More With Less, Means More of Less, More or Less

Are you feeling it as you watch the news, hear of government and oil companies all taking and needing more and more of our dollars? Watching our pocketbooks being drained? Those who have jobs find themselves worked towards the grave for less and less, with employers asking more and more all touting that you 'are lucky to even have a job in this economy?'

I love working in my yard. Huh? Yes, I am mostly 'unemployed' and can't afford a gardener, but, I have come to discover that yard work is a blessing in my life in these times. For it is relatively mindless work needing only momentary attention and focus. This 'state' of work is good because it gives me opportunity to turn over in my minimally taxed brain, other issues of more 'monumental' import...and it happened this morning as I worked in the yard.

With far less income hitting the teller turnstile account, we have had to change our lifestyle doing less with less. Almost everyone I know is trying to make ends meet and still curtailing rampant spending as in days of old. We have watched our dollars monumentally shrink at the gas pumps. We used to have enough change filling the tank of our Camry to buy drinks for the kids out of a $20 bill. Now the tank costs over $65 to fill. Over twice again the cost? Ouch. That alone is enough to impact our flagrant spending! The vicious cycle continues as people spend less, businesses charge more, as gas cost more, businesses must charge even more. And finally, with people 'lost' in a loosing battle, they abandon ship and make for the hills, leaving houses, debt and all responsibility, placing the burden on those who are still able to contribute to the coffers of government.

So, while raking up the detritus in my front yard, it hits me. First, because of my lack of employment, my wife and I have had to cut back on a lot of things discovering that we can get along quite well on far less than we thought. Hmmmmm. Creative family restructure has been a good thing for us too! Some things we thought essential, we no longer do or purchase. We work harder at putting our errands together to maximize our gas use. A host of tasks and doings have been changed and we find ourselves doing more with less. How?

The answer is quite simple. We were doing plenty of things that neither contributed to the effectiveness of our relationship or the quality of life and living. Putting it succinctly, we squandered a lot of time and money in fruitless ways. What we have found is that we are doing more of less, and more with less. How is that possible? It boils down to doing the essentials well. We are in a time where it is time to evaluate what is essential and that which is spurious, and I mean truly spurious. But even that is not enough. Because as we reduce and focus on the important, that which has been shed, must now be consumed with more of the essentials, thus doing more of less but if the focus of the less is essential, then we are actually accomplishing more of that which is essential.

So are you hearing what I am saying? Those of us most content in this time of personal financial cutbacks and the draining of our pocketbooks for the glory of the oil company's highest gain ever, are those whose lives are filled with doing more of the essentials, more of less, with less. Spending more time just being with family cooking rather than going out. Using our talents to help others saving them money and them using their talents to help us, saving us money, all the while building relationships with our friends while helping in areas of need.

We all are making do with less, less money, less appreciation, less hope (well at least some of us). Rather than just complain about it (which actually does nothing to solve the problem) maybe it is time to do more of less, more or less. It may be time to go back in time and sit around playing card games and board games with on another discussing life issues, dreaming of ways to solve them rather than just rant and moan. If you are a manager of employees, maybe it is time to thank them and let them know you appreciate how hard they are working. If you own a company, maybe it is time to take a good hard look at cutting your own salary and helping those in your company find ways to improve what you do and how you do it. For the gas companies, it is time to stop being greedy and start thinking about how you can help us improve the economy instead of draining us and it, all for your own gain.

America used to be a place of innovation and sacrifice for the good of the nation. Now it has become an everybody for himself nation with our people only trying to get more and more of that which they don't deserve but think they do. Lawsuits, lotteries, even insurance fraud. CEO making more money than anyone deserves to make and spend, all things ethical and unethical all together. Desperation does one of two things, it will either consume us or motivate us. Which side of the fence are you on? I have found it of happier means to do more with less, actually doing more of less, more or less. If we don't do this from the top down, we all will have less and less until there is nothing left to share, because the rich will have it all and be completely unwilling to share it with us, the poor, and this great nation will be relegated to become another third world nation devoid of a middle class.