When Sprinkling Fairy Dust Fails

THINK it and it will happen. Affirm your abundance. Visualize your desires. If all else fails, sprinkle gold fairy dust over yourself and light a green prosperity candle.

Ah, if only it were that simple we'd all be on easy street.

Before I delve into the meat of this column, let it be known; I believe in affirmations, visualization and the power of positive thinking. I'm a little skeptical of fairy dust but with my granddaughter I have sprinkled it in the garden to attract fairies, which, by the way, she has seen.

But sometimes there is just not enough "magic" to clear the bounced check.

I have yet to talk to one person who has not felt the effects of our slowing economy. From my friend the baker who has seen the cost of dairy and flour rise faster than her croissants to others who are surviving on over-extended credit and false hope.

In the last year we have witnessed tumbling home prices, soaring mortgage defaults, record oil prices and the worst stock market decline since 2000-02. We have been thrust out of our comfort zone. And with our eyes wide open we are traveling in the dark.

Turn on the finance channel. Don't even look at the TV - just listen. You can actually tell by the tone of their voices if the market is up or down. When it's down they talk faster and even the guys produce something similar to a high-pitched squeal.

When I asked my son the stockbroker what the veterans in his office think of the current market, he replied, "They're as dumbfounded as the rest of us."

Traveling in the dark - even the suits. Scary.

As we move into uncharted territory it looks like this time around no one is going to be exempt. If you closely resemble an adult - Tag! The free ride around utopia has abruptly ended. You are now responsible and accountable for your personal finances - like it or not.

Are you filling up your gas tank with credit cards while falling behind on your payments? If so, ask yourself just how rich you want to make MasterCard and Visa? Lenders collected a record $18.1 billion in credit card penalty fees last year, up 69% from 2003, according to R.K Hammer Investment Bankers in Thousand Oaks.

Americans carry $2.56 trillion in consumer debt - up 22% since 2000. College debt has more than doubled since 1995. The average student emerges from college carrying $20,000 in educational debt.

Cash and carry went out the window years ago. Why? Because sometimes it's easier to stay in the dark then see clearly where we're headed.

Through coaching and teaching I show people how the power of the mind is the foundation for personal and professional success. But the power of the mind cannot be accessed when you're in the dark and traveling in fear - especially in the area of your finances.

The power of positive thinking cannot be applied like a band-aid over years of irresponsible behavior with money. Every action has a consequence, which, we are now having to look closely at - collectively and individually.

Self-responsibility will lead us out of the dark and into the solutions that are critically needed. We need to restore order and balance to the environment, to our bank accounts and to our lives. Through careful appraisal of our relationship to money and a careful assessment of checks and balances, we can find the needed clarity to begin using the power of the mind constructively.

We can redefine prosperity to mean more than becoming a millionaire. We can take charge of our personal finances and begin living within our means instead of wishful thinking. Daily we can express gratitude for what we have and quit spending more than we have and can responsibly take care of.

What will you choose - to be part of the problem or part of the solution?

If the thought of a living a balanced, healthy life in which you are accountable and responsible for your actions is asking too much, then I know of a place that sells gold fairy dust. Oh, wait a minute, they lost their lease last week. Oh well…I've also heard that whistling in the dark helps.

Published in Pasadena Star-News 9-7-08                     © Copyright 2008 Susan Ann Darley

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