Your Big 3!?

Your Big 3!?

I love Mondays! I have written out some goals for the week and I can’t wait to see what all gets accomplished by Saturday. I try to have a “Thank God it is Monday!” approach to things. Writing out my goals for the week (and even my top three daily) help with that.

So, I encourage you to answer this question.

What are the three most important things that I could do today to move toward my ultimate goals?

Don’t just pick small, menial things that don’t really have a bearing on your personal growth as a worker, family member, or person. Pick three things that you feel matter today. Three things that, when accomplished, will make you smile when you go to bed tonight knowing you were productive today.

So, decide what the three things are and WRITE THEM DOWN! This short to-do list will hold you accountable and keep you motivated toward accomplishing them. Put the to-do list in a very visible place so you don’t forget about them.

Try this! It works. You will start enjoying every day a little more as you feel you are becoming a more productive individual.

"The only thing that stands between a man and what he wants from life is often merely the will to try it and the faith to believe that it is possible." -- Richard M DeVos

“Statistics show that only 2% of Americans actually write down their goals.”- Brian Kim- author

Don't just stand there....Bust a Move!

"Get busy living, or get busy dying"- Movie, Shawshank Redemption

"Just do it." Nike

These are two quotes that come to mind when I think of being action-oriented. I spoke with a friend last night who was telling me of three, different ideas he had come up with. They seemed like solid business ideas. He articulated to me all the possibilities and why they would work in reality. I told him that I was impressed, but not convinced it would make a dime in reality....why?

Ideas are a dime a dozen, even good ones. What sets apart those who are successful and those who are average is the ability to put feet to ideas and make them really move into reality. It has been said time and time again that an idea is just a fantasy until you put it down on paper. Well, that's true, but there is one more all important step. Do it!

Many times there is this internal battle between your desire to relax and your desire to get something done. It will always take will power and a commitment to take that first step to do what needs to be done. It is essential when you think about that thing you need to do, to stop thinking and just do it! Take your conscious captive, and don't allow yourself the opportunity to reconsider due to laziness or fear. Too many people have the thought and say, "I'll do it tomorrow" or "that is just unreasonable." The truth of reality is that tomorrow is always just beyond your fingertips and unreasonable is only what you put there.

It is also true that if you don't put things off, and get them done now, you have more of a real chance to relax later because you feel you accomplished something. No one really relaxes when they don't feel they have accomplished anything that day. They, more so, become callous and numb to doing anything that matters. Then one day, when they are willing to stop and think, they see they have wasted their lives on menial task and nothing that really seems to matter. Don't be that person. Once you have a thought to do something, write a plan of action, and then just do it. Get busy living, or get busy dying.

Credit Card Confession

Has the credit card companies come to whisper in your ear yet, college students?
They will because they know you are all alone and they can entice you with a lot of nonsense about being able to improve your credit score.

The truth of it is that lenders can get a read on your finances many other ways other than a credit score. If you have $10,000 dollars in the bank and a pay stub that shows you get paid $40,000 a year, somebody is going to sell you a house. Other than real estate, no other purchase should involve payments. You can buy most things with saving for a little while and paying cash. Cars are the worst thing to make payments on. They lose value every day while you make payments that extend your price until you pay it off. In other words, if you buy a truck for $40,000 with payments for 15 years, you will end up paying close to $50,000 for it by the time you own it. How much with the truck be worth in 15 years? Not much, even though only not do you technically own it. You basically rented it for 15 years.

Credit Cards are the worst thing to use if you don't pay it off every month. Scientist have proven that your brain has very little activity when you charge something on a credit card. This means that you don't really get that you are spending money you have to pay back. Your brain doesn't communicate the necessary tension one naturally feels when you pay for something with cash. Therefore, you spend a lot more when using credit cards. That is how credit cards work. You spend and spend until the monthly statement comes in and you realize you can't pay it off. Then whatever you bought with that money (clothes, travel, eating out, entertainment, ect.) has just gotten more expensive. An $18 movie night will cost you $20 now because you didn't pay the credit card off in time. Credit cards compound interest which can put a big dent in your wallet if not make your wallet dissolve into nothing........ only payments to your credit card.

Don't do it! Stay credit card free and rest in the truth of spending real money that you already have in a debit card or cash. I would recommend everyone check out www.daveramsey.com and type in "7 Baby Steps". The plan will get you on your feet or back on your feet. If you stick to it, this plan will get your feet running in the right direction towards financial success!

5Fprep: Having Habitual Happiness!

5Fprep: Having Habitual Happiness!: "Most people go through life coasting and reading up on other's success. They have a momentary feeling of 'wish I could do that or have what..."

Having Habitual Happiness!

Most people go through life coasting and reading up on other's success. They have a momentary feeling of "wish I could do that or have what they have", and then it is back to autopilot. Life is really just a bunch of established habits that you subconsciously do. Many experts say that it takes about 30 days to create a new habit.
If you come home and watch an hour of television everyday, that is a habit that you developed at some point in your life. All people have habits. The only question to ask yourself is, "Do I have good habits or bad habits?" Good habits can create a compound effect that renders amazing results. Whether it is wanting to be healthier, richer, or simply happier, good habits can get you there.
On the other hand, bad habits can get you in a downward spiral that leads to a feeling of disappointment and insignificance. We don't feel the result of our bad habits everyday. It takes a while and then boom! Your culmination of tiny small choices has put you in a heap of nothingness. You realize one day that you have allowed the short satisfaction of the day to steal your real lasting, long-term joy. A sense of joy only found in creating habits that get you moving towards the life you want.
So here is the challenge....
Think of one bad habit you have in your life right now. Anything that doesn't contribute to a better you and replace it with a better habit. Start small. For example,

• subsitute watching mindless TV with 30 minutes of reading a good book on self-improvement.
• instead of getting a coffee every morning before the day starts, substitute a quick stretching session 2 times a week to wake you up.
• instead of waiting to the last minute to complete an assignment or project, give yourself 10 minutes a day of concentrated effort on it (you would be surprised the amount you can get done in 10 minutes a day).

Overall, the challenge is try to create a positive habit in the next 30 days. If you do, and you find that it has helped you, please respond to the post with your comments.

Figure out your Finances

You need to have an idea of where you are going to get your spending money. If you still have don’t know, I would recommend looking into a part-time job of some sort. If you are interested in some possible jobs, I have ten I could share with you. Just respond to this post and I will give them to you.

Anyway, if you have figured out where your discretionary funds will be coming from, now is the time to name every dollar. What I mean by that is have a plan for it. If you don’t name your money, it will run off and you won’t be able to call it back or recall where it went. This may sound elementary and simple (because it is), but I would recommend using an envelope system. Get some regular size envelopes and write on them the different things of which you know you will need money.

For example, take a white envelope that says “gas” and when you get paid, or get your allowance, go ahead and set aside a certain amount for gas money. You may need $40 total for a month or less, but this way you won’t be trying to borrow money with a credit card every time you need to go somewhere. My wife and I practice this process. We get paid for the month and we immediately pull some money out to put in envelopes. We leave enough money in the account for bills, transfer our pre-determined amount into savings, and then we divide the rest up into our envelopes for the month. We have an envelope for grocery, gas, entertainment, pills, and gifts for Christmas and Birthdays. You could also have an envelope for clothes/CDs, eating out, books, ect. The key is that you know where your money is, what you will spend it on, and how much you plan to save. Every dollar has a pre-determined destination or “name”.

By the way, because of this simple step of saving and budgeting, my wife and I are on the road to being millionaires when I retire. It is possible, but it all starts with living below your means and saving consistently. The compound interest of investing can do the rest!

Get Lots of Friends Quick!

Want to know how to make someone want to be around you all the time? There is a secret that has been whispered for ages and yet so few people actually do it. It is simple and anyone can try it, but not many practice this principle. Therefore, I am inviting you to be different than the crowd and experience real, lasting and worthwhile relationships. If you practice this principle, some people will not get it. They may even try to joke you about it, but they will want to be around you more regardless. Are you ready to hear the secret to gaining friends the first few days of college and for the rest of your life? Ok, here it is....

Be interested in them more than yourself. Focus on complimenting them and not trying to get compliments from them.

Here is how you can try it. Next time you meet someone on campus or just out and about, make it a game to ask them more questions then they ask you. Here are some good ice breaker questions.

Other Freshmen- What is your name? Where are you from? What is it like to live there? Are you glad you are away or do you miss it? What made you choose this school? What is your major? What are you hoping to get out of this first semester?

Upperclassmen- What would you say is the most exciting thing to do around here? Are there any clubs or organizations you would recommend? Do you stay on or off campus and why.

Don’t get me wrong, don’t abuse with question after question, but listen intently and when a moment of silence comes, try to be the first to show you are interested in them by talking about them more. If you ask questions and the person is non-responsive, chances are you aren’t looking for a friendship with them anyway. You want to be around well-rounded students that can talk about more than where the next party is. Also, DON’T FORGET to compliment them. They are the most important person in their world.

I just finished reading a book called “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie. I would highly recommend it to those wanting to be successful with people.