You and Your Money: Part 3
Recapping Part 2
You were asked to note how you felt when you wrote down your current income on a piece of paper. When you multiplied that number by 5 lots of feelings came up, and you might have been surprised that not all those feelings were exciting or positive.
That simple exercise was a subtle as a sledgehammer indicator of where your income thermostat is set.
We will start by looking at why there is a resistance to increasing that level.
In order to be financially independent, you need to be able to leverage your time such as setting up businesses that can run like clockwork without you working 80 hour weeks.
One area where you can do this is on the internet where it is possible to set up perfectly legitimate businesses that generate passive income.
I know of an Australian couple who set a goal of becoming financially independent within a 5 year period and they did just that with 6 months to spare.
They wanted to quit their day jobs so that they could spend more time with their two young kids.
They tried different business vehicles and for 4 and ½ frustrating years they felt like they were not getting anywhere and then, Bang! the big bucks came in. They finally made it. How did they do this?
Firstly by their own admission, they had to get over the emotional and subconscious hurdle of making passive incomes.
They came from families with a strong work ethic; it meant that their subconscious minds could not accept a scenario where they made money passively ie without working hard for it, without exerting themselves, without making an effort; it was not from the sweat of their brow.
That was definitely an “aha!” moment for them when they put two and two together. They were then able to work through the subconscious blockage, and they haven’t looked back since. Today they are multi millionaires.
So, are you curious to know how they did this? Let’s just say, most if not all of it can be found in Part 4.
Trust me, you’ll really love this one.
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
You and Your Money: Part 2
Recapping Part 1
Your emotional money profile determines your current level of wealth.
So, if you think you should be doing a whole lot better than your present circumstances, chances are that you have had sub consciously programmed into your mind, the money beliefs you picked up from your parents or other figures of authority when you were a child that do not support your conscious waking goals for becoming financially independent and/or wildly successful in your business ventures. This I referred to as the X Factor.
If I was to ask the question “Do you want to be rich” the immediate response of 99.9 percent of the population would be a resounding “Heck, yeah!” But for a majority, there is the internal conflict that arises with being in the position of having a lot of the green folding stuff handed to them.
It is well known that most people who win hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars through lotteries end up losing the lot and have in their wake a string of broken relationships. WHY?
Because these people do not have the mindset of a wealthy person, instead they are poor people with a lot of money.
But before you become indignant and start hitting the reply button let me elaborate.
We all have a “money thermostat” programmed into our subconscious; we are comfortable with having a pre-determined amount of money in our bank account. This is in direct proportion to our sense of self worth or self esteem.
For example, there are people who feel that earning $50, 000 a year is the all time high of a level whilst others are comfortable with being $35, 000 per annum type of guys and gals.
Being creatures of habit, we gravitate towards what makes us comfortable and some people will do just about anything to return to their comfort zone. They will subconsciously rid themselves of the excess money by making poor investment choices or recklessly spending on expensive trinkets such as fast cars, and boats that depreciate in value over time. They also tend to attract people into their lives who will help them spend it quickly!
So, how do you shift this “money thermostat” into the region of $100, 000’s instead of $10, 000s? I could have said $1, 000, 000’s but that would seem like leaping into the realms of the impossible, so baby steps first.
Number 1- work on your self esteem (this is a given, folks).
Number 2- get comfortable with earning and receiving more than you are currently getting. For the sake of the illustration, grab a piece of paper and write down the figure you are getting or earning. Note the feelings that surface; now multiply that number by 5 and note again how you feel when you write that new number down.
If you cannot feel comfortable with this new number, we will explore why this is in Part 3.
Till then,
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
You and Your Money: Love, Hate, Give, Take (Part 1)
Question I
Answer Yes or No to the following statements:
1. Money doesn’t grow on trees
2. You got to have money to make money
3. No matter how hard I work, there are more bills than money I have to pay them
4. Rich people are arrogant
Please tally up the number of yes’s and no’s.
Question II
Right now without looking in your wallet/purse do you know how much money you have (to within a couple of dollars). No peeking.
Ok now take a look; is the folding stuff neatly stacked and organized according to the denomination. You know, picture of the important historical figure is always face up, starting with George Washington through to Ben Franklin. Or are the one’s, five’s ten and twenty dollar bills crumpled, a bit grubby and just shoved into your pockets.
Why all these questions. Well, this short quiz quickly illustrated how you presently relate to money.
Let me ask this: do you treat your money the way you treat your spouse/partner. Conversely would you treat your partner/spouse the same way you treat your money.
At this juncture, I suspect some people would start to feel a bit uncomfortable and maybe even begin to squirm in their seats.
Let’s be honest. You are on this site primarily to network, to promote and do business with other like-minded women. So, we are talking about money and making money here. You literally cannot afford to shy away from this subject (pun intended).
The point is this: unless you are comfortable with talking about and making money, and keeping the money you’ve made, your blood sweat and tears and physical efforts are going to achieve less than optimal results.
In business we look closely at the ROI (Return On Investment) ie how much profit you make on the amount of seed capital you put into your business. Any sane person would expect a 15-20 % minimum return on their investment. There are neat mathematical formulas that spit out a number that show the percentage profit you would make.
When calculating the ROI your accountant will plug in the cold hard cash investment dollar amount minus the costs and overheads eg rent, stock on order, utilities, wages, state and federal taxes associated with running a business.
However, what your accountant has not included in this ROI equation is the missing X Factor.
And this X Factor sits between your ears.
Now, getting back to the yes/no responses to the opening statements. If you said yes to even one of those statements, I hazard that your business is not growing at the speed and the direction you would like. That’s the bad news.
The good news is that those above statements are old conditioned beliefs. Let me say it again, they are not set in stone facts but conditioned beliefs.
As kids, we had no internal reference point (life experience) with regards to money. We adopted the belief system of the adult authority figures around us, namely our parents and teachers. Conditioned beliefs are what you picked up from these people when you were at your most impressionable. They were subtle messages you absorbed by osmosis (that is science speak for effortlessly picking up the words and actions transmitted by adults who are in your immediate environment and incorporating them into your psychological money profile without being able to discern as to whether these are true or false beliefs).
You grew up observing they way your folks handled, talked about, saved, spent, argued and fought over money and now as an adult you model this belief system.
They had either a scarcity or abundance mentality when it came to money and more importantly wealth (and yes, there is a difference between being rich and being wealthy, and it’s not the dollar amount).
The X Factor is principally is how you relate to money on an emotional level that is determined by your current conditioned beliefs. These unspoken systems are so powerful and deeply embedded within your sub conscious that you probably do not realize that you have them!
Ok, now that you are aware, you can make the decision to deal with and change these negative conditioned beliefs that you acquired early on in life.
In doing so you can start to power towards your business goals and hit the mark.
How are you going to do that?
That will be the topic of discussion in Part 2.
Until then, yours in health, wealth and happiness
We are Creatures of Habit
As the title says, we are indeed creatures of habit.
In summary, these habits either get you to your financial, relationship and career goals or they subtly trip up your best efforts at moving past your current position.
Just this morning as you were getting dressed, did you have to think about how you put your dress, slacks or jeans on?
No, you either favoured your left or right foot first when stepping into your clothes. How about putting on your shoes or boots-which was first, left or right. Or when you shrugged yourself into your coat, which hand went first into the sleeve of your jacket, left or right. Didn’t see that one coming, did you?
Do you see where I am going with this?
These basic habits are so ingrained that we hardly take any notice yet they and some of your more important habits dictate where you are in life.
So, how did you end up with habits?
Quite simply they originated from your thoughts and feelings. Wow, imagine that! Just by thinking in a particular way you can actively influence your future.
This is great news folks because it means you are in the driver’s seat, you are in control and you decide whether you want to pull into the swanky 5 star hotel or the no star fleabag motel next to the highway.
The sequence is this:
Your thoughts and feelings lead to actions; your actions repeated become habits and your habits give you the results you are getting right now.
If you don’t like where you are right now, you know what do you. That’s right, change the way you think and feel. Too simple? Well that’s your challenge for the week.
If reading this has made you want to take a look at your current habits such as eating, saving and exercise (but then you get distracted by what is on television), let me leave you with this tasty tip about one common habit of wealthy people.
They do not procrastinate. They do what they have to do straight away or they list the things that need doing, and they get on with it. NOW!
The Power of Why
Today we examine that all important aspect of “WHY”
If you were asked why you would want to be wealthy, do you have an answer that goes beyond the usual responses of “I want to provide for myself and family” or “I want to never have to worry about paying my bills”?
If you do not have a good enough reason, all your efforts at building your business may not be sustainable.
May I suggest that the extra something that powers you along your wealth creation journey needs to be bigger than just you.
What more can you as a wife and mother do to help, heal and protect those who are defenseless and not in the position yet to take care of themselves?
Challenge this statement if you wish but would you agree that women are nurturers and protectors of the weak and less capable.
So how can you make a difference, create an impact that will be felt for generations to come.
Consider the power of philanthropy and use your fabulous wealth to make a change for the better for those around you.
In 2006 Professor Mohammad Yunus, known as the “Banker to the Poor” was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for championing the concept of microcredit lending to the poor of Bangladesh.
Traditional banks shunned and classified these borrowers who were predominantly women as credit risks. He saw first hand how they were forced to use the services of loan sharks to run their businesses and therefore be forever trapped in the vicious poverty cycle.
He was that someone who believed in these entrepreneurs, and offered them near zero interest loans through Grameen Bank. Interestingly enough the default rates were next to negligible. In a moving interview, he describes how these women had tears in their eyes when receiving their money, because for the first time in their lives, some one believed in them.
President Barack Obama honored Professor Yunus with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009 for his work as “an agent of change”.
I recently watched a Youtube clip of Barbara Stanny, the author of “Prince Charming isn’t Coming” who said, “Columbus may have discovered America but the expedition was financed by a woman (Queen Isabella of Spain)”
Do not underestimate the power of “WHY”
The Law of Dharma
There comes a moment in every woman’s life where we intrinsically know that it is time to square up and face our lives so far.
Call it a stock take, call it a “Whoa, there” moment but whatever else you want to call it, call it honestly.
Any restlessness you feel should prompt an action and in my case it was launching my mind, body and soul into the search phase. We certainly have lift off (and no Houston, we do not have a problem).
Serendipitously it lead to reading about the Law of Dharma or Purpose in Life which consists of 3 parts. “Part 1 Everyone has a purpose in life; Part 2 Everyone has a unique talent and Part 3 When we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy and exultation of our own spirit which is the ultimate goal of all goals” (Thanks for that Deepak Chopra!).
My Purpose is to make a difference for the better, specifically in the lives of women who too often are self effacing, and never take credit for their achievements, preferring to stand aside. Do not apologize for standing in the limelight (hog it sister).
It is ok and you are definitely worthy, so revel and bask in the glow and ask the lighting man to turn up the wattage.
Yours in health, wealth and happiness
Why You Really Need To Work On It If You Want to Achieve Your Dreams & Goals
Would I be right to say that each and everyone has a burning desire to succeed, achieve a number of goals, become better wives, mothers, local and global citizens etc.
You want to create wealth, have radiantly good health and happiness and in doing so, be in the position to give back to the community by the truckload.
We may have arrived at this point directly or perhaps via a more circuitous path.
Whichever the case, we are now here.
Some days your goals and grand visions are so clear you can taste, touch, smell and feel it. It makes your heart beat just a bit faster, and the sense of anticipation and excitements makes you want to jump up and down with glee.
Other times, it feels like a bit of a pipe dream and the naysayers (including the harsh internal critic) have a field day picking apart your precious dreams.
Question: So how do you keep going in the face of adversity and whilst you are paused to take a breath when you are in one of those “pushing the proverbial uphill” days?
Answer: See subject heading. I have included an inspirational missive from Brain Tracy. It certainly keeps me going when obstacles (which are really opportunities in disguise) pop up. Enjoy and be re-inspired.
“The most important Million Dollar Habit you can develop is the habit of deliberately building your own self-esteem and self-confidence on a daily basis.
The more you feed your mind with positive words, pictures, and thoughts, the more positive, confident, optimistic and unafraid you become.
The more you like yourself, the better you do at anything you attempt.
The more you like yourself, the less you fear failure and rejection.
The more you like yourself, the less you worry about short-term setbacks and obstacles.
The more you like yourself, the greater courage and resilience you will have to face the inevitable ups and downs of life.
And the more you like yourself, the more it is that you will persist until you succeed.
Self-esteem is everything”. Brian Tracy