Don’t make a foolish trade!

When I was a kid, I remember watching a movie about some young teenagers and they were trading baseball cards.  One kid, not knowing much about baseball players, took his Father’s baseball collection and traded one of the baseball cards to a local dealer, so he could buy some candy.  When his friends asked who he traded, he replied that he couldn’t quite remember the whole name but the baseball player had a girl’s last name.

Well how about you?  Have you ever made some foolish trades before?  Maybe you would never trade a George Herman Ruth baseball card, especially if you know the real value of it.  But maybe you might make some other trades that might not be that great. 

Have you ever stayed up really late watching a sporting event or movie, and then struggle the next day to be on the top of your game at work?  Have you ever counted how many minutes you spend on face-book, video games, or the computer, and then say that you have no time left to update your resume to get a better job or attend a seminar to enhance your job skills?  Have you ever figured out how many minutes each month you spend watching TV, but then say you don’t have time for another part time job?  Einstein said; “The definition of insanity is doing the same things, yet expecting different results.”  Now please don’t think that I’m saying that the computer is bad or that everyone should throw away their TV. What I’m implying is that I agree with Zig Ziglar when he said that sometimes “we have to say “no” to the good things in life so that we can say “yes” to the best things in life.”

Many times people don’t take the time to evaluate what is really important to them and then come up with a plan for achieving the really important things in life.  If the boy knew what he had in his hands, he would have never sold a valuable Babe Ruth baseball card for something that only brings temporary joy and satisfaction, like candy.  Most people have a lot more potential and skills then they realize and with a little more knowledge and discipline, they can make huge progress toward their goals and dreams.  What are you doing to make this better than last year?  Read books, listen to audios attend seminars- they are the decades of wisdom reduced to invaluable hours.

Karen Lamb once said, “A year from now, you may wish you had started today.”   In the movie, the local dealer calls the dad and returns the card that evening.  He said that just the thought of having someone trade a Babe Ruth card for some candy was funny enough.  

Ed Finnerty

Finnerty Financial Coaching