All Entries in the "Uncategorized" Category
“Sorry, But We Only Know the Best Doctors…”
Frum people generally have an obsession with using only the very best doctors. Wherever in the country a specialist is to be found, frum people will travel to them. Cleveland, Rochester, Dallas, Boston, and Los Angeles are just a few of the cities with top quality hospitals, and all of them will host many a [...]
The Lust to Be in Power
It’s a real thing. People love being in control. Some people who you’d think have it all have demonstrated that being in power is the ultimate desire. We can’t understand it, because we don’t have that kind of money. But apparently for those who do, all the money doesn’t provide happiness. Only being in control, [...]
Frum Publications Obsession with Kollel Life
Have you ever picked up a Yated or Mishpacha lately? It seems that these and other frum publications are obsessed with kollel and its impact on people’s lives, such as parnossah, shalom bayis, in-laws relationships, and anything else. In the Yated, the Readers Write is full of letters that are both for (hardly any) and [...]
Stuck in Kollel Mediocrity
As a whole, people are obsessed with exceptionalism. Whether its Gadlus BaTorah, or lehavdil, the world’s record holder for high diving, we glorify amazing feats accomplished by really amazing people. There is something captivating when a person, who on the surface appears to be just like you and me, is able to accomplish great feats. [...]
Emotional Power of Balancing the Checkbook
There are three kinds of families in the frum world: 1) Those where the husband balances the checkbook. 2) Those where the wife balances the checkbook. 3) Those where no one balances the checkbook. My guess is that most families belong to the third group. When you balance the checkbook, every penny that gets spent [...]
Do Chassidim Have a Kollel Problem?
Generally speaking, by Chassidim there is no kollel problem. They strongly believe in the novel idea that men should earn a living, and the women should stay at home with the children. However, there are signs of change. At a recent meeting of Roshei Kollel in Boro Park, there was a request by many Chassidishe [...]
Shavuos – Be the Shepherd Not the Flock
Yes, I know that Shavuos is the time for Kabbolas HaTorah. Learning in Kollel is the ultimate Kabbolas HaTorah where one “throws from upon himself all the cheshbonos horabim which others seek…” (Rambam, end of Hil. Shmitta), I’ve heard this many times during my life. Shavuos is also the yahrtzeit of Dovid Hamelech. There are [...]
Why Presidents Are Good Excercisers
The past 4 presidents of the United States, although very different one from the other, they did have one thing in common – they made sure to exercise. They were avid exercisers before and during their stay in the White House. I always wondered if there was any significance to it, but then it hit [...]
The True Value of a Job
When it comes to consider the choice between starting your own business vs. looking for a job, many different issues come to mind. Women, as a whole, don’t earn as much as their male counterparts. This is referred to in the world as the “glass ceiling,” which Hillary Clinton boasted in her concession speech that [...]
Defining Your Specialty
A successful exit strategy from kollel requires that you have a good answer to the inevitable question, “So what are you going to do?” A career path is absolutely necessary both for parnossa and for your emotional well-being. A striking feature of all highly paid careers is that they are a specialty. A specialist doctor [...]
