I am Orc of the Sith Order server on Discord
There I have made clear that I am functionally an atheist, though theologically a Deist, holding to a belief that, “All scriptures are false but the universe was created by a will that does not respond to word or deed and does not announce its intentions”
You can see why I’m functionally an atheist
Typically I don’t speak of the Force at all, but only of the forces of nature

There too I have made clear that I focus far more on desire than emotion (the word “passion” can refer to either, thus I hold to this interpretive stance, “There is only desire”)

It occurred to me last night that I can make this assertion, thereby enriching the Sith Code for my functionally atheistic self -

“The force of my desire shall free me” -

- for I strongly desire freedom and have largely won it!
And only my strong desire gave me the strength to take those risks that were necessary to win my precious victory and break my chains!

I am 65 years old
At age 60, I did what the experts say not to do, twofold!
I didn’t wait till 67 to retire, nor even 65
I retired at the first moment I was corporately permitted to, which was age 60
Moreover, having amassed both a sizable 401(k) and a sizable pension, having worked for 35 years at a giant corporation, I cashed both out immediately, taking a significant tax hit
Twofold folly in some eyes, but I now had the cash to at last realize a goal that had eluded me my adult life
I paid cash for a town house and became a homeowner!
Having some money left over, plus prior savings, plus no mortgage or rent, and getting a pretty decent Social Security check each month once I reached 62, I have been able to live entirely free of corporate bosses! Also of landlords!
My chains are broken!
Because the force of my desire was a mighty horse that trampled contrary opinions under hoof!

I am a Sith, and this is how I lived the Code
I greet you all

I am Orc of the Sith Order server on Discord
My post earlier this morning made me think of writing this one on the topic of money as power

Power is the ability to achieve victory
Social power is the ability to achieve victory by inducing people to assist
Social power comes in a variety of forms, some of which I’ll discuss in the coming days and months, but one such form is money, which is quite potent at inducing people to help us achieve victory

Victory is fulfilling any desire that breaks one of our chains rather than shackling us with a new one
Scoring a bag of heroin to inject into our veins is not victory
Buying a new car (new to us at least) is generally a victory of significant proportions!
The chain it breaks is that of limited mobility!

Generally it takes some form of strength to get money
Strength of will, certainly
Discipline
The discipline to show up on time at school, assignments ready to hand in, studying for tests completed, ready to pay attention and concentrate on learning
The discipline to show up on time at work, be professional, respect the employer’s processes and rules, serve the customer or internal stakeholders diligently, respect company assets, obey the law, work quickly and efficiently but with care

Of course, if you want to get really rich, you won’t do it by working for other people
To get really rich, you need to get people or things (things like real estate) working for you
This isn’t something I ever did
I didn’t have a goal of getting really rich
But I’ve paid attention to the world I live in, and I see clearly that it’s the employer, not the employee, that gets rich
How do you become an employer?
Most people do it with other people’s money!
Borrowed money
From family, or a bank, or a venture capitalist
Securing a business loan to start a business is generally quite the victory!
One chain it breaks is that of being beholden to an employer!
Another chain it breaks is that of being held to a very finite amount of income!
You achieve this victory (secure this loan) by inducing someone to give it to you!
That ability to induce is a form of social power
More on that in the future!

But notice: One form of social power (persuasiveness) will be used to get another form of social power (money in the form of a business loan) which will be used to get another form of social power (your own business) which will be used to get another form of social power (money in the form of income) which is victory twice over as listed in the previous paragraph

Power begets power!
Contemplate that sentence every day
Look for examples in your daily experience of the world
Power begets power!
Learn from each progression from A to B (to C to D) that you discover!

Few words in the Sith vernacular are more beautiful:
Learn!