In this article: 7 Habits of Highly Wealthy Entrepreneurs by Dave Lavinsky, he shares some great tips. Have a read, take notes and pick one or two to start of with if you have more than …
Thank you for being a part of my online journey – it’s been quite a ride so far, and I’m so excited about what’s next for you. It’s that time of year again when things …
I’m just back from a conference in Chicago – got in late last night! You know how I believe in attending as many events as you can possibly manage. It gives you such energy, you …
Last week, we were visiting the subject of outsourcing. By now, you’ll realize it is a vital form of LEVERAGE for your business, and ALL successful people use it. You simply can’t do everything yourself. …
For those in the US, it was Thanksgiving on Thursday. First off, most had the day off -I still do not get why some stores are open! It’s an opportunity for everyone to spend time …
Yep! It’s been proven scientifically, for all the left brainers out there: Gratitude is great for you.
You might wander why anyone would want to prove it, but there are lots of people out there who wait for “proof” before doing anything as esoteric as practicing gratitude.
If it has been scientifically proven through multiple research work, then more people will pay attention. Which is good, as that will raise the general Happiness of the population, and Happiness is what we all seem to want, at the end of the day.
We may take many different and circuitous routes to it, but we all end up in the same place.
Wouldn’t you like to get to happy with much less trials and tribulation on the way?
Here is the shortcut: PRACTISE GRATITUDE
That’s it – very simple. I outlined how and why I do it in the video.
Let me know how you cultivate and practise gratitude. Even better, let me know how it has worked for you.
An abundance mindset coupled with gratitude is like rocket fuel in a car! It gives your life a huge boost and attaining your goals and desires begins to feel effortless.
When you are in a space of not-enough, things shut down. You can’t see much ahead or to look forward to – it’s already been taken by someone else.
Once you let go of the feeling of lack, of not enough, and embrace where you are now, and develop a background feeling of an abundant world with enough for everything, great things begin to happen.
There is enough air for everyone to breathe without taking away from anyone else – think of things and situations you desire in the same way.
A multitude of options will now be attracted to you, and you can get to pick and choose what you want and what feels right for YOU.
Start by affirming that there is enough of whatever it is you desire for you and for everyone else who wants the same thing. Since you are already grateful for what you have now, and are working towards getting something more, there is a freedom in that, allowing you to proceed with a lightness of being.
Put in it’s simplest form, there are really only 2 requirements to success. As mentioned previously, you define your own success and wealth point. Mother Theresa was wealthy & successful – it just may have been in a different way from what you see for yourself.
The others success principles or attributes arise from these.
Here they are!! Easy enough for you to remember and use this. Let me know how you get on.
1. A definite plan: If you don’t have a goal, you have nothing to aim at or for. Part of the setting the goal is to ensure that there is a plan of action that you will use to help you in its fulfillment.
You can either use SMART or Who, What, Why, When, Where as a guide.
2. A burning desire: This takes care of the other aspects necessary to get to your goal – persistence, patience, decisiveness, faith, creativity, discipline etc.
Put another way by Les Brown:
“If you set goals and go after them with all the determination you can muster, your gifts will take you places that will amaze you.”
There is such a lot to be gained from attending such meetings – the high energy from the meeting of minds as such venues is uplifting, you have face-to-face contact with people who you may not otherwise be able to meet with. This is relationship building at its best!
Whatever you happen to be involved in, there is going to be a component where you will be required to meet with other people – to learn, teach, market or purchase. It’s like a huge brainstorming arena.
I make it a point to attend as many events of things that I am involved in as possible. The quantum leap in energy is amazing. I can’t really think of a downside, and if you think of the return on the investment of attending, the dividends are enormous – contacts, affiliates, solutions and new alliances, clients. It’s also a great opportunity to catch up with and exchange ideas with your peers.
You can often find solutions to some questions you have, discover a great way to do something that you had not thought of, learn a new technique or information that you can take back with you and put into practise, resulting in a significant improvement in whatever you are involved in.
And how about meeting old friends, making new ones and having a meeting of minds – a mastermind, really. In just the last couple of days, I have met an amazing group of people that I would have been hard pressed to find under one roof anywhere else. It would take me months to organize a meeting to tap the same information I have received, not to talk of travel to different countries and all that entails.
And you can generally use it as an expense (I’m not an accountant or tax specialist, so find out about that from the proper professional before you file the claims).
If you are in any doubt about attending your industry, professional or business event, look into all the benefits of doing so – it will almost certainly surpass your expectations if you choose and plan them well. Consider that the benefits can also continue to develop well after the event is over.
Have you thought about what freedom really means to you? Think about this a bit deeper, and ask yourself if it is beneficial to those around you and to the universe in general?
Is your expression of freedom a gift to the world, or just yourself and maybe a few people?
Our desire for success is usually related in some way to freedom. To the ability to make choices and do certain things. What is your priority list, and do you feel free?
As in most things, the concept of freedom is relative and personal as well as changeable. People living in developing countries will consider almost everyone in a developed country as having the freedom to do whatever they want, but the very same person transferring to live in a developed country may not feel that way after a few years. What changed?
Our perception of freedom is heavily influenced by our environment as well as our mindset. It is quite possible, though not usual, to feel free in a jail cell, especially if that is keeping the occupant from some terrible situation on the outside.
A Nelson Mandela quote about freedom that I love:
“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”
When you take action towards freedom, you need a strong “WHY” – most people have rather weak ones. What you need to understand is that it is not just about you. When you realize that, and act accordingly with the wind behind you (a burning desire), you are more likely to be successful.
This could be something like paying off your mortgage so your family is financially more secure,putting together decent education funds for your kids, retiring your spouse or parents or helping out your community or your favourite cause financially. Looking at more than yourself tends to give you a higher incentive to achieve those goals. It also feels GREAT!
This post was inspired by a reader recently. It is a common question, but not a really useful one.
The state you are in to ask the question that way is not conducive to attracting money to you. The question is fairly firmly rooted in a victim mindset.
Look for something you can do to make money. If you look around you, there are people who are in a similar situation who are doing just about anything they can think of to earn some money. There is the belief that they can do something to bring in money. It is a wealth mindset – figure out a way to get what you want.
Take baby steps and have a definite goal and a burning desire to go with it. If you are not prepared to do whatever it takes, you will probably never be wealthy.
The thread of these posts is to share with you the thinking and ways to become successful and wealthy, whatever that may mean to you.
You hear all the talk about persistence, and wonder. Sounds like a great idea, but is it really that important?
Let’s put it like this: if you have a goal, something that is big enough to both scare and excite you, accompanied by a burning desire, a definiteness of purpose to achieve that goal, persistence will change your life!
If you have set your goal properly, the goal itself will be life changing, so the attainment of that goal will be life changing for you.
Persistence becomes important when you are well into the project or goal, and the initial enthusiasm has dulled. We all know how that feels – you can hardly find the adrenaline to keep going & you are beginning to wonder what you got yourself into, and if it is worth all the hard work you are having to do after all.
That is when you need to refocus on exactly WHY you are doing whatever it is, and dig into your inner reserves to keep going. If you have a burning desire, a compelling reason, that is what pulls you toward your goal. As I have shared in a previous post, this stimulus can be either a pleasurable or a painful one.
Hint: painful stimuli are far stronger, so find a “avoidance of pain” reason why you must achieve that goal.
As part of your goal, you will already have plan of action, which should be in stages – like rungs of a ladder. Since you have already got some distance from the start, think of it as another rung on the ladder of success, and use the fact that you have got off the bottom rung as evidence that you can climb all the way, and it will be worth it.
You also need to “burn your bridges” – cut off all the escape routes that will allow you to go back or stop you from moving forward. That means you must persist and find a way to make it to your goal!
If you want something extraordinary, you’ll need to do extraordinary things.
Persistence is key: it will be worth it.
A very happy and relaxed Thanksgiving to all our American friends!
We have another set of holidays around the corner, so it’s a great time for everyone to spend some time in reflection.
Let’s look around us in gratitude for what we do have – there are so many people worse of than we are.
And take the time to extend a helping hand to those less fortunate.
It is a universal truth that we get back more than we give! I’m not saying you should give something with the expectation of getting something back – it doesn’t work that way. The sheer joy of doing something for someone else is truly rewarding. Anything else is a bonus.
And do it not because you were asked – do it for no reason – just because……
You may want to be wealthy, but do you have a PLAN?
Wealth does not just happen. You won’t find it land on your head, lap or doorstep anytime soon.
The path to wealth requires forethought and planning. You should know whatever you do have – if you can’t manage what you have now, what makes you think you’ll be able to manage a larger sum?
“Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.”
from David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens.
It starts with spending way less than you earn. Misery is what happens when you spend more than you earn – and why you need to know every $ that comes in, so you know how much you can spend. And you can’t spend it all, or even close!
If you don’t learn to use what you have to build wealth, you’ll never be wealthy. If you don’t have the money readily available for something you want or need, think like the wealthy: figure out a way to earn the money to do so! Sell more widgets, work extra shifts, create another product or service, get a newspaper round – something, anything. Just don’t whip out the credit card and pay the minimum at 26% interest rate. That is a sucker deal!
Once you have a handle on what you are spending and earning, you can then begin the process of building wealth. If you realize that money and the resulting wealth is a storehouse of value, you’ll be able to figure out the next steps to take far more easily.
If you have a business, do you have a product or service that attracts people to look at the product or service in the first place?
It will be a lower priced item that will allow customers to get to know your business. It does have to represent good value to your customer – something of a no-brainer. Once they are in and like, or even better, love what you are offering, there is a highly increased likelihood that they will look around and purchase higher priced products or services. You now have fans, people who know, like and trust you enough to buy more of what you offer, and better still, recommend it to their friends, family and anyone who will listen. Isn’t that what we do when we “discover” something we like?
In marketing, this is called a FUNDED PROPOSAL. This will give your client the opportunity to start and get into something great. Can they make it on their own with only that? Possible, but not probable. However, with added guidance in that direction, they have a really good chance of being great.
You know how most businesses, both online and offline, offer special discounts on Black Friday, just after you are feeling mellow from all that Thanksgiving turkey the day before? It’s a form of a funded proposal – There are generally steep discounts on their products and services to get you interested enough to purchase from them both now and in future, not only that one time. If you feel it is valuable and useful enough, aren’t you likely to sign up to their list and look out for other things that you may want in future? You have become a fan!
Back to Apple – when they started the iPod, it was a fairly expensive item. Over time, they introduced the ipod touch, the ipod Nano and then the ipod Shuffle: all at progressively lower price points – now almost everyone could afford one! Go into the Apple store for a Shuffle, see the dazzling display of other higher ticket items, and see if you don’t come back in the near future for something else! The iPod Shuffle is Apple’s funded proposal!
My first Apple product was a computer years ago. I found it so much easier to use, and I am an unabashed Apple fan. Let’s count the ways: iMac, ipad, MacbookPro, iPod, iPhone (just got the 5!) – you get my point.
Have you noticed how almost every one of the higher end car manufacturers now have a line of lower priced models that were not around 10 – 15 years ago? Then you either had the money for a Mercedes Benz or BMW or you didn’t. Both companies now have “entry-level” cars, that don’t cost that much more than those from other manufacturers who market to the average person.
They aim to attract a group of people who are younger and at the start of their careers – it then builds BRAND LOYALTY.
What do they do as they rise up the corporate ladder or get that bonus cheque? Get a bigger and better car from the same place! In the meantime, the company has built a fan base, even though their main profits come from the higher end products, they bring them in early, and keep them up to the stage where they start buying their pricier products. Smart or what? You need to do the same.
Always remember, though, that you have to lead with VALUE! Your funded proposal needs to be of sufficient value (i.e. more than the face value) to attract your clients to keep coming back to see what else you have to offer. If they feel you offer great value, they WILL keep coming back. It get’s you a feet in their door, with the opportunity to build a relationship, and continue to deliver great value to them
Tip: Make your funded proposal an irresistible offer!
