An asset is the foundation of all economic activity. If you have assets, you can run a business and settle your debts. The ways to create assets are ‘how one works,’ ‘how to receive gifts from others,’ and ‘how to purchase assets made by others.’ There is a way to steal, but it is a crime. If you don’t initially own an asset, the simplest and almost the only way to create one is to produce something with your own labor. Whether the product is a service or a good, it must be produced unconditionally. Trading products creates added value. Thinking about trading later and making products first is the fastest and most basic way to escape poverty. Therefore, produce even the smallest things every day. Knowledge, records, art—whatever! - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”
Influence is not merely giving; it involves both giving and taking. Interaction creates change. Influence without change is simply a rumor. To truly give and take from one another, you must first embrace the world within yourself. If you do not open your mind and senses to the world and accept its stimuli and spirit, you cannot impact even the most abundant rumors. First, accept, and then react to the world. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”