The Richly or Poorly Show
Show Transcript
shdawson-20260811.mp3
Episode 08/11/2026
08/11/2026
Hello! Welcome to The Richly or Poorly Show!
My name is Dr. Stephen Dawson, and I am your show host.
Thank you for joining me.
Please visit shdawson DOT COM SLASH podcast and click the LINK offer to learn about The Richly or Poorly Show!
I invite you to visit the podcast web page. Scroll down to the bottom of this web page to receive the transcript of each show episode. The transcripts await you so you can copy either any or all of them to your device so you can have them with you to help you live your life more richly!
Also, you will see a link on the podcast web page at the beginning of the episode list to the show episode map web page. The map presents the show episodes to you by topic, so you can both find and enjoy a group of show episodes with ease.
Please visit shdawson DOT COM SLASH subscribe to join my optional email list to receive time-sensitive news on The Richly or Poorly Show, my public speaking activities, and anything else that is suitable for me to send to you.
Please listen to, follow, and like the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you listen.
And please remember to leave the show a nice review.
Please share the show with your friends. Send them the link to my podcast web page, and offer to help them set up their device to subscribe to the show.
Thank you to the six streaming services that syndicate The Richly or Poorly Show!
Thank you to the anonymous, individual, and contributor sponsors of The Richly or Poorly Show! I am still looking for my first commercial sponsor.
Finally, please continue to email your questions and comments about the show to service AT shdawson DOT COM.
The show's motto is unmistakable: RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Please consider how you define the term good as we journey through life together in your pursuit of defining the term richly in your life.
Last week, I continued to present on the topic of relationships. I presented the third step in establishing a relationship: Determine Amount. I shared that the basis for a relationship is a longer duration than that of a team in a project. All team members have the relationship attribute. However, the starting point of formation for any relationship is different from that of forming a team. A team has a purpose to accomplish. A relationship has no purpose other than to relate as the events unfold through a set of individualized guided preferences. I invite you to review the Teaming series episodes of April 7th, 2026, through May 19th, 2026, as you see fit to better understand the episode I present to you today. It will take several episodes to present relationships to you in preparation for presenting The Five Academic Skills Necessary for Success to you. We are over halfway through the relationship series episodes.
Today, I will continue to present on the topic of relationships. I will present the fourth step in establishing a relationship.
I provided you with the thought last week that a relationship can be viewed as a license. I asked you to consider this license aspect over the course of the past week. I shared that there is a hard limit to all relationships, a license can be viewed as a cost to participate, a license can be viewed as answering about performance to those who issue the license, and that a license can be revoked.
Now, I will present on establishing a relationship from the consideration of a license.
The fourth step in establishing a relationship is Determine Boundaries.
A boundary is a noun. A boundary is a line or limit where one thing ends, and another begins. Each boundary is a distinct occurrence of the Truth. The question to answer is do we understand the boundary?
Examples of the boundaries of relationships include big or small, fast or slow, little or much, greater or lesser, fixed or flexible, and on and on to endless comparisons and contrasts. A relationship that starts with one boundary could change to another type or size of boundary. A relationship that starts with one boundary could change to have multiple boundaries. Arguably, a relationship that has ended is still a relationship in the form of at least memory and most likely some form of profit or loss, considering the amount aspect.
Concisely, a relationship boundary keeps a specific person, object, process, or natural force out of a part of your life. The boundary is fixed, as it is not movable. It is not flexible, such as a gate on a fence.
Forming a relationship starts with intellectual consideration to accomplish the first step, Determine Value, then *begins* to enter emotional consideration with the second step, Determine Type, then has more emotional consideration with the third step, Determine Amount, and has about half intellectual and half emotional in the fourth step, Determine Boundaries.
There is a part of the human brain used for intellect and a part of the brain used for emotions. So, forming a relationship uses *almost* all parts of the brain. What is interesting to me is that forming a relationship starts with intellectual, not emotional. The reason it starts with intellectual is the survival aspect of life.
I reference the July 21st, 2026, episode to explain why humanity operates in a survival aspect. I invite you to review that episode as you see fit to better understand the episode I present to you today.
I tell you now, without reservation, that I like to do things myself. I have been burned enough in life by those who reneged on a deal with me. It takes longer to succeed in life by going it alone, but the skills developed along the way are stronger and more complex than doing it with the help of either anyone or anything. This individuality is not always possible, as we all need air, water, and other things that we cannot live without. It is also nice to have access to things such as a nice cup of coffee and some time using the Internet every now and then.
The work to determine relationship boundaries is accomplished by using Wisdom. I presented on March 3rd, 2026, that Wisdom is the Truth. I presented on June 9th, 2026, the third aspect of the Truth: Wisdom Always Leads to the Truth. Tracking where I address any topic during the show episodes could be a burden without the help I have provided to my intended show audience so they are not burdened. I added a feature to my web site so you can find all show episodes that have a specific term you wish to review.
Let me help you now to understand how to use the functionality of this feature on my web site. Let's search for all of the The Richly or Poorly Show transcripts that contain the term Wisdom. Let's do this together now.
Please take your device now and visit shdawson DOT COM SLASH podcast. Please scroll down the web page to the Transcript Search Engine. Enter the term Wisdom in the search box. Click the blue box with the magnifying glass icon on the right of the search box to search all show transcripts for the term Wisdom. You will see a window appear on your device displaying all show episodes that contain the term Wisdom. Click on one of the links in the search results to view the specific show episode transcript.
Using Wisdom at any time in any way is not complicated. It is not complicated because Wisdom is the Truth. There is nothing complicated about the Truth. What is complicated is the opposite of the Truth. The opposite of the Truth is a falsehood. There is no end to the complexity of considering what is false. There is an end to considering the Truth. There is an end because Truth is a singular term. Truth is a proper noun. A proper noun is a noun that identifies a single entity and is used to refer to that entity.
So, about relationship boundaries. It is my considered position that it is easier to determine what I will not have in my life with whatever it is that I seek to form a relationship. I hold this position because of what I know I cannot allow to be a part of my life, based on my worldview. This approach helps me to get a clear understanding of the specific relationship I wish to form. Then there are the things I need or want to be a part of my life. Those are a clear agreement to form a relationship. Meaning, there is no boundary between me and the specific relationship I wish to form. What remains are the parts that I do not know as of now, that I must figure out one way or the other. The rest of the parts do not matter as of now, so I can set them aside and either get to them at a future time or leave them alone and never consider them again.
The parts of the matter that I either need or want are where life gets difficult. I simply do not know the answer as of now. The way to learn the answer to the questions I must have answered is to use Wisdom to help me know what I need to do. Wisdom always leads to the Truth. I do not see that life can get any better than living *in* the Truth.
It is easy to become scared at this point. Scared is a result of fear. I have presented on the topic of fear in two episodes. Please take a moment now and repeat the process we covered earlier to use the Transcript Search Engine and search for the term fear to locate those two show episodes.
OK, you are back.
Fear is defined as...
False
Evidence
Appearing
Real
F-E-A-R
Fear is simple to handle. Define the facts, then deal with each fact based on its urgency within the moment.
A boundary has nothing false about it. A boundary is a distinct occurrence of the Truth. Determining relationship boundaries cannot occur without being willing to accept the Truth. Otherwise, the only other option is to stay with falsehoods. Staying with falsehoods means being in fear.
Now, a relationship boundary with something such as gravity never changes. The reason it never changes is that gravity never changes. A relationship boundary I have with water is that I like to swim but I do not want to drown. People can and often do change. A relationship boundary with a person could change.
The smart move is to affirm all relationship boundaries regularly. Affirming any relationship boundary is simple. It is accomplished by asking the other person *how* they define a specific relationship boundary as of now. Many people today seem to not like to do this amount of work. I do not know why, based on what I said in the June 30th, 2026, episode. I said I value communication as a precious thing in life. I gladly expend my time and effort to message with my intended receiver by holding the hope that they will value me as I value them. Communication is a means to an end to accomplish a specific desired result. I can only conclude that anyone who does not want to communicate about a relationship does not value communication as precious, and I am left wondering how they value the relationship. Remember, step one in forming a relationship is Determine Value.
What is central to all relationships is the desire for the relationship to work. Work, in the form of expected outcomes. Work, in the form of getting the specific amount of whatever is desired from the Determine Amount step. Work, so as to cause no form of harm. Work, as to cause no form of unpreferred loss.
The key to accomplishing Determine Boundaries is to discuss the relationship with the person you seek to form by having the relationship in a way that you message that you value the relationship as precious. This communication effort is a matter of constant learning on the part of both people in the relationship. It is not unlike your desire to live your life more richly. You want the person to be a part of your life, as you have decided having a relationship with them will help you live your life more richly.
Your time and effort that you spend listening to The Richly or Poorly Show is developing your skills to accomplish this exact communication outcome. One way you can know both quickly and easily as to *how* the person you want to relate with views life is to ask them about some of the topics I have presented to you in the show episodes. It seems likely to me that most people will have a strong position one way or the other about the topics I present during the show. Gaining the input from the person you want to relate to about these topics will tell you the probability of you having both a healthy and productive relationship with them as you seek to live your life more richly.
So, the part about a relationship can be viewed as a license. A person who has been issued a license does not own the license. They possess it. No one owns another person in a relationship. They do not possess the person. They only possess the boundary they form to exist to keep the person out of a part of their life. I could spend hours presenting on this part of the picture alone, but I will not do so today. Suffice it to say, having a boundary does not guarantee the boundary will keep a person out of a part of a person's life. All boundaries must be considered regularly to assure they are constructed as necessary to protect you from harm. I recognize this aspect of the Truth is something that may seem frightful, considering it is possible to miss something in forming a boundary. This is life. Living life more richly involves learning and planning to help prevent such harm from coming to you. I commend you on your decision to listen to The Richly or Poorly Show so you can gain such help in your life.
I invite you to listen to each episode of The Richly or Poorly Show both excitedly and expectantly, so that you will learn at least one significant fact or a specific aspect of Truth that will help you live your life more richly as a result of listening to The Richly or Poorly Show. Listen with the intent of learning. All learning occurs first by listening, then by doing. Taking notes of the show is clear evidence of intentional learning. It is a habit to capture, structure, and apply the learning you have accomplished. Remember, the show episode transcripts await you on the podcast web page. Remember, the show episode map web page awaits you so you can both find and enjoy a group of show episodes with ease.
Please remember that we are moving toward presenting The Five Academic Skills Necessary for Success to you. These five skills are based on, literally, everything I have presented to you since the beginning of The Richly or Poorly Show last December. It is crucial for your success in living your life more richly to have a good grasp of what I am presenting in each episode for you to benefit from The Five Academic Skills Necessary for Success.
Well, that's it for today.
RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Please visit shdawson DOT COM SLASH podcast and click the LINK offer. I invite you to then click the LINK Sponsors to learn about the four types of sponsors so you can help sponsor a part of The Richly or Poorly Show! I thank you for your help in funding the show's cost to assist both you and the other listeners in living life more richly!
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The Richly or Poorly Show!
I have enjoyed presenting to you today.
Until the next episode, I hope you will be safe and join me next week.
Until then.
© 2026 SH Dawson. All rights reserved.