Could You Spend $1,000 A Day?
I’m willing to wager, the difference between you and a billionaire, is exactly one billion dollars. In roughly 15 years there will be 1 Billion Millionaires on the planet, will you & I be one of them? We are under the mistaken assumption that money makes us happy, yes it makes things easier to pay for and it gives us options, but happiness? Another bet I’m willing to make is, the happiest you have ever felt is when you helped someone financially when they were in hardship, maybe you gave away half of your food supply or bought a meal for someone less fortunate than you. Do billionaires do that?
Just recently, 40 billionaires vowed to give away half of their fortunes, people like Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, George Lucas, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, Ted Turner and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, just to name a few have stepped up. Imagine giving away half your fortune. That’s 40 Billionaires, based on Forbes magazine’s estimates of billionaires wealth, at least 150 billion US could be given away. These people could shape the future of the world with this money, I hope it happens, and I hope we obliterate world hunger at the same time, it would only take a small percentage of 150 Billion to solve that problem.
Let’s put this in some perspective, there are 403 Billionaires living in the USA, why do we have the problems we do with this much money available. If you the average person had a billion dollars, and you were born with that billion, your life would be somewhat different than it is today. You could spend a $1,000 a day and never spend it all, the average person could not do it. Bill Gates & the Warren Buffett’s of the world could spend a Billion in seconds, but I venture that you and I would have a tough time doing it. Imagine being a billionaire, knowing all the while you couldn’t spend it in your life time. Something would have to change, and that would mean you.
Now ask yourself a question, what kind of person would you become with that kind of money in your hands? I have a good idea, but that’s not where I’m going with this little bitty. I can only hope there is an easy and quick way to get that 150 billion dollars into the hands of those who truly need help. That world hunger would be eliminated, and human suffering could be greatly reduced. Billy Graham once said, there are three things technology has yet to solve:
1.) Human Evil
2.) Human Suffering
3.) Death
The said 150 billion dollars will increase #1 I suspect, #2 could be drastically reduced and #3 may be solved through Nanotechnology in 30 years time. I know we all have uses for large amounts of money at some point in our lives, but how much is enough, and once you have all the toys, what would you need? It gets hard for you & I to spend a Billion once we have a basic needs met. It’s fun to think about, but there are far too many out there who have much less than you and I. Don’t wait for your Billion to make a difference in someones life, DO IT NOW!
If you wish to see the full list of billionaires pledging to giveaway half their fortunes, here’s the site: The Giving Pledge
A few concerns, who will administrate these funds, who will decide where the money goes, and will the money actually get there, I fear bureaucracy will win before people do.
What kind of person do you think you would become if you suddenly became a Billionaire?
Seth Godin & Tom Peters on Blogging – Should You Blog?
Two of the most insightful minds in our world today are caught here speaking on the topic of blogging, should you blog?
This is a must watch!
Open & Free Business Model Workshop – August 20th, 2010
Is what your doing fit the broadband culture? All of us carry beliefs in our head that were true at one time, but many are no longer true today. The future is not something that can be found, or discovered, you & I create it everyday. The world of business is changing at an exponential rate, it’s almost impossible to keep up, this workshop will help look at the future of business in a new exciting way.
The Open & Free Business Model means looking at the world of business as it will be, not as it is.
COME EXPLORE YOUR BUSINESSES FUTURE On The WEB!
You can give away content and generate revenue, the model is a strategy too! Join me as I walk you through the basic principles of an Open & Free Business Model for your business.
We will look at three main topics:
TRENDS
We’ll look at trends and what’s happening around the world, and how these trends will impact your business online & off. Today there are 2.0 Billion people on the Internet, in the next 3 – 5 years that number will be 5 Billion. How will you get their attention?
THE OPEN & FREE BUSINESS MODEL
This is not a skill set, it’s a paradigm shift and this shift is painful, I’ll layout why and what this model might look like for your business, I’ll also show examples of how businesses are using this model.
BREAKOUT SESSION
By the time we get to this section, you’ll already have some new creative ideas, and ways to increase revenue. We’ll work through how you can build & implement your ideas with your staff.
When the workshop is over you will have a much better view of what’s coming, a framework to help you adapt, plus you will have a simple step by step approach for implementing new revenue streams.
This workshop has been reworked, it’s new & improved, it’s 4 hours (Noon to 4PM) of compelling information that will give you a whole new perspective on your business.
Workshop Discount Rate will continue till Friday – $99
Book now and reserve your seat!
For more details and to book your seat, just send an e-mail to: workshop@owengreaves.com
I look forward to working with you,
Owen Greaves
New Chip Technology Is Everywhere
I talk alot about future trends and technologies, RFID chips, nanotechnology, and well, even computers as we know them. With all these advances, there is a growing challenge, how to keep your privacy private. The new chip technology is everywhere, we are forced into it, all financial institutions in Canada must have this chip technology embedded into each card by 2011, credit cards and yes even debit cards. The government and corporations are mandating this technology without your knowledge, it’s happening and you have no choice. Oh, and by the way, as of October 2010, if you don’t have this chip on your Visa, you will no longer be covered by the Visa Zero Liability Policy. I’ll be you didn’t know that.
These cards with chips embedded are called “Smart Cards”, in time will permanently have replaced the current magnetic-strip cards we carry around today. These new chip cards mean you can, you will not be able to hide, you will be tracked at all times, if you are a criminal or have bad credit, they turn the card off and you are unable to buy anything. Let alone not be found, hiding is something we did when we were little, covered ours eyes and no one could see us, remember?
This past week, the Google & US Government collaboration was announced, the Internet will be monitored, every Tweet, every FaceBook Update, every Blog Post will be scrutinized. So be careful what you put on the NET, it might get you in serious trouble. Here is an example of how a simple purchase of a Pizza might go for you in the near future.
The Two Most Misunderstood Words On The NET
A lot of words are misunderstood, that’s a given, but here online there are two that really mess people up. Now, I see tough times ahead for TV, Newspapers, Magazines, Music Stores, Book Stores and so on, these are the obvious ones. In fact, most major corporations are trying to figure out how to make these two words work for them. The problem isn’t the words, the problem is in the past, it’s called the Industrial age.
Remember when Social Media first came on the scene, your boss heard the words Social Media and freaked out. The picture that came to mind was people standing around a water cooler and not working, just shooting the breeze. I’m certain that is still a problem in most businesses, but they are dead wrong. Yes, Social Media is misunderstood, but those aren’t the two words I’m talking about now.
The two most misunderstood words are, Open & Free. Open & Free is a business model, and they are completely taken the wrong way, much like Social Media was and is still today. Open means many things, here online, they can mean, open systems and transparency. Free does not always mean free literally, but sometimes it does, and that’s where the rub is for business owners.
Open & Free are trying to achieve a balance the same way Sharing vs Piracy is trying to gain credibility. The problem as I mentioned earlier is, old thinking, we have to unlearn most of what we understand in the old business model of control. How you ask. The best way is to hire someone like myself that sees the world of business online as it will be, not as it is. I don’t mean someone who is guessing, someone who can show you in a methodical way that makes sense, in a simple way you understand. The future of business is not that hard to see, but it is if you’re using old eyes, the way you’ve always done things. Remember a primary principle, you don’t know what you don’t know.
Using the Open & Free Business Model in your business takes work, starting with looking at your business in a new and exciting way. Open may mean that you are giving your customers access to you, if you have been hiding from them before. In this new world business of commerce, you can’t hide anymore, you must connect with those who are buying and using your product and services. This isn’t new to some, but most still try to control who gets to them, and I’m betting it’s not going so well.
Free may mean you are selling a three part product or service, and you are giving part one away for free, and then charging for access to the other two parts. It could be a product, or it could be a consulting service. I have over simplified it here for you but it’s not this simple really, there’s much, much more to this model than described here.
If you want to learn more about The Open & Free Business Model, snoop around this blog for more posts, attend my workshop if you are local to me, hire me as a think-tank leader, and lastly, you can wait for my book to come out.
Open & Free are lonely words because they are The Two Most Misunderstood Words On The Internet Today.