A Personal Lesson in Self-Sufficiency

One of the biggest lessons that my mother taught me was to be as self-sufficient as

I could. In fact, my mother taught all four of her sons that lesson. My mother raised
four boys by herself, making less than 20k a year; yet we never lacked anything. As
a result of her hard work ethic all of us turned out well. But I couldnt help but recall
the lesson she taught us as I was using a gift she helped me develop. When I was
about ten years old, my mother made a declaration that she was not going to pay
for anymore haircuts. And in doing so, she saved about $720 a year in hindsight.
Typically, my mother would take all four of her sons to the local barbershop about
twice a month, and drop about $30 bucks for all four of us ($30x24 haircuts a year).
So instead of our doing it that way, she took me (the eldest) to the local family
dollar and purchased a $6 dollar clipper set (with all of the mini guards included).
Now of course this ruined our little worlds, but after about a year of trial and error,
not only did I become good at cutting my hair, but all of us became good at it. In
fact, one of my side gigs as a teenager included cutting hair for friends and
occasional family members. So her lesson in self-sufficiency actually helped me to
develop a small business as a youngster. To this day, I still cut my own hair out of
habit (with an upgraded set of tools of course), and I save about two-hundred and
forty dollars a year based on the prices of a shave and haircut in the city of Atlanta.
The saying rings true, that knowledge is power. My mothers lesson empowered
me, and that same lesson helped spawn a gift that I dont think she knew I had the
potential to develop at the time. Theres nothing wrong with directing your
resources into the business of your choice and enjoying yourself while do so; I have
my proclivities as well. But at some point, its important to be conscious of how we
spend our money. Whether you realize it or not, our society is dependent on your
spending power. By directing the flow of your income as if it were a weapon, you
can save a struggling business on your block, bring resources in your community,
and help make things financially easier in your own home. Visiting an establishment
and exchanging your cash for their service because you choose to, rather than
because you have to strengthens your morale, and your personal self-esteem on so
many levels. It gives you a sense of freedom that no one can take away from you.
Before you know it, youll be on the path to entrepreneurship without even realizing
it; thats how it happened for me-my mother was preparing me to start my own
business before I understood anything about how to do so.
Jesse Herriott is a teacher and a priest who writings can be found in the areas of
religion/spirituality and family life. He received a B.A. in political science from the
Univ. of South Carolina and M.A. in Criminal Justice from Keiser University. He
lectures frequently within churches, spiritual centers, and career colleges
throughout the state of Georgia. He's also a frequent contributor to unity.org,
elephant journal magazine, and a host of other online publications. His radio show
"Living on Purpose" is archived on Unity Online Radio at:
www.unity.fm/program/livingonpurpose and his website is www.jessherriott.com His

latest spiritual book-Initiations: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Times can be found
online where books are sold. Follow him on Instagram @iamjesse and Facebook
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