Economic impotence is painful

No matter how "manly" you think you are, your manhood is not complete until you understand and master business.

That's because society is 80% business. So without understanding business, a man cannot have power in society. He is "economically impotent."

Like the other form of impotence, this kind of impotence is not something men want to talk about, let alone admit privately or publicly. However, unlike the other impotence, this one penalizes not just the couple, but their children as well because quality of income determines quality of life for the whole family.

To remedy this feeling of being "economically impotent," a man may do other things after 5 PM or during week-ends to feel better. However, every Monday morning (and often, it starts on Sunday afternoon), he is brought back to reality.

The reality of being existentially incomplete and economically inadequate.

He may blame his managers or the "system" or the government or any number of external sources. The only person he does not blame is himself. This is understandable, for such is human nature and the need for psychological self-preservation.

But eventually, he begins to realize that he is trapped in a sort of Matrix where the system is too powerful and where his life seems to be programmed in advance, where he has little choice. This daily grind crushes his sense of manhood, and turns him into sheep that is incapable of having an independent opinion, much less an original idea (when, strangely enough, as self-made billionaire Ross Perot said, "it just takes one idea to live like a king for the rest of your life.")

The movie Fight Club expresses brilliantly this deep-seated desire of men to take back control of their lives. Men have the innate desire and ability to fight for what they believe is right. It's just that, tragically enough, society's institutions are designed to deactivate that desire to fight in every boy. The educational system, for instance, is designed to create obedient, predictable and conforming little boys who grow up to become obedient, predictable and conforming little men.

That indeed is the ultimate crime of society: to rob men of their manhood.

Indeed, how can a man feel virility when another man dictates HOW and WHERE he must spend his time five days a week?

The "organization man" of the 1950s must give way to the 21st century superman. This superman is fully in charge of his economic life, and has absolute sovereign control over HOW and WHERE he spends every single day of his life.

Watch the movie The Thomas Crown Affair, starring Pierce Brosnan. You will see an example of what a superman should look like. Most people think that becoming Thomas Crown is impossible, and THAT very thinking is precisely why they will never become Thomas Crown. They have basically given up before even trying. Even a small baby or a young infant will try before giving up.

The bottom line is that every man's life is his own. He can choose to do whatever he wants with it. But choose, he must. He must choose either to be in control of his life, or he will -- often by default -- choose to give up control of his life (especially five days a week, 9 to 5).

For men who courageously choose to be in control (I say "courageously" because being in control implies being personally responsible), the next step is to realize that power can only come from understanding.

Understanding what? Understanding business, which constitutes 80% of society, as mentioned previously.

People who refuse to learn about business, are in fact choosing a life of economic slavery. No man wants to be the slave of another man, yet so far, it was the only way to survive. Having a "job" was the only option available.

Today, there are many more options. And people DO want to explore those options, which is why the billionaire Donald Trump, who made his fortune in real estate, now seems to aggressively pursue and exploit the exploding Business Education industry! (www.trumpuniversity.com)

In the end, economic impotence is painful. And it keeps hurting without men doing anything about it because it is not physically visible, and it's not even mentally detectable. This undetectability of the Economic Impotence Syndrome makes it all the more difficult to treat.

I myself had to admit, several years ago, that I was economically impotent, even though I had a business degree from McGill University (called the "Harvard of Canada" by Newsweek magazine).

The good news for all men is that I've spent the last 7 years doing the hard intellectual work of creating a powerful framework that teaches business, so there is no need to get an MBA degree (unless you want to work as an employee-executive for a Fortune 500 company).

It is then up to every man to assess, accurately and honestly, his economic situation, and make the courageous decision to learn and master business. For the stakes are high: it's not just financial freedom. It's about seizing control of one's life and, in the process, proudly expressing the full potential of one's MANHOOD!