WWBD? Money lessons from ‘The Hobbit’
Posted
Feb 17 2009, 08:11 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
If you're trying to find your financial way in this troubled economy, ask yourself: What would Bilbo do?
"The David" at Pimp Your Finances did, and found 14 important personal-finance lessons within J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit."
For instance, we bet you didn't know that Bilbo Baggins, through his own carelessness, became a victim of identity theft.
When Bilbo talked to Smaug, he indulged in TMI when he called himself a barrel rider. From that, the dragon figured out that Bilbo had been aided by the residents of Lake-town and took his vengeance upon it. Lesson learned: "It's too easy to unwittingly share personal information, be it in the form of receipts, personal data that we throw away, or even stolen mail," The David said.
A few other examples from this clever post:
Being kind to co-workers and others may help you later in life. And, we might add, don't burn bridges with the boss who laid you off. Gandalf healed the wound of the King of the Eagles. Later that good turn was repaid several times, as The David recounts. He adds, "You never know who may end up in a position of power, or decide your fate" and notes that the King of the Eagles became the King of All Birds.
Monitor your money to be on guard against identity theft. When Bilbo stole the cup from Smaug's stash, the dragon knew it right away.
Don't follow the crowd. The dwarves were captured one by one as each went to investigate Bilbo's disappearance in the trolls' camp. Only Thorin Oakenshield had his sword drawn and was prepared to engage in battle. The David says, "The lesson we can learn from this is that if you do what everyone else does, you'll end up like them." (Sure, Thorin was captured too, but you get the point.)
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The ultimate Buffy the Vampire Slayer PF post
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