Are You Trapped in the System?

The system was designed to enslave you. When I was a child, the Mighty Sparrow, a much-loved calypsonian sang:

"Children go to school and learn well,
Otherwise later on in life you're gonna get real hell.
Without an education in your head,
Your life will be pure misery, you'd be better off dead."

This is what I was taught and brought up to believe. I no longer believe this. It not that I don't believe in education, I am an advocate of lifelong learning. I simply do not think that the education I received in school properly equipped me to lead a productive life where I could reasonably expect to achieve financial freedom. At best, my traditional education gave me the qualifications I needed to enter University - in other words more education which prepared me for a job.

I might have been happy staying in a job except that I wanted more out of life. I didn't want to feel stagnated and I feared that was what would happen to me if I remained in a job even although I enjoyed what I did.

Many people like the idea of a job because they think it gives them security. However, nothing could be further from the truth. Generally, a job gives you one incoming financial stream while, inescapably, you have many outgoing financial streams. This means that you have to keep working at your job in order to meet your financial obligations.

People often find themselves in situations where they are like hamsters going around a wheel. If they stop moving, not only will the wheel stop turning but everything they have will fall apart. Worse yet, as time marches on, they have to move faster and faster just to stay in one place.

In other words many people are literally trapped and what's worse many people do not particularly enjoy the work they do. Hence, they end up "…working hard enough to avoid being fired from a job that pays them just enough to prevent them from leaving."

There are many well-educated or learned people stuck in jobs and they are so positioned because they are unable to adapt to their rapidly changing environment. Instead of riding the wave of change they are being swamped by it.

Eric Hoffer said that,

"In times of change the learners will inherit the earth while the learned will find themselves beautifully equipped for a world that no longer exists."

If you feel that any of this applies to your current situation and you want to make changes in your life then take heart. Now is an excellent time to start creating your ideal life. First of all you need to describe your ideal lifestyle. Cover every aspect of your life - finance, job/career, relationships, health and fitness, fun and recreation, personal development and contribution/legacy. Christine Comaford Lynch, author of "Rules for Renegades" says that:

"Setting goals in 7 areas is the best way to achieve a balanced life that is fun, fulfilling, peaceful, powerful and prosperous."

Don't be concerned with how you're going to achieve what you want. Just be very clear about your intent. Clarity is power and the clearer you are the easier it will be for you to manifest what you desire.

Taking stock of your life in this way will help you to identify the areas of your life that are most out of balance. It will help you to formulate an initial action plan of the things you need to do in order to achieve the lifestyle you desire. Then, it is a matter of applying yourself, doing the work that needs to be done in order to create positive changes in your life. Doing nothing or doing the same things and expecting your circumstances to improve is a form of insanity.

"Men are anxious to improve their circumstances, but are unwilling to improve themselves. They therefore remain bound."
James Allen, author of "As a Man Thinketh"

It is possible for you to have the lifestyle you desire but you must be willing to do the work. You must be willing to break free of the system if you want to achieve independence.