Economic Stimulus and Me

Economic Stimulus and Me

Not that I believe the world is "all about me," but I've now seen what Washington prescribes to help us through the next two or three years of the inevitable business cycle... I'm still looking. I'm not looking for the federal government to take care of it, but I'm looking to me. What is it I am going to do?

The fact is, after whipping up all the hysteria the past several months, our leaders in Washington don't have any better answers than they had at the beginning. These are probably people with mostly good intentions, trying out what they think are their best ideas for turning things around. The sad fact is they don't know what, if anything, they can do to move things in an upward direction. It is a cycle, after all, and we're bound to have downturns like these. While many think they have the answers, the only certainty we have about what works is by hindsight. Oh, well...

So what do I do to get through the next 2-3 years? I'm looking at what I have and what is truly important to me. I have a family, I have friends and I live in a caring community. What's so bad about that? Would I trade any of those things for a few more dollars in my 401K, or a newer car to drive? No way in the world! But here's the challenge--what will I do, now that I am reminded of what is important to me? I can find ways, I think, to spend more time, give more attention to the people I love and the people who are important to me. The researchers on life transition at MetLife's Mature Market Institute have asked the question--"how can we discover what matters?" In framing the question they have hit upon a structure for meaning in life that I like. Meaning is found

• spending time with friends and family you love,
• helping make things better for others,
• using your talents to accomplish things that matter and
• enjoying personal interests like hobbies.

Talking with people of a certain age, they have found that meaning (loosely defined as our family, friends and community) is more important to most Americans than money. So ask yourself this question--what am I doing to put more meaning into my life? There are a host of other questions, but I think this makes a good one for starters.