How to Make New Year Resolutions Work
For many years, I made New Year’s Resolutions and failed miserably. I struggled with making the same mistake every year until I read the shocking statistics about the failure rate for New Year’s resolutions. About 91 percent of Americans who make resolutions fail to complete them. In another study, 23% of people quit their resolution by the end of the first week, and 43% quit by the end of January. I realized that by making New Year’s resolutions like most Americans, I was doomed to fail to accomplish my dreams. After careful study, reflection on the scriptures, and listening to motivational and inspirational speakers, I realized I was trying to make the best of each year the wrong way. After careful reflection, study, taking action, and achieving phenomenal success in my New Year resolutions, I learned that there are principles that work for anyone regardless of race, gender, or religious beliefs. One of the lessons I learned about success in making New Year resolutions is from a tiny creature whom I have made my alter ego- the ant. In the book of Proverbs in the Holy Scripture, the author asks a lazy person to find inspiration from the life of an ant, a tiny creature, by all comparisons to other creatures God created. Why? The ant is a small creature that has no leader to guide it. Yet the ant, in collaboration with other ants, labors to gather food and have enough food to last throughout winter. The moral of this lesson about the ant’s life is this: you don’t need to do many things in 2024 to have a successful year. It is the simple disciplines that you do minute by minute, hour by hour, day to day, week to week, and month to month that accumulate to having a great year. The bottom line is that discipline is vital for accomplishing New Year resolutions. Here is an excellent quote about discipline that you need to know. Discipline is just doing the same thing the right way whether anyone’s watching or not- Michael J Fox. In addition to having discipline, here are a few things you must understand to achieve your resolutions It’s hard to achieve your New Year’s resolutions. But it’s possible to make them come true. At the beginning of each project, there will be obstacles to overcome, but with persistence and determination, you can overcome every hindrance and accomplish your resolutions. Know your values. Values are the beliefs that guide our actions and decisions in life. They tell us what is important and meaningful to you. Finding out what matters to you to accomplish your goals would be best. Here is another way to define your values: What would you do if you were pressured about your relationship, finances, and career? The choice you make under pressure reflects what is important. Making this self-discovery about yourself will enable you to succeed at your New Year resolutions. There are some tools available to help you identify and clarify your values. The Portrait Values Questionnaire (PVQ) is a helpful tool to assist you in understanding your values. Understand the difference between dreams and goals. To accomplish your New Year’s resolutions, you must understand that making resolutions is like having a dream to achieve a project. Dreams are like having a wish in the sense that they are vague. For your dreams come true, you must plan and work to make them a reality. The key to accomplishing resolution is not just to make them but to make plans to turn your dreams into reality. Make a plan to work on your goals. You now know what you want to achieve. You have made resolutions and set goals that reflect your values. It’s time to work on making your resolutions stick. How do you accomplish your goals? Make achieving your goals your priority. Focus on spending 80% of your time on achieving your goals. Work on your priorities daily and weekly and track your progress in achieving your dream. What If you find you need to make more progress with your goals? Don’t be too hard on yourself. You can still achieve your objectives. The mistake you can create in attaining goals is underestimating the time and effort required to accomplish them. You will be surprised to know you accomplished your goals for a year if you allocated adequate time and resources. The rule is never to underestimate what you can achieve in a year and overestimate what you can accomplish in a day. Learn to Fail Forward. It would be best to learn that failing is part of success. Why? Because when you start to do any task, you will likely do it poorly. To become competent in a field, you must first learn to practice poorly. Remember this quote: “Every master was first a disaster.” And you will never allow mistakes or the fear of failure to stop you next time you fail at accomplishing a goal. Remember, you will fail at first when you set out to work on your goals, but if you learn from your mistakes and move on, you have a better chance of accomplishing your goals. Never give up! Have courage. You must have the courage to make resolutions and stick with them until you achieve them. Courage is a critical factor in turning your dreams into reality. The reason 9% achieve their resolutions while the other 91% of Americans fail is not allowing their fear of failure to stop them from making them. To act even when you are afraid is courage. It would be best if you dared to make your New Year’s resolutions come true. Here are a few quotes that will inspire and motivate you to develop courage: All our dreams can come true if we dare to pursue them– Walt Disney. We must have the courage to bet on our ideas, to take the calculated risk, and to act. Everyday living requires courage
The Beginner’s Guide To Choosing a Side Hustle
Choosing a side hustle has become popular over the last two years. Why? Because the recent global pandemic was a wake-up call to pursue financial independence. And having a side gig is a low-risk, highly profitable way to build wealth. There are many side gig opportunities available that you can start part-time. For the beginner investor…the main questions I hear about choosing a side hustle are What is the most profitable side hustle? How do I know I am choosing the right side gig? How do I make my first sale and then continue making sales? How much commitment in time and money do I have to put into my side hustle? Know the type of business choosing a side hustle If you are starting a business and want to know what side gig to start… you must understand that there are three business categories: services or consultancy, retailing, and manufacturing. Starting a service or consultancy business requires a small start-up cost and expertise. The service business models can be operated from home or remotely. Done correctly, you can grow a service business to generate a six-figure side hustle. A few service businesses include dog grooming, Uber, Airbnb, bookkeeping, virtual assistance services, resume writing, and cleaning services. A retailing business involves the buying and selling of goods for a profit. Starting a retail business requires a more significant amount of money for the start-up. You can either have a physical shop front or do every transaction online. One of the keys to a successful retail business is an efficient delivery process to your customers. Examples of retail businesses include dropshipping, amazon e-commerce business, dress shops, and selling farm produce. A manufacturing business is the most capital-intensive of the business models. It takes more time to build a manufacturing business. You can manufacture hard or soft goods. Tangible things like a widget and food products are hard goods. Intellectual property products (Apps, software, music, and e-courses are soft goods). You can check out some of the best side hustles compiled by Grant Sabatier for millennial money. You have to know the side gig cold. The secret to having a successful side hustle is that you must know the business. What does knowing your business mean? You must know how the business makes its first sale…that is how it acquires its first customer. This is the first secret of every business. In other words, how do I start generating customers without going broke developing them? I wish I had known this business secret before I started my first business that ended up in failure. Bestselling author Mark Ford in his program, The Seven Years to Seven Figures Systems says “the first sale is paramount. Because you must know if the business is viable and can make sales.” Mark Ford, who has a track record of growing several multimillion-dollar businesses from scratch, says you must spend most of your time making the first sales and acquiring the first customer. He advises that it’s time to rethink the business if you find you are not making sales with your effort. The Backend The second thing you need to understand is how to turn your side gig customers into multiple buyers. Turning a business’ customers into multiple buyers is called the ‘backend.’ Let me explain the back end. For example, you may decide that choosing a side hustle selling fashion books is your best bet. Your potential customers may also be interested in buying fashion accessories. The process of turning your potential customer into purchasing fashion accessories and, in particular, more expensive products is your back end. Successful backend sales mean you will likely have higher margins and a higher lifetime value for each customer. In summary, starting a side hustle may be the most critical wealth-building decision you’ll ever make. Before you choose your side gig, you must know the kinds of businesses available. Then make a decision and choose the right one for you. You need to understand the core of the business you want to start. This means you must understand the insider secrets of your side hustle…that make it profitable. In other words, you must know these two things about the business…You understand how the business brings in its first customer and generates profits from that customer, by backend sales. If you know these two things – getting your first customer and keeping them as buyers in your business, you can start any business and make your side gig a low-risk and highly profitable business.
How To Develop an Abundance Mindset
How do you develop an abundance mindset when all you hear is economic recession, inflation, and war? Do you think things are going to get worse and not better? Do you think buying a house, getting out of debt, or paying for your children’s college tuition is virtually impossible? If any of these questions have bothered you in the last few days like they have bothered me… you are dealing with thoughts of scarcity instead of thoughts of abundance. I have thought about what it takes to have an abundance mindset. In addition, I have read many articles on abundance and had intense debates with friends, colleagues, and my family. I think having an abundance mindset is vital to building wealth. To understand what having an abundance mentality means, we must define what it means to have an abundance mindset. Here are some powerful thoughts about abundance: “The idea in which a person believes that there are more than enough resources and successes to share with others” – Steven Covey, bestselling author of the 7 Habits of Highly effective people “The key to abundance is meeting limited circumstances with unlimited thoughts.” – Marianne Williamson. “Expect your every need to be met. Expect the answer to every problem, expect abundance on every level”. – Eileen Caddy “The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller.” Proverbs 11:24 ( The Message Bible) You Must Believe There is No Scarcity I admit that developing a mindset of abundance instead of scarcity is challenging but certainly not impossible to accomplish. Why? Because it is only when you hold a firm, unshakable belief that there are more than enough resources for everyone that you can get rich. Unfortunately, the mainstream media, including newspapers, television, and social media, tell you the opposite view: that the world is falling apart, there will soon be a shortage of food and gas and social security will be bankrupt by the time you retire. Instead of binging on the unending flood of news about scarcity, why don’t you choose to have an abundance mindset. Here’s how. Develop Your Most Valuable Asset: Your Mind How do you develop your mind? By educating yourself and developing financially valued skills that translate into prosperity for your family. Abundance Is About Giving There is a raging debate about wealth inequality in the United States and worldwide. This has created a division in the political parties and has affected the well-being of families and low-income households. Some believe that the way to eliminate poverty is to tax the rich and give more benefits to low-income families. During the pandemic, this idea of giving more money to the less privileged was tried with disastrous results. The report on wealth inequality during the pandemic showed that the global millionaires club had the most significant expansion of their wealth in the first year of the pandemic. Why the wealth disparity between millionaires and the rest of us? The answer is that individuals who have financial abundance come from giving or sowing. These individuals invest their money into assets that generate more income. I want you to think about this for a second… Why are Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Warren Buffett wealthy? They invested their ideas and resources in companies that provide valuable products and services (Tesla, Microsoft, Coca-Cola, State Farms, Bank of America). The active word for investing is giving. You too can, on a personal level, start a small business in your spare time, invest in affordable housing, start a coaching or consulting company and reap financial abundance when they become profitable. The Universe Was Designed For You To Live Abundantly One of my affirmations is that I am blessed and highly favored. Why? Anytime I think about my life, I am grateful for being alive. There is a saying which goes, “When there is life, there is hope.” As a scientist, I know I survived and won the race against over 250 million sperm cells to fertilize my mum’s egg. After all, I survived nine months of pregnancy, and I am alive. Remember that the essential elements for living – air, water, and sound health are free. They give you abundant life to do the things you need to prosper. Just like you have resources to live abundantly, your mind is the most abundant untapped resource you have to build wealth and live your dream. Money Is The Product Of Tapping Into The Energy Of Abundance Remember, you do not make money; you earn cash. The easiest way to earn money is to sell a product or service you have in exchange for cash. Robert Collier said, “All riches have their origin in mind. Wealth is in ideas – not money.” To become wealthy and live a life of abundance, you must tune your mind to see more unlimited opportunities. For example, when facing a financial challenge, don’t say, “I can’t afford it”; instead ask yourself – “How can I afford it?” Remember that money is the only way to measure the value you offer in the marketplace. The more valuable the product or service you have to provide to your customer, the higher income you can earn. To have financial abundance, you develop the habit of thinking up great ideas for a valuable product that will allow you to prosper and become wealthy. Final Thoughts Finally, I believe developing an abundance mindset is the key to building wealth and guaranteeing that you stay wealthy. The journey to living a life of financial prosperity begins with developing your most important asset – your mind. In addition to giving more of your talents and resources to humanity and living your life with the knowledge that you live in an abundant world. Here are a few related articles you might find useful: Why You Need a Mindset Change as a Beginner Investor What You Should Know About Building Wealth Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
How To Start A Side Hustle When You Have a Full-Time Job
How To Start A Side Hustle When You Have A Full Time Job Starting a side hustle is one of the fastest ways to build wealth. If you are thinking of starting a side hustle, you are definitely amongst the individuals who support the backbone of the US economy. A recent small business report published by JPMorgan Chase concluded small businesses are an anchor of the US economy. Small businesses make up 99.9 percent of all businesses in the US. The majority of small businesses start as side hustles to make money. Most side hustles were started by individuals who wanted to supplement their incomes during the recent pandemic. The most significant mistake aspiring business owners make is quitting their full-time jobs to start their businesses. I would not advise anyone to quit their full-time job…unless you hate your job or staying at your present workplace negatively affects your mental health and wellbeing. Why do I suggest holding on to your full-time job? Because you are likely to face setbacks at the start-up phase of your business. Semrush, a leading SEO company, published an article on small businesses that showed that cash flow was the biggest challenge business owners faced. In addition, 39% of business owners used cash, and another 20% had to tap into their 401(k). You can imagine what it feels like if you quit your job to start a business, the odds of success is 10%…and you still have to pay your bills at the end of each month. You would agree it’s not a bright idea. Instead of quitting your full-time job, I recommend starting a side gig in your spare time. What do you need to start a side gig in your spare time? … you must have the desire to break the chains of being stuck in the rat race of a 9-5 job. … you need to set aside between 10-20 hours of your spare time weekly. If you make excuses that you cannot find time… how about cutting down on watching TV? According to a report by US News, the average American spent over 3 hours per day watching TV, and over 28 hours per week. The moral of this advice is you can find time to build your business by cutting down on your leisure time. … you need to start a business you know about. Don’t waste your time buying into every “business opportunity “ business because of clever marketing pitches from sales reps. Instead, spend time researching the kinds of businesses that interest you and learning how the business works. In his book Seven Years to Seven Figures, The fast-track plan to becoming a millionaire, Michael Masterson said “The safest way to enter a business and the surest way to guarantee your success is to spend time learning the ropes before you make the big move.” I agree with Michael Masterson, who, by the way, is my mentor, that you need to learn the ropes and gain experience in an industry before you launch a business in that field. …you need to know the critical skills about sales and marketing that are important to succeed in business. …you need to focus all your effort on making the first sale…then the second sale…then the next sale until you become profitable. Why do you need to focus all your effort on selling? Because selling is always the first step towards having a profitable side hustle. Without sales, you cannot have a profitable business. I am going to ask you to do me a favor..if you get nothing else from this article, but you take this advice that nothing is more important for a new business than sales, then you will save yourself from poverty and misery. Why? Because the single most common mistake in starting a small business is spending your hard-earned cash on secondary considerations instead of selling. What are secondary considerations in starting a business? My list will include real estate, office equipment, stationery, business cards, employees, software, and even products. I have a few examples to share from my personal experience and a few of my coaching clients. A client of mine wants to start a fresh juice business and needs $15,000 to buy all the pieces of equipment and all the other stuff she thinks she needs for the startup. I suggested that she get a vendor license of $200 for one week to take samples of her product to the local farmers market and spend another $350 to get the initial ingredients before she takes the plunge to start the business. I hope she takes my advice. I recently wanted to purchase a duplex in a relatively hot real estate market for $550,000. I decided to make the offer subject to full inspection and appraisal. The property turned out to be worth less than it was marketed… This allowed me to ask for a $100,000 reduction in the asking price that the seller refused, and I could walk away from a loss-making real estate deal. As you can see, starting a side hustle is not as simple as you are made to believe. You need more than just having capital because, as a startup entrepreneur, your chances of building a profitable business are 5-10%. That is why keeping your full-time job is critical because your job will be the safety net when you fail in the early years of launching your business. I owe my financial success to having the wisdom of holding on to my 9-5 job. My parting advice is this; have the courage to start your side hustle. Be a chicken at the same time and keep your full-time job… you can always quit once your side hustles start to earn more than your full-time job.
How To Survive The Global Economic Crisis: 5 Tips To Ride Out The Raging Storm
How To Survive The Global Economic Crisis: 5 Tips To Ride Out The Raging Storm The world is going through a global economic crisis. How do you survive the raging global inflation and prosper? A recent article published in Trading economics showed that the US Core inflation rate had unexpectedly risen to 8.6 percent by May 2022. This was the most significant increase in inflation since 1981. The article gave a breakdown of the significant increases in household goods and services that were likely to make a substantial impact on the cost of living: The article summarized that your wallet would take a hit from inflation and economic crisis. In other words, your income from last year may not cover your bills and household needs this year. For example, if you spent $100 filling up your truck last year, you would need to pay $134.10 to fill up the same truck this year. A whole chicken that used to cost $10 last year will cost you $14 to buy this year. Many households will be affected by the raging inflation at our doorstep. A few families may go under because of this economic crisis. A few will weather the flood of financial pain. And a few households will prosper despite the inflation. I want my family, friends, and members of The Investing Mindset to survive the economic crisis and become stronger and more prosperous. This article is for you if you want to survive and prosper in the coming global economic crisis. Charles Dickens, one of the greatest playwrights ever, once wrote about the economic crisis in his book A Tale of Two Cities with this often quoted phrase. The moral of Dickens’ quote is that in times of economic crisis, you would have many feelings that may make you, in some situations, do foolish things. Or you could make wise decisions that will get you out of the financial hell you face. The bottom line about how you survive the present economic crisis is down to you. Your financial status is like a ship going through a storm, and you are the captain at the boat’s helm. The bottom line about how you survive the present economic crisis is down to you. Your financial status is like a ship going through a storm, and you are the captain at the boat’s helm. How would you fare in your duties as captain of your finances during the storm? Would you run your ship aground and sink? Or would you ride the storm and arrive at the port of prosperity? When a ship is about to set sail, certain things must be done to ensure the ship sails smoothly and arrives safely. Just as you would secure a seaworthy boat before you set sail, you must also ensure that your finances are in proper shape in an economic crisis. Here are some tips that will allow you to survive in the present global financial crisis: Assess Your Financial Status You need to assess whether you are struggling or will be able to manage financially no matter the interest rates or price increases you are dealing with. Ask yourself the following questions: Am I able to pay my mortgage, rental, and energy bills? Do I have savings for emergencies or unemployment for a few weeks? The whole point of this exercise is not to scare you. Instead, it is for you to face the reality of your financial status. Having a realistic idea of your finances allows you to take the necessary steps to deal with problems before it is too late to handle them. The outcome of your financial situation will help you move on to the next step. The next thing you must do is know your net worth. Your net worth is your assets minus your liabilities. Negative net worth means you have more liabilities than assets. You need to find out why and how to fix the problem. Positive net worth means you have more assets than liabilities. Then you should work towards keeping and increasing your net worth. If you are clueless about how to assess your net worth, you can check out personal financial calculators on Mint. The website has many free apps to help you navigate and calculate your net worth. Spend Money On Your Needs And Decrease Your Wants Most of what we spend our money on is our wants instead of our needs. Our basic needs are essential for day-to-day living, including food, shelter, clothing, healthcare, and transportation. For example, rent, groceries, electricity, health, and auto insurance are needed. On the other hand, spending on movies, eating out, holidays and vacations are wants. In an economic crisis, you should spend more on your needs and reduce your spending on desires until your finances improve. Look For Ways To Increase Your Income Remember that inflation is the greatest threat to your purchasing power and savings. The best way to beat inflation is to earn more income to support or boost your purchasing power. The best way to beat inflation is to either get a pay raise at your present job or earn income from another source. You can earn revenue from a second job or start a side business. I usually recommend starting a side business because appropriately done; you can build wealth and never have to worry about money for the rest of your life. Develop The Habit Of Saving Bill Staton, money coach and author of the best-selling program, How to become financially free on $50 a month, describes the importance of savings with the words “Savings equals Investment”. In other words, when you develop the habit of saving a part of your income, you are less likely to have financial difficulties. Why? Because the individuals who learn to keep more are more likely to manage their money better in an economic crisis. Have Faith That The Economic Crisis Will Get Better No condition is permanent. There will always be times of