I have learned that no matter what we do, we must sell something - our ideas, our capability to produce a product or service, or someone else's ideas, goods and services. Even heroes of my childhood - teachers and preachers - must sell their customers on notion that they bring value to table.

In effect, all of us sell each day of our lives. Those who excel at it deliver on their promise; their products and services bring added value to their users. Those who purchase them tell their friends, who tell their friends, and so on.

For me, it has been a long road to realizing that one has little control over one's destiny and wealth as long as there is dependency on a corporation or some entity (other than oneself) for employment. At end of day, we must look to our personal capabilities to support our family and ourselves. Just ask any of hundreds of thousands who were recently laid off through no fault of their own, or read lessons learned by millionaires.

It has been an equally long road for me to become sufficiently confident to develop some of those creations my brother and I attempted back in Locust Hill. I've known for some time that people who need my expertise, and who will be happy to trade money for its value, will not find out about it through osmosis. I must let them know about it, just as I happily touted goods and services of my corporation all those years. Expertise, brainpower, or product, no matter how wonderful, must be successfully marketed, or "sold."

As I more closely examine my evolving notion of selling, I realize that it isn't "selling" that makes me such a reluctant participant in an arena that creates wealth faster than any other. (By way, it is also fastest way to get ahead in corporate world). It is my link to a childhood misunderstanding of wonderful act of providing people with something that actually fulfills a dream, makes lives easier, and provides financial freedom for so many. Each time I receive a thank you for sharing my opportunity, book, time, or words of wisdom, I am so thankful that I've learned to appreciate marvel of selling.

My reluctance has turned into eagerness and gratefulness as I continue to discover ways to put my own brainpower and skills to good use, on what I consider to be relatively close to my own terms. Each day I seek out new opportunities that I share with my new and lifelong friends. Together, we are embracing wealth-building wonders made possible to each of us through modern technology.

Copyright 2001 Joyce M. Coleman. All rights reserved, except as noted above.

http://www.locusthillpublishing.com. Joyce Coleman is author of acclaimed book, Soul Stirrings - How looking back gives each of us freedom to move forward. Subscribe to her newsletter, The Business of Life at http://www.locusthillpublishing.com/newsletter/newsletter_subscribe.html for practical tools that enhance living. Includes self improvement, wealth- building, family issues, recipes.

The problem is that banks and financial institutions - and not only in dodgy offshore havens ("black holes" in lingo) - clam up and refuse to divulge information about their clients. Banking is largely a matter of fragile trust between bank and customer and tight secrecy. Bankers are reluctant to undermine either. Banks use mainframe computers which can rarely be hacked through cyberspace and can be compromised only physically in close co-operation with insiders. The shadier bank - more formidable its digital defenses. The use of numbered accounts (outlawed in Austria, for instance, only recently) and pseudonyms (still possible in Lichtenstein) complicates matters. Bin Laden's accounts are unlikely to bear his name. He has collaborators.

Hawala networks are often used to launder money, or to evade taxes. Even when employed for legitimate purposes, to diversify risk involved in transfer of large sums, Hawaladars apply techniques borrowed from money laundering. Deposits are fragmented and wired to hundreds of banks world over ("starburst"). Sometimes, money ends up in account of origin ("boomerang").

Hence focus on payment clearing and settlement systems. Most countries have only one such system, repository of data regarding all banking (and most non-banking) transactions in country. Yet, even this is a partial solution. Most national systems maintain records for 6-12 months, private settlement and clearing systems for even less.

Yet, crux of problem is not Hawala or Hawaladars. The corrupt and inept governments of Asia are to blame for not regulating their banking systems, for over-regulating everything else, for not fostering competition, for throwing public money at bad debts and at worse borrowers, for over-taxing, for robbing people of their life savings through capital controls, for tearing at delicate fabric of trust between customer and bank (Pakistan, for instance, froze all foreign exchange accounts two years ago). Perhaps if Asia had reasonably expedient, reasonably priced, reasonably regulated, user-friendly banks - Osama bin Laden would have found it impossible to finance his mischief so invisibly.

Sam Vaknin is the author of Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited and After the Rain - How the West Lost the East. He is a columnist for Central Europe Review, United Press International (UPI) and eBookWeb and the editor of mental health and Central East Europe categories in The Open Directory and Suite101.

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