October 20, 2008 at 7:49 am
Interesting comments, and no complaints, Jeff. Just wondering. Usually I get a good diatribe if I've stoked your interest.
As I get older, I realize that no matter how much you practice, the talent has to be there. But that doesn't mean that practice won't get you a long way there. You might not get to be the concert violinist, but you can do well, perhaps entertain at the local civic center. And the violinist was an A** without a doubt. Just accept the praise.
Rich is relative. All the exercise I've been doing in the last year has made me wealthy in the health department. Money is nice, and I'd like to make more, but only so much I can do there. We'll see if any of my enterprises takes off, but whether they make any money or not, I've learned and think they've been worth the effort.
October 20, 2008 at 7:51 am
Andy Warren (10/20/2008)
I find that the trap most people fall into (including me occasionally) is that enough seems to keep moving upward and then you're just on the treadmill. Are you happier than you were five years ago? Why not? Will another $10k really make you happy?
To dovetail on your comment a bit, my experience has been that fear about not having enough money (and, therefore, going after more of it) has more to do with the person than the amount of money they earn. Greedy people are greedy whether they make $60,000/yr or $6,000,000/yr. They simply have to have more. Others are content making whatever they make, as long as they're getting what they want out of life (which usually doesn't revolve around money as much).
My wife and I wish we made more, at least to cover the cost of rising oil and food prices, but when we take a step back and realize we can pay our bills, afford a few of the little things we want, and have some left to give to charity, we feel very blessed. And that's a feeling no amount of additional money can buy.
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October 20, 2008 at 7:53 am
Andy Warren (10/20/2008)
No one going to pick on the violinist? Hard not to understand his point, but no points for gracefully accepting a little adulation.Most of us worry about money until we hit point x; ...
... Are you happier than you were five years ago? Why not? Will another $10k really make you happy?
But to be fair to the violinist, he wasn't talking about money or even necessarily financial success. He was talking about personal accomplishment and I think that his reply if a fair reminder to people who grow up in a society infused with a magic realism oriented media and a culture of wish-fulfillment.
Virtually all worthwhile things in life require sacrificing other things. In fact, I would go further and say that all significant things (even those that we may not consider worthwhile) require some kind of sacrifice. spending time with your family requires you to sacrifice time spent on achievement or personal accomplishment. Defending your nation typically requires sacrificing time with your family (in many cases this is quite substantial). So on and so on, ...
[font="Times New Roman"]-- RBarryYoung[/font], [font="Times New Roman"] (302)375-0451[/font] blog: MovingSQL.com, Twitter: @RBarryYoung[font="Arial Black"]
Proactive Performance Solutions, Inc. [/font][font="Verdana"] "Performance is our middle name."[/font]
October 20, 2008 at 8:13 am
Whenever I'm feeling poor, I compare what I have today to what people had in the past. Say 16th or 17th century England, ancient Rome, even the 1800s. If my house, car and things were all magically transported to any other era in history, I'd be the richest man around. Heck, you could even look at certain countries today. Whenever a developer here complains about some quirk in Visual Studio 2008, I tell him there are starving children in Africa who'd probably kill for a nice IDE like that. They're probably coding in VB6 for crying out loud!
October 20, 2008 at 8:26 am
They're probably coding in VB6 for crying out loud!
LOL! Like we are doing here at our company still. We have many legacy VB6 apps that are in production.
October 20, 2008 at 8:50 am
Are you really comparing the poster child for so many things that are wrong with the US to this violinst? Cuban may have more money than he knows what to do with, but that no reason to put him on a pedastal. Perhaps your definition of shortcut is different than mine. I spent 23 years as a pro musician before changing to IS, so I have a clue.
Have a good week,
Richard
October 20, 2008 at 9:09 am
rbarryyoung (10/20/2008)
Andy Warren (10/20/2008)
No one going to pick on the violinist? Hard not to understand his point, but no points for gracefully accepting a little adulation.Most of us worry about money until we hit point x; ...
... Are you happier than you were five years ago? Why not? Will another $10k really make you happy?
But to be fair to the violinist, he wasn't talking about money or even necessarily financial success. He was talking about personal accomplishment and I think that his reply if a fair reminder to people who grow up in a society infused with a magic realism oriented media and a culture of wish-fulfillment.
Bingo!
The "culture of wish=fulfillment" label is spot-on, for those of us who live in the USA. I don't know about any other countries or cultures, but I do know that the American Dream is basically the epitome of consumerism. Everything we see, read, eate or use comes to us through a multi-layered collection of consumerism-oriented ideas and mechanics. Look at every advertisement and you will clearly see that we are besieged with marketing that does its best to convince us that our lives will be better only after purchasing whatever product they happen to be selling.
And, like Steve mentioned, age brings a certain bit of wisdom to the question. The older I get, the more I realize how selfish and greedy I have been to have wanted to make millions of dollars and own lots of sports cars, etc., in the past. Of course, I have not rid myself of all greedy impulses, but I really know, deep down, where happiness truly lies. It ain't with money, because that just gets you shelter and food.
October 20, 2008 at 9:26 am
Here, here, Barry. Anything requires time and sacrifice. My kids, my marriage, they all take work and time to continue to be something I can be proud of.
October 20, 2008 at 9:59 am
baumrl (10/20/2008)
Are you really comparing the poster child for so many things that are wrong with the US to this violinst? Cuban may have more money than he knows what to do with, but that no reason to put him on a pedastal.
Actually, I think that it is an entirely valid comparison because you and Stave are talking about two entirely sets of the "so many things that are wrong with the US"
Mark Cuban may epitomize one set of those problems (a culture of greed, coveting what others have and idolizing famous people) but he also epitomizes the antithesis of the other set of problems (a culture of entitlement, wish-fulfillment and expecting other people to solve our problems for us). It is had to find someone who ideally represents overcoming both of those set of problems.
[font="Times New Roman"]-- RBarryYoung[/font], [font="Times New Roman"] (302)375-0451[/font] blog: MovingSQL.com, Twitter: @RBarryYoung[font="Arial Black"]
Proactive Performance Solutions, Inc. [/font][font="Verdana"] "Performance is our middle name."[/font]
October 20, 2008 at 10:52 am
majorbloodnock (10/20/2008)
I like that story about the violinist; it highlights one of the fundamental quid pro quos of life. If you want a car, you'll need to spend some money. If you want a Lambourghini, you'll need to spend a lot of money. If you want to play an instrument, you'll need to spend some time. If you want to be a virtuoso, you'll need to spend a lot of time. No gain without a price to pay...
Totally true. Just look at Michael Phelps. He didn't win 8 gold medals with some casual paddling about in a community pool. I seem to recall that he was in the pool at least six to eight hours a day, and did strength training besides.
October 20, 2008 at 12:39 pm
I found (something of...) a citation for the violinist story (sic)... albeit it's a pianist in this reference:
"But the pianist I admired the most was Roger Williams, who at one point had two platinum albums in the top ten at the same time. An amazing accomplishment for an instrumentalist in any era.
One night he appeared as a guest on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show. In the course of their conversation, Carson said, "I would give anything to be able to play the piano the way you do." Williams immediately shot back, "No you wouldn't." Carson raised his eyebrows at the rebuff. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"Because you're not willing to give up the time to be good at it," Williams explained.
"So if I was going to play like you, how much time would that take?" Carson inquired.
"Well, I can't say for you," Williams answered. " I can only speak for myself. Right now, because I don't have any upcoming concerts or new albums in the works, I only practice eight hours a day, seven days a week. But as soon as I have an approaching concert or recording commitment, I'll move that up to 12 to 14 hours per day."
Carson was dumbfounded. "But why should anyone as good as you are put in that many hours of practice?" he asked. Williams replied, "If I cut back to six hours per day, within a week I could hear the difference. Within two weeks other professionals could hear the difference. And within a month to six weeks my audience could hear the difference."
There it is again, the passion for excellence. And a willingness to make the sacrifice that excellence demands. Beyond that, we see here the recognition that even having attained excellence, we can lose it quickly if we are unwilling to pay the price to retain it. "
http://www.leaderperfect.com/newsletter/past_issues/apr1505.htm
Ron
(trumpet player who lacked both the passion and the chops to get really good!)
edit=formatting of URL
October 20, 2008 at 12:51 pm
Great story, Ron. Thanks for digging that up.
[font="Times New Roman"]-- RBarryYoung[/font], [font="Times New Roman"] (302)375-0451[/font] blog: MovingSQL.com, Twitter: @RBarryYoung[font="Arial Black"]
Proactive Performance Solutions, Inc. [/font][font="Verdana"] "Performance is our middle name."[/font]
October 20, 2008 at 2:17 pm
I like a lot of what Cuban says, and I think he does some things right for this country. But like all of us, he's fallible as well and there are things he does/says that I don't agree with. I don't condemn him for being rich or being a capitalist.
I'm not 100% for or against anyone. Because I don't agree with something Cuban does is not a reason to ignore everything he does or says.
Don't put a litmus test on anyone and decide that one thing they say mean nothing they say has value.
October 20, 2008 at 5:42 pm
Great writeup Steve. Causes me some introspection.
1. What is most important to me?
2. Am I doing enough to advance those things I have identified?
3. Am I willing enough to let go of those things that are less important?
Time to put down the remote, and pickup that child and a storybook.
October 20, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Steve Jones - Editor (10/20/2008)
Interesting comments, and no complaints, Jeff. Just wondering. Usually I get a good diatribe if I've stoked your interest.
Heh... which definition of "diatribe" do you mean here? 😛
1archaic : a prolonged discourse
2: a bitter and abusive speech or writing
3: ironic or satirical criticism
I really like the column you wrote, Steve. I especially appreciate the story of the violinest and, later, the story of the pianist on the Carsen show. If you take a hard left turn at those stories, you have to ask, did either one of them have a whole bunch of letters after their name or was their passion and performance their only credentials?
Here's to all those people (raising a frosty cold one) who bust a hump to learn something new or better about their job or their passion, private or professional, every day. 🙂
--Jeff Moden
Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.
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