When you start adding on the years, you start to realize that life is EXTREMELY short! Sometimes I don’t feel there is enough time to accomplish all that I have planned to. I think the spark to this though process of mine was a conversation I overheard. They were talking about buying a home so that they could change it however they wanted to, instead of having to tip-toe around their landlord. Yet, they’re still hesitant. Read the rest of this entry »

While browsing through my Facebook feed I ran across this image, and it explains the path to success perfectly. I don’t know anyone, personally, that hasn’t struggled a bit before reaching a significant level of success in their business. Some of the most successful people I know have hit some speed bumps, dips, pot holes, detours and red lights on their road to success. But they only saw those obstacles for what they truly were, just obstacles. So many others quit at the sign of the first pot hole. I think they were just looking for an excuse to fall back into the same old mold they were in before……poor, depressed, wishing and wanting.

I have personally witnessed the squiggly line of success in my own financial life and I don’t think I am anywhere close to the end of the arrow…..at least by my standards. I have so many ideas to bring to fruition and goals to hit. Honestly, I think I’m right in the middle of the tangle, but I’m still on my way up. Tomorrow could be an upward swoop or a hard right turn, but as long as I can see the end of the arrow, I’ll get there. And so will you if you keep that same focus.

Success may seem difficult, but really is just about having more wins than losses!

Life is a battlefield. In it’s own right, it’s just as intense as any war waged between two armies in any location. Every aspect of it involves possible defeat or glorious victory, except in the combat of life, there are many foes…..yourself being one of the greatest. A sound mind is key.

In the midst of conflict, injuries will occur. Sometimes these injuries are self inflicted and other times they are caused by sources outside our control.

There are those who have been injured many times, who, because of their many scars, shy away from the battle.  They avoid confrontation and action. They’re scared of being injured, or injured again. So instead of facing their enemy, they avoid them at all costs, even at great personal loss. They let the fear of pain and loss take over their life. Their actions become less valiant and their potential squandered. Instead of being dependable and independent, they become dependent and are in need of protection. They lose their self worth and find themselves living in the gutters and the filth of this war, feeding off the leftovers of the rest.

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I don’t watch much television but occasionally, there’s a show that will catch my eye and become impossible for me to not watch it. That show right now is the History Channels “The Swamp People.” I am so into it, I created a few swamp people shirts for my family and decided to offer them to the public as well. The things they say are catchy!

Half the time it’s nearly impossible to understand what they’re saying because they have such a thick accent, but it’s fun to see the unique way they make their living. At times, they seem like they’re so happy that I just want to pack up and go hang out in the Bayou for a while.

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There is a simple rule that I have learned in my journey of success is that everything is relevant and related. Some people are a success naturally. It’s in their nature, while others really have to work on it.

What I’ve noticed in my own life, is that most of my successes are directly related to how I feel about myself. Now what I mean by that, is if I feel like I am a fat slob, unhealthy and unattractive, my self esteem is going to be rock bottom. My opinion of myself may or may not be a reality, but that’s what my mind believes. Until I can change this mental picture of myself, how can I view anything that my fat, ugly self creates as attractive? Make sense?

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Have you ever found yourself saying, “When I get my tax return I’m going to….,” buy me a new truck, go on a shopping spree, pay off my credit card or even just catch up on my rent or mortgage? If you have, no worries. You’re not the only one. I would say that 95 out of 100 people say that almost every year.

No big deal! That’s the way the system works right? You work a job for the year just making ends meet. You may have some extra to go on a vacation or two, buy your kids Christmas presents and maybe get a few nice things for yourself. But, none of it compares to tax return time! “Man, when my tax return gets here I’m gonna buy this or get that. “

I would have to say, and you should agree with me, that if tax return time is your biggest bonus of the year…something needs to change! You are getting paid to stay right where you’re at, dependent. Dependent on a job that isn’t paying you what you’re worth and dependent on a yearly bonus from your government, for struggling through the last twelve months of barely making ends meet. It’s like giving a lolly pop to a child who only gets one a year. The rest of the year, he’s sucking off the remains of everyone else’s lolly pops.

Look, I only bag on tax return time to make a point here. I encourage you, with all the fiber of my being, to change your thinking. Get out or your comfort zone, step into your creative side and start moving forward in a different direction…a direction that will have you paying taxes at the end of the year because you will have earned the income to do so. Instead of acting like everyone else, step out of the mold. Poor people make money to spend it, rich people make money to invest it, utilize it and to make more money with. It’s a tool, not a gift. When you get the wrench, fix the car. Don’t trade it for a tricycle.

If you think about it, it’s actually a privilege to get to pay taxes, because you know you’re helping the government support a family who needs the fifteen percent raise. Which they’ll need until they change their thinking from spending to investing…investing in themselves.

Now in closing, how many business ideas have you had in the past five to ten years? If you say none, I’ve got some great products you can SPEND your money on right now. But for those of you who have, USE your tax return on that. Start that business and move in the direction you are passionate about. If it succeeds, congratulations! You’ve broken the mold you were stuck in. And if it fails, congratulations! Now you know what to do better next time….and guess what? You’ve got another tax return to invest coming your way in exactly one year from time the last one came. You win!

Just remember, poor people spend it, rich people use it to create a better future for themselves and those around them. Which side of the scale are you on? Because on a completely lopsided scale, who’s always above the rest? The minority!