I See Changes
I See Changes
I wake up in DC and I ask myself.
What kind of FinCon am I gonna have for myself.
Just another tired employee was what I was before.
Racing on that treadmill trying to capture more and more.
Lost in a life without purpose, meaning
and connections.
Asking myself over and over
how I’m gonna win again.
Never quite comfortable living life in a doctor’s skin.
So busy standing out
that I never learned how to fit in.
And then one day I got a call from Jim Dahle.
The day that everything changed for me.
It turns out
that even I have my people.
CampFI, FinCon, Econome
I’ve got to see it all.
I used to walk the world on a road all on my own.
So common to live ones life so alone.
I used to have none other than my wife and kids.
But things changed,
and that’s the way it is.
That’s just the way it is.
Things will never be the same.
That’s just the way it is.
Aww Yeah.
I See Changes
Role up in the hotel
given up hug after hug.
Unlike last year it’s like I got the social bug.
Thumbs up, smiles, and even high fives.
Soakin in the joy
and just happy to be alive.
Catch a panel, eat with friends,
maybe snag a Tee Shirt.
For the first time in my life I don’t have to work.
The days and nights, highs and lows,
these are my people.
It’s so good to not have to feel so feeble.
We all came together and built up this financial independence biz
But things are changing.
And that’s The way it is.
That’s just the way it is.
Things will never be the same.
That’s just the way it is.
Aww Yeah.
I See Changes
Growth is the biggest risk to any developing community.
It’s gets so big that it no longer feels welcome to you or me.
Political lines are drawn
and even alliances.
What once was yours may soon be his, or his,
or even his.
We pay homage and bow down to the OG
and then we replace them with the juiciest flavor of the week.
Growth, no matter how important, has its risks.
We got to keep it feeling small
Even when it gets real big.
No great society survives if it eats it’s young.
Support the old, bring in the new
and get it done.
I’m trying my best not to be too afraid of changes.
But things are changing.
And that’s the way it is.
That’s just the way it is.
Things will never be the same.
That’s just the way it is.
Aww Yeah.
Adapted from Changes (Tupac Shakur)
Was pretty cool running into you and seeing the man behind the website at FinCon. Was my first and I had a blast. Nice to be surrounded by like minded people in a very helping community
“We pay homage and bow down to the OG, and then we replace them with the juiciest flavor of the week.” Well said. Somehow this sums up my feelings at FinCon as well. I love this community because the vast majority of people I meet for the first time are welcoming and quick interesting personal conversations begin. Yet, I see the political lines drawn, the clics form, and ask myself if I fit here? At age 60? And then I find myself on the dance floor, jumping up and down with everyone else, and feeling like it is really an inclusive, thoughtful group. A group of people that stand out and are amazingly remarkable.
I also want to say that the What’s Up Next podcast is brilliant. When I listen to the panels, I feel like I’m at a table or standing at a party gathering, chatting with people and hearing great discussion. You have created something that is like FinCon every week. Thank you and congratulations on a well deserved Plutus.
Sounds like you’ve found your groove! and a tribe ! Kudos to you !
(great rhyme and rhythm too ! and unleashing your inner poet! )
And “Some things’ll never change.”
Thanks for writing this. We gotta keep it feeling small is a great takeaway.
I clicked on this because of the Tupac graphic and knew that Stephen had already commented (or I was about to share the link with him) an sure enough…. Well done Doc. Will there be an audio version release soon? And I agree with much that you reference. Call me biased, but having been to a FinCon, I still prefer the CampFIs. …and I’m glad to see that someone as brilliantly smart as you are witnessing some of the same things. That is simply the nature of “growth.”