Relationship Investment

Any smart investor looking to invest in a corporation does their due diligence. They ask the hard questions like "What's my return on investment? Why should I invest in your company as opposed to the others? How does your company stack up against its competitors?" Investors ask these tough questions because they want a return on their investment, which is $$$. If I'm pouring millions into a company then I have a right to ask tough questions because I don't want my money to go to waste. Relationships work the same way. When getting to know a person, you start off with basic conversation like name, where you're from, what are your hobbies, etc. Those are filler questions to get the ball rolling but as you dig deeper, you find out who a person is by how they think. Relationships should be looked at according to business. What is my Return On Investment? Nobody wants to invest in someone that's not going to generate residual income. Men, think of women as potential investments: What value can she add to your life that doesn't already exist? Why should you choose her over the others? Ladies, same thing. If you're investing time into him and you're not getting the right return, get rid of him and find someone that will give you the right return for your investment (which would be time). In a relationship sense, residual income refers to seeing the person blossom into what they're going for. If he wants to be successful, you encourage him to go hard for his and when he makes it, he remembers those who helped him along the way and want them to shine with him.

Why Keep Up With The Jones If They're Broke?

Keeping Up With The Jones is a term used to describe people who try to get the latest clothes & gadgets. The people you try to keep up with probably make more money than you and are debt free so that's why they can splurge like they do. If your income is limited, you can't spend money like water. You can but you'll pay for it later in worrying about how you're going to pay this bill & that bill. I want to splurge from time to time but if my money won't allow it and I have bills due, I do the responsible thing and take care of bills first, then if there's anything left over, I either splurge on that or save because you never know when emergencies are going to come up. I keep $10-$20 for emergencies. Keeping Up With The Jones is almost like imitation because you see someone with a new car, you go out and get a newer ride; someone upgrades their home, you do the same and so on. It never ends. Be content with what you have. If you have a car and home that's paid off, keep those items for the simple fact they are PAID FOR. Why go back into debt if you don't have to? Doesn't make sense to me. Material posessions don't define me because the way I see it: As long as I can get nice clothes at a discount and have a nice car that's paid for while making good money, that's enough for me. I don't need to drive luxury vehicles or live in grand mansions. All I want to do is live comfortable and I'm fine with that. Keeping Up With The Jones has never been my thing. They can have the country club dues, the $10,000+ mortgage per month. With what most wealthy people pay in club dues and other expenses, I could take that money and invest in high-risk/high return stocks, mutual funds or invest in real estate. Here's a couple scenarios to illustrate how people try to Keep Up With The Jones:

Scenario 1: The Jones have a 5 br 3 ba home with a 3 car garage a boat an RV, 2 Seadoos and 3 ATV, They have a Benz, and Audi, and a Beamer. You think they are doing well? Mrs. Jones has $3 in her coach wallet in her coach purse while Mr. Jones has nothing in his Kenneth Cole Wallet.

The 3 American Express cards, the 2 Visas, the Mastercard, and the Discover are maxed out

The only way the Discover card gets paid is from the cash back check they get every month.

Scenario 2: Mrs Jones must shop, get her hair and nails done. Mr. Jones must golf and pay country club dues.

At first glance, it may look good to keep up with the Jones', but if your money isn't right, you'll pay for it later  in the form of worrying about how you'll meet your monthly bills. Too many people try to ball out of control which results in misplaced priorities.

The Two Faces Of Miami

Why are the worst areas of cities considered "real"? This documentary is symbolic of every major city in the US. The good side of major cities are promoted heavily while the hellholes are hidden, causing inner-city residents to make documentaries showing people that their city isn't posh like the media portrays. I see both sides of the fence because while you want to sell your city to attract visitors, you also want to let potential residents and tourists know what areas to stay away from. The above documentary isn't exclusive to Miami, every major city has a similar documentary about their city being misrepresented in the media. If people are relocating to a city, they need to know the good & bad so they can make an informed decision.

Not Checking In=Cheating?

Why do women think that because a man doesn't check in with her he's cheating? He's your man, not your Parole Officer. That's childish. As long as he hasn't given her a reason to cheat, she should trust him enough to continue coming home to her. If not, she's not doing her job. If a man isn't itching to come home after a long day's work and would rather kick it with his boys, something's wrong. It's not him, it's HER. Please Learn This. No one wants to feel as though they have no outlet. It's usually women that are guilty of this because many men would have no problem with their lady having a night out with the girls or doing something solo. By right he shouldn't because if she hasn't given him a reason to mistrust her (and vice versa), he should stop the insecurity (that goes double for her). Some men know they have something great at home, but yet want to stay in the streets and play. It's not always that the lady is doing something wrong or not doing something at all; some men are just dogs, it's in their nature! I must flip the script with this question: If women know a man is a dog, she lays down with him and has his child(ren), what does that make her? Yes, some men are just foul so that should cause women to be extra cautious about who they give themselves to. I will say this, a real man that knows what he has at home would be itching to come home to be with his lady. Even then, both couples need time independent of each other. A woman can give a man her all and for some boys its still not enough. In that case, she should go the other direction. No sense in staying with someone who isn't giving as much as you are to the relationship. Relationships take TWO willing participants. We all have played to be something we are not to obtain something we desire at one time or another. Some dogs can imitate man qualities, this is a fact. This is what you call a wolf in sheep's clothing. Extra caution is necessary to guard yourself against these wolves in sheep's clothing because they look for a weak moment and once your guard is down, they show their true colors and you're looking crazy because you were fooled by their act. That's the problem right there, he's a BOY and not a MAN. A man has nothing to hide; he understands his woman wanting him to check in with her not because she's trying to be controlling, but because she's concerned for his safety. A boy would catch feelings if his woman wanted to know his whereabouts. This is where timing comes in hand, if you rush into something without getting to know who the individual is, then whether you are male or female, you set yourself up to be deceived!

Also if the signs are there from the beginning, do not dismiss them because they are future warning signs that something might not be right. I'm too real a man to deceive a woman like that, my morality wouldn't allow it. I would keep it real with a potential mate from the start and if she walked away, I consider it a blessing because she couldn't handle a real man. Some dogs can imitate man qualities so it's extra important a woman has good discernment. If you get an uneasy feeling about the person you meet, it's for a reason. Don't ignore that feeling because it could spell heartbreak. Too many women don't pay attention to a man's character and instead are focused on how tall/buff he is, how his money is looking, what kind of car he drives, etc. Those things will lose value over time. It's his inner core that will stick out to you. How he thinks, feels, his drive, spirituality, etc. TAKE YOUR TIME in getting to know someone (this goes double for men). Start off as friends and see where the relationship goes. This is what I see: Most males today are BOYS. Men know how to prioritize. Boys want their cake and eat it too. Let a man come home at 1am, 2am in the morning and his woman is waiting to verbally pounce on him. "Where have you been? I know you haven't been working all day." The woman can indeed be a GREAT catch and he'll still spend more time with his FRIENDS than he does with HER. What are you in a relationship for if you don't want to dedicate time to your partner?! It makes NO SENSE. And if SHE doesn't interest you anymore then you need to LEAVE and stop blaming her when you don't have to stay and play games along with her! I do believe in SPACE though and a life OUTSIDE of the relationship -- so yes, you BOTH should spend some time with your friends. But your mate should always be #1 no exceptions!!!

Love Reassurance

Everyone wants to hear how much their mate loves them, right? Of course they do. Otherwise, if your mate doesn't tell you how much he/she loves you, you start to doubt the relationship. For some reason, women need constant reassurance their man loves them. Depending on the man, he may not have an issue reinforcing his love for his woman but if he's like most guys, he prefers to show better than tell. A woman that's secure in her relationship understands her man loves her regardless of whether he tells her 50 times a day or once a day. Men are about action rather than speech. Ladies, you shouldn't need constant reassurance your man loves you. As long as he does right by you, that's all you need. Just because a man doesn't tell his woman 50 times a day he loves her doesn't mean he doesn't care about her, it's just that she should know by how he treats her. If the woman is someone that needs to hear "I love you" because that's her love language, then I understand wanting to hear it regularly. Should my woman be one of those ladies, I will school her on how men show affection and from that point, the rest is on her on how she receives my knowledge. As long as your mate showers you with affection on the regular, that should suffice. I think people who need constant reassurance of their mate's love for them are a little insecure. To me, their day isn't complete unless they hear "I love you" a certain number of times. You can tell someone you love them until the cows come home but actions always..ALWAYS speak louder than words. Telling someone you love them and not backing up your words with action doesn't add up. Your love for your spouse will always be credible if you tell and show him/her you love them.

Richard Mourdock - Pregnancy from Rape is Something God Intended to Happen

Everyone has said things they wish they could take back, but no one (to my knowledge) has said something so vile like this. To suggest that God intended for a child to be born via rape is dead wrong. Comments like this confirm atheists belief that if God is so loving and merciful, why does he allow bad things to happen to decent human beings? From that viewpoint, I can understand why atheists think like they do. This guy came out of his mouth to say some crap like this. True, God does take what the enemy means for evil and creates good but God doesn't allow someone to be raped; that's mega FLAW. That's like God allowing some children to be born healthy and others with one or more debilitating disabilities and I won't believe that for one minute.Or how about some people having a good start in life and others having the odds stacked against them from early on? More bull. Really? God intended the rape to happen? Well, there you have it folks.

Deflection

Mention men's issues and people shout the house down. Mention women's issues and you get deflection and combativeness. Seen it many times over on FB and real life; it never fails. The deflection many women display when you try to correct them just proves the very case. Wonder why men don't play the deflection/combative game? Men are usually better at receiving correction because we're used to getting our behinds handed to us, therefore we make the proper adjustments. Men may deflect, but never to the degree of women. Men were usually raised to take responsibility for what they say/do and that sticks with them throughout life. Women are used to being coddled that sometimes people overlook their transgressions. In a woman's eyes, she's never wrong. She always thinks she's right and nobody can tell her otherwise. Deflection is not a good look on ANYONE, man or woman. Deflection shows your inability to take ownership and no one wants to be around someone like that; unless of course deflectors seek out those who tell them what they want to hear instead of what they NEED to hear. You have some men that throw their brick and hide their hand and to me, they're little boys, not men. A man stands behind what he says even in the face of opposition; he's not afraid to catch heat for how he feels and thinks. I read a lot of Facebook threads and when someone makes valid points, there's always someone who says "y'all do it too, what about you guys" That may be true but to deflect the truth of a situation is crazy. This is a good example of the craziness I read on Facebook on a regular basis: If a woman checks a man, women call her courageous and a hero. If a man checks a woman, women say he hates women and his mother. Both sides have issues they need to work on but at the same time, when the focus is on a particular person, place or thing, DO NOT deflect in any way, shape or form.