Words of Wisdom

Alabama · October 2010

So I woke up in a reminiscing mood this morning thinking about people who have affected my life positively and one man, Mr. Strahan and his words popped into my mind. I was a teenager and he was a youth guidance counselor. I was going through a rough patch and contemplating something irreversible. When I told him, he let me talk for a while and then he asked for a promise. If I promised to not do anything drastic for 48 hours, he wouldn't try to stop me, but that he'd be available for me to talk to at any time during that 48 hours. Well, I guess he was good at his job and understood how hormones could affect someone's judgment because 48 hours later, I was no longer in the same mood. I've used his advice many times since then, anytime I'm about to make a big decision or am in an extreme mood (good or bad), I try to tell myself to wait 2 days before making that decision or acting on that mood, to give myself time to really think about it. I wish I knew where he was now, 20 some years later to thank him. What about you? Have you had someone who gave you good advice that changed your life positively or advice that fits more than one occassion?

RoyalRaccoon · October 2010

I had a heat stroke, but the regular schools out here showed no compassion and didn't want to help me at all. I was so hurt that they were okay with me having another heat stroke, that I transferred schools and met a whole bunch of amazing teachers that would go above and beyond their jobs to make sure every single one of their students succeeded at LIFE, instead of just test scores. The teacher I got paired with was a middle aged man, I'd say in his 50s, and he was extremely intelligent and caring. During my last week there he passed along some financial and life advice that I took to heart. He sat me down, and this is essentially what he drew out for me(I still have the original). <img src="http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r26/PrinceSushi/HOWTOGETRICH.png"; alt="http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r26/PrinceSushi/HOWTOGETRICH.png"; class="bb-image" /> 70% of your income should go to what you need to survive like food, gas, tuition, your house(if you own one), bills, etc. 10% of your income should be set aside for emergencies such as a broken leg, or a busted refrigerator. 10% of your income should go towards you. It could be savings for college/university, a vacation, a TV, etc. 10% of your income should be given away to a charity or someone who needs it. You'll never be truly rich at heart until you've helped others. If there are left over funds from paying your monthly/daily bills and what not, then divide it up equally and put it into the other categories. Above all never spend what you don't have. If you only have $200 saved up for "wants" but you want to get a $300 item, then wait. If you dig into the emergency funds, and an emergency happens the next day then you're out of luck. If you dig into the charity funds, then you'll start to feel guilt, and miss out on the joys of helping others. If you dig into your monthly/daily funds then you'll come up short, and won't be able to pay all your bills. So on and so forth. I've strictly followed this since he gave it to me. The rough percentages of mine are a little differently since I'm still young and lack things like a house to worry about, but I do always put some money aside for wants, school, charity, and emergencies(the majority of my money it goes here). I absolutely will not spend what I don't have. That's a big deal with me. Thus far it's really helped me learn to save my money, and make smart decisions, and the part about giving money away really made a big impact on me. I think a lot of young people wouldn't dare think about giving away money, but in reality it makes you feel so amazing to do it, and it helps others who are less fortunate. In the end "rich" isn't having a lot of money, it's having a happy life, and being able to pass that happiness along.

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Words of Wisdom

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