When I was about 13 years old, my grandfather Alessandro sat down with me to talk about the fundamentals of life. As it is customary in his culture that a father must explain this to his son; having the circumstance that I did not have my real father with me anymore, he then felt obliged to do this traditional step with me.

 

Our conversation began as part of the preparation process for my Bar Mitzvah, thus it was one of those lessons that I will always remember since it was very symbolic for me as well. He began explaining to me how important it was for a man to have a set of fundamentals in life, which should serve as a foundation for everything including, Family Life, Business, Leisure Activities and all sorts of Relationships.

 

He asked me to extend my hand towards him and then asked me to take a closer look at the palm of my hand. It seemed that in all the lessons I was taught when I was younger, there was always an illustration that will help me remember the true concept of the lesson.

 

He said...

 

"Take a closer look at your hand and realize that everything that passes through it will be your responsibility, so you have to learn to make the right decisions. I know this will not always be easy, and you will not always make the right decisions, but the important thing is that you get used to being consistent and as fair as possible."

 

“Each finger will represent a Fundamental... Remember that!

 

Your thumb will represent your Faith, which as you grow older it will be something you will become more familiar with; but for now let’s just say that it represents everything you truly believe in blindly. It is basically your set of principles and ethical values, which will represent the man you see in the mirror. Make sure that you can still look in the mirror and be happy with yourself after every decision you make.

 

Your index finger will represent your Family, which again will represent the people who become part of you in life. As I am sure you have already learned, family is not always represented by the blood that runs in your veins, it means much more.

 

Your middle finger will represent your Fellowship, which is not to be mistaken by a Social or Religious organization, although it might be just that if that is your inclination. However, fellowship is a representation of people who will support you and advise you without any prejudice or agenda. Those will be the people you can count on for advice regardless of the situation.

 

Your ring finger will represent your Friendships, which are those who can sometimes be part of your fellowship. Although, it is very unlikely since we select our friends based on Love, which you will see it has absolutely no logic whatsoever. Friends not always have the best advice for us or the best influence, yet they are essential in our lives and they will be very important to you, so make sure you include them in your decisions.

 

Your pinky finger will represent your Finances, which you should be very diligent with, when making any type of decision. Your finances will give you the tools to realize your dreams so be careful with them and treat them with respect. Finances are not just represented with money; they also include all time investments that will help your projects grow.

 

Finally take a closer look at the palm of your hand, because it is there where you will visualize every decision you make. When you find yourself in the midst of a decision making process, imagine having it in the palm of your hand and then ask yourself each question separately.

 

Does this help my faith, my principals, my ethical values and more importantly, can I look in the mirror and be happy?

 

Does this help my family, strengthening my relationship with all of them and does it bring any future value to us?

 

Does this go in agreement within my fellowship and have I truly considered all of their advice?

 

Does this help my relationship with my friends and will it bring me closer to them?

 

Does this help my finances, providing me with more tools to achieve my dreams?

 

This may seem like a very harsh decision making process, though not all your decisions will be 100% in accordance to this principal. However my advice to you is that if you find a conflict with only one of these Fundamentals, then it is best if you let go of whatever you have visualized on the palm of your hand.

 

You see, Happiness comes with balance and if you live a life unbalanced, you will find yourself struggling to be happy. So I just want you to realize that your decisions have a greater impact."

 

Of course at 13 years of age, this was a lesson that surpassed my life experience and so I didn't totally understand it. However, I was so happy to have written it down in my diary, though it has helped me immensely along my different stages in life. Today it has become part of my decision making process and so I love sharing it with everyone around me.