Fame or Fortune?

Over the passage of time, my friends and I frequently inquired to one another, “if you had to choose, would you desire to be famous OR would you rather delight in excess wealth?”  In other words, we pondered the age-old question, “fame or fortune?””

As we have progressed from our teenage years into our twenties, then to our thirties and up, our sentiments on this query have vacillated.  

In our pimple-filled adolescent years, we craved fame.  My chums and I imagined how cool it would be to be trailed around town by blinding flashbulbs as we were monitored by the paparazzi. 

Then in our late 20’s, we contemplated sauntering toward the entrance of the most exclusive, sold out concert or club and being instantly recognized. We visualized that the red rope would part in front of us and we would be led to premiere VIP seating inside, leaving others gawking in the long line outside the venue.

As our life responsibilities multiplied and compounded, most of my comrades have decided that life is better lived anonymously with large sums of disposable income. Fortune has overtaken fame.

My good buddy, Joel, has always dreamed of being the proprietor of a beach view estate in the exclusive conclave of the Hamptons.  But before he could acquire enough wealth to obtain his surfside mansion, the tedious task of putting together a budget would be necessary.  As Joel rationalized, “the first step to securing your future is to be aware of how you spend your money today.  For one full month, Joel tracked his every expense on his excel spreadsheet.  Every miniscule expenditure was recorded on this exhaustive table that was organized by day, date and time.  He was meticulous, even obsessive, and religiously wrote down even the smallest outlay of greenbacks, including a package of gum.

Just as Joel was categorizing and sorting this collection of monetary output, he received an unfamiliar email on his computer.  Caught up in his arduous task of budgeting, he inadvertently opened the email only to discover it contained a virus.

Gasp!  Joel had a slight moment of panic before he realized he could breathe easy.  After all, he had been shrewd enough to purchase and install McAfee Anti-Virus Software. McAfee killed the infection on the spot and the data Joel had so painstakingly collected was salvaged.

His dad was not so fortunate.  Joel’s dad was a prosperous businessman with his own flourishing corporation.  Joel knew his father could provide valuable advice in methods to secure enough capital to fulfill his coastline castle.  Joel emailed his dad his proposed budget and requested guidance on how to implement his newly created financial plan. Unfortunately, before this email arrived to Joel’s Papa, a computer virus found its way into his dad’s hard drive.

To the great dismay of Joel’s dad, he had refused the technology expert’s suggestion that he install Norton Software on his recent home computer purchase.  Joel’s Pop justified his decision to avoid Norton protection, believing most of his important files were secure on his business network.  Joel’s daddy never anticipated that he would require protection against viruses, spyware, malware and other online attacks on his family’s computer.  The regret Joel’s dad underwent was a lesson to all.  

Joel’s mom saw the remorse on her husband’s face and quickly researched options for shielding her own PC from harm.

BitDefender's award-winning antivirus software that guards PCs, data and identities safe from attack and proactively safeguards information from e-threats was the answer for her!  It only took a few well-spent moments to procure and install BitDefender.

And the best news of all?  Well, after clarifying his monthly expenses and prioritizing his needs, Joel now saves up to 30% every month for his future seashore chateau …and he is 100% confident his financial information will not be breached. Joel is well on his way to viewing sunsets from his balcony in the haughty Hamptons.