choices available. “That store charges too much” is one example. To
determine whether this resentful tone applies to you, write down
four or five sentences that come to mind that contain the word
“charge.” The dictionary defines it accurately as the price asked. In
any free market economy, people have a wide variety of possibilities
in obtaining products and services. Only the government tax collec-
tors take your money by force.Deserve:To be worthy or entitled to (a thing) because of ac-
tions or qualities
The important question here is what qualities you have and what ac-
tions you take that cause you to be entitled to what you want. Re-
garding money, many people have an unconscious formula that
determines the income they receive; they believe that a certain
amount of work produces a certain amount of income, and any in-
come beyond that would require even more work. Such an uncon-
scious formula, for a person working full time, earning $40,000 per
year would produce a feeling of helplessness if that person were to
consider what it would take to earn $80,000 or $100,000 per year.
The unconscious formula would cause the person to believe the
two full-time jobs would be necessary to earn such an amount. Us-
ing the methods in this book cultivates the qualities of initiative, re-
sourcefulness, and willingness to serve others, as well as to learn to
take effective action so that you are worthy and deserving of more
of what you desire.Fair:Just, unbiased, in accordance with the rules
Related to money, “fair” is most often used when referring to the
rate at which goods and services are exchanged—fair prices or fair
wages. A free market requires the agreement of two or more parties
for a transaction to occur. There is no reason for you tolerate what
you consider to be unfair treatment (at least in the long term) from
anyone you buy from or sell to.
In the former Soviet Union, manufactured goods were, by law,
permanently stamped with their government-mandated sales price.
Such a system certainly qualifies as fair. Or does it? The goods had
to be sold at the same price across the nine time zones in the Soviet
Union. Purchasers of goods produced nearby were compelled to
subsidize the consumers located far from the factory. If you ever vis-
ited the Soviet Union, then you know that such so-called fairness
criminalized the normal entrepreneurial activity that occurs here74 Your Recovery from a Good Upbringing