Be yourself. Do not pretend to be someone or something you are not. Your uniqueness will appeal to a certain segment of the market. These folks become your best fans and customers.
Following your passion – doing what you love – does not guarantee financial success. But not doing what you love guarantees a life of boredom and unhappiness. The trick is to find a niche where your passions and interests intersect with the needs of the market.
Learn a financially valuable skill so you can command a decent salary or (if you are self employed) a respectable fee.
Those workers and service providers who command top dollar either (a) perform a service that makes or saves their employer or client money or time, (b) have a skill for which the demand exceeds the supply, or (c) specialize in a narrow niche with little competition.
If you can earn a salary or generate a net income as a self-employed service professional or independent contractor of $200,000 a year or more, you won’t get rich. However, your life will be easier and you will be financially more secure than 95% of Americans.
Given the choice, have your children when you are young and possess the energy it takes to parent active youngsters.
Spend as much time as you can with your children when they are young and still want you, even if you must make sacrifices in your professional achievements to do so. This time passes quickly and once it’s gone, it’s gone for good.
Strive to achieve a liquid net worth of at least $2 million by age 50. You won’t be rich, but again, you’ll have more financial security than about 95% of Americans.
The best piece of financial advice I ever got was from Florida freelance writer David Kohn, who told me: “Live below your means.” Doing so further enhances your financial security.
With your wealth, avoid buying material possessions that are unnecessary – especially luxuries that depreciate in value over time. Use your money to buy income-producing assets, assets that appreciate in value, or services that free up your time for other activities.
Avoid debt of any kind to the extent you are able. I have zero consumer debt except the mortgages on investment properties. Cars I buy for cash. If you have to get a loan or lease to drive a particular model car, you can’t afford it.
If you lend money to friends or family, do it with the expectation that the money is really a gift rather than a loan,
and do not expect to ever get the money back. If you are repaid, even in part, consider it found money.
Every day you wake up and everyone in your family is in good health, and you have food to eat and a decent place to live, you are ahead of the game.
When writers, Internet marketers, and entrepreneurs brag to you about how much money they make, divide the figure they give by three. As my colleague Fred Gleeck is fond of pointing out, the only numbers you can trust are your own.
In your business, always under-promise and over-deliver. Give your customers not their money’s worth, but more than they have a right to expect. Err on the side of being too generous rather than being too rigid or strict.
Before criticizing a supplier or vendor, say something positive – what you like about the work — first. The more
insulted a vendor feels, the less motivated they become to serve you.
Do not allow yourself to be belittled, insulted, or demeaned verbally or in writing by others. When someone makes a snide or degrading comment, your reply should be: “What was your purpose in making that comment to me?” It will stop them in their tracks, and embarrass them so they never do it to you again.
Do not give people unsolicited advice.
To paraphrase Dan Kennedy, guard your time like the gold in Fort Knox. You can always make more money, but time lost or wasted is gone forever.
As long as a business or life decision does not involve risking the mortgage money, make it quickly. Successful people are able to make swift decisions and carry them out with speed.
The #1 difference between successful people and those less successful is that successful people act on their ideas. Ideas are a dime a dozen. Without action, ideas are worthless.
Do not think you must reinvent the wheel on every new product or business project. Most things have already been done before. All you need to do is add a twist or put your own spin on a product or service to create demand and make it profitable.
If you are successful, you can be arrogant and boastful, but why do it? Your bragging makes others who are less successful feel badly about themselves. What’s the point of doing that? Also, don’t refer to yourself as a genius or superstar in your marketing copy. If you were a genius, you wouldn’t have to say it – instead others would be saying it and you could quote them.
Focus on your work – on creating valuable products, giving great service, going the extra mile for your customers – rather than how much money you want to make.
Start investing right away, when you are young. Do this early enough, and compounding can make you rich. Wait until you’re 50 or 60, and you could find yourself in desperate straits. And diversify. Put 10% of your wealth in an investment that moves in opposition to the stock market, such as precious metals.
From Bob Bly.
Tagged: motivation, success
