Limited Good and Personal Success

by

Dr. Lamar Ross

There is a concept or philosophy of "limited good" that basically tells us that in the universe there is a limited amount of everything and that every time someone gets something, it limits the possibility of anyone else getting the same. It is like saying that if I get a piece of the pie it limits the possibility of anyone else getting a piece. It is assumed that there is a limited supply of pies. Up to a point this is true! However, this belief does not take into consideration that in reality there can be an unlimited number of pies, and when those are gone, more can be made.

If we accept the premise of this limited good concept, we immediately limit ourselves to an existence which contradicts the basic facts of nature. There is an abundance of everything in nature and multiplication is the rule and not the exception. One fruit can contain anywhere from a few to hundreds of seeds. From these seeds another plant and a multitude of fruits can grow. This multiplication factor is basically endless. Any gardener who has ever started off in the spring with a mere handful of seeds and ended up with an abundance in the fall is well aware of this law of nature. I have seen this every year in my own limited gardening activities.

Businessmen are less prone to take this position than politicians. Entrepreneurs are aware that there are endless possibilities for starting new businesses and fine-tuning the ones already operating. As long as there is a perceived need that is unfilled, there will be someone who recognizes the opportunity and fills that need. If Henry Ford and the Wright brothers had not seen a need for faster means of transportation, we would still be looking for faster horses to pull our buggies. These entrepreneurs saw the need and filled the need. The transportation industry as a result has expanded peripheral economic opportunities by creating support areas that were never imagined before its development.

Unfortunately, politicians seem to lack the ability to see beyond the "limited good" concept. The philosophy of wealth redistribution assumes that there is a limited supply of goods and services, and that as long as there are a few who have more than others, it must be taken from those who have and a portion given to those who have not. If, contrary to the "limited good" concept, we accept the fact that new wealth and goods can be created without limit, more time would be spent by governments encouraging people to create and less time teaching them to expect handouts.

Now to you as an individual! You cannot control the decisions of the politicians and businessmen, but you can control your attitude and your own belief system.

We must insist in our own lives that we will not accept less than what we are capable of. We must realize that the universe is full of possibilities and adhering to a philosophy that insists on limited possibilities can do nothing but have a negative effect on our personal success.

Dr. Lamar Ross, a cultural anthropologist by training, has a special interest in training individuals for expatriate living and providing information on unique travel destinations. He is an author, educator, photographer, internet entrepreneur, and international traveler. He has lived in the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and India and has traveled extensively in 29 different countries.

He presently splits his time between the U.S. and the Republic of Panama. He speaks both English and Spanish fluently and has a basic ability in several other languages. Check out his "Everything Travel" blog.

Living Frugal

Looking for a New Austerity and Frugality in Life

by

David L. Walker

Whenever you are trying to modify something in your lifestyle, you are going to find it very, very difficult to maintain if you dislike what it requires to create that modification in life.  Sometimes it takes a little more effort then we expect.

If you dislike training or dislike the belief of even trying better meals, it's going to be amazingly difficult to shed weight.  If you dislike the act of studying, it's going to be amazingly difficult to study the excellent guides of literary works.  Similarly, if you dislike making economical options, it's going to be nearly impossible to figure out methods to reduce costs continually, add value back to your life and have the feeling of satisfaction from it.

Here's the thing: austerity, like all of these other factors, is made up of simple factors and difficult factors, but the simple factors and difficult factors differ from individual to individual and from scenario to scenario.  The factors you like doing are different from that of your buddies.  After all, living a life of frugality and austerity can sometimes make you seem like a scrooge to your friends.  That will pass.

The best way to create austerity as a big part of your lifestyle is to adhere to the areas of it that are fun to you.  Dig into food preparation or economical journey preparing or more sensible purchasing.  View austerity as a task and look for methods to enhance your ranking (the money you are saving).  Contest with yourself, but contend against your buddies too.  Hold out for the things in need in life.

When you look at how much you have stored, you feel much better about completing this task.  Know that you have selected to not spend that money on foolish things.  Convert it all into money, walk into your financial institution, punch it down on the desk, and say "I want my car now, please."

Frugality is not about struggling and doing without.  It's about sensation, excellence and having fun because you are following in the places of your lifestyle that you really want to be successful at, while reducing in the places that you do not really care about.  For me, every phase in that direction is fun.  It's all about discovering new items in my lifestyle that do not take away from the other factors I value.  It's about concentrating on family and new success.  It's about studying how to do new factors of life better so I can be excellent in the expertise skill set that I'm developing.

Pay Yourself First

by

Brian Tracy

Resolve today that you are going to save and invest at least 10 percent of your income throughout your working life. Take 10 percent of your income off the top of your paycheck each time you receive one and put it into a special account for financial accumulation.

Save Throughout Your Career

The fact is that if you save just $100 per month throughout your working lifetime and you invest money in an average mutual fund that grows at 10 percent per annum, you will be worth more than one million dollars by the time you retire. This means that anyone (even a person earning minimum wage) who starts early enough and saves long enough, can become a millionaire over the course of his or her working lifetime.

Lifelong Habits

Developing the lifelong habit of saving and investing your money is not easy. It requires tremendous determination and willpower. You have to set it as a goal, write it down, make a plan, and work on it all the time. But once this practice locks in and becomes automatic, your financial success is virtually assured.

Practice Frugality

Practice frugality, frugality, frugality in all things. Be very careful with every penny. Question every expenditure. Delay or defer important buying decisions for at least a week, if not a month. The longer you put off making a buying decision, the better your decision will be and the better price you will get at that time.

Parkinson’s Law

A major reason that people retire poor is because of impulsive buying. They see something they like and they buy it with very little thought. They become victims of what is called “Parkinson’s Law,” which says that “expenses rise to meet income.” This means that no matter how much you earn, you tend to spend that much and a little bit more besides. You never get ahead and you never get out of debt.

Don’t be a Victim

You don’t have to be a victim of Parkinson’s Law. If you cannot save 10 percent of your income, start today by saving 1 percent of your income in a special savings and investment account. Put it away at the beginning of each month, even before you begin paying down your debts. Live on the other 99 percent of your income. As you become comfortable living on 99 percent, raise your savings level to 2 percent of your income, then 3 percent and 4 percent, and so on.

Grow Your Savings and Investments

Within one year, you will be saving 10 percent and maybe even 15 or 20 percent of your income and living comfortably off the balance. At the same time, your savings and investment account will start to grow. You will become more careful about your expenditures, and your debts will begin to be paid off.

Change Your Financial Outlook in a Year

Within a year or two, your entire financial life will be under your control and you will be on your way to becoming a self-made millionaire. This process has worked for everyone who has ever tried it. Try and see for yourself.

Action Exercise

Open a special account for financial accumulation today. Make a deposit in this account, no matter how small. Then, look for every opportunity to add to this account. Begin to study money so that you understand how to make it grow. Read books and magazines by experts on the subject. Never stop saving, learning, and growing until you become financially independent.

If you like what you learned here, and you want to take these lessons to the next level, you may be interested in Brian's program, "Wealth Building Made Simple", which he designed to give you his proven, step-by-step process for achieving financial independence and building wealth. Brian went from being a homeless man without a high school diploma to a multi-millionaire and THE expert on success – so he has a lot to share.

You learn:

• The ONE thing you can think about to kick-start your getting-rich process – and make yourself a better and more serious person
• The one thing 74% of wealthy Americans have in common
• The 4 Ds to financial success
• The 5 main ways fortunes are made in America (you may be using one right now and not even know it – but without applying this new knowledge you'll just keep treading water)

And so much more.

Go here to learn more about this program, now:

"Wealth Building Made Simple"

3 Manifesting Abundance Affirmations

by

Martin Woodchild

Manifesting abundance is something that most of us would like to do in our lives - there's always room for more "stuff" in our lives and sometimes it's even "stuff" that we want. Abundance often falls into this category and a lot of the time, we equate abundance with more money in our lives.

Affirmations are a good way to help our minds focus on what we want. Here are some affirmations you can use on a regular basis to help you with manifesting more abundance into your life.

The Universe provides me with all that I will ever need

This is a good one to start with. Most people's minds are perfectly happy to accept this assertion because, at its deepest level, it is simply true. Everything we have is ultimately provided by the Universe. Whether you believe in a creation force or ultimate being or not.

We can't magic up things out of thin air (apart from maybe our thoughts, but we're not going to go there in this article). So they have to be provided by the things around us, which ultimately means the Universe.

I celebrate life

This affirmation is simple to remember, which is always a bonus.

And if you even only begin to follow this celebration of life, you'll find that your whole body vibration begins to change. In turn, this will attract good things into your life including more abundance.

Smiling and happiness, which are both parts of the idea of celebration, are infectious. OK, you'll get the odd grumpy person who growls at you and asks why you're being so happy. And quite a lot of people who'll wonder how you're managing to be so cheerful.

But they'll gradually either get won over to your celebration or they'll seek other people to drain the energy from. If it's the former, the celebration will grow ever bigger. And if it's the latter then you're almost certainly better off without their influence.

I am abundant

This abundance affirmation is actually more of a mind-leap for a lot of people.

The trouble is, we look around and quite likely see evidence where other people have more abundance in their life than we have. Which we then translate to the negative idea that we're not as abundant as we'd like to be.

Unless you're living on a street corner in a cardboard box, chances are that your life is actually full of abundance. You're just not recognizing it.

Maybe you're seeing the proverbial glass as being half empty rather than half full.

Whatever the reason, adding this short and memorable affirmation to your list can help to create small, subtle, shifts in the way your mind works.

Maybe not today or tomorrow but almost certainly in a week or two's time, there will be some changes for the better in the way your mind deals with the concept of abundance.

And that's probably the most important thing to remember when you are moving towards a more abundant lifestyle. The Japanese method of lots of small, continuing, improvements works just as well in our lives as it does on a production line. Maybe even better when it comes to manifesting abundance.

How to Build a Successful Online Business

by

Steve Pavlina

I love the lifestyle that comes from running an online business. I get to work from home each day, set my own hours, choose my own projects, and enjoy abundant income. It’s hard for me to imagine how I’d feed myself without the Internet. When I think about income generation, I immediately think of the web.

I was talking to a successful entrepreneur recently who pointed out that building an online business is an exercise in personal development. He’s absolutely right. I’ve probably learned more valuable life lessons from my entrepreneurial pursuits than from any other areas of my life. Running a business tests you in so many ways — your self-discipline, your intelligence, your communication skills, your focus, etc. If you’re lacking in any of these areas, your business results will reflect it.

The real world of business can be unforgiving. Success is rewarded. Mistakes are punished. The benefit is that it keeps you honest. You can’t settle for weakness, laziness, and bad ideas, or your business will fail. There’s a huge chasm between an idea that sounds good and an idea that actually gets implemented and succeeds under real-world conditions. Anyone can come up with good ideas, but most people can’t successfully implement them.

Some people can’t handle the pressure of running their own business. They worry about the risk of failure. They’re looking at it from the wrong angle though. That risk is precisely the point. Risk is what helps you grow. It makes you stronger. An entrepreneur who fears risk is like a bodybuilder who’s afraid of barbells.

There have been times when I had to deal with tough problems, like having bills due but no money to pay them. These problems made me dig deep inside myself. My business compelled me to grow into the kind of person who could handle these sorts of things. I learned to trust myself to work hard, to stay focused under pressure, and to even enjoy the process.

We all have different levels of risk tolerance. You don’t need to stress yourself out to grow. You just need to challenge yourself in a way that stimulates you. Lift weights that are heavy and which tax your muscles… but which you can still successfully lift. Afterwards you may feel spent, but you’ll also grow from the experience. If you only do what comes easy for you, you’ll suffer from atrophy, and life will become rather boring and pointless.

Why an online business?

In the age of the Internet, I think almost everyone should have an online business… if only for the growth experience. It doesn’t cost much to start one, but it will teach you so much. Perhaps the greatest benefit is that you’ll learn you do have something of value to share with the world, something that can generate income for you for the rest of your life.

In a way I’m jealous of the teenagers and 20-somethings who are growing up so Internet savvy. Any of them could start their own online businesses and get ahead financially at a young age. I would have loved to have been doing this in high school or college. It’s terrific that some people are becoming millionaires at such a young age, but I think the real success stories come from those who find a way to generate just a few thousand dollars per month, enough to cover their expenses.

My kids are only 4 and 7 years old, but I’m already thinking about how I might help them start their own websites soon. My daughter is very artistic, so who knows? Imagine if by the time she becomes an adult, she already has a steady stream of cashflow from websites she created during her teen years.

Building traffic

Running an online business is deceptively simple. Look at my web site, for example. The structure isn’t very complicated. It’s mostly just a lot of content and a lot of ads. But it consistently generates a nice five-figure monthly income. Anyone can do it, right?

Unfortunately, not everyone can do this. People try and fail all the time. The success stories get a lot of attention, but there are orders of magnitude more failures.

The key factor in building a successful online business is traffic. If you can’t build sufficient traffic, you won’t be able to generate much, if any, income. And unfortunately most people are really bad at building traffic. They apply completely inept strategies that don’t work, and they usually give up within a few months after starting.

Building traffic is not remotely easy for most people. This problem isn’t unique to the web though. You see it in every field. Some authors sell millions of books, while the average book doesn’t even sell 5,000 copies. Lots of people can write a book, but relatively few know how to sell a book. Lots of people can create a web site or blog these days, but few know how to attract large amounts of traffic.

If you can successfully build lots of traffic, it’s fairly easy to generate income from it. You also have time to figure it out. If you can grow your traffic, you can maintain your traffic, and that gives you time to figure out how to monetize the traffic.

In the past I’ve written articles trying to teach people how to build successful online businesses, including How to Make Money From Your Blog and How to Build a High-Traffic Website. Those were long, detailed articles, and both have become extremely popular in the blogosphere. I didn’t charge any money for this content — it’s all free. Those articles inspired a lot of people (hundreds that I know of) to enthusiastically start their own websites. Some of those people are doing quite well now, but most that I’ve been aware of have failed miserably.

Why most people fail

Why did most people fail? I think the reason was that the whole process of running an online business is just too complicated for most people. There are lots of ways to screw it up. It pained me to visit some of those sites and notice a dozen glaring mistakes within the first few seconds — blogs that didn’t enable permalinks, cutesy headlines with no keywords in them, bad choice of topics, page titles that still used the WordPress default format, hideously suboptimal ad layouts, hidden or missing contact info, etc. Any one of those mistakes could cripple a site’s results. More than one is a practically a death sentence. Such mistakes cause problems both for human visitors and search engines.

But at the same time, there were teenagers humming along just fine, generating four figures in monthly income after working on their sites for 6-12 months. They didn’t necessarily get everything right, but they were Internet savvy enough to fix the big problems early.

What bothered me most about this was that people were too often failing because of the technology. Many of them had great ideas and very good content. It was a shame to read some of their articles and think to myself, This is great stuff… too bad no one will ever see it.

The cruel and unfair part of online business is that if you aren’t very Internet savvy, you’ll make mistakes on the technical side that you’re totally oblivious to. You may get the content side right, but the technology will bite you and cripple your results.

In my “How to Make Money From Your Blog” Article, I did correctly identify this problem and suggested that 99 out of 100 people would fail because of it. But it’s still a pretty unfair situation. There are people who can write great content who really deserve to be getting a lot of readers, but because they don’t understand permalinks, RSS feeds, pinging, or other technologies, they’re doomed before they start.

Once I saw this happening, I basically decided I’d better shut up about encouraging people to run an online business. People kept asking me for new articles on the subject, but I didn’t think it was a good idea. I was concerned I’d be doing more harm than good.

A new solution

Recently I came across a vastly superior solution to this problem — a way for people to build a successful online business that doesn’t require them to become technology gurus.

What I recommend is a service called Site Build It! – it’s an all-in-one solution for creating and building an online business. You pay an annual fee for the service, and they provide you with all the tools you need to build an income-generating web site. They host the site for you, they help you register your domain name, and they provide integrated tools like point-and-click page generators, built-in blogging, form builders, RSS feeds, and lots more. Many of these details will be handled for you, so you don’t have to worry about them.

You still create your own content, and you use their tools (or your own familiar tools) to create a site based on your unique ideas. You focus on the content side. They help you with the technical implementation side.

I don’t recommend this solution for everyone. If you’ve already built a successful website that generates thousands of dollars a month for you, you won’t need this. I don’t need it myself. But if you’re one of those people that have been held back by the technical complexity, then this is definitely something you should look at. This is the kind of solution I’d recommend in a heartbeat for my non-programmer friends who want to get something going online but quickly become lost in a sea of jargon.

If you’re interested, just be aware that it will take some time for you to look into this service and decide if it’s right for you. The Site Build It! site has a lot of detailed information on it. If you really like to do your homework before making a decision like this, you’ll find no shortage of detail.

Running an online business can be a wonderful growth experience, and the income and freedom it can provide is certainly nice too. People really shouldn’t be deprived of this opportunity for technical reasons. The self-publishing power of blogging technology has gotten us partway there, but it’s only one piece to the puzzle. I encourage you to take a good look at Site Build It!, since I think you’ll find that their system fills in the remaining gaps, putting online business success within reach of most people.

This is by no means a get-rich-quick program. You’ll still need to put in the time and energy to create quality content for your web site, but at least you won’t have to worry as much about the technical side.

And if you already have the technical know-how and are confident about setting up your own site, great!  But don't just sit here reading about it - get out there now and start creating the business that can change your life!

Always Make the Right Choices

Last month I introduced my blog readers to the remarkable and gifted personal development coach and entrepreneur, Katie Freiling.

I have found she has some wonderful and powerful insights, which is why I make no apology for showing you another of her videos, and will no doubt show you some more in the future too.  In this one, Katie will show you in a very clear way how you can ALWAYS make the right choices in life: