Available resources
In America, we have so many available resources. This is true for all but the most destitute, and even they have some resources that people in other countries do not have. With the right attitude and actions, even those who are badly off can rise. Just in case you’re tempted to get defensive—if you’re reading this, you have resources! Whether or not you make progress depends on your attitudes and actions.
Available resources in the past
Years ago, someone who had an amazing passel of resources (including an income almost 100 times the size of what mine was) tried to convince me that I was wealthy and very well off in other ways and that I should be grateful I wasn’t in the situation that some people in my town were in. My response at the time was I was nowhere near wealthy, nor was I fortunate in any way. I was disabled and disadvantaged, and I’d had to work and scratch long and hard for what little I had.
The only resources I had at my disposal back then were a very tiny public library, which had very few books and took about three weeks to receive interlibrary loans and gave patrons only three days to read and return them; internet access; some skills; and my personal choices to be intelligent and determined to find a way.
Jumping ahead more than a decade (over years of toil, which is fine; I don’t want to relive that stuff!) . . .
The last few years have brought progress—significant progress.
While reading aloud to my family (something I do every day as part of our ongoing education), I came across a gem in the classic Awaken the Giant Within that led to this post. The author asked what available resources we have that we were not making the best use of, and I decided to make a list. Then I made a list of all of our family’s available resources—everything that we could think of in an hour, anyway. I’m sure there are more.
Note: some of the links below are affiliate links. This means that if you happen to make a purchase at those sites, it won’t cost you even a penny more, but the company might pay me a small commission for sharing the good news about them. Here are the resources we have now.
Available resources now
Site Point Premium, Code Year, Designer.io, and similar resources
PromoRepublic, Canva, Stencil, Piktochart, etc.
Copyscape
Plutio, GQueues, and Calendly
F.lux
Font Squirrel
Antivirus/firewall protection
5000 b.c., 48 Days Eagles, Platform University, and other business memberships
Attorney Marketing Institute’s social-media course
James Woosley’s mastermind and self-publishing program
Millions of books and ebooks
Dozens of PDFs on my computer alone, and millions more available
StockUnlimited, Wikimedia Commons, and a photographer husband
Microsoft Office Suite software programs
Open-source software programs
Serif software programs
Amazon Kindle Unlimited
Google Suite
Internet access
Over 200 Facebook groups
Khan Academy
Career/aptitude tests
Checking and savings accounts
PayPal account
Our websites, and an incredible tool for building websites
Our email list of subscribers
Tech such as phones, computers, Kindle, tablets, etc.
Amazon Prime and Alexa
Webinars, podcasts, etc.
Cameras
CDs and DVDs
Zoom, Skype, Slack
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn
Non-tech (or low-tech) resources
Considerably more skills now than before
Church
Relationships with friends and family (over 1,500 friends and acquaintances on social media)
Relationships with publishers and other clients
Tools (saws, lawn mower, Homeowner’s Tool Kit, etc.)
Stores where we can make purchases
Our home, furniture, and appliances
Our vehicle
Garden
Food and drink
Brewster Dogburn, service dog
Public library
Team members
Games
Bikes
Office supplies
Post office and other shippers
Doctors and other service providers
Teachers, coaches, and mentors
Cash
Beliefs
Goals and plans
Cleaning products
School supplies
Clothes and shoes
Sun, air, etc.
Time (24 hours every day)
Life
College degrees
Curiosity, stubbornness, and intelligence
Medications, supplies, and first-aid kit
Sewing skills, machine, and supplies (I don’t think I want to know why this one occurred to someone right after the first-aid kit did.)
Brain and bio hacks
Candles
Essential oils such as Young Living and doTERRA (These are not affiliate links—important only because a person can’t sell for both companies. I sell neither.)
Knowledge and experience in so many areas
Empathy and compassion (So often seen as weaknesses, these are truly resources.)
Contrast the length of that list with what we had (or what I thought we had) at our disposal years ago, and also with the following list, which comprises the things we’d still like to have—things that would help us feel like we are making the most of life.
Desired resources
Because the word “want” means “lack,” we try to use a different word. These are some things we still desire.
Bus or RV for Tiny Living or travel
Particular real-estate desires
A specific amount in savings and checking
Time with certain mentors
College degrees/certifications and increased skills
Household help
Specific income streams and business goals
Relationships with particular professionals
The list of what we still want/need to put in place is short. Does that mean we’re almost “there” in terms of ultimate success? I don’t know, but I do know this. We are so far from where we used to be that even if nothing else ever changes, it’s great. We are happy people, with an abundance mentality. Gratitude helps. That applies to attitude in general. It all comes down to deciding to be that way. Then the magic begins.
What resources do you have at your disposal? Are you using them to the fullest? Express gratitude for having so many available resources. Decide what you will do right now so that you can be more, do more, have more, and give more. Make your life the best it can be.