Have you ever asked yourself these questions?
-”Why do I feel financially trapped; stuck in a rut?”
-”How would my life improve if you had more money?”
-”What can I do to create more income?”
-”Why am I always financially struggling?”
These are questions I’ve been asking myself since the beginning of the year. After my friend Dan Miller sent me a copy of Steve Seibolds book, “How Rich People Think“, I discovered that the solution is to start by changing my thinking. I’ve learned that most of what I was told about how to get rich was wrong and taught by people who don’t have a clue.
The first chapter of Steve’s book is titled: Middle class focuses on saving…World class (rich) focuses on earning. He goes on to state that most people are driven by fear of losing what they have while the wealthy focus their mind on creating wealth by serving others and solving problems.
He goes on to state that the wealthy have an abundance mentality and believe even if they lose everything, they can get it back. Then Steve asks a million dollar question: “Are you more focused on saving pennies or building an empire?”
To test this concept, I’ve asked 3 successful entrepreneur friends of mine to comment on this question:
Do you focus on savings or income?
Here are their answers:
1.) Dan Miller -founder 48Days.com, 48Days.net, author 48 Days to The Work You Love, No More Mondays, Wisdom Meets Passion, speaker and coach. *(You can find his full answer here, on his 48Days Podcast, 1/11/13 at 14 minutes and 30 seconds into the episode.)
-“I intend to earn my way into wealth, not save my way into wealth”
-I think, “How can I add that much money very quickly”
-his focus is on creating new products or services that people want and need
-add value and serve others
-being frugal has very little to do with attaining wealth, it’s more about being a good steward of my resources
-The Stockdale Paradox-people who are only optimistic will lose hope, despair and die. Those who visualize, plan and identify real things they are going to do to create the future they want tend to live more fulfilling lives.
2.) Mark Cleveland -serial entrepreneur, CEO of Swiftwick (world’s best athletic sock made in Tennessee!) and Hobby Lobby International (cool remote controlled airplanes and cars).
-Always focus on revenue; revenue is where it’s at!
-Enjoy the building process.
-Think of your long term objectives and don’t let short term difficulties redefine your goal.
-Concentrate on creating rain; creating new products and services.
-Solving the difficult problems is where the money is at.
-Surround yourself with good people.
-Constantly be thinking of your top line.
3.) Phil Theodore -endurance athlete, serial entrepreneur, a personal mentor of mine, currently preparing for a 300 mile race in the Arctic, The Ukon Arctic Ultra
-”Keeping track of the past is a waste of time”
-Read books about where you are going. Ex. Phil is planning on rowing a boat 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, so he is reading The Crossing by James Cracknell to focus his mind.
-Don’t look at last month or the month before, spend time on sales, product development and think about where you want to go.
-Ask yourself, “What are the 2 or 3 things I can do today to affect income?”
-Accountants focus on the past. Put your focus on the present.
-Have check lists for mental focus and motivation. Ex. If not feeling well, think of HALT-am I Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired? If hungry, eat, tired then take a nap, etc.
-90% of success is mental and you need to keep your mind focused.
How about you? Have you focused on income or savings? If you’re not getting the results you want, how do you plan to change?
