I thought this short clip by Napoleon Hill was well worth sharing with you. I’ve been giving a lot of thought to my definition of being Wealthy and being rich, as I draft and research my forth coming book. Its amazing the more I research, the more I learn.
Napoleon Hill is truly a master and the leading light in mindset, attitude and illustrating that there is only ONE attribute that separates those that achieve great things, become very wealthy and it is PERSISTENCE. Perhaps this could be defined as the greatest of riches …
“Persistence is to the character of man,
as carbon is to steel.”
As a carry on from my last post, be persistent, never, NEVER, NEVER give up!
Mindset Joy – Trumping up your Dreams
Make a plan to get there.
Ok let’s assume you have made your visions a lot closer to reality by investing the time to really detail and capture them, detail every aspect, let your imagination go wild, what colour is the stitching on the leather seats in your dream car? What is the exact address of the hotel you will stay in on your overseas vacation? Which countries will you visit? In which order? Will you travel by train or bus? What clothes will you have on? Are you wearing a hat?
It’s incredibly important you get this detailed. Your mind can really ‘see’ your vision when you start to give it the details. Once your mind can see what you have in ‘mind’, boy will it start bringing you every opportunity to take steps towards achieving the vision.
So now, let’s break down each goal into a strategic plan. By this I mean an ‘action’ list, not a ‘to do’ list. People tend to put ‘projects’ on their ‘To Do” list and then lose heart, start to procrastinate and not move forward. By asking yourself, “Ok, what is my next action” you can break down each goal into a strategic plan, a step by step ‘action’ plan, so you will always know what your next step is.
Now, it’s important to get moving, start to get momentum and keep it up, focus on 2 goals at a time and do what it takes to achieve them, just get going and keep going.
Setting yourself a target is like setting the course of your ship, you have a clear course to follow, a clear plan of action, so staying focused it your next big task. Whenever I feel like I’m losing focus or starting to waiver, I come back and gently ask myself “What should I be thinking about right now?”. It is a fantastic question Donald Trump says he uses to refocus, I tried it out and it works like magic.
Sure, there are always going to be challenges, we’re all human, but if we focus on the ‘solution’ to the challenge and not the challenge itself, we have won half the battle. We are like tempered steel, we become stronger having gone through the fire. When we take every opportunity to learn, when we are open to new ideas and ways of thinking, different perspectives and energies, we become so much more enlightened, so much more attractive to those who are able to help us move forward with our dreams. I feel very humbled to be surrounded by wonderful people who empower and help me every day to go for my dreams and I’m able to do the same for them. It’s a bit like that old Kevin Costner movie Field of Dreams where he is constantly told “If you build it, they will come”, and they do.
Be Passionate, be lucky, the harder you work on your vision, the luckier you will get, see yourself as victorious, know you are able to manage any challenge with your victorious attitude and… in the words of Donald Trump …
“Never, never, NEVER GIVE UP, Only losers quit., WINNERS KEEP ON GOING, NEVER GIVE UP”
Successful Investing in Self and Wealth
Joy
Mindset Joy – Trumping up your Dreams… Step 1
Think Big & Kick Ass
I was reminded this morning of one of my favourite quotes from Donald Trump…
“I like thinking big. If you’re going to be thinking anything, you might as well think big.”…
So then I got to ‘thinking’ what does that really mean?
It’s so easy to just read a motivational or inspirational quote, we seem to be bombarded with them daily and think ‘yeah that’s cool’ or ‘WOW’, I really feel that, get it or wistfully imagine it briefly, before dismissing the notion, as fine for them but couldn’t ever happen to me, believing it has no relevance to our own actual lives. It’s almost as if we treat them as another form of fleeting entertainment.
But you know what?
If we really think about what others have said, trying to inspire and motivate us to find our dreams, take it to heart and act on their wisdom, we really can achieve phenomenal dreams… in 4 simple steps… and I mean, it really is simple but perhaps not always easy. So let’s take it one step at a time over the next few days.
Step One – Dare to DREAM BIG & capture them…
I guess it may be human nature but sometimes we allow self-doubt and setbacks to rob us of our dreams. Maybe we believe we don’t deserve to have the amazing partners, friends and lifestyles we see others living and secretly desire, or even worse … maybe we are allowing ourselves or others to sabotage our dreams. But why?
So, let’s get clear, its OUR ship, it’s OUR life and they’re OUR dreams!
How can we give our best to our families and contribute to a better world, if we are not truly empowering ourselves to reach our greatest potential and live our OWN dreams? Are we being authentic?
I would encourage you to start a spiral bound Goal Setting journal, and have 7 sections each titled;
- Health
- Wealth
- Relationships
- Spirituality
- Business/Career
- Giving Back/Contributions
- Experiences
Spend 10-15 minutes each day on capturing your dreams, perhaps 1 section at a time or across each, which ever feels comfortable for you. This could and probably will take quite some time but your dream life depends on you investing that time. Be incredibly specific, imagine every detail, how will you and your family , feel with the keys to your new your dream home, what will it look like, where is it located, what colour is the kitchen, what shape is the pool, do the same for your overseas holiday, all the qualities you’re looking for in a partner, get this specific for each item, document them all in your journal. Carry your journal with you everywhere.
Now you have your vision captured in words, set about capturing it in pictures, creating a vision board to have on your fridge, in your office, as your screen saver. Really what I’m saying here folks is immerse your self in your dreams, have them represented everywhere you are and everywhere you look.
The more intensely specific and emotionally attached you become to your dreams, the more powerfully you are compelled to do what it takes to realise them… then the Law of Attraction kicks in and suddenly you’ll find yourself surrounded by the perfect people and circumstances to propel you forward.
Just a word of caution… stay away from Dreamstealers! they are everywhere and may be some of your closest loved ones and friends. They will pour cold water on your dreams, rip away at your confidence and strip you of any hope of fulfilling YOUR dreams. They may convince themselves they are protecting you from disappointment but that’s not really the case, it’s because they have given up on theirs, they’re protecting themselves and are scared if you reach yours, they will look like losers.
Please get armour plated and only share your dreams with those that will support, encourage, empower and help you reach them.
It’s all possible… I trust you will have fun capturing your dreams on paper, I’ll post step 2 in a few days to show you the next steps towards achieving your dream life.
Successful Investing in Self and Wealth
Joy
More Cash & Equity from 1 simple Equation
Hi Guys,
Chances are that your mortgage payments are your single largest expense in your Property Investment business. Managing the interest rates on your loans is the single most important thing any investor can do. Too often we concentrate on the other end of the equation and look to increase rent when other expenses rise and our profits start to wane.
By doing an audit of all of our expenses and evaluating whether they are cost-effective or even necessary, we can further streamline profit. While it’s true you cannot cost cut your way to wealth, being a proactive manager in your Property Investing business portfolio is crucial. Going through a quoting process from all you providers can flush out some great savings, insurance cover and utilities especially.
As we are facing the inevitable interest rate rises that follow periods of historically low rates, I felt it was timely to share this tip to help you evaluate your choices in a quick and easy manner. Often as investors we just take a stab in the dark and choose an interest rate that looks OK but if you were to run through the following calculation you can quickly identify which rate/term combination is the most cost-effective and also be aware of what your margin is to hedge against further increases in the future. Remember that the banks control the fixed interest rates and the Reserve Bank controls the floating rate. Bank Managers are usually not in a position to negotiate the actual interest rate but can negotiate set up fee’s and charges. Getting these minimised is very savvy investing and can be equivalent to a substantially lower interest rate over the first year.
I thought I would share this interesting paragraph from a mortgage brokers newsletter.
BREAK EVEN INTEREST RATE CALCULATIONS
A simple calculation you can use is called the break even equation. . . What is this?
It is a calculation of a set of current interest rates, for example, if the 1 year rate is 5.50% and the 2 year rate is 6.25%, we can use this to imply a break even rate in 1 years time of 7.00%.
In other words, if we choose to fix for 1 year @ 5.50%, and in one years time we re-fix at a rate less than 7.00%, we will have made a better decision than fixing for 2 years at 6.25%, and vice versa.
Because of the effect of compounding, it is not exactly 7.00%, but it is very close and the rough rule of thumb goes like this; 2 years at the 2 year rate = 2 x 6.25% = 12.50% in total.
Therefore if we fix for 5.50% for one year and subtract the 5.50% from the 12.50%, it leaves us with a rate of 7.00% for the remaining year, if in one year’s time the one year rate is under this we are better off.
This will maximise profit, increase your cashflow, decrease your expenses, raise your yield and therefore the value of your property. A rental property is always valued on its return, this is called a cap rate valuation.
The higher the yield or profit you get from your property the higher the market value of your investment. So you get cash in your pocket and increased equity in your portfolio… good ‘lil exercise to undertake isn’t it.
Might pay to do your sums.
Happy Investing in Self & Wealth
Joy xx
LEARNING is …
EARNING with a ‘Learners’ plate
Hello Friends,
I think from time to time we have all fallen into the trap of seeing a colleague or friend enjoying success investing in Real Estate and find ourselves thinking we can never do what ‘they’ are doing or get the results ‘they’ are getting. we tell ourselves we are not smart enough or we’re not old enough, we’re too old, we’re not experienced enough, rich enough or ‘anything’ else enough.
Faced with the seemingly effortless success of others, we forget that we all go through a process of learning. We are not born knowing how to do these property deals, it’s a learned skill just like driving or swimming. Perhaps the more curious among us might ask ourselves “What makes them different?”… Do they do different things or… do things differently?”
I am constantly amazed at the number of people I meet who tell me they are Real Estate investors and then proceed to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on any old house in suburbia they ‘think’ are great investments. Only to lose money hand over fist, for the sake of investing in their real estate education first, so they ‘know‘ which properties are great investments, how to choose appropriate locations, how to negotiate a great price or exceptional terms, how to add value, how to maximise rents, manage expenses and how to grow balanced portfolios that mitigate risk and create wealth.
So, how do some investors learn to see the money making opportunities others miss and avoid the properties guaranteed to lose them big chunks of money? Well, the answer to that question is the same answer as my #1 tip that is guaranteed to save you hundreds of thousands of dollars …
They get EDUCATED and they surround themselves with resources. You see the riskiest element of any deal is the investor entering the deal. This is why the banks look very carefully at a potential borrowers character and experience, they know the investor is the risk. So what can you do to increase your knowledge? Here a few ways, mostly very inexpensive or even free …
- Invest in or borrow Real Estate books and read avidly, “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” is a great first book
- Buy cd & dvd training courses, eBay & Trademe are great places to buy them inexpensively
- Choose to invest your time, an evening or an entire weekend attending real estate education seminars
- Join a real estate mentoring or coaching programme to learn from experts in their fields
- Search for information on the internet
- Join your local real estate investors associations and clubs
- Seek out networks of investors in your area
- Subscribe to real estate investor magazines, websites, forums and blogs.
Successful real estate investors immerse themselves in learning from those that have already succeeded in their field and start to surround themselves with like minded people.
Then they notice things beginning to change for them, they find they can see profit in deals other pass over and others notice changes too. A mindset shift occurs and these people become possibility thinkers, opportunity thinkers and profit makers. Learning to think differently, costs nothing but you must be willing to learn, to train your mind to think like master investors. To do what it takes and to keep going until… until you get to your goals.
By investing in your education before you start investing in real estate, you learn which strategies are most effective in any economic cycle. Educated investors use these uncertain economic times to negotiate deals with no competition, the uneducated investors are facing mortgagee sales or are completely inactive and fearful. It is much easier to negotiate great discounts to market value and terms to suit themselves due to lack of other investors willing to invest in the market. They also know that with less investors in the market, the supply of properties available to rent is less, leading to a shortage of rental properties and rents inevitably rise as supply and demand kicks in.
Educated investors understand that you make your money when you buy the property. They have done their analysis based on sound data and figures and know how to add value, increase rental returns and attract great tenants who want to stay in their houses for longer. In short they can turn a very average deal into a great deal and convert an under valued property in a golden goose, do you know how to do this?
If you truthfully answered ‘No’, then please take my advice and invest your time and your money in getting educated before it too late and you find yourself on the wrong end of loosing a lot of money when a deals turns to custard.
Investing in education is the best investment you can ever make. ..
Successful Investing in Self and Wealth
Joy
But wait, there's more...
Hello again my friend,
As part of my life journey I have faced many ups and downs in our business life, I’ve experienced the giddy heights of quick and meteoric success in business. Building up a company worth many millions of dollars and then an equally disastrous loss of fortune due the Asian Financial crisis of the late 90′s. This saw us losing large sums of money, in fact all of it bar a few dollars, many properties and most devastatingly, our family home. It truly was the most challenging time our family had ever faced.
The greatest toll it took on me was emotionally. It was extremely difficult for me to see this ‘failure’ for what it was; a set of external circumstances beyond our control. For me I felt like a personal failure, it was my fault and I let this keep me down for many years. I buried my natural creative, entrepreneurial nature and got busy focusing on our 3 very young children. I allowed my feelings of shame and humiliation to rob me of many years and almost every shred of confidence I had.
Today I was privileged to attend an event in Wellington called “Women and Wealth” where the keynote speaker was Suzanne Paul, a public figure in New Zealand, founder and inventor of the ‘Natural Glow’ cosmetic empire. Due to new business venture failing, Suzanne has also experienced a very public loss of everything, including her self esteem and confidence. I have always admired her courage in sharing her story in her book and via interviews and speaking engagements. Like a lot of women, I have followed her story, been inspired by her sheer guts and determination to pick herself up, dust herself off and start over. Having slowly done the same myself firmly believing the mantra… “But wait, there’s more”
Most great people have attained their greatest success just one step beyond their greatest failure. - Napoleon Hill
This quote from Napoleon Hill has given me strength and encouragement each day since I found it. If I’m experiencing any defeats in my day, I will open my iPhone and flick up this quote to inspire and motivate me to just keep going, put one foot in front of the other and move towards my goals.
If you find yourself in the same position, here’s a few tips to help you find your confidence again…
Forgive Yourself
Find a way to make peace with your past defeats, analyse ‘why’ this happened, find out all the outside influences that lead to the circumstances of your failure, examine your own decisions, identify what you could have done differently, learn from this lesson. By truly understanding what happened analytically, you can be confident of not making the same decisions again that lead you there. Now move on… and realign your focus and start on your new future.
Make a Plan for your New Future
Write your goals, dreams and aspirations out in a notebook, prioritise them and make an action plan of small steps you can take each day to reach these goals. If this is a new experience for you, start with small easily achievable goals. The fact that you are working towards them and achieving gives you confidence. each small achievement give you more confidence to tackle bigger dreams. Be Persistant.. Keep going until…
Change your Energy & Environment
Start to turn your energy around to a positive resonance and surround yourself with positive like minded people. Get out of your house and your comfort zone and find people who are going where you want to be. Reprogramme yourself. ’Fake it til you make it” or acting ‘as if’ you are enthusiastic, energised and motivated each day will soon trick your brain into actually being & feeling this way. When you are surrounded by happy motivated people you can not help but feel the same way. And curiously they will be drawn to your positive and motivated energy, giving you perpetual support and encouragement.
Plan for and enjoy a holistic Life
Remember although we are primarily addressing business success from failure, leading a life balanced with good health, a loving family environment, caring and supportive friends, charity, achievement and wealth is a successful life indeed.
If you have any questions that you want answered about these areas then please comment below .
Successful Investing in Health and Wealth
Joy xx
Mindset Joy – Evaluating Your Relationships
Hello my friends,
I came across a Jim Rohn piece today and I found it a very timely reminder about being mindful of who we spend our time with and the very powerful influences they have on us… often very subtly, we will find ourselves way off our chosen path, because of the people we choose to spend our time with. I’m so grateful to be surrounded by the best possible people! who are motivated, energised, positive, knowledgeable and supportive… YOU know who you are 
So here is Part 1 of Jim Rohn’s piece to read, enjoy…
Evaluating Your Relationships (Part 1) By Jim Rohn
If you were to evaluate the major influences in your life that have shaped the kind of person you are, this has to be high on the list: the people and thoughts you choose to allow into your life. Mr Shoff gave me a very important warning in those early days that I would like to share with you. He said ” Never under estimate the power of influence”. Indeed, the influence of those around us is so powerful! Many times we don’t even realise we’re being strongly affected because influences generally develop over an extended period of time.
Peer pressure is an especially powerful force because it is subtle. If you’re around people who spend all they make, chances are excellent you’ll spend all you make. If you are around people who go to ball games more than concerts, chances are excellent you’ll do the same thing. If you are around people who don’t read, chances are excellent you won’t read. People can be nudging us off course a little at a time until finally we ask ourselves “How did I get here?” Those subtle influences need to be studied carefully if we really ewant our lives to turn out the way we’ve planned.
With regard to this important point, let me give you 3 key questions to ask yourself. They may help you to make better analysis of your current associations.
Here is the first question: “Who am I around?” Make a mental note of the people with whom you most often associate. You’ve got to evaluate everybody who is able to influence you in any way.
The second questions is” “What are these associations doing for me?”That’s a major question to ask. What have they got me doing? What have they got me listening too? What have they got me reading? Where have they got me going? What do they have me thinking? How have they got me talking? How have they got me feeling? What have they got me saying? You’ve got to make a serious study of how others are influencing you, both negatively and positively.
Here’s the final question: “Is that okay?” Maybe everyone you associate with has been a positive, energising influence. Then again, maybe there are some bad apples in the bunch. All I’m suggesting here is that you take a close and objective look. Everything is worth a second look, especially the power of influence. Both will take you somewhere, but only one will take you in the direction you need to go.
It’s easy to just dismiss the things that influence our lives. One man say’s, “I live here, but I don’t think it matters. I’m around these people but I don’t think it hurts,” I would take another look, Remember, everything matters.Sure, some things matter more than others, but everything amounts to something. You’ve got to keep checking whether your associations are tipping the scales toward the positive or towards the negative. Ignorance is never the best policy. Finding out is the best policy.
Perhaps, you’ve heard the story of the little bird. He has his wing over his eyes and he was crying. The owl said tot he bird, “You are crying.” “Yes,” said the little bird, and he pulled his wing away from his eye. “Oh I see” said the owl. “You’re crying because the big bird pecked out your eye” And the little bird said, “No, I’m not crying because the big bird pecked out my eye, I;m crying because I let him”
It’s easy to let influence shape our lives, to let associations, determine our direction, to let pressure overwhelm us, and to let tides take us. the big question is, are we letting ourselves become what we wish to become?
So how about doing what Jim suggests, spend a quiet half hour asking yourself three questions. Firstly, “Who am I around?”, then “What are these associations doing for me? and finally the most important one; “Is that okay?”
Successful Investing in Self & Wealth
Joy
Joy Is… Looking for my Golden Slippers – my V, P and A.
Last week I was fortunate enough to hear former Mayor of Wellington, entrepreneur & businessman Mark Blumsky speaking on what he feels are the essential trilogy of every successful business – V, P & A .
V = Vision, what is it you want to achieve?
P = what’s your unique POINT of Difference?
A = Attitude – what’s the feel or culture of your business?
Telling the story of the plumber he met in his shoe shop one day, this plumber had gone from an employee to owning his own business with 6 guys working for him in less than a year during the recession that followed the stock market crash of the late eighties.
Curious about how he could be building a successful business so quickly. This plumber had a point of difference. And … it had nothing to do with plumbing. It had everything to do with … slippers!
You see this guy was clever enough to know that women do not like tradesmen tramping through their houses in dirty boots. So all his guys arrived on the doorstep with 3 things – tool bag, vacuum cleaner & slippers. And do you think, the ladies of house, loved that… you betcha and they spread the word very quickly.
I have a strong vision of the brand I wish to create and I also know the culture I wish to create, one of fun, quality, integrity, achievement and empowerment.
So that leaves me in a conundrum… what is my point of difference? what colour are my slippers? what is the difference, between me and everyone else, as yet I have absolutely no clue. I’m at the very beginning of my property coaching & speaking career. I do by nature enjoy being a little different from the pack and I’m not looking for anything gimmicky… just a discernible unique, selling point. Being female is one point of difference, but not a unique one, what I’m searching for is something truly unique that IS totally and utterly me. It doesn’t have to have anything at all to do with property… any suggestions cyber friends?
Property Joy…Getting started? Make like a running shoe and …
I spent Friday in Wellington,so decided to wander up to an investing seminar late in the afternoon to see what was happening and catch up with some friends. I found property people in every facet of investing and at all stages in their journey. The overall feeling I got while observing from the back of the room was an amazing optimism they all shared about the market in general and for investing in property. I was looking forward to meeting with some new faces at the end of the day. As I spoke to people I decided to ask each on them what they would be doing when they left, over the weekend or on Monday. Curiously not one of over a dozen people I spent time with said they would be ringing agents, looking at houses or investing in their education… how on earth will they get started or get their results if the aren’t prepared to do what it takes?
You see in reality Property is NOT the goal, sure, having 50 properties or $100,000 in cash flow may be one of your goals, but Property is only the vehicle that provides the wealth to get you there. One of my all time favourite quotes is from Walt Disney, he often said;
“Disneyland is a work of love. We didn’t go into Disneyland just with the idea of making money.
We make money in other businesses, so we can do this”
Be VERY clear about why you are growing your wealth. It’s about the “WHY”… I used to be challenged by this, what is my ‘why’?, until I realised why actually means ‘legacy’… “What do I want to leave behind?”
My tips to success are:
- DEFINE YOUR GOAL –
- MAKE A PLAN -
- STAY FOCUSED-
- DO WHAT IT TAKES-
-KEEP GOING UNTIL…..
“The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.”
Walt Disney
Successful Investing in Self & Wealth
Joy
Mindset Joy… Danger is: A Woman Juggling
Hello Friend,
Sometimes I have no clue what I’m going to write about, like now… then, something will catch my attention and get me thinking, today I had planned a very productive day, scheduled to within an inch of its life by 10.30, than plan had been ditched. I’ve been feeling quite stressed lately with many balls in the air and today I started to learn to juggle.
While talking with my dear friend Dave the other day, we were chatting about how I can leverage my time more effectively to and he told me “the only way to learn to juggling, is by letting the balls drop”. I’ve let that rattle around in my head for a bit.
Slowly it dawned on me , honestly, I think I suffer from some kind of crazy superwoman complex. I feel driven to explore most of the never-ending stream of idea’s that pop into my head for at least long enough to decide if they have real merit or not. Even keeping up with that can be exhausting. If you’re familiar with Wealth Dynamics, entrepreneur profiling to find their natural flow to wealth, I am a Creator/Star, a big picture thinker, who thrives building innovative products & influential brands (think Branson, Oprah etc) … sounds like an excellent natural skill set really, but and there is a BIG but!
For those that know me well, this of course will come as no surprise, I am always pretty thinly stretched with a myriad of different projects on the go at any one time… this, of course, I love but the danger is, it causes me so much stress,enough to have me on blood pressure pills. How do I manage my projects, my family life, my ‘me’ time, my health, my spirituality, I often feel overwhelmed and under resourced. So, after spending an hour this morning listening to a ‘life coach’ completely fail to inspire me or offer me any solutions on getting my business life prioritised and organised. I cancelled all my plans and decided to spend the day in quiet contemplation, daydreaming even, formulating the bones of a plan to manage my projects, aspirations and ambitions much more effectively. Being a Mum teaches you wonderful skills but often leaves little ‘thinking’ time.
So I’ve taken to Elance, posting a job for a Virtual PA… to help find the people I need to get all these projects completed and out into the market place, to project manage my ‘projects’… I have exhaled, let out a very long sigh and had a HUGE weight lifted off my shoulders. It feels very, very good.
I have high expectations that this will be the beginning of some wicked synergy, a new phase of productive & profitable business life … leaving me less burdened and much lighter in spirit for my family, they certainly deserve it, cos they’re just awesome!
I’m guessing you guys are busy winding up your busy day and perhaps preparing for the day ahead, I encourage you to ‘plan’ time for your family the investment is the best you can ever make.
Successful Investing in Self and Wealth
Joy
