Who you are NOW does not determine who you WILL be

Your autobiography is not your destiny

- Dr. David Wolf, PhD, of the Satvatove Institute

Thank-you to Kyle McNeil for forwarding the following story to me. Amazing story, amazing lesson..

THE WOMAN BEHIND THE COUNTER

By Kindra Hall – http://www.kindrahalltellsall.com
© 2009 KindraHallTellsAll. All Rights Reserved. Used By Permission.

The other day I was in the Phoenix Airport on my way to a meeting in Denver.
Unsure of how long it would take to get the car parked, get the luggage
checked, get through the security line, and get to our gate, we (my husband
Michael and I) ended up at the airport early. Once we parked our belongings
at the gate, I did what I always do when I’m early to the airport; I headed
toward the News Stand for the sole purpose of staring at the tabloid
magazine covers. Yes, I know, it’s a nasty habit, but before you cast your
stones, I should tell you I only allow myself to read the COVERS of the
magazines. JUST the covers. And even in those few moments I can feel my
brain cells rotting and my dislike for humanity mounting.

However, on this particular trip to the News Stand I witnessed something
much more fascinating, and disturbing, than any tabloid could offer.

In this particular News Stand there was a friendly looking gentleman. He had
a pleasant face th at was graced with a cheerful smile. He and I were
hovering in the same area; I was looking at the magazines, he was looking at
the Snickers bars. Though, “looking” wouldn’t be the right word –
“agonizing over” would be a better way of putting it. You see, this
friendly-seeming man was about 200 pounds from healthy. As we stood silently
by each other, I could hear him as he struggled to breathe, and watch him
shift uncomfortably from foot to foot as he worked his way down the candy
display.

I watched him out of the corner of my eye as he picked up a regular sized
Snickers with his right hand and a KING sized Snickers with his left. He
looked at his two options, back and forth, back and forth. He rolled them
around in his hands, crinkled their wrappers, contemplating his decision.
After at least a minute, he reached to put the regular sized one back … a
shame, I thought. He was so close.

But then, like a flash of lightening from above, at the very last moment ,
he THREW the KING sized Snickers back. It landed atop the gum with a
deafening THUD. The man turned and looked at me with regular Snickers in his
hand. Gripped it tightly, shrugged, and smiled.

For a moment, I saw a glimpse of pride on his face; the kind of pride that
comes from taking control of your life. Granted, it wasn’t the BEST
decision, but it WAS a step in the right direction and it was clear he was
pleased with himself. I smiled back and nodded; a silent congratulations for
a job well done.

He took his regular sized Snickers strutted to the register where a 50ish
woman waited. She was friendly in an abrasive sort of way, and as I moved to
look at the cover of Men’s Health I heard her say to the man (who was still
in the glow of his recent victory):

“Sure you don’t want the KING sized Snickers? Looks awful good…”

The man who had just made a good decision, froze. He stared at the woman
behind the counter. In that moment, it was as if t he Phoenix Airport
stopped…. As he stared at the abrasive woman behind the counter, I stared
at him. The woman reached for the KING sized and waved it in front of his
face. “Don’t do it. Don’t do it,” I willed him. But in the next moment, he
nodded, took the KING sized Snickers, paid, and slowly walked away.

I wanted to say something, but it wasn’t my place. As he walked past, he
didn’t look my way, instead he looked to the ground and to the KING sized
decision he held in his hand.

Now, it would be easy to blame the woman behind the counter for the demise
of our Snicker loving friend. She didn’t HAVE to offer him the KING size
when he seemed to be perfectly content. However, it is not her fault; she
was only doing her job (I swear they get paid on commission — every time I
try to buy a magazi… I mean, a pack of gum… they always ask if I would
like water or a snack. It can’t JUST be because they’re really concerned for
my hydration or hunger). No, the responsibility lies solely in the man who
ultimately made the choice.

We relate to this man. Whether you struggle with your weight, or you
struggle to make good financial decisions. Maybe you make poor decisions, of
any size, in your personal relationships. Whatever your vice may be (and
there may be many), we have all been here before; on the brink of a
breakthrough, only to fall short with no one to blame but ourselves. Whether
you’ve been there once or been there 100 times, there is an important lesson
to learn here; one that may not be the most obvious.

Who you are now does not determine who you will be.

I’ll say it again. Who you are now does not determine who you will be.

Sounds nice, right? Easy lesson, nice lesson, hopeful lesson. The catch is
this: you have to MAKE it so. The difference between who you are NOW and who
you will BE happens because of choice. It doesn’t have to be a heroic
choice, it can be small/consistent choices made everyday in the right
direction, that make the difference. But they MUST be made and can only be
made by you.

How do you do this?

First: start seeing yourself NOW as the person you will BE. If you’re broke,
start seeing yourself as un-broke. If you’re alone, see yourself wrapped in
the warmth of a healthy relationship. If you’re heavier than you would like
to be, see yourself thin.

Second: It is not enough to just SEE yourself there, you must start behaving
in a way that mirrors the behaviors of the kind of person you will become.
Un-broke people make sound decisions when it comes to finances — do that
now. Healthy people find joy in salads and low-fat dressing — you should
too.

Third: Stay focused. There is a good chance that others will continue to see
you as you are now, and that’s ok. It’s not their fault. They may not be
aware that you have made a decision to change; not aware that you are making
small consistent decisions toward the person you wa nt to become. They may
not SEE those small decisions or REALIZE what they are adding up to. Stay
focused on YOU. On YOUR vision for yourself. And don’t be afraid to
verbalize your desires to those around you so they can aid in your
transformation.

This is where I believe our friend at the candy counter went astray:

Perhaps he was seeing himself not as who he IS, but who he could BE — well,
healthy, happy…

I KNOW he was making a small decision in the right direction…

But when he got to the counter, the abrasive woman saw him as he WAS: a man
who “must” love KING sizes. And instead of staying focused, instead of
standing as a warrior for his future-self, he crumbled with the words “I
will always be this” ringing in his defeated ears.

We all relate to this story. We have all been there. I just urge you to not
go there again. Fight for you future self, and beware the woman behind the
counter.

When all was said and done, I walked out of the News Stand empty-handed and
heavy hearted. I took my seat at Gate C27 and waited for our plane to
arrive.

(Post Note: Michael ended up sitting next to this man on the plane. When I
told Michael this story, looong after the flight, he said, “That makes it
worse … he was such a nice guy.”)

Kindra Hall is a storyteller with 18 years of experience. She shares her
stories on stage, in coaching sessions, and on her blog:
http://www.kindrahalltellsall.com. She works with organizations and
individuals to discover, craft, and deliver their stories in order to more
effectively communicate their mission and values. She has performed on the
stage of the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, TN at the
Exchange Place.

Ever had the experience of bringing groceries home… because you don’t want to make three trips from your car to the door of your house, you load up all 10 bags in your two hands. It’s mostly working… you are struggling along, yet you are moving forward, no problem.

But then you get to your door, and that’s when the real problems start arising. You try to reach up for the door with the groceries still in your hands. You can get your hand UP near the door handle, but there’s so many bags in the way that you just can’t quite reach the door knob. FRUSTRATING!

The more you struggle and strain to open the door the more tired you get from holding all those bags. Occasionally your hand – as you are repeatedly trying to reach up – brushes up against the door handle. SO CLOSE! Yet the bags remain in your hands and in the way… and the door remains shut.

What would happen if you could just put down some of the baggage of life? Would that free up your hand(s) to reach up, turn the knob, and walk through the door of opportunity?

TF

Ever been skiing before?

Skiing can be fun!  It can also be a fast, PAINFUL teacher.

FOCUS

2 Skis, pointed outwards = the Face-Plant

Ever had two skiis pointed outwards in different directions?  If you have, you know your trip won’t last long.

At best you end up htting the snow FACE FIRST within one foot of your departure.  At worst, you end up with extensive groin tears, with surgeries on at least one MCL to heal your torn-up knee(s).  UGLY.

This is the same result as the person who is focused on too many different things.  At the outset – the start of their ski run – they’ve got one ski pointed left, and the other pointed right.  They’re doing stock trading while they’re also starting 2 MLMs and buying their first property.

BAM!  Facewash full of snow.  At best: embarrassed.  At worst, bankrupt, broken-spirited, and left forever as a spectator.

The best quote I’ve heard related to this concept:

The fox who chases many hares catches none at all.

Two questions:

1) What could you let go of in your life?  Maybe it’s a relationship, a project, a habit.  Maybe it’s a belief holding you back.

2) With your newly created time, energy, focus, and beliefs what would it do for you if you could spend more time on your #1 project?  Even a modest 10% increase in time, money, energy focused on your #1 project… what would that do for you and your bottom line?

COURAGE & CREATIVITY

2 Skis, pointed inwards = the Snowplow

The natural pull of gravity pulls me down the ski hill.  I KNOW that if I point both skis downhill that nature will take care of the rest.

Yet I fight it.  My beliefs, my fears, my crossed-up self-talk push against the natural force gravity.  I am so stuck in comfort that my skis are crossed to an inwards “V”… creating the ol’ snowplow.

In what areas do you feel like you are fighting the hardest?  How could just “letting go” make life easier?

How are you stuck in comfort these days, simply accepting the status quo instead of opening up to new concepts?  Remember…

When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.

Make yourself ready.

Two skis, in alignment, pointing downhill

Ever had the sensation of FLYING, almost effortlessly, straight down the hill?  Doesn’t mean that challenges dont come up.  If you want to slalom around something, you simply point both skis to one side or the other… no problem at all.  You keep your momentum rolling and get back on track.

This is the experience of a person who is CONGRUENT.

Everything is in alignment: your heart’s desires, your focus, and your action.  You are in “The Flow” of life.

You are looking ahead, not trying to drive with the rear-view mirror.  You aren’t PRETENDING to be or do anything that is outside of YOU.  You are true to yourself.

You aren’t trying to fix or change anything out of your control.  You are at peace and things seem almost effortless, even though you are being, doing, and accomplishing more than ever.

And what a feeling it is.

TF

There are three VERY different kinds of income to be aware of…

1. Earned Income

This is money earned by trading time for money.

• For example: the paycheque that an employee earns from their employer.
• Taxed the highest
• Not leveraged at all. To make more money, this person must work more hours.

2. Portfolio Income

This is money earned in an investment, when the market goes up and creates Capital Gains.

• For example: I buy a stock and it goes up in price. Same thing with a house.
• Taxed the second-most
• Can be leveraged, especially if it’s real estate.

3. Passive Income

This is money that comes in over and over again, even though you only worked for it once.

• For example, I setup a Joint Venture that pays me $1000/mo every single month, over and over.
• If properly structured, is taxed the least.
• Massively leveraged, especially if it is setup with very little time or money, and with no risk.

Investing: Capital Gains vs. Cashflow

The vast majority of people out there are investing for Capital Gains. This includes anyone who has an RRSP or 401k, mutual funds, stocks, or is flipping real estate. All of these people are hoping to buy low and sell high.

Unfortunately, many professional investors consider this kind of investing to be the same as Gambling… you don’t really know if the market will go up or down, what expenses might be lurking between buy and sell, and ultimately if you will make money or not.

The dumbest reason in the world to buy a stock is because it is going up.
- Warren Buffett

Not to say that pro investors don’t like Capital Gains… in fact, investors that are educated can make a good deal of money through Capital Gains.

Just trust the squiggly line

The problem is when a bank advisor or Financial Planner sells investments (Mutual Funds) that are Capital Gains deals, and makes them seem like they are safe – like they don’t require much financial education.

The advisor shows you a chart (called an “Andex chart”) that has an upward-trending squiggly line, and tells you that “over the long run” the market has always gone up. I’m sure that was consolation to the people that lost half their wealth last year.

The reality is that all Capital Gains deals require education – including Mutual Funds.

Yet the advisor creates a false sense of security – or else makes you feel silly for asking questions – and before you know it, you are checking the box that says: “I understand that I could lose everything in this investment. Also, I declare that I have the required financial knowledge to be investing in this kind of security.”

NO I DON’T!!! Having personally been in this situation, I must say that it is a very uncomfortable experience.

Still addicted?

If you are 110% DETERMINED to invest in vehicles that are Capital Gains-only – whether that’s stocks, Mutuals, Houses, or otherwise – please get yourself educated. And make sure your teacher is someone more than a salesperson from the bank.

I encourage you to read Conspiracy of the Rich by Robert Kiyosaki. Be sure to pay close attention to the lessons about the difference between price and value, and how the Dow Jones and Real Estate markets are faring compared to commodities, especially Gold & Silver.

Why you want Cashflowing Assets

Cashflow deals on the other hand, continue to pay you regardless of if the market value is going up or down. Every month (or quarter) you are getting a cheque in the mail, regardless of how the asset or investment is doing on the market.

YES, it’s possible that the economy might make some of the cheques smaller, however it’s rare for the cheques to stop… if you are working with the right people, the cheques are typically rolling in every single month and right on time.

I know this because I personally continue to receive cheques of the same size, at the same time of every month, regardless of the economy, stock market, or political climate.

Hire some dollars & put ‘em to work

Instead of *hoping* to make Capital Gains sometime “over the long run”, why not make your cash work for you NOW? …grow more cashflow – money that you get to have TODAY – money that you can then use to re-invest elsewhere to create even more cashflow.

Examples of Cashflowing deals and investments include: Joint Ventures, Cashflowing Real Estate (careful: not all of it is), Dividends from Stocks.

Today’s reality is that “savers are losers”, “cash is trash”, and people who park their money in Retirement Plans (RRSPs & 401ks) or banks might be very disappointed… just think of the Billions that vanished in 2007.

Again, Conspiracy of the Rich by Robert Kiyosaki has an interesting discussion on this.

Protect your money from vanishing

When the market corrected (i.e. was destroyed) in 2007, thousands of Capital Gains investors had their life’s investments vanish in the blink of an eye. Conversely, those that had Cashflow investments, businesses, and assets simply continued collecting cheques.

While the 2007 market crash was very dramatic, there is an ever more dangerous, more devastating “silent tax” that might eat up your investment just as badly *without you even knowing it*. And that is called INFLATION.

Bailout Bucks

With Obama printing Trillions of Dollars, you and I’s money has already been diluted… and we’ll feel it once those “bailout bucks” make their way into the regular money supply.

If you’ve got uneducated money invested in a capital gain deal (Mutual Fund), or even worse – sitting in a bank account – then there’s a very real chance that your money is becoming more and more worthless with every passing day.

Worse than AIG, GM, & Freddie Mac

And what about those massive Boondoggles known as Medicare and Social Security? The United States has promised billions and billions of dollars to these programs, yet has NO WAY TO PAY for them.

In fact, some experts are *convinced* that these two programs will be so financially devastating that they could make the AIG / General Motors / subprime mortgage situation – a Trillion Dollar Problem – seem small. Hmm.

What to do?

Well, instead of sitting at home powerless and afraid of these looming financial monsters, what if you could turn the tables and take charge?

What if you had the skills to take what you already have, and multiply it? Take one paycheque per month, and turn it into 2 paycheques per month? Then 3? Then 5?

If this sounds appealing, then I invite you to read on and learn more about Cashflowing deals, businesses, assets & opportunities…

Your job as an investor

In his book Rich Dad’s Guide to Investing, Robert Kiyosaki talks about how the primary role of the investor is to convert earned income from their job into cashflow from an income-producing asset. THAT is the responsibility of an investor.

Cashflow from Investments

Recently a friend of mine contacted me about following this exact path. He wanted to take his one paycheque per month and place funds with an investment that gave him a second paycheque.

After exploring a few options, he found something that really fit for him. A little exploration and some good conversation with the right people and Bingo – a cashflowing, Passive Income producing asset for my friend.

This is a great example of leveraging one-time Earned Income into repetitive, ongoing, residual Passive Income through an investment vehicle.

Cashflow from Building a Business

In another instance, some friends of mine had a very interesting idea. This husband and wife duo both have regular day jobs that pay them Earned Income. Wanting to create real financial freedom, they had also started a part-time Passive Income business that they work in the evenings and weekends.

Not long ago, these people simply worked their day jobs and that was it. But then they started raising their financial IQ. They learned about things like the 3 kinds of income (see above), and they started questioning the “conventional wisdom” of investing: get good grades, get a good job, then invest in a well-diversified portfolio of Mutual Funds.

Because they are intelligent people, they decided not to risk their (or their daughter’s) future… they took matters into their own hands, and became committed to financial freedom.

Their Gameplan: To speed up their business growth, they took Earned Income from their dayjobs, then they invested in sponsoring an event I was putting on. Through this they gained new clients that are paying them a regular, residual, Passive Income. Very nifty indeed!

This is a great example of taking one-time Earned Income and leveraging it into on-going, repetitive, residual Passive Income.  They simply opened a business and promoted it with Earned Income, so that they could acquire clients that paid them Passive, Residual Income.  Brilliant!

And in the process of taking this specific path, they have risked very little, have no concerns about capital losses, and their Passive Income is well-insulated from market fluctuations.

Aditionally, because of the path they took, they have little to no management concerns. It’s all just cashflow for them now!

If you’re curious about either of these paths, simply email me here: Tim@TimothyFrancis.com

Find your OWN Cashflow

For ideas additional ideas on how you can add more cashflowing assets, businesses, investments to your portfolio so that you can increase your income & cashflow, please write me here: Tim@TimothyFrancis.com

Onwards and Upwards,

TF

There is no subtler, no surer means of overturning the existing basis of society than to debauch the currency. The process engages… destruction and it does it in a manner which not one man in a million is able to diagnose.
- John Maynard Keynes

You’ve heard about some VERY prominent people issuing some VERY serious warnings about the U.S. Dollar (USD), and how the recent bail-outs might obliterate our economy. It’s not small – we’re talking food stamps and 1930s-Depression-type stuff here.

Amongst them:

• Robert Kiyosaki
• Warren Buffett
• Donald Trump
• Robin J. Elliott

Not to mention the fact that China has openly asked about getting rid of the USD as the World Currency.

So what’s the big deal?

Over and over in history, the progression of money has been this:

1) Barter: “I’ll fix your car if you do my taxes.”

2) Commodities: “I’ll give you this gold coin if you make me a suit.”

3) Receipt money: “I’ll give you my car for $500 – which I can take to the bank to exchange for 25 ounces of Gold”.

4) Fractional Reserve Receipt Money: “I deposited $500 (receipt money) and my banker lent it out (with interest) to 10 people. I hope my banker actually has the $500 in reserve when I want to withdraw it.”

5) Fiat Currency: “Our biggest banks and car companies are failing because they’ve made some huge mistakes. It doesn’t matter how much gold or silver we have, how many cars or suits we can produce, or how it will affect future generations… let’s simply print an extra Trillion Dollars and print our way to safety.”

This has happened over and over in history, with the result being the same every time… economic disaster and the fall of an empire, rapidly accelerated once said empire chooses to go into Fiat Currency.

Note: When money is no longer backed by Gold or any other asset, it is known as “Fiat Currency”. Because it isn’t backed by anything, it can be printed in unlimited amounts. The USD went from Receipt Money to Fiat Currency in 1971.

The FED.

Few people know this: the Federal Reserve (“The Fed”) is not a bank, it is not American, and they do not have Reserves. It is a cartel owned by a number of the world’s richest families and banks.

When the United States needs more money, they simply create a Bond (nothing more than an I.O.U. with interest) which they give to the Federal Reserve and “The Fed” gives them the equal amount in money, which the U.S. Treasury prints out. The Fed literally creates money out of thin air.

In 1913 the Federal Reserve was created. This business of printing money was under control, though, because back then the Dollar was pegged to a Gold Value of $20.67 / troy oz. of Gold. This is known as “The Gold Standard”. What this means is that – regardless of what happened economically – for every ounce of Gold in U.S. Reserves, there could only be $20.67 printed and in the money supply.

Gold is ILLEGAL

In 1934, President Roosevelt enacted the Gold Reserve Act which prohibited private ownership of Gold; Americans were legally forced to turn over all of their Gold to the U.S. government. Can you believe that private ownership of Gold was actually illegal? In this Act, the value of Gold was also re-pegged up to $35.00 / troy oz. (It was only in 1975 that Americans were free to own and trade Gold without restriction.)

USD Worldwide

In 1944, The Bretton Woods Agreement was struck. In these meetings of world banking leaders, the World Bank was created, as was the International Monetary Fund. It was also in these meetings that the USD was (notoriously) selected to be the reserve currency of the world… i.e. the dollar that the entire world traded with. At the time, this was okay because the USD was backed by gold, so everything could be trusted.

This also gave the United States the unique opportunity to pay their world debts with their own money. They were (and are) the ONLY country in the world that can do this.

Again, no problem because the USD was on the Gold Standard. At this time, the USD was still considered “receipt money” because every USD was basically a receipt for gold held in reserve. That’s why it was called “receipt money”: it’s kind of like a claim check for your jacket when you check your coat at wedding or at the theater. Every dollar was a claim check for gold.

The Day the Dollar Died

In 1971, without the approval of Congress (or the IMF or World Bank), President Nixon unilaterally took the USD off the gold standard… this changed the USD from “receipt money” to “fiat currency” (note: money and currency are two different things)… backed only by the “credit and good faith of the United States”. Any amount of new USD currency can be printed, regardless of how much gold was in U.S. Reserves.

Hmmm….

So let’s combine the above facts….

• The world trades in USD. Therefore the USD is the World’s Dollar.
• The USD is created out of thin air, in unlimited supply by the Fed.
• The USD is now backed by nothing more than “credit and good faith”.
• President Obama has just diluted every other country’s money BIG TIME by flooding the world economy with a $Trillion empty dollar$.
• People get really mad when you take away their money and/or purchasing power
• People being really mad at you does not bode well for “credit and good faith”!

Also…

• The USD is the World Currency
• The U.S. can pay all of it’s debts in it’s own currency – the USD.
• The U.S., via The Fed, can print as much USD as it wants.
• Therefore, the U.S. has a unique advantage over all other countries

Finally…

• The USD only remains the World Currency as long as people want it
• Diluting everyone else’s USD, makes them not want the USD
• Paying off your bills with everyone by printing them more of your funny money also leaves a bad taste in everyone’s mouth

If enough of the right other countries get mad (China, India, etc), they aren’t going to want the USD anymore… so THEN what happens with Trillions of very funny USD out there subject to regular market forces like everyone else? …especially when no one wants them anymore? Think supply and demand- when demand dries up.

Bring it together

To go full-circle on our conversation here about money, I remind you of the time-tested cycle of money:

1. Barter
2. Commodities
3. Receipt Money
4. Fractional Reserve Receipt Money
5. Fiat Currency

Where do *you* think we are in the cycle?

It’s scary!

To make matters worse, the current financial crisis is dwarfed by a waaay bigger crisis coming up – social security and medicare combined with retiring baby boomers.

Retired Boomers will not only be a cost to the government for medical and social security reasons, they will also be drawing *billions* of dollars out of the Stock Market for their retirement.

With tens of thousands of people selling their Mutual Funds (which are nothing more than Stocks) to cash out for retirement, what does that do to the Stock Market? Again, think supply and demand- with no demand.

A Final thought…

A quote from Robert Kiyosaki’s “Conspiracy of the Rich”:

If you always prepare for bad times, you will only know good times.
- Robert Kiyosaki

So What Now?

Alot of this may seem very dark, very scary, and very intimidating. I know this because I often feel this way too. Keep in mind, though, that in times of massive upheaval, there is also MASSIVE, unprecedented opportunity.

When I saw Robert Kiyosaki speak in November 2009, he repeated over and over that the biggest Wealth Transfer that humanity has EVER seen has just begun, and will continue for the next 5-10 years. Whether you are a big-time Winner or a big-time Loser from it all depends entirely on how prepared you are.

Personally, I am preparing by building cashflow through Joint Ventures and cashflowing investments (write me for more info: Tim@TimothyFrancis.com). I am upgrading my mindset with the Satvatove group. And I am learning as quickly as I can about Gold & Silver.

I sincerely hope that you’ll invest in yourself enough to find the riches within.

At the very least I hope that you’ll register for free, ongoing wealth-building ideas from the world’s greatest minds by clicking here:  Jingle In Your Jeans.

Onwards and Upwards,

Tim