Today, I was half way watching a news program, when I was struck by a “two by four” moment!!!  You know, a “what did I just hear”?  The story was about “speed dating”.  Another idea for meeting people in today’s “instant gratification” world, hoping to find “Mr. or Miss. Right”, without having to work too hard or for too long.  I mean what happened to the old fashioned way of letting time, your friends, your job or your interests help you find meaningful relationships?  With “speed dating”, thirty to fifty people or more meet in one location at the same time.  This might be a cozy bar, a hotel conference room or a college gymnasium.  There are small tables for two, set in a circle; everyone takes a seat and gets to talk to the other person across from them for five to ten minutes.  Then a buzzer goes off and you move to the next table, continuing to circulate around the room until you have had a five minute conversation with everyone.

I’d have to be able to explain my life in two minutes and use the other three minutes for some great “pick up lines” and qualification statements to see, instantly, if I’d be interested in seeing someone twice!  My conversational expertise and marketing skills definitely aren’t that developed!  The twist on this particular TV program was that this “speed dating” agenda was focused just on millionaires.  People with money or people only interested in people with money arranging to meet.  In case you’re interested, you can check out www.sugardaddy.com.  What struck me is that this idea is such a continuation of the “me” generation, the pervasive current focus on materialism, the hundreds of choices for shopping available and the instant gratification that seems so prevalent today.  Surely, part of all of this stems from the hugely competitive society we are living in.

We have got to slow all of this down and get rebalanced.  There is a finite number of millionaires that are possible and, actually, a million dollars isn’t even what it used to be – now, we’re talking billionaires!!  What are we setting up as levels of achievement for our children and grandchildren?  Typically, the younger generations will want at least what they were raised with and probably more.  Somewhere and starting with someone, this kind of thinking has to change – let’s start with us.

We’ve all heard about stopping to smell the roses, well, if you’re too focused on the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, you might just miss the rainbow.  A fabulous life with a wonderful partner, great relationships with friends and family and amazing memories don’t have to cost a lot of money.  Plus, money usually comes with strings!!  Go out and live life for the things that really matter!!  For Thanksgiving, be thankful and try to keep filling your basket with meaning and memories.

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