A LETS Lifestyle
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In these times of consumerism and rush for the Almighty Dollar, one way to get out of the rat race and have a Life, is to join a LETS system.
What is a LETS system, you ask? LETS stands for Local Energy Transfer System and is a form of skills sharing, self help, community support network. These groups are run by volunteers and members agree on joining, to exchange their skills/talents/services for ‘credits’ or points instead of cash.
Although bartering has been around for thousands of years, this system has limitations. Bartering means one to one exchange, whereas with LETS members can exchange their ‘credits’ with anyone else within their LETS group, or even with members of other LETS groups.
LETS started in BC, Canada in early 1980s, by a man called Michael Linton, when his town’s main industry shut down, throwing many people into unemployment. He thought if they started a ‘local currency’ of ‘credits’, then the town would survive this period of economic hardship. And he was right. Since then it has grown world wide, with over 2500 known groups in about 150 countries. Each group is autonomous and modifies the rules to suit itself, but runs on the premise that every person has something to offer society, even if it may not valued commercially cash wise; that offering is acknowledged by the exchange of credits and minimal use of federal dollars. Each group has a different name for these credits- beans, diamonds, shells, melbas, echos, quolls, whatever the group decides.
Each group produces a directory of skills or services being offered. Members select the service they want form this directory, contact the person offering it, by phone and negotiate a ‘price’ in credits, and set a date suitable to both parties. Once the transaction has taken place, in the group I belong to, it is recorded in a transaction record book, rather like a cheque book, signed by both parties and this piece of paper is sent into the central office and recorded on a computer. Some groups have different systems of keeping track of transactions, and some don’t have central records at all, it all depends on the system being used in that group.
Most groups do not worry if there is a debit balance on an account, this is an indication that, at some later date, there is a commitment to provide a service for another member or to the group as a whole, by helping out with the general administration.
It works this way. Mary bakes a cake for Jim and earns 10 credits. Then Mary gets her hair cut by Betty for 20 credits, while Jim might do some home maintenance for Peter for 10 credits. Betty can use the 20 credits she earned doing Mary’s hair, by getting some babysitting, and so on. Money is usually only exchanged when materials are bought or used.
When baking a cake for Jim, Mary would charge $$s only for the ingredients she used and diamonds for the labour. Mary’s haircut would be diamonds only. Jim’s home maintenance might involve buying wood and nails; Peter would pay for these in cash and diamonds for Jim’s time and effort.
The range of skills offered is very diverse, ranging from hairdressing, gardening, cooking, household help, tutoring – primary and secondary education, languages, arts and crafts, computer skills, self defence, swimming, various alternative therapies and so on. Other skills available are home maintenance, locksmithing, massage, counselling, naturopathy, Reiki and a wide range of other alternative therapies, the list is endless. If it is available in the commercial market, then it is very liable to be available through the LETS system.
Not only do members have access to skills offered within their own group, but can access most other groups in Australia through a system called InterLETS. There is also a booklet called LETS Travel Australia that sets out accommodation throughout Australia for minimal cash and LETS credits; members can travel this way, worldwide in fact.
The trading is not limited to skills and services. Goods, usually secondhand are available as well. In our group these are available through our newsletter ads page, or through an e-group that acts as an Internet notice board. These goods range from books, fruit and vegetables, clothes, all sorts of electrical goods, furniture, tools, all sorts of arts and crafts, baby goods, some car parts, plants and seedlings, whatever!
If this all sounds too simple, and there must be a catch, well there is! You do have to contribute to the group in some way! You may have a hobby like leadlighting, or love baking cakes, or knitting beanies or be a qualified bookkeeper. If you offer some thing exotic like translating into Swahili, then it is best to also offer driving or something slightly more practical, so that you can trade both credit wise and debit wise. You may have excellent secretarial skills so you could become the group secretary!
Other than this commitment, it is dead simple! You ask for what you want, and help others with what you are offering in exchange.
Joining fees and annual subscriptions are minimal, between $20 – $30to join and $12 – $25 pa depending on the group’s rules- a very cheap price for access to so many skills and services.
If you have any queries or want further information about how it all works or groups in your area, contact Jenny on 9438 1909 0r email diamondvalley_northernsuburbslets@hotmail.com
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If you are interested in joining our LETS Group in the Diamond Valley / Northern Suburbs area please CONTACT US
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