Some basics for wealth building

We all want to be rich, but the reality is that most of us will never be rich unless we learn some basics about wealth building. So if this is one of your goals for 2016 here is something to thing about as you try to figure out how to get rich.

You'll never get rich unless you understand some fundamentals about saving, spending, and investing.  Rule number one, pay yourself first. Tithe or give 10% of your gross income to yourself. Set up a savings program and for every dollar you earn, give yourself 10 cents.   Rule Two: Spend less than you earn, use credit cards carefully, and try to pay them off every month. 

Rule Three: Start investing when you have a savings set aside for emergencies, and get yourself an investment broker or if not read and study before you invest.  The single most important factor in wealth-building is the size of your investible income. Investible income is what you have left over each month after you've taken care of your lifestyle expenses.  Stock investing (or even bond investing) is an inadequate strategy for building wealth. It won't get you rich or make you wealthy, however much you wish it would. 

Even Warren Buffett, the world's most successful investor, knows this. His wealth has come not from being an individual investor but from being the principal of Berkshire Hathaway. Keep that thought in mind every time you hear his name quoted. 

Your home is one of the biggest investments you can make, try to buy a home at the top of your budget limit and then stay in the same home as long as you can. The single most important factor in avoiding the spending spiral that kills wealth is to stay in the house you have now. Nobody else that I know of has made this simple point. But I can tell you that it is true. 

The No. 1 strategy is acquiring equity in a start-up business. There are many ways to do this. The most commonly talked-about ways are downright foolish. But there are smart ways to do this, even if you are a novice to business. 

Investing in rental real estate is unique – it stands halfway between active income and passive income. Next to entrepreneurship, it provides the highest return you can get from any financial endeavor. 

The biggest mistake retirees make is giving up their active incomes. I know that this is exactly what you hope to do some day. But I'm warning you, it's a big mistake. 

If you are already retired, you are probably hoping you can replace that income with passive investment strategies. I'm here to tell you that they won't work. 

To keep your wealth for a lifetime, you need multiple streams of passive income. Your goal should be to build each stream of income to a level at which you can live on that and that alone. 


Do these statements make sense to you? If so, how are you doing? 

Retirement the time to find your passion

As you plan for retirement think about finding your passion

Planning for retirement is not just about finding the money. You will have time on your hands so is there something in your life that you love doing that you would do even if no one paid you? Figuring out what you love to do so much that you don't feel the need for money is a great way to tap into your true passion.

Think about it like this, when you get off work and are enjoying the weekend, what do you love ti do?The things you love are the things you're most passionate about. Even 15 minutes a day doing something you really love will make you happier and lead you to a more fulfilling life.

If you love music, talk to musicians and fans. If you love drawing or writing, talk to artists and writers. By talking to these people you'll find what you love most and find more ways to incorporate it into your life every day.


Having trouble then do some research. Research everything you can about your life's passion. This will not only help you become more educated about it, but it will also help you identify ways you can get out and enjoy it more.

Passion is the key

This month we celebrated Valentines day which is a day for lovers, but also a day for many singles to think about their lack of a partner and as we move toward the 29th this may be forefront in some peoples minds. Leap year is the time when lovers can reunite or when singles can find true love. As we think about this we have to think about passion. Passion for life is, in my mind, the most important aspect to consider at this time of the year.

Passion for the adventure of life can be seen in toddlers and infants. Every minute of every day there is a new experience to be tried--watch an infant learning to walk, or seeing a new item in the room. The smiles light up their faces as they get ready to explore, create and experience what the new will bring.

As we get older, we loose site of the joy we experienced as toddlers, we need to get it back. My generation is moving into a new cycle of life and perhaps we need to reach back and bring forward the joy of experiences we had when we were young. I talked to a friend the other day about why he was returning to work. He stated that when he first retired, he found himself sitting in front of the TV wasting away. He said that he had been told find your passion and explore this when you retire. His statement to me was that he had no passion. He liked all sorts of things, golf, travelling, reading, music, money, but he could find no passion in anything. So he decided to return to work so he could make more money and spend this money on the things he liked. I thought about what he said and it made some sense. However, when he was working he did appear to have a passion for his craft and build a very strong program because of his passion for his area.  Passion attracts others, as they want to experience the joy you feel.  Perhaps in time my friend will find his passion again. I hope so.

As we think about friends, lovers and family at this time of year, I suggest you consider what your passion is and how you can ignite it once more.

Some final thoughts on Passion and goals

When you live out your true passion in life you will also need to accomplish a few more things.  You must give your life to something, be free from pain, not focus on results, and not worry about survival issues.

When you give your life to something you immediately dedicate yourself to the passion.  This means you will  need to give as much time and energy possible to your passion.  The rest will follow naturally as you are dedicated and entirely given to your passion.

The pain and pleasure principle does not count when it comes to working toward a passion.  Your passion may give you pleasure as it makes you happy and you love to do it.  However, reaching your goals may be painful and frustrating.  You may cry at times and want to throw in the towel.  Success is never easy but you would very much rather work toward a passion than you would go to a job you hate every single day.  This passion is yours and you own it.  Feel the pain and make it satisfying in every way.  The pain will satisfy your soul which is much better in the long run because you will not have any regrets later on.

Never concentrate on results.  The universe is going to take care of the results.  Things might be slow at first and if all you are looking at is the results then you may never get there.  Focus on what you need to do and you will find the way to freedom, according to Tao.

Never worry about survival when you are working toward a passion.  This is the most important key to be successful with a passion.  When you worry or have fear you will create problems for yourself.  You need to have courage in your heart and your mind that you will be fine and you really will.  You have the power to control everything and to be positive.  Don’t worry.

Conclusions

A passion is something that you want to do and you were meant to do with your life.  Everyone has a passion and they can live a full life when they know exactly what their passion is and what they need to do.

Success is not measured by money.  Even the richest people are very unhappy with their lives.  In order to be happy you need to follow your passions and the riches and successes will follow along later.

There are many ways to look for and find your passion.  You can learn what your passion is by asking yourself many questions.  You might have the answer decorated all over your house and walls. 

If you have a true passion and you have obstacles stopping you from achieving living the dream then you must get past them and you can.  Anyone can be successful with a passion.  They can turn it into their own personal business easily if they want to.

The keys of successfully making your passion work believes that it will work for you and working extremely hard.  The harder you work the more successful you will be.  If you have a wait time and cannot get started right away you can do initial planning for your goals.

Remember, always set goals with stepping stones to get to them.  You will be able to see the progress you are making toward your goal and know how much longer it will take you.  Award your achievements as you meet your milestones and get closer to your goals.

You are a person who is worth living their passion.  You have the same capabilities as anyone else.  You deserve to be happy and you deserve to live out your passions.

Turning Passions and Goals into Reality Part Two

Make the Best of Your Resources

When you are making it happen then you need to make the best of your resources.  You might not have a lot of money and you need to find ways to take care of things like daycare and errands.  You can find friends and other supportive individuals to help you.  If you are short on supplies you might have to talk to friends and people to see where you can get a hold of more supplies. 

 The creativity you have learned in the earlier blogs will play into motion at this time.  You may not have money or resources you need.  You need to be creative about things you can do.  If you are a writer without a computer then you can go to the public library and use a free one.  Find resources that you can use to make your passions successful.

Sacrifice and Hard Work

In most cases when someone works toward a passion they are prepared to work hard and willing to sacrifice just about anything. 

When you first start off with your new job you might find that you are very poor to begin with.  You cannot expect to be a success overnight.  Things will take time but the importance is that you will be doing what you enjoy.  You will be required to work long hours and sacrifice family time and many other things.  Sacrifice is the most important thing you can do if you want to be successful.

There is no substitute for hard work if you want to reach your goals.  Only you can reach the goals you set for yourself and you will need to work very hard to get to where you want to be.  Embrace long hours, sweat and tears because they will be rewarding in the end.

Organize Your Life

Organize your life around your passion.  You have started a new job or passion that you want to be successful in.  Start living the successful day that you have always dreamed of.  For example, wake up early in the morning, brew coffee, read the paper, talk on your blog, and more.  Organize your life to be useful time that is healthy for you.  Plan your time with plenty of exercise and healthy decisions.  Be sure you are getting enough sleep also.  You will have to put in a lot of hours to be successful at first but you cannot lose sleep or you will have problems enjoying your passion.  Working toward a passion means you get to sleep too.  Proper organizing will allow you to be successful and more productive.

Visualize and Meditate

Visualizing is very important if you want to work toward your passion.  Meditation and visualization help you see where you are going with your passion.  You have an idea manifesting and you need to visualize it.  Meditation allows your ideas to manifest inside of you so you will make it happen.  You want to manifest your desires and you will be sure to make them happen.

Turning Passions and Goals into Reality

Turning your passions into reality requires you to do many things.  Now that you know how to find your passion and live your passion you need to make your passion really happen.  Here are things you can do to make it happen.

Believe

The most important thing to success believes that you will be successful.  You really can be successful but if you do not believe it then you shouldn’t even get started until you do.  Your abilities are in your mind and you have total control over your success.  It is not about impressing people.  You can believe and you don’t have to tell anyone.  Believe.  Relax and believe you will be very successful and one day you will be so excited to sit on the Oprah Winfrey show and talk about your passion and how you turned it into a reality.  Believe and feel empowered as you think about your endeavor and how you are going to be successful.

Attitude
Your attitude could make you or break you.  You need to maintain a complete positive attitude.  Be positive at all times.  Don’t let the little things get you down or upset you.  You are living your passion and every obstacle now is a learning experience.  Now you need to have a positive outlook on everything you do with your business and your passion. 

 When you have a good attitude it will help you become more successful with your business and your passion.  You need to have a positive outlook and believe.  When your attitude is positive and your outlook is positive things will begin to work in your favor more often than they ever have before.  It is really about the way you look at things and not how bad they really are.  You make things and a situation bad.  Your attitude is what will make it positive.

Hone Your Idea

If you are in a situation where you cannot make your passion a reality today then you will need to hone your intentions.  You can take your idea and make it better by chiseling away at the details.  Lay out the plan for your project or business endeavor and every detail you will need to consider.  When you are in a waiting period there is still plenty of things for you to do.  Don’t look at a waiting period as a sign you shouldn’t get started or as another way to procrastinate.

Build Momentum

The best way to build momentum when you are working toward your passion is to act on the ideas you have.  Act right away and don’t sit around for something to happen or come to you.  The same goes for a problem you need to fix.  You need to act on it.  The more responsive you are then you begin to build a momentum that is hard to break.  Your laziness will go away and you will do well with being more productive.