The Best Currency is Relationships
How I’m Building Unstoppable Wealth, Starting with .14 Cents
.14 cents was my first-month take on Medium. I’m not sure you can buy a whole lot with that. I’m certain you can’t. However, right now, I feel like that .14 cents is worth way beyond its actual number. It is. It has become a priceless amount.
We are the chain that either chokes or strengthens our existence
This photo I found is a pile of pennies. I find it ironic that lying on top of this pile is an anchor with the words love, faith, and hope. I cannot think of a more powerful trio of words. Each one connecting one another, without the chain, there would be a gap.
- Love is the burning core that fuels hope.
2. Hope is the immovable object, the cheerleader of faith.
3. Faith is the unstoppable force, the mover of worlds.
I have this whole connect or perish thing concept. Check out my other article about connecting. Connecting is the best currency we have. We are truly no better than anyone. We are humans and that’s the end of it. No one is superior or disposable as some political groups or world leaders would have you believe. I tell you this because I know it to be true.
I've talked to world leaders, homeless people, professional athletes, famous actors, worked with people who spoke little English, and the things we had in common were that we all wanted to be heard, smile, and feel connected. Why can’t we connect with everyone then? Any conflict arises from an interruption in any one of these processes. Some problems in connecting usually stem from personal pathology or a lack of basic needs in the individual’s lives. There are some exceptions in all ideals. If you give someone a smile, you usually get a smile. Give respect. You will get respect.
You live in a dream world. Everything is doomed.
I can hear the disdain. Uh…do you not read or flip your index finger through the world on your phone? Phones and media. That’s another issue. We can broach that later. I prefer to think of our world as an optimistic dystopia. A person who believes in an optimistic dystopia recognizes that it is unlikely we can move off our path of destruction, but is too hard-headed to stop trying.
Now for the less depressing part.
To move this new world forward, it will require folks to seek out new modes of thought in place of judgment, connect themselves with each other and not look past or through people but into them. Everything around you “requests or likes” you to invest in ideas and products that do the opposite. Instead of things, invest in people. Contrary to what the system screams at you, money and objects are transitory. Relationships are the strongest currency.
Do politics, identity, and expectations threaten to break us apart? Absolutely! They always have and always will. There is not that much new under the sun. The best way to conquer is to divide. We see the world, especially the United States, being ripped in half. The radical move is to get people to move side by side, not across from each other.
Many examples are juxtaposed with one another. Two political parties. Men and women. Abortion, no abortion. God, no God. A majority of our conflicts are expressed in duality. If you connect via the heart and mind, you can begin to understand some of the pain and difference.
In the spirit of Oprah Winfrey’s, What I Know For Sure, I know I’m going to keep trying.
Giving up is overrated. Not giving up doesn’t make things any easier, just maybe a little sweeter when you have a breakthrough, which you will. I don’t know if we’ll make it or if we even deserve to, but when you connect with something, you have a stake in it.
The best part of connecting is sharing with people. If you feel connected, you treat them better. I’m not saying we like each other all of the time, and you may not like your neighbor most of the time, but if you connect with them on some level, you are less likely to attack them and respect their space and ideas. Respect keeps us in check. Lack of it puts us on the attack, potentially dehumanizing us into doing terrible things.
How I Made 200 large on Medium!
I would love to have a story with this title, all curated and bundled up, but writing on medium is fulfilling because it focuses you on the present, the right now in front of your face. Sharing and connecting with each other feels far more priceless. Writing is special that way; like an actor on stage. You have to be true to yourself or it’s just not gonna come off. The same goes for jumping in, tackling, and finding out the way things operate. Even better, is sharing that with others. One of my new pals, Keno Ogbo, talks about cracking the Medium code. Check out her helpful article below.
I get it. You could say that cracking the code of life is similar. There are many steps but a lot of them are simple. Often we make it complicated. It’s on us. Don’t get me wrong though, I’ll gladly accept the 200 large! Be safe. Connect or Perish.
Josh Kiev is a chef, actor, and an enjoy-er of all things hollandaise.
