There’s so much vying for our time and attention today.  It is analyzed through our clicks, time at work and purchases here and there.  It’s the time we spend at church or at the bar.  It’s the news we consume, movies we stream or porn we get off on.   We are are the consumed these days instead of the consumers we are lead to believe.  Our attention is the resource and energy that fuels the current economy of internet sales, marketing, memes, misinformation, false information and fake news.  What are you doing with your time?  What clicks are you following?  What information are you feeding your ever-hungry brain?

I had a couple people ask about why I haven’t posted to the Biz of You.  Most people just don’t leave comments feedback and simply avoid interaction.  It’s easier that way in our modern spirit of non-interact-ualism.  Our anonymity has grown while our individualism lessen as we are consumed in the information enriched superhighways of despair and longing to connect with things not of our nature but rather things that make money off of our attention.  We follow the trails of information we find interesting only to discover at the end of the rainbows is a leprechaun with his hand out.  The unicorn we followed into the forest of dreams and longing for something better leads us to sprites and fairies ready to whisk us away into the unreal and faked information of our politics, corporations and social institutions.  All these distractions simply amplify our fundamental needs, urges and longings to be more than we are.  Don’t get me wrong, I love my distractions from the trials and tribulations of everyday life.  I enjoy more than a few drinks of late as it helps me unwind from the incomprehensible unaccountability present at my work place and in our politics. I’ve discovered the mid-life numbing that helps weather a wearied life.  I enjoy the seamier side of the internet as it allows my life-long-lover-companion-friend and I to explore our connections and pleasures that distract from the self-absorbed nature of bickering pre-teens and self-consumed leaders in our organizations, society and politics.  We use the identity altering nature of ideas not of our own to explore our own individuality and freedom.  However, these false idols of identity use us for their own gain when we let our guard down.  This is one reason there will never be advertisements on this blog.

This blog is about managing our personal business to connect without something greater than ourselves like our families, our communities and fellow human kind while not undermining who we are or the value of our own time.  There’s the rub that makes calamity of our current short little lives.  Where we spend out time not only feeds our information hungry mind but consumes our soul.  Time is the one resource we all have.  When it is consumed by others without our direct approval is a mockery of our individualism, freedom, and lives.  We live on the edge of being all-consumed and becoming the individualistic hero who saves the dejected parts of our nature from the oppressive elements in our lives.

As I stated earlier, I haven’t posted in a while.  The reason is quite simple.  My time has been absorbed in the creation of my annual picture book showing the progression of the lives of my family.  Every Fall, I enter into the chthonic realm of self-reflection and gratitude.  The book documents my life’s experiences with and stories of what was.  It chronicles the ideas we consumed via the books we listened to on the way to work, read during our weekend morning coffee and experiences we shared.  Relative to the Biz of Me, I’ve assessed the annual family picture book as more important than this blog or the book I’m attempting to rewrite.  I have assessed my priorities and my family comes first.  Work comes second and my personal pursuits follow. My priorities are based on the my personal values and the vision I have for my life. My values are based on an understanding that focusing on the benefit of others in the short-term benefits me in the long-term.  While I have the intention of publishing a book someday, it pales in comparison to the immortality project I manage with my relationship with my wife and my kids. My immortality project is developing the foundation my kids can stand upon to make the best of their lives.  To put it in the words of Mark Monroe, I don’t give a fuck about the rest.  Or, at least the fucks I give for work and my personal projects are of a lesser nature than what I give to my family, the annual book and my daily cooking which helps them with their energy to experience life to its fullest.

My point in this particular post is that we all have a choice.  We have a choice on what to give a fuck about and that’s what the biz of you is about.  My hope in sharing my thoughts is that we all balance the distractions and self-absorption with our immortality projects that help others and serve to make humanity last longer than the next generation.  By sharing what’s important to us, perhaps we can make the world a better place.  The idea I use in my life is managing the business of me or in the words of this blog managing the “Biz of You” so we can extend the business of humanity well beyond our short mortal lives.  Business is about exchanging value for value.  What value are you exchanging for the time you spend?  Are you getting a return on your investment of time and energy?  I am and I hope you are.

If you’d like to open a dialog on this or any topic on this blog, feel free to email jacob@bizofyou.com

I apologize for any typos, punctuation or grammar errors.
Feel free to comment and let me know of my errors so I may correct them and better my biz.