Archives for October 2018

Values are the things that are most important to you.

I know people whose lives revolve around their friends. Their #1 priority is their friends.

I know people whose lives revolve around exercise. They spend an enormous amount of time every week exercising.

I know people whose lives revolve around the pursuit of their dreams and their goals. In fact, I know 177 of them – my Rich Habits self-made millionaires.

You values determine how you spend your time. And how you spend your time, shapes the circumstances of your life.

If you are happy with your life, then your values are good. If you are unhappy, then you’re spending time on the wrong things. Or, put another way, you’re spending time on things that, deep down, are unimportant to you.

Happiness is value-driven. When you are doing things that are truly important to you, happiness follows. When you are doing things that are not important to you, unhappiness follows.

If you are unhappy with your life, you must focus your actions and behaviors on the things that are most important to you. Those things that are most important to you, are your values.

In order to determine your values, however, you must have a come to Jesus meeting with yourself. You must be honest with yourself in order to unearth what’s important to you. To define your values, ask yourself this one question – what matters most to me?.

Once you define what’s most important to you, you will then know where you should be spending your time.

When you act in accordance with your values, happiness follows. So, your values are your own personally constructed guidance system, leading you to a life of health, wealth and happiness.

The mirror tells all.

If you’re able to pay your bills and save money, the refection is of someone living below their means and building their future wealth.

If you’re eating nutritious food and exercising consistently, the reflection is of someone who is fit and healthy.

If you’re pursuing your dreams and your goals, the reflection is of someone who loves what they do for a living.

It’s hard to look in the mirror, however, when you know you are not doing the things you should be doing.

If you’re overweight, the reflection is of someone eating too much and exercising too little.

If you’re struggling financially, the reflection is of someone spending too much and saving too little.

If you hate your job, the reflection is of someone who has put their ladder on someone else’s wall, and who is still climbing the wrong wall.

If your reflection in the mirror is a negative one, I want you to indulge me.

Imagine for a moment that you are a writer who has been tasked to write a chapter about the ideal you, ten years into the future. What would the chapter say?

Hopefully, it would paint a picture with words of your amazing future life. It would include information about how fit and healthy you were. It would, in detail, describe your amazing home, the fascinating places you’ve traveled to over the past ten years, the fun and exciting things you’ve done on your many vacations, the passion you have for what you do for a living that has helped you create your enormous wealth. It would share details about a life, dreams are made of.

The purpose of this exercise is to create a blueprint of the life you were intended to live. It will help provide clarity in the form of a future desired destination. This blueprint will become your GPS, directing you to forge good habits and make better decisions, forever changing the trajectory of your life.

With this clear vision of the life you desire, your blueprint will change the reflection you see, the next time you look in the mirror.

24% of the wealthy in my Rich Habits Study had a success mentor. Of this 24% however, 93% attributed their wealth to the fact that they had a success mentor.

The average saver/investor in my study accumulated $3.3 million over a period of thirty-two years. The average wealth of the rich in my study who were mentored, however, was $4.6 million, which they accumulated over eighteen years.

So, mentors not only shortcut the accumulation of wealth, they dramatically increase how much wealth you accumulate.

Success Mentors teach you what to do and what not to do. They steer you in the right direction, helping you avoid mistakes and obstacles. They offer valuable feedback, so that you can improve your skills. They share their wisdom and experience, helping you solve problems.

How and where do you find mentors?

• Work – The easiest way is to find someone at work, who is outstanding at what they do, and regularly pick their brain and experience.
• Networking Group – Networking groups are a great way to meet new people both within and without your field of expertise. Over time, your relationships will grow stronger and you will be able to identify outstanding individuals who can act as your mentor.
• Local Non-Profits – Volunteering at coal  community-based non-profits or civic organizations will introduce you to individuals who can become your mentors in life. Many wealthy, successful individuals sit on the boards of these non-profit organizations or work in the various committees that every non-profit has. In these nonprofits you will find that outstanding individual who can act as your mentor.
• Trade Groups – Trade groups or trade organizations are another source for mentors. Getting involved in these trade groups will expose you to many individuals who are leaders in their industry. They have industry-specific wisdom and experience.
• Books – You can find mentors in books. Biographies of successful people share the life stories of these successful people. They also sure the pitfalls and obstacles they had to overcome. This not only helps you identify the potential obstacles and pitfalls you’ll face, but also the solutions to them.