Showdown Day 2: Fred Gratzon
Okay, we’re back. Welcome to day 2 of the 3-day Productivity Blog Showdown. In case you missed them earlier, today’s questions are as follows:
You both seem to encourage paying less attention to how much money you
make, and pay more attention to what you’re passionate about. With that
in mind, please address the following:
a. What if your passion IS money?
b.
What should I do if my passion requires money, and in order to make
money, I need to work a whole bunch of hours per week at a job I’m not
passionate about, leaving no time for my passion?
c. Conversely,
what should I do if I know that my passion is staying home with my
family (or similar non-paying passion), but doing that won’t pay the
bills? How can I reconcile being away from my family/passion in order
to "just" make money?
Fred Gratzon is the author of The Lazy Way to Success, and also keeps a blog over here.
He has also founded two very different companies, an ice cream
manufacturing company and a long distance company–more info about that
in this interview.
His unique point of view is delivered from a comfortable perch within a
hammock–ostensibly somewhere near palm trees, but I think it’s
actually nearer to Iowa, USA. So, without further commentary, here is Fred’s response…
Our educational system trains people to be employed. Kids are continually harangued that they will only get good jobs if they work hard in school.
Our schools do not foster creativity, imagination, self-knowledge, self-reliance, or wisdom. Our schools do not inspire passion or joy of learning. They do not teach kids to think for themselves. Basically we are educating our youth to "work hard" and be good little employees.
Here it is between the eyes, folks: you cannot become successful punching a time clock. Some of you will argue, "But what about Bill Gates’ first secretary? Didn’t she just buy Argentina and sell it to Brazil?" Yes, yes, but such cases are exceedingly rare. Besides, her wealth came from ownership, not clock punching.
In almost all cases, you just can’t become successful working for someone else - unless, of course, you’re the starting shortstop for the New York Yankees. But even then you’d be playing, not working.
Question: What if your passion is money?
Fred’s answer: It depends on what you want to do with the money. If you want it to fund an opera company, or institute an educational reform, or create world peace, then your passion to get the money is admirable.
If, however, your passion is to continuously upgrade your shelter, dining and mating options, then I would have no interest in partnering with you, or even hiring you. In fact, I’d have no interest in even meeting you.
Second Question: My passion requires money. So I have to work all week at a job I’m not passionate about, and now there’s no time left for my passion! What should I do?
Fred’s Answer: I can’t relate to this question. It is impossible for me to imagine spending any time at a job, let alone all my time, while denying myself what I love. I would regard that as a huge disservice to myself and a sinful waste on every conceivable level.
When I have a passion that requires money, I figure out a way to get the money without having to sacrifice my life chasing a paycheck. There are much easier, more plentiful ways of getting money than doing a job. Anyway, when I am passionate about something, I have to do it every moment. There’s no time left for a job.
You need a new mindset, a fresh influx of creativity and inspiration.
For your brain to be creative and inspired, it needs rest. At the very least, you should get enough sleep. (Be in bed with lights out and your eyes closed before 10 PM every night. I promise you that will do wonders.) Take long leisurely walks in the woods. Collaborate with people who share your passion. If you set up those initial conditions, the answers you need will percolate to the surface.
If you allow your brain to become stunted from endless hours of insurance adjusting, cubicle dwelling, writing numbers in columns, or the like, it simply won’t deliver.
Third Question: My passion is staying home with my family (or similar non-paying passion), but that won’t pay the bills. How can I reconcile being away from my family/passion just to make money?
Fred’s Answer: I don’t believe any passion is non-paying. You can always find a way. It may not be what you currently have in mind, but punching a time clock is not exactly inspired thinking. You have to be alert to the periphery - that’s where the opportunities are.
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15 opinions for Showdown Day 2: Fred Gratzon
Steve Pavlina
Mar 23, 2005 at 7:57 am
Fred, I agree with you completely on all of these points. I would have loved to have seen more detail though — especially a story from your own life. Did you always think this way, or did certain events lead you to understand the critical role of passion? I’ve only been an employee for six months of my life, working for $6/hour in retail sales, and that’s where I quickly realized that working for someone else my whole life just wasnt’t the path for me. Haven’t had a job since. :)
Great
Mar 23, 2005 at 8:01 am
Very interesting! You are in fact proposing a new paradigm.
Steve Pavlina
Mar 23, 2005 at 8:05 am
Fred, I’d also be curious to know if you’ve read Marc Allen’s book The Millionaire Course (or any of his other books), since your philosophy is very similar to his.
Lifehacker
Mar 23, 2005 at 8:18 am
Productivity Showdown continues
The productivity showdown between author of The Lazy Way to Success Fred Gratzon and hard-work advocate Steve Pavlina continues today at the Slacker Manager weblog. Not suprisingly, both gentleman have similar philosophies - do what you love - couched …
Lifehacker
Mar 23, 2005 at 8:21 am
Productivity Showdown continues
The productivity showdown between author of The Lazy Way to Success Fred Gratzon and hard-work advocate Steve Pavlina continues today at the Slacker Manager weblog. Not suprisingly, both gentleman have similar philosophies - do what you love - couched …
Fred Gratzon
Mar 23, 2005 at 9:01 am
I didn’t give more detail for a couple of reasons – I’m lazy and I didn’t want to overwhelm everyone with a flood of words.
As for my employment history, I am easily the most unemployable man on earth. I am lazy, anti-authoritarian, and I despise routine work. I have no skills, no knowledge, and no marketable talents. I have a short memory, a shorter attention span, and no intellect. I haven’t been able to hold a job for longer than two months. I either get fired or run out screaming within a week or two. I even got fired from a civil service job – a phenomenon that practically takes an act of Congress along with a unanimous vote from the Supreme Court.
I never put “the role of passion” into words until I was in my forties. However, I spontaneously conducted my life in that way from the start. I have always reacted to work the same way a cat reacts when you try to give it a bath. Work feels like I am committing an enormous crime against life and all I want is to escape as quickly as possible.
After this blog showdown, I will post some things on my blog about how to find one’s calling in life. I think I can shed some wonderful light onto that vital topic.
Fred Gratzon
Mar 23, 2005 at 9:10 am
I wouldn’t know Marc Allen from a bar of soap. In other words, I never read any of his books.
But if he advocates passion along with finding easier, subtler, more powerful ways of accomplishing things so you don’t have to work, then he must be an inspired, insightful, intensely spectacular genius.
Eric
Mar 23, 2005 at 11:14 am
You’re both very inspiring guys. But Steve is able to tell people what they can do to improve their situation. Fred isn’t, or isn’t willing, I’m not sure which (or is too lazy?).
Fred, you say “There are much easier, more plentiful ways of getting money than doing a job.”
Can you give some examples for those of us who are desperate to achieve what you and Steve have? Or even just your own personal experiences would be helpful, if you’re too lazy to do a full blown how-to like what Steve did. =)
Fred Gratzon
Mar 23, 2005 at 12:56 pm
I’ll tell my story on my blog but not today. Today I want to write lazy-based answers for tomorrow’s post. But the long and the short of what you want to know is simple. You have all the tools and all the magic between your ears right now. You are a genius way beyond anything you have ever thought about yourself. You have to allow that genius to unfold. However, it will not unfold if you are tired, overworked, or stressed.
Steve’s how-to analysis, by the way, is quite good.
Please forgive the following unabashed sales pitch, but you need to read my book.
Josh
Mar 23, 2005 at 2:05 pm
What are some much easier, more plentiful ways of getting money than doing a job???
Jason
Mar 23, 2005 at 2:12 pm
Fred, your comments are insightful and truly wonderful, and though perhaps not as detailed as some desire, the passion of what you are discussing is more important in this case I feel. However, what I wanted to ask was this:
I have long felt as you have regarding the societal pressures both from the education system, but also from work environments to “work hard”. I definitely agree that “schools do not foster creativity, imagination, self-knowledge, self-reliance, or wisdom”. But you advocate that everyone should follow their passion, and as posted above, are suggesting or proposing a new paradigm. The problem I see is this: most people probably don’t like doing their “job” and would rather “play at their passion” but then how would society function? There are many many jobs that no one would have an interest in doing potentially, things necessary in the society that has evolved around us. So in essence, your lazy way to success is only for those willing to prosper on the backs of those who “work hard” or so it seems. Can you suggest, in your laziest possible way, how this could be applied in society as a whole?
Crimson
Mar 23, 2005 at 2:34 pm
Great comments guys. I like Fred’s answer’s to these questions and Steve’s approach to how to solve these difficult problems.
The thing with changing focus is that it may mean temporarily cutting back on something — be it getting a smaller living space, driving a more fuel efficieint car, etc. But to the outside world, this may seem like you’ve failed and they will pitty or mock you when in fact you’re doing precisely what you want to do. You just refuse to live in their view of the world.
Yet this potential reaction from friends/family/society can cause enough fear in people to hold them back.
(”I’m too old to start”, “My parents sacrificed so much for me to go to medical/law school and by doing something else, I’d be letting them down”, “I’ve made up too much ground on this one path to pursue another”, “Won’t be able to pay those country club dues doing THAT!”, “Wife/Hubby/Girlfriend will leave”,”What if it turns out to not really be what I want to do”, etc ).
Tough stuff. It’s one thing to have always lived your passion. But if you change the course of your life to pursue what you really want, then I think some pain is to be expected in the transition (though you’ll be better for it in the end).
Steve Pavlina
Mar 23, 2005 at 4:32 pm
In terms of transitioning, you just have to accept that whenever you transition, you’re going to piss people off, particularly anyone who’s a stakeholder in your staying put. But that’s their reaction, and you don’t have to own it. Just let people be pissed and get moving anyway. If you don’t piss them off, someone else will anyway.
idcj
Mar 23, 2005 at 9:11 pm
Fantastic debate guys, I’ve been reading both blogs for a long time (just never posted, so far). I do believe in both approaches as they are one and the same in different words. My understanding so far: 1. If you dream of something, everything else feels like ‘hard-work’ 2. If you dared to dream, then have the energy/faith to turn it into a reality (else you become frustrated) 3. Money is very rarely a motivation factor.
Bernhard
Mar 23, 2005 at 11:38 pm
“Please forgive the following unabashed sales pitch, but you need to read my book.”
I read the book. It’s an inspiring read. I’m a long time fan of the idea of “wu-wei” and the book is basically the same but in different words. I enjoyed it.
Don’t expect much more how-to details though, you won’t find it, the important points are already said. And that’s good. Because you have to trust yourself and find your very own way. What worked for someone else doesn’t work for you. It’s scary at first, but you have to go it alone.
Fred, the only thing I don’t like with your book is that you basically say that transcedental meditiation is the best way to go. First you explain the great lazy way of life and then you present that technique for relaxation as the best way to get there. I disagree. I’m way to lazy to learn another technique in order to get where I want to. It worked for you, it may work for someone else, fine, but that doesn’t mean its for everyone (not to mention that there’re people who got in seriuos trouble using that technique.)
If you want find your very own way you have to be completly free and independent of the meaning and ideas of other people. No, you don’t have to read Fred’s book. You don’t have to read any books! If it’s fun for you, do it, but don’t let yourself fool into the idea that you need anything except your own brain.