Why we must manage life's basics

I just can't seem to get ahead!

I know someone who regularly decries his frustrations with life. He hates his job and continually complains about how his current circumstances place stress on his life. I made some suggestions to him about how he might change things to improve his condition. That was over ten years ago. He remains in the same condition or worse and continues to tell the world how it has made his life a mess. But he is wrong. He could have changed his situation by managing the basics.

In place of managing the basics (get a better, more satisfying job with long term prospects), this individual has spent hours and hours and thousands of dollars on a hobby he cannot really afford. He is making a choice to play, yet he despises his daily work. He could have gone to night school to change his situation, but he refuses and continues to complain.

Ever wonder why your life is not turning out the way you want it to? I hear it all the time, but I also often hear that people have not managed the fundamentals and yet expect greatness to happen.

What are "The Basics"?

They look something like this: Work - Eat - Play - Rest - Pay the bills - Keep our word - Don't lie. None of these is 'values shaming' - they're just what needs to be done to achieve a reasonable and good life.

I can think of at least five basics.

1 - Managing the basics of physical health, eating, sleeping and fundamental exercise. If the body isn't functioning well, the rest of the system is on overload. The basics are simple but often ignored.

2 - Manage the critical day-to-day activities that ensure success; get out of bed, go to work, be a solid employee, keep your commitments. Our work life means so much to everything else we do that we simply cannot ignore this basic. I've heard so many people complain that they hate their job, but refuse to do anything about it. They are not managing this basic, and thus their lives suffer.

3 - Managing income to ensure financial health. Overspending and under-earning are a recipe for disaster. Debt crushes all of us eventually and makes us servants, not the masters of our lives. This does not mean we need to be rich, but it does mean that we pay for toys with cash we've saved.

4 - Managing routines and regulations of the land you live in. Obeying basic laws, working with the governmental system (yes, I know its tough!)

5 - Managing toward long term gains by refraining from short term, but ineffective, wins. Self-sacrifice and self-discipline toward the long run will always pay off. There's an old phrase: "The hard way becomes the easy way, and the easy way becomes the hard way." And its true.

We hear so often in sports, music and education, the need to balance the basics. Fancy moves are exciting and flashy, perhaps even memorable, but the basics will put the ball in the basket or net.

Why don't we manage the basics?

The basics are often boring, repetitive, requiring significant effort. We want the glitz and the glamour of the fancy elements of life too quickly. Things take time, and we live in an impatient society that wants it all now. I have a philosophical theory about that: Nihilism has been taught to us for decades now, (the philosophy that nothing really matters), and along with the social media we face every day that shows one successful person after another, its easy to throw in the towel and say "forget it, it will never happen."

It takes thoughtful, purposeful effort to manage the basics, and frankly, it's not always fun. But try to build a skyscraper without a foundation. It's not possible.

Practicing an alphabet to learn a new language, rehearsing a speech, carefully reviewing numbers all require concentration and effort that don't immediately yield money or promotion or fame.

The effort of continually straining toward a goal will yield good things in time. But we fall short --- we give up --- and go back to blaming our circumstances.

By managing the basics, the rest of our lives fall in line.

When we master the basics, we start to see the fruits of our labor like disposable income, more time to do the things we want, better relationships with people and promotions in our jobs. But these things do not happen without thoughtfully managing the basics.

There is one I did not mention but it is the most basic of life's basics: "Take responsibility for your actions and their outcomes. In other words, do not blame anyone for your situation." 'Nuff said.

As always, I welcome your thoughtful comments. Dr. Jim Bohn

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