They work and work because they want that almighty dollar. But never taking days off defeats the purpose of working for the money. And we are also killing ourselves to make that dollar in the process. Our health is deteriorating before our very eyes because we want that dollar. So what is it, why do we do it in the name of finances?

more more more

Hey what is wrong with making more money. And if you make more than what you need, then spend on the wants you have always wanted. But when you find yourself working and not living, years go by and you never have a fulfilled life. Trust and believe it’s hard to not stop making an income for yourself especially when so many people around you are not working. Because that is something in the back of my mind all the time. And when you are living in a place like New York City, you never want to not have in life. Doesn’t even have to be a lot, just always covering your ass.

laid off 

What if I were to get laid off today. The average person if laid off today, they are homeless by the end of the month. So the majority of Americans actually live paycheck to paycheck. And that is what terrifies people so much that they work. I guess they figure it’s best to work and never have a life than to not work and not live at all.

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WORK LESS, ENJOY MORE: LIFE IS NOT ALL ABOUT HAVING A JOB

adult, blur, businesswoman

“All work and no playtime.”

work work work

People such as myself, work and work and work, without really taking a day off to just rest. But when you are so motivated how do you rest. Well, there is something to be said about working less and enjoying life. Because for starters, tomorrow is not promised. But for the most part, if you live to be a great age, do you really want to look back and all of your youth was spent grinding to be successful.

what’s driving you

When you’re driven, others will look at you like what is wrong with this person. But they live their lives working and home, working and home. So it’s hard for them to understand why you’re so driven. They don’t see the things you see in life. And if they do, it’s so murky, the odds of getting to that successful point in life is not in reach. But your dreams are in reach, which is why it’s such an obsession to work. If people could for a second see into your mind they would understand your fight.

running out of time

Where are you going? Seems like you’re headed nowhere fast. Some people you never indulge work until time has depleted. You don’t understand that when you’re working and working, days turn to weeks, weeks to months, and then years of your life are gone. So if you’re working all the time, it better be for something great. You better be in the process of carving out a name that will live on forever. Because you are sacrificing  a lot of precious time on Earth.

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THE NEW W IS AN L: WHY AMERICA IS NOT BUILT ON WINNING ANYMORE

black wallpaper, black-and-white, boxer

“Victory-less!”

a nation of winners

America used to be a nation that pride ourselves on winning. Now, if you look at life with this winning mentality it’s treated like some sort of punishment. Maybe because someone else may not be as good as you, or the idea that we frown on people being on top too long. But for some reason we support the losing more than we do the winning.

If you look at sports, which has put America at the top for do long, we now have to look at other nations that teach the winning mentality we once had, to their children. Now you have countries like Russia, Jamaica, Spain, and even Image result for jamaica sportssmall Eastern European countries pushing themselves past us in sports. Well, how did it start?

the fall

The reason why so much of American winning has fell off is because we have reached this point where all the losers stop wanting to win. And almost operate like they formed their own coalition and are now going after anyone that is perceived to be winning. So much so that companies are now backing people and marketing them as independent to make money.

Because when people see you as a winner they shy away because in their minds you don’t need any further help. And we reached this point not just because of the coalition, but not wanting to continue to rise to the occasion. It’s one thing to win, but staying on top is harder than winning. Anyone can get the “W” but can you hold that spot. So what happened is people got lazy.

is it what it seems

The below photo is of the New York City citizens going to and from trains underground at Penn Station. And when I look at these people, I don’t losers. I don’t see a group of people who want things handed to them. I see go getters, I see hustlers, I seeRelated image hungry Americans. And that’s when it dawns on me that the society we live in is not prided on losing today. We just have this really loud losing bunch and the rest are silent winners. And we have folded to the pressure of the losers’ voices. So in order to capture that winning spirit once again, we must speak up and speak out against the coalition formed that make our children believe mediocrity is the key to prosperity.

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LIFE’S GIFTS: DO YOU HAVE THEM OR HAVE YOU JUST WORKED HARD

“Gifts are free, trust me, it ain’t free.”

As a writer, you would think that one has a gift to be a writer. But, as a matter of fact, to say they have a gift discredits the hard work they put into their writing. You’re not born with it, but the fact that people think it is a gift can also be seen as a good thing too. Just as it seems discrediting, you also did your job by making it look so easy. Yet for some reason, if only people could see all the blood sweat and tears you put into your craft, they wouldn’t see it as some gift you were given. Ok then, why, why is it so hard for people to see that you put work in for so long.

One main reason it’s hard for them to see what you do as a gift is because anything they can’t do themselves must be some special power that you possess. And in order to be you, they must go to some far away land to be that great. When in reality it has nothing to do with being special. But another reason that people see what you do as a gift is because what they fail to notice everyday around them, you pay closer attention. And that is what separates the genius from the average person. Let’s look at Albert Einstein for a moment. He wasn’t some special type of guy, it’s just that a certain body of science peaked his interests. So he worked until he became good. Even his theory of relativity was discovered riding a bus home.

We all ride the bus, but how many of us ride the bus thinking to ourselves our body constantly in motion, relative to the bus’s movement if the bus were to stop. People usually think about errands or some other mundane activity. We don’t really travel thinking about science or mathematics. But for the people that do, their minds are always thinking about the complexities of life. Meanwhile, you’re stuck on your daily routine.

Because in the end, these are the people who supposedly are endowed with all the gifts. Yet what they have is no more than hard work and an open mind into whatever it is that interests them. What is the difference between you and Einstein: patience and love for what he does. He didn’t have a gift, for the longest he couldn’t even tie his shoe and he was a failure in science. He never took no for an answer and always came back wanting to know more and conduct more experiments.

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HELP IS VOLUNTARY NOT ENTITLED: WHY WE THINK PEOPLE ARE SUPPOSED TO HELP AND NOT OFFER

Image result for ASSISTANCE

“You want it, go get it; no one owes you anything.”

Growing up being babysat by my grandmother and great grandmother, you learn a lot about how they had to grow up during their time periods. You were expected to go into the world and work your behind off, no excuses. And these were people coming out of Jim Crow south where opportunities were so vastly scarce for African Americans. See, my great grandmother was part of the G.I. Generation and my grandmother was a member of the Silent Generation. Two back to back tough generations in the United States of hard working Americans. Since both of them have passed away, I often think about how they would view so much of what’s going on right now with regards to every kid getting a trophy. To an extent I know how they felt, because I have always heard no one owes you anything in this world.

So what has taken hold that makes so many of a young generation feel they are owed something in life? One of the problems is this whole notion that my 75% is your 100%. And the underlying issue is that when we both step out into society, your 75% is 75% and my 100% will propel me straight pass you. Then, the person who didn’t put forth the effort will live out their lives in bitterness. And a lot of the downward spiral could come from every kid gets trophy and making all young people believe they’re special. So when you step out into the world you have these visions for how your life and life itself is supposed to work and it just doesn’t work like that; it’s more complex. There is no real trajectory, and you could be taken anywhere at any point in time.

For those that have navigated the landscape and found their way into a stable situation, the thought is you’re supposed to reach back and help. And yes, if you are in a position to help that most are not; if you possess a certain degree of intellectualism, then you should want to help. But understand the difference between you should want to help and you should help. You should want is clearly a voluntary choice, while should help is more geared toward who owes you. Life is a place where you go out and try to stake your own claim. Too many people think that something is allotted to them by way of existing in this country. Which brings me to another reason why someone may feel it’s the successful person’s duty.

There is another piece to this give me something for nothing mentality and that is the welfare system. Men and women had it hard wired into the minds of their children that you had to get out and work. But the introduction of the welfare system made it possible for the government to dole out payment to every woman raising a child as a single parent without the father present. What was supposed to be aid as a stepping stone to help women get on their feet has inevitably turned into a crutch. The reality is, if no gives you even a slice of bread, it’s not their job to do so. That was understood over my parent’s generation and prior. But somewhere down the line we became comfortable as a country and lost that work ethic. In the end, no one not only owes you anything, but help is voluntary. Even if they never acknowledge you, it’s still on you to go get what’s yours in this world.

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PULLING YOUR WEIGHT: WHY FAMILY IS MORE THAN JUST BLOOD

Image result for family

“It’s all our job to pitch in.”

My grandmother grew up in the south and she used to tell me about how she at an early age had to be a farm hand. Not just her, but any siblings that were born during that time and old enough to work. Why did they have to work the farm, besides being told in her time period they had no choice, aiding the family. Everyone had to play a vital role in helping to move this family. It wasn’t one person had to work and everyone else kind of lived off of their hard work. But a lot has changed during that time period. Because my grandmother was born in the early 1930’s right after the Great Depression hit. So everyone really had to put their best foot forward. This was the all-encompassing group known as the Silent Generation where everyone just kept their mouths closed and did as they were told: work.

Some like to think that the introduction of the welfare system is what kind of made people remove themselves from the mind-frame of everyone pitching into the family. Because what was supposed to be a small contribution to help you get on your feet, has turned into a crutch. The thought process of something for nothing took hold. And the entire concept of family pulling their weight began to diminish. People in today’s society have this thought that just because we are related by blood that means something. Yet even in a family, you have to earn just as much as everyone else. If one person is contributing and that contribution ever gets lost, then the entire house falls down. So you need more people putting into the pot for the pot to sustain.

Because the core meaning of family is more centralized to just your parents and siblings. Then you have your overall family which consists of aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. And last, you have the distant family members which are those you never see except once every so few years. But your first and foremost obligation is to your immediate family which is your spouse and children. This is the unit that receives the most attention and the most aid first. So you have to make sure everyone in this unit is doing their job, then look outward to the rest of family. But in the end, everyone must pull their weight. There can’t be one person working and everyone else kid of laid back on the sidelines. Because once it gets to that point, people have lost all respect for you and it comes too easy. And that’s when you either tell them to change or cut ties.

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YOU’RE OWED NOTHING: WHY DO PEOPLE THINK SUCCESS IS A GIVEN

architecture, buildings, business

“The world is yours, if you go get it.”

Living in the United States, you notice that so many people have this built in mind-frame that someone is supposed to pick you up and drop you into this life of success. Your parents have raised you making you think that you’re special, and everything is golden. Then you step out into the real world and realize that no one gives a damn about you. No one cares that you were the captain of the high school football team or that you belonged to a respected fraternity or sorority in college. It’s all about you against the world; your talents and work ethic up against whatever obstacle is in front of you. And that is the dilemma I am already faced with in life. But every time I think about how hard I have it, I think about my mother and grandparents generation. Or better yet, my great grandparents who never even got through high school because they had to work at a young age.

Then I remember that they grew up in Jim Crow south and there was limited opportunities because they were African Americans. But they came to the Midwest with little to nothing and raised a family. My great grandfather working in a factory and great grandmother staying at home. They both could barely read or write but they weathered the storm and made it in life. Now here I am in New York City, and people ask me, how do you live in that city. And in my mind it’s just another city to get used to because if they survived Jim Crow and Miss Dixie, I can survive NYC. And I grew up knowing you had to make something of self wherever I decided to live. I’m not where I want to be, but I am putting in the time. Laying the ground work for what hopefully can be a prosperous life down the road.

So when I hear people and their stories about their hardships they had, you just have to realize that the world just doesn’t care. Growing up for me, I was raised by a single parent not developing a relationship with my dad until my mid-twenties. But what has helped to continue to move is living in a society where you have no other choice. That on top of knowing what I wanted to do at a young age, aids me in moving on also. But you have so many who ponder over why they have been dealt a bad had, and who owes them something. And maybe that was started due to the welfare that our government gives to us. Yet I was raised with the understanding that once again, if you are not where you want to be in life, find a way to get there, or not. Because it tends to be a very binary decision. You’re either going to do something or do nothing.

In the end, you have to come to the realization of something I have learned living in New York City alone. The only person who has a stake in interest in you doing anything in this world, is you. I recently made my second short film, and couldn’t raise all the funding, but hey, I made it anyways. I adjusted the script to fit my budget I did raise. So you suck it up and deal with what comes, there’s no other way. You fall five times, get up 6. Or stay on the ground, but if you do, know that it’s on you. And if you can live with that fine, otherwise, get to work.

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