There is an interesting connection between motivation, attitude, action and results that is reflected in what you read. A question was asked if lack of inspiration was the cause of not reading, or if lack of reading was the cause of lack of inspiration.

Good question. And, perhaps research exists somewhere on this issue, but for our purposes, it is important to know that lack of reading is demonstrated in lack of motivation, lack of activity and lack of results.

What kind of reading? This is personal, but extremely important to understand that what you read does have an impact on what you believe. Reading positive, encouraging and strategic books is a significant indicator of where and how you will arrive at wherever it is you would like to go. Books can take the place of mentors and teachers and provide examples and support for you to filter into your own life with the guidance of professional advice.

Are you planning to spend less than you earn, or to earn more than you spend. If your life plan means you are planning to spend right up until you’ve run out of money, then you’ve completely missed the whole purpose to working and earning in the first place. If you consider your life as a legacy and decide what’s important to you, you will find it easier to know what money is required to live your life the way you want to live it. This way you can leave a legacy that supports what you believe in and worked your whole life for. The result of shifting your perspective is a rewarding life; one that you create!

Leverage is the topic on my mind this week. An analogy someone described this week is that of the activity of a train leaving the station with someone running along side shoveling individual pieces of coal into the engine – that, is very difficult. However, when you can get many people shoveling coal, you have a much easier job – just like if you have a stockpile of coal already in the engine.

There are many applications of leverage in finance – extra help is certainly one. So is having a stockpile to draw on for fuel, and likewise, so is having access to help and fuel, which is what you get when you have a support team and access to capital and / or credit to fuel your financial ventures.

What do they really mean? Believe. There are things that we believe in our head because they make sense and seem logical. But, there are also beliefs that are more a part of your being. These are things that are part of who you are. Understanding what you believe is critical because sometimes we can have beliefs that actually keep us from what it is that we really want.

And that is what I would like you to focus on this week: what do you really believe? When you know that, the Begin and Become parts of the plan will fall into place all on their own. What is it that you truly believe in your heart – not in your head, but in your heart that is apart of who you are. And, are those beliefs truly supporting you on your financial journey?

It’s always puzzled me how hard it is to ask for help, and I think I finally know why. Because when you ask for help, you admit you have a weakness is the easy answer – the other more difficult to understand reason is that you risk rejection. What if you admit you have a weakness and you need help with something and you are rejected? The ask could be something simple like “I need help with my investments, can you recommend a financial advisor?” or more serious like, “I need to talk to someone about my high credit card debt, do you know who I should talk to?” In either case, you have to first admit something about your finances to someone, then you have to hope they have an answer, because if not, you have to ask again or run the risk of feeling rejected or judged.

Yes, these are all subjective perceptions. And yes, feelings aren’t really an indicator of reality, it is just an aha I had this week while pondering why it is that for many people it’s hard to ask for help – particularly when it comes to issues around money.

Will power and self discipline alone will not accomplish any significant goal whether it is business, health, fitness, finance or other personal desire. Having a good idea and a plan will certainly provide you with a foundation to start towards your goal, however, in life, any great accomplishment will come with hills and valleys and plateaus. Hills will require extra effort, valleys will be lonely and you will question your belief in yourself and your goal. You will be faced with decisions to continue or to quit. But, plateaus are where many dreams or even small goals are lost. The initial excitement has warn off; the adrenaline for the hill climb is not pulling you through; and you are just going through the motions – this is the plateau. And, this is why will power and self discipline alone are not sufficient to carry out your significant goals.

What is the answer? It is – to start where you are; review or make a commitment, analyze your values and priorities, then take the small step to get yourself back into motion. This small step can be as simple as rewriting your goal. Then, stand up and start doing the next small thing to get you moving – this can be scheduling an action step or making a phone call, anything that gets / keeps the ball rolling.

Recognize when you are plateauing, and do not attempt to jump ahead too far or be content to wait for something to happen. Take control in bite-size manageable pieces.

… so interesting, in fact, that when I went online to look up how to spell it correctly, I couldn’t find it. It means to destroy completely. WOW!

It’s not normally in my character to use such a negative word, and this introduction isn’t about the reason the word came up in conversation, or the thing that we talked about ‘annihilating’. It’s about my thoughts on it after the initial use this week.

Sometimes we speak in very strong words without really thinking through the true sense of what we’re saying. ‘I hate that’ is a great example.

What occurred to me as I was thinking about the conversation I had about annihilate was that there are some things that need to be annihilated and there are some things to be hated. These things should not be said of people for example. Rather, they can be extremely powerful motivators when applied to making positive change… which is what I encourage you to do – annihilate the things in your life that cause you stress and frustration and move into a more relaxed, calm, stress free enjoyment of all that awaits you.

I didn’t say it would be easy – I know, there is a situation in my life right now that I need to annihilate my negative frustration towards so that I can regain a smooth, straight line, calm, relaxed enjoyment of all the amazing things that I do have in my life – hmmm – sounds to me like a good foundation and ongoing reminder to turn negative situations and negative energy into a positive force for change for the better!!

Where you are, is exactly where you are supposed to be so enjoy every minute of it!

A social condition arising from the desire to be more wealthy, successful or to “keep up with the Joneses”, affluenza is symptomatic of a culture that holds up financial success as one of the highest achievements. People said to be affected by affluenza typically find that the very economic success they have been so vigorously chasing ends up leaving them feeling unfulfilled, and wishing for yet more wealth.
Affluenza is arguably present in the USA, where the culture is one that prides itself on possessions and financial success. Mainstream media outlets tend to show how pervasive the idea has become (ie, TV broadcasts).
While affluenza cannot be easily quantified, those wishing to avoid the condition should look to be the master of, not a slave to, the things they have or wish to obtain

iImagine an ad campaign for a new money program offered to teach principles so you can enjoy, save and give money… sounds good so far, right? Maybe. The first step is to enjoy money – doesn’t that require there to be some to enjoy? If so, then somewhere along the line some money had to be earned, right? Saving – what for? This is a severely misused financial word – saving. Saving is for a short-term purpose where money is held fairly static. Investing, on the other hand, is the process of getting your money working for you. When this happens, financial independence becomes the goal rather than ongoing continuous adding to a big pot of money.
A more thorough plan would likely be: earn, manage spending and saving, invest, give, enjoy.
A simple way to expand your financial knowledge is to get curious about the words we use on a daily basis to describe money related issues.

Question: How many credit cards can you leverage for investing before it damages your credit?
Answer: If only the answer were as simple as a number! I could say, well, 9 – and you’d be on your way! In reality, the credit card companies and credit bureaus don’t care whether you are using your cards to buy stereo equipment, or to invest. But they do care about how you manage your credit.
Here are the areas to be aware of:
• The effect on your credit score when you fill out a credit application. Each time a company or financial institution makes an inquiry, it can adversely affect your credit rating. If you fill out a credit application, be reasonably sure that you will qualify for it.
• The relationship between your outstanding balance and your limit – you should use only 1/3 of your available credit at any time. Leave lots of room!
• Your frequency of use – it’s better to use a card regularly, which can be as little as once a year. Keep it somewhat active.
• Overall history of the card and the length of time you’ve had it. A long credit history with a couple of bumps and snags is better than a short history where you are an unknown quantity.
• Your total debt-to-service ratio; in other words, your debt payments compared to your income. Again, keep this to a maximum of 30%.
If you keep within these guidelines, you can use the credit available to you to fund wonderful income-generating projects, or to take advantage of a terrific opportunity and have a terrific credit score.