Learning how to make those small, but continual changes and learning how to stick to goals from EACH OTHER always seemed the way of The Simple Dollar, to me at least. I have NEVER felt that Trent was preaching at us, but that we were all learning together. This guy obviously hasn’t read much of The Simple Dollar.

I think Trent’s response of encouragement is the ultimate testiment to this purpose of this blog and reassures me this is the one place I’ll turn, even when time constraints limit my opportunites to absorb a broader range of sites. Thanks Trent!!

It is very possible for someone to work incredibly hard and still get a bum deal in life, while someone else can be very lazy and still have a good life. That’s why it’s unfair to immediately assume that people who are in bad situations are themselves at fault for it. The analogy you use actually works against you here. Yes, comparing Frankle’s life with a good attitude to what it would have been with a bad attitude, having a good attitude has probably helped him somewhat. But despite all his effort, *he was still a Holocaust victim*. Aren’t there plenty of people out there with bad attitudes that didn’t end up in concentration camps? So, comparing a person with a good attitude vs. a person with a bad attitude, the person with the good attitude does *not* always have a better life, and you cannot assume that someone who has had a worse life has done something wrong to deserve it. Taken to extremes (such as the Holocaust example), you can see how horrendous that assumption really is.

Also the blessed vs lucky thing depends on one’s religious beliefs, so I think you’re being a little disrespectful to others on that front as well.

I agree that you can always better your situation, but it annoys me whenever I see successful bloggers say things like “follow your passion and the money will come” or “quit your job and start a blog so you can travel and make money at the same time.”

We all have ups and downs – that is life. However, even if you can’t stop yourself being made redundant, you can put yourself in a position where being made redundant is easier. If you need advice on this, isn’t it lucky for us that Trent works so hard on his blog and we can access all this information for free?

Scored big time on Real Estate.

Paid big time on Medical.

Back to even & taking steps back up.

I have no doubt that there is some luck involved in life, things will play out differently for different people, and there is something to be said for being in the right place at the right time. That said, I think people can enhance the “luck” (or perceived luck) in their lives by looking for opportunities, being positive and proactive.

I’m not perfect at living by that either, but that’s the best way I’ve ever heard it put. True, you’ll never get ahead if you don’t get a break, but you also won’t if you don’t prepare yourself to take advantage of the one that comes along. True, misfortunes (the opposite of opportunity?) will likely push you back down. But they’ll devestate you if you don’t prepare yourself to be able to mitigate them.

Statistically, anything on the normal curve can happen. Preparation serves to shift the distribution a little, that’s all.

When my husband was laid off, he went to one half his salary but we managed because of the life style we lead. Some may think we are deprived but we think of ourselves as blessed and have no desire to keep up with the Joneses…. I also want to add that making it a priority to give to the needy also is a blessing. We have no idea how blessed we are with even running water and electricity. Live simply and you will live well.

I think the point many people are making is fair – that negative feelings are not going to improve one’s situation. You can’t control what happens, but how you respond to what happens.

I liked Trent’s approach in his response. Whether we’re in a good spot or a bad spot we should look for areas of improvement in our lives because you never know what’s around the corner. I’m working hard to improve my family’s financial situation, but I’m aware that there are any number of things that could devastate our situation. I may never be enough prepared, but by reducing our debt and boosting our income we can be better prepared for whatever life my throw our way.

In general I think it’s good advice not to dwell on the negative, but learn from it. I have areas of weakness that could be improved upon, but for now I’m focusing on maximizing my strengths and in doing that I am indirectly improving my areas of weakness.

And I agree that as a community we should be looking for ways to help those less fortunate. Although I often feel like I’m struggling to maintain my meager middle class existence, there are far too many who fare worse right in my own community.

Fortunately we had the habit of being prepared for the “unpredictable” –a habit that made the difference between surviving and being destitute. We can predict that at least one major thing will need maintenance or happen this year tha twill be very costly. When I changed my attitude from being surprised and annoyed when something went wrong to expecting it I had less stress and was better prepared. My habit became to always made sure we had a “cushion”. If we had a year when it wasn’t needed, we could almost always predict the next year we would be better prepared for whatever unpredictable thing was coming

When my husband lost his job and couldn’t find another and my work also took a nosedive, that meant the difference between total financial devastation and surviving.

Losing a job and not being able to afford health care can be emotionally and financially devastating but doesn’t have to be the end of the world. Our cushion and starting out by not having debt helped us weather the storm until we could be resourceful enough to figure out every place we could eliminate or cut back and every resource that could bring in extra revenue–including finally taking a job that required auctioning our house, relocating and earning a lot less money.

We couldn’t predict those years of him being basically unemployed but that habit of preparing for the unpredictable made the difference.

Fortunately we had the habit of being prepared for the “unpredictable” –a habit that made the difference between surviving and being destitute. We can predict that at least one major thing will need maintenance or happen this year tha twill be very costly. When I changed my attitude from being surprised and annoyed when something went wrong to expecting it I had less stress and was better prepared. My habit became to always made sure we had a “cushion”. If we had a year when it wasn’t needed, we could almost always predict the next year we would be better prepared for whatever unpredictable thing was coming

When my husband lost his job and couldn’t find another and my work also took a nosedive, that meant the difference between total financial devastation and surviving.

Losing a job and not being able to afford health care can be emotionally and financially devastating but doesn’t have to be the end of the world. Our cushion and starting out by not having debt helped us weather the storm until we could be resourceful enough to figure out every place we could eliminate or cut back and every resource that could bring in extra revenue–including finally taking a job that required auctioning our house, relocating and earning a lot less money.

We couldn’t predict those years of him being basically unemployed but that habit of preparing for the unpredictable made the difference.