FINANCIAL SUCCESS! DO YOU WANT IT? PART 2

Good day.

In the last post we discussed what you need to do to start heading towards the work that will fulfill you and help you manifest your dream. As you start to feel good about what you are doing more and more opportunities will come your way to continue to help you feel appreciative and feel good about what you do. Step by step you will start to take action and take advantage of those opportunities. You will start to feel the success. You will start to make more money. You will start to feel more alive. You will start to associate with people who are more and more successful. That is where the most common temptation of the western society will present itself, and just like the Law of Attraction if you do not know what to look for you will be hurt by default. What is that temptation? It is LIVING BEYOND ONES MEANS.  In this era of “credit”, few people have any idea about what they actually spend. The keeping up with the preverbal “Jones’” pulls the wool over our eyes. This is especially true with the young people who already feel that they are invincible and “have time” to build their wealth. In my book, Road Map to Life I did the calculation for how credit card debt can spiral out of hand and how a $25,000 debt over 5 credit cards can take up to 30 plus years to pay off. I also did an exercise to demonstrate how time is your best ally in building wealth. But in a nutshell let me just leave you with this sound, time tested, and ancient advice: “SAVE, AND MAKE YOUR SAVINGS WORK FOR YOU”.

If you have not done so I highly recommend you read the book The Richest Man in Babylon. In it you will learn the ‘secret’ to building wealth. I caution you though that the secret is not sexy, or awe inspiring, but it sure works if you use it. You are probably asking, “A.J. are you going to tell me the secret or do I have to go and buy the book?” Well I am going to tell you the secret but I also advise that you buy the book. You can check it out of any public library but it is one of the many books that are worth having and reading over and over.

The secret is this: No matter how much money you make right now, put at least 10% of it away and live on the remaining 90%. Then every 6 months or so take that 10% saving that has accumulated and listening to competent financial advice make it work for you in a safe and conservative investment and let the compounding begin. That’s it.

Very obvious right? But only about 2-3% of the population actually does save 10%. Is it any surprise that only 2-3% of the population controls about 90% of the wealth, something to think about? When I was told a long time ago that if it is not written down it is not a goal but a dream, I scoffed at it. But since I started writing down goals and seeing the positive results, I tend to look at things with more of an open mind. This formula that I have just shared with you works, and works well if you start using it now. It is not a home run or a lottery. But it is sound financial mindset and habit. The most common objection I hear is that “I am already barely scraping by, how do I live on 90% of what is already hard to live on?” That is a fair question, and the funny thing is that you will adjust so rapidly that you will barely even miss that 10%. It will be hard that first time. But it will get so much easier and with in a few months you will not even think about it.

Do it. Do it now and start on the path of financial success. Good luck and please feel free to share your comments and this blog with anyone who you think can benefit from it.