The Richly or Poorly Show
Show Transcript
shdawson-20260818.mp3
Episode 08/18/2026
08/18/2026
Hello! Welcome to The Richly or Poorly Show!
My name is Dr. Stephen Dawson, and I am your show host.
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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 fourth step in establishing a relationship: Determine Boundaries. 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 almost complete with the relationship series episodes.
Today, I will continue to present on the topic of relationships. I will present the fifth step in establishing a relationship.
I provided you with the thought two weeks ago that a relationship can be viewed as a license. 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 questions about performance to those who issue the license; and that a license can be revoked.
The fifth step in establishing a relationship is: Determine Inputs-Processes-Outputs.
I presented the input-process-output model in the December 16th, 2025, episode, and I used the model as the means to explain the flow of Wisdom in the March 10th, 2026, episode. The December 16th, 2025, episode was an episode to help form the listener relationship. The March 10th, 2026, episode was a topic connector that presented additional information to help the listener gain further insights through a deeper contextual understanding. I invite you to review these two episodes as you see fit to better understand the episode I present to you today.
Humanity has used the input-process-output model since day one. It is a flow of events to get something, do something with the something, and send the something on its way. The getting is the input, the doing is the process, and sending the processed something is the output. We see the input-process-output model in cooking. Ingredients, preparation, and eating the food. We see the input-process-output model in music. Determine the notes and their duration, assemble the instruments, play the instruments, and the sound goes forth. We see the input-process-output model in medicine. Evaluate the health condition, treat the health condition, and the patient moves on in life.
A relationship uses the input-process-output model in combination with the preceding four steps of forming a relationship. Notably, Determine Boundaries after Determine Amount. Think of a neighbor you have as a relationship in your life. Do you want the neighbor to come over to your house at any time, put their feet on your couch, eat your food, and do so while you are trying to sleep without your awareness of their activities? Do you want your neighbor to keep their feet off your couch? Do you want your neighbor to ask you before they take your food and put it in their mouth? Do you want your neighbor to ask before entering your house? These are all examples of relationship boundaries.
Now, take the same questions I just posed to you and ask yourself how you feel about the person coming into your home is not your neighbor, but someone who is a friend of your neighbor that you have never met before they came into your home, put their feet on your couch, ate your food, all while you were asleep and without your awareness of their activities. The neighbor and friend of the neighbor are two different types of relationships for you. You and you alone define the types of those two relationships.
Now, say you have a machine in your house, such as a computer. Your neighbor needs some help from you. You let your machine, in this case the computer, help your neighbor. Your neighbor inputs data into your computer, the computer processes the data, and delivers output to your neighbor. Let's say the data is something simple, such as looking for all local bank locations. Then, the next day, the police come to your house to talk to you about your computer. They tell you the computer was used to help rob a local bank location. The police then tell you they are taking you to jail until you can get in front of a judge for the judge to decide if you need to either stay in jail or be freed from jail. You tell the police it was not you using the computer but your neighbor. They do not care, as it is your computer and they have no idea what happened. Yes, life got complicated fast in this scenario.
Determine Inputs-Processes-Outputs cannot occur without Determine Boundaries. Determine Boundaries cannot occur without Determine Amount. Determine Amount cannot occur without Determine Type. Determine Type cannot occur without Determine Value. Do you value your neighbor enough to go to jail for them using your computer?
The realities of Determine Inputs-Processes-Outputs become understood clearly when the impact of how we accept Wisdom is experienced. A few of these realities are what I presented during the December 16th, 2025, and March 10th, 2026, episodes. Let's think about Wisdom as we take the presented examples and modify them a bit.
Say your neighbor who put their feet on your couch had a pair of boots on that were ... shall we say ... quite muddy from being in the rain. How do you feel about your couch having mud on it from your neighbor's boots?
Say your neighbor brought their dog with them into your house. Say the dog was ... shall we say ... quite wet from being in the rain. How do you feel about your couch having a quiet wet dog on it from your neighbor bringing their dog into your house?
Each of these questions can be answered with ease where you keep a pleasant relationship with your neighbor. Let's say you do not want your couch to be either muddy or wet. If the input is a muddy boot, then your process for them is to keep the muddy boot off of your couch. If the input is a wet dog, then the process for them is to keep their dog off of your couch. Take this same logic sequence and apply it to your food and your sleep status.
I see the beauty of the input-process-output model is the process part. I hold this position because of how I have seen something that is considered less valuable be processed to become something of great value. I have seen people take wonderful inputs, process them poorly, and seen sorrowful outputs as a result. It is the person who has the passion to do something beautiful with an input, process it with great skill and care, and deliver a breathtaking output who is considered the expert, the master, the artist, the genius. Think of a rock that becomes a sculpture, or mud and manure that is used to grow fruits and vegetables through the farmer and the miracle of life. Think of a song that is considered new when there are no new sounds, as all sounds are already known in the form of pitch on the sound spectrum.
I am sad when I look at a person who refuses to learn how to relate to people. The concept of a relationship is so large and complicated to most people today that they simply refuse to try to relate to people. They choose to exist alone in a crowd. They end up bumping into people, stepping on their toes, and breathing down their necks as they believe they are alone, but they are not alone. They are near people almost all the time, but do not realize it. The result is hurt feelings, and sometimes hurt physically.
My study of humanity will never end. I care so much for the welfare of people. Oddly, I often communicate better with people who do not speak the same languages as me. It is because they want to communicate and are willing to do so beyond the spoken word. We use inputs, processes, and outputs other than a common language to communicate with one another. We use nonverbal communication, such as hand gestures and smiles or frowns to send messages. Those who speak the same languages as me who do not know how to relate are an example of a person who has been hurt to the point they do not care about other people anymore. I thought for years this lack of caring was because they had enough money in their pocket not to care about anyone. I have since come to understand it is because they are hurt to the point that they cannot put forth the energy to care anymore about relating to people. The result is that they do not use the input-process-output model in their efforts to relate to people. The outcome of this choice is sadness in their hearts, and the hearts of those who love these people.
The Richly or Poorly Show exists to help these people. The listener attributes of the intended show audience hold feelings within them of being either poor, brokenhearted, imprisoned, blind, or oppressed.
There are three forms of poverty: material, moral, and spiritual. They are all horrible to experience.
Heartbreak, from any form of disappointment, is always painful.
Imprisonment, such as a physical prison, gossiping, ignorance, or fear, causes one to live more poorly.
The inability to see is more than only physical, but also being blind to opportunities, relationships, and anything that is not a contributor to living more richly.
Oppression occurs beyond only the results of war, abuse, or neglect. Oppression occurs by causing any form of harm.
I encourage you to understand that it is possible to be free of these conditions and live your life more richly than you have ever known!
Are you willing to change the inputs, processes, and outputs you use to help form your relationships for the purpose of helping anyone? Remember, Wisdom always leads to the Truth. Are you willing to let Wisdom lead you to the Truth of how you can have the best relationship possible with a person? Are you willing to be informed by a person that they view you as either poor, brokenhearted, imprisoned, blind, or oppressed?
The five episodes I presented in June 2026 about Messaging & Communication are the means to help you have the best relationship possible with a person. The effort to message with Wisdom occurs first by pursuing Wisdom, then learning Wisdom, then applying Wisdom. You will know, without a doubt, when you have the best relationship possible with a person. You will know it as you will be not only happy, but also at peace about the relationship. These two conditions could change a second later, as all relationships are living. They live as they are part of two people. The people are alive, so the relationship is alive as an intersection of two lives.
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.
I ask you now to identify in your life your best relationship today, and your worst relationship today. Think about what is necessary to improve your worst relationship today. Think about what events occurred to have your best relationship today. Then, go to both of those people and learn how they view their relationship with you. You may be surprised to learn they do not hold the same views as you. I ask you to then move this week to form a new relationship. Undertake the work to form the new relationship using the five steps I have presented about relationship formation to you. I am not saying you need to seek out a relationship with someone who is either poor, brokenhearted, imprisoned, blind, or oppressed. I am saying you decide the person on your own free will. Hopefully, they will want to form a relationship with you. Let me know how it goes for you. I would like to deepen my relationship with you by hearing how the new friendship experience went for you.
I leave you with this thought. Life is difficult to live. Difficult, as in fatigue, risks, doubts, fears, and sometimes losses. Overcoming the sorrows experienced by fatigue, risks, doubts, fears, and losses occurs best by having a plan to overcome each of them. It is easy to sit and do nothing for days, sometimes years, as the world goes around and around. Recovering from fatigue, risks, doubts, fears, and losses is understood as necessary. Sitting in defeat from events such as fatigue, risks, doubts, fears, and losses is existing, not living. The difference is recovery versus defeat. The Richly or Poorly Show is about recovery by learning, growing, and having a plan to live life more richly. Where do you stand in how you live your life?
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!
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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.
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