Money Spinners

Last week The New Indian Express carried an interesting article about the booming paying guest business in Chennai. That useful article immediately made me recollect my meeting with a housewife last year.

Ramabadran, a retired gentleman in his early sixties, was physically active but his mind was full of negative thoughts and his heart was engulfed in depression.

"I worked in a small private company that makes masala powder as a floor supervisor. At the time of my retirement I received Rs. 1 lakh. I spent that money on my son's marriage. I don't have any savings. My son and his wife are both employed. My wife and I are living with them. Now life has become a burden," said Ramabadran in a voice tinged with sorrow.

Vikram said, "I think you give too much importance to computer and the Internet. I am a B.Sc. degree holder. My main subject was agriculture. I have been trained to live in harmony with the nature and harnessed natural resources. I don't know how to use computer and don't want to waste my time on learning how to use it."

"Most of us use LPG or electric stoves to cook food. There are some rare species that still prefer to use firewood even though they have means to buy LPG. They say the food cooked using firewood is tastier and healthier than the food cooked with LPG," I said.

All successful people agree on one thing - if you exhaust all your known resources genuinely in solving a problem, life will bring to you new unknown resources in abundance. We can call it as luck, grace, coincidence or by whatever name we like.

I think of my old friend Ralph, his success story and the above principle of exhausting your efforts and resources, whenever I receive emails from people that say, "I don't know what to do next."

Ralph Winters, an English man, is a Chartered Accountant. He is a business consultant. Last night he called me over telephone to discuss about his new project.

"I have been working to create a big website that would organize the human knowledge. At minimum level, this website would supply practical knowledge to its visitors that help them create prosperity, and lead a life of accomplishments. The maximum level can never be defined because the project has potential for infinite growth," he said to me.

Bhanu is a housewife. Her husband is not able to go for a job as his health has not been good for a long time and has been bed-ridden. Her daughter is in high school.

For the past sixty years, our country has been trying to get rid of poverty and become prosperous. At the same time, we hear statements such as 'Seeking money is bad,' and 'Money should not be your goal.' If you carefully observe the background of the people who make such statements, you will be surprised to know that 75% of them are rich and powerful. The remaining 25% are those who think that they don't have the capacity or skills to become prosperous.

All other people like you and me aspire to become prosperous. Our hearts tell us that we must earn money.

A few years ago a software company hired me to write a user manual for their software program. I had to spend a few weeks at their development center to work on that project. I met there the lady with the mouse.

On the third day of my work, a dozen workers were preparing to leave their workstations and go out at 9 in the morning. When I asked one of them what the matter was, he told me that they were going to attend a training session on computer ergonomics. He invited me to join them as I was also an active computer user.

Rajesh was a talkative young man. He was working as a clerk in a famous accounting firm in South India. When a friend and I were sitting in the firm's office, he started to talk to my friend. "You may think I am arrogant and lack humility. But, I have no hesitation in telling the world the truth. I am much better than all the rich people in this city," he said.

One of the questions that troubles many people that are about to retire is: 'How will I survive after retirement?

When income from full salary does not guarantee a life without financial worries, what can you and I possibly do without new sources of income after retirement?