Making Money

[Plenum]

Some people keep so much cabbage it goes rotten.

sometimes metaphors only go so far  

- -

but we did have the recent story of Apple CEO giving away his fortune.

also - if you live in a major world capital city (read: London, New York, Sydney, Tokyo, etc), the chasing for an income becomes almost life consuming because of the high real estate prices, whether owning (mortgage) or renting.

[Diana]

Some people keep so much cabbage it goes rotten.

LOL! That's a perfect metaphor for people who hang on tightly to their cabbage, such as "old money" families who don't earn anything new.

I like the idea that you spend money and give it as gifts and donations to keep the energy flowing out...and in. It becomes a circular movement.

[Monica]

We can help others more with prosperity than we can with poverty.

...

[Aion]

What of ascetics?

[Cyanatta]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Z9WVZddH9w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4ZCBrqTNrY

[pumpkinsurf]

I'm bumping this thread- I'm curious what you all do for jobs.

I'm an engineer but I'm leaving that job in the next month. I'm going to take some time off and hopefully never return to the rat race, move out of the city and get some chickens, grow some vegetables and make some art. I don't care if I have to waitress in some small-town diner, in fact, I think that sounds fantastic. Anything could happen but that's the vague plan

So how do you all pay your rent and buy the things you want?

[cloud]

Personally I feel like money shouldn't exist. Plain and simple.

[pumpkinsurf]

Personally I feel like money shouldn't exist. Plain and simple.

Yes, if we could all barter with each other it would be great... Or even better, if we could just contribute to society in our own ways and receive the things we need to live in return.

But that is probably a little advanced for our present collective consciousness.

So how do you pay your bills, cloud?

[Aion]

When I made this thread I had been working in a grocery store and now I work as a cook in a restaurant. While it is easy enough work it can be a stressful environment and I still don't really feel 'fulfilled', however I have found ways to practice my spirituality even here, such as by blessing and radiating love to all the food I make and prepare.

I don't feel money is evil in and of itself but it is easily used to corrupt and there is a 'marketing' for money and employment that is rather disturbing.

[Night Owl]

Where is the line between evil money and blessing money? So many people look happy, wealthy and fullfilled while you just can't see how money is slowly burning their spirit, their joy and their freedom.

[Aion]

I think when money becomes an objective in itself that it becomes truly poisonous. When people view their wealth as relating to their currency rather than according to the state of their life. Someone who is rich and has many things may be very poor in the heart.

However, to those who simply do enjoy the material pursuit, I say they are where they need to be and when it comes time to develop further then reality will produce the necessary catalyst. I believe we are here exploring our desires so it doesn't do well, IMO, to suppress that even if your desire is for money. The questioning may eventually lead to, 'why do I want money?' and it will be seen as a symbol of 'life-force'. Yet, still, just a symbol...

[pumpkinsurf]

Where is the line between evil money and blessing money? So many people look happy, wealthy and fullfilled while you just can't see how money is slowly burning their spirit, their joy and their freedom.

I'm not sure it is the actual money that is burning peoples' spirits- I feel it's more the fact that they know they are striving for something, and they mistakenly think it's wealth that they need. And the 'burning spirit, joy and freedom' feeling comes from the frustration of never getting what they are really looking for. Which I think is probably love, peace, meaning and purpose. Those are the things that fulfill me, anyways.

[Aion]

I would say that money most often represents power to people and so it is seen as a cure for powerlessness, as well as a way to secure power. Power is seen as the base of security. For some power is lower and is a primal expression of raw natura. To others power is the higher faculties and the abilities of mentation. Still others view power as love. Yet common to all of these is a striving towards some state of either power or powerlessness. Sometimes powerlessness is pursued as a way to allow a power greater than one's self to make the directions, but I think that eventually power is realized as a necessary step towards powerlessness and vice versa.

[Night Owl]

Do you think it is also money that creates a sense of powerlessness? It seems like a tool for people to compare each other. Like you said they view money as their state of currency and so everybody become a comparison of their currency. Comparing to others eventually can lead to one feeling powerless because nobody has the same amount of anything in life and so there is infinite possibilities to compare.

[Aion]

Certainly, supply and demand.

[Minyatur]

Well in a decent human system for our current level of technology and without the hypocrisy of how money is used, it could be a very useful tool.

First of all, access to education should be free. Money should serve a purpose of attaining luxury and not survival, which should instead be a given. Many would still work either out of habit, to become experts in something or to allow themselves to be able to do things that they want to do. There are many jobs that could be replaced with technology to balance those who quit. If everything would be governmentalized, we could disallow unemployement as low as what you want to do falls into your skills, as I said access to developping skills would be free.

I think this would be doable easily without a societal mentality that prones separation. Money is a very abstract thought form which was given "laws" by some, it could be very versatile tool as long as there is a "belief" in it's value toward it's possesion.

[Aion]

That is the basis of the idea which is becoming increasingly popular of a "basic income" for everyone regardless of employment so that higher education and individual pursuits could be more accessible.

[Night Owl]

Why exactly isn't it happening? Oh right, less millions in their trillions worth bank accounts.

[Minyatur]

Why exactly isn't it happening? Oh right, less millions in their trillions worth bank accounts.

Actually in themselves they do not hold enough power for it to be the reason why, it is the society and it's people that came to desire the system we have and would resist letting go of what each has earned for himself.

Where I am from, this is fairly obvious in the clash of generations. The older generation dislikes strongly that the younger one has it more easy than they had it.

[earth_spirit]

-----

[TsaktuO]

Thanks for the discussion, everyone.

I am a waitress. In my job, I am constantly receiving micro-transactions directly for my services (ie tips). The wage my employer pays me is basically moot, everything I earn is based on my pleasantness and eagerness to serve strangers. Of course, this is in an ideal world, and still every day I get stings where someone's tip doesn't reflect the job I believe I did. Most of the time this is very easy to shrug off because on the flip side sometimes people leave me very generous tips that I certainly didn't earn ($25 tip for opening a bottle of wine for 6 people vs. $3 tip to deal with a very needy couple for 3 hours). I try to remember it's all very fluid, money is merely energy - expecting it to come from where it "should" come from and not opening oneself up to just "receive" is a big lesson, I think. I just try to use what I know about the Law of Attraction... give without worry, spend without worry, and open oneself up to receive abundance in whichever way the universe desires to repay you.

My parents are both ends of the spectrum, but my father was more in control of our upbringing than my mother for the most part. My mother is very que sera, easy come easy go, and in fact has more often than not used nefarious means to acquire money. My father has worked for the same structured company for most of his life and makes a decent living, to the expense of almost all else. He's almost a caricature of a typical middle-aged man in our society - works himself into seclusion, twice divorced, spends money like crazy, obsessed with appearances (hair plugs, veneers, Camaro...). He's rejected my husband and I because I've been the sole money earner in our house for several years now - something that is incomprehensible to my father. No matter that my husband was physically disabled.... he was a failure because he couldn't buy me things.

It's just been a recent thing for me to not recoil at the thought of money. The truth is, I'm just used to doing without. Growing up in a home where money was such a focus, even as a small child I learned to not ask for much, if anything. I've almost exclusively had the profession I have now, so I've just spend what I've earned, if I needed more, pick up a shift, if I have enough for a while, give some shifts away. We have very little debt. We owe a couple thousand dollars to my grandma, and we have a very fraudulent $3,500 debt from an old apartment complex over our heads, but that is literally never getting paid. We've gone hungry. We've been without somewhere to live. Most modern luxuries are foreign to us - we share one old-style cell phone. We share one car. I know this lifestyle isn't for everyone but it works for us!

Of course, the dream is that my husband with be successful in his career as an author, and then we can spend our riches buying and protecting land and whatever various other charitable causes that call to us. It would be awesome if that was our life path! If it isn't, I can totally accept and understand that, as well. Right now, we're being called to move (my dad is kicking us out of this house we rent, which is my grandma's) and we really want to move to Colorado - and as it turns out, my in-laws want us there so bad they're willing to throw down whatever money they can to help us, as they have an abundance. I've been tight-roping this one for a while now - how much help do I feel comfortable accepting? Can't I just work harder and save up money? But that doesn't work because saving money is something I've never, ever successfully done. And the more I work the more money I feel like I need to spend to comfort or "reward" myself... the viscous cycle.

Another kicker is, if I didn't feel like I had to save up for this move, I would have been transitioning from almost full-time employment at my current job to working more on my Etsy shop - which if I had the time to dedicate to, I think would be very successful. So this is also a goal. As it is I'm really pretty tired of the job I have now and want to move on... I suppose sometimes the solutions are more obvious than we let on, they just take adjustments. :-/

These are my current thoughts, thanks for letting me share and thanks to everyone else for sharing their relationship with money.

<3 ur reads

[TsaktuO]

Thanks for the discussion, everyone.

I am a waitress. In my job, I am constantly receiving micro-transactions directly for my services (ie tips). The wage my employer pays me is basically moot, everything I earn is based on my pleasantness and eagerness to serve strangers. Of course, this is in an ideal world, and still every day I get stings where someone's tip doesn't reflect the job I believe I did. Most of the time this is very easy to shrug off because on the flip side sometimes people leave me very generous tips that I certainly didn't earn ($25 tip for opening a bottle of wine for 6 people vs. $3 tip to deal with a very needy couple for 3 hours). I try to remember it's all very fluid, money is merely energy - expecting it to come from where it "should" come from and not opening oneself up to just "receive" is a big lesson, I think. I just try to use what I know about the Law of Attraction... give without worry, spend without worry, and open oneself up to receive abundance in whichever way the universe desires to repay you.

My parents are both ends of the spectrum, but my father was more in control of our upbringing than my mother for the most part. My mother is very que sera, easy come easy go, and in fact has more often than not used nefarious means to acquire money. My father has worked for the same structured company for most of his life and makes a decent living, to the expense of almost all else. He's almost a caricature of a typical middle-aged man in our society - works himself into seclusion, twice divorced, spends money like crazy, obsessed with appearances (hair plugs, veneers, Camaro...). He's rejected my husband and I because I've been the sole money earner in our house for several years now - something that is incomprehensible to my father. No matter that my husband was physically disabled.... he was a failure because he couldn't buy me things.

It's just been a recent thing for me to not recoil at the thought of money. The truth is, I'm just used to doing without. Growing up in a home where money was such a focus, even as a small child I learned to not ask for much, if anything. I've almost exclusively had the profession I have now, so I've just spend what I've earned, if I needed more, pick up a shift, if I have enough for a while, give some shifts away. We have very little debt. We owe a couple thousand dollars to my grandma, and we have a very fraudulent $3,500 debt from an old apartment complex over our heads, but that is literally never getting paid. We've gone hungry. We've been without somewhere to live. Most modern luxuries are foreign to us - we share one old-style cell phone. We share one car. I know this lifestyle isn't for everyone but it works for us!

Of course, the dream is that my husband with be successful in his career as an author, and then we can spend our riches buying and protecting land and whatever various other charitable causes that call to us. It would be awesome if that was our life path! If it isn't, I can totally accept and understand that, as well. Right now, we're being called to move (my dad is kicking us out of this house we rent, which is my grandma's) and we really want to move to Colorado - and as it turns out, my in-laws want us there so bad they're willing to throw down whatever money they can to help us, as they have an abundance. I've been tight-roping this one for a while now - how much help do I feel comfortable accepting? Can't I just work harder and save up money? But that doesn't work because saving money is something I've never, ever successfully done. And the more I work the more money I feel like I need to spend to comfort or "reward" myself... the viscous cycle.

Another kicker is, if I didn't feel like I had to save up for this move, I would have been transitioning from almost full-time employment at my current job to working more on my Etsy shop - which if I had the time to dedicate to, I think would be very successful. So this is also a goal. As it is I'm really pretty tired of the job I have now and want to move on... I suppose sometimes the solutions are more obvious than we let on, they just take adjustments. :-/

These are my current thoughts, thanks for letting me share and thanks to everyone else for sharing their relationship with money.

<3 ur reads

-side note-
We as people jst should strive for being producers rather than consumers. ex: growing ur own food stuff, saving rain water.. looking at that piece of wire.. and thinking hmm, can i use that for something other than throwing it is the trash? keeping the paper tea tag for filters on my spliffs.. puff puff pass

now look, u just saved money.. same as making money, no?
ezpz right?