The Most Expensive Advise

The most expensive advise is "free" advises. These are the advise given by those who around you but are not rich. What make you think that the poor be able to give you an advise to make you rich? Once people listen to these free advise from so called financial veteran such as your uncle, your boss, your friend who work at McDonald, and even your spouse, in long run will cost them a wealth of life time. Why, because what those people normally telling you about something that normally will stop you from start invest, or even worst invest to lose. These people are normally called as the cynic in the world of investing, as they will take whatever it take to tell people to do what they doing, therefore can justify what they are doing now is correct. They would be crazy, if you become successful doing something opposite from them, such as like invest in business.

The second expensive advise is the "cheap" advises from the so called financial expert such as broker, banker or mutual fund manager. These advises often come with almost free or cheap, and well presented. These are the people who trained by big firm "foxes", well dressed, who can speak of financial jargon with the aid of confound presentation materials. Their job is to sell junk to unsuspecting customer, confuse them, creating illusion to the customer to think they sound intelligent. They will make complex explanations, equation t their financial product, only emphasizing the strength, to mesmerise the customer. These advises are often identify by the real investor as the Sales pitch. Sale pitch is the illusion advise coming from the cunning financial fox to make money from you.

Remember:

"The sound financial advise is the advises that to make money for you, The sale pitch is the advise that make money from you!"

What you want to become when you grow up?

The Question, "what you want to become when you grow up?" has caught many of us into deception. Most people will answer such as a doctor, attorney, accountant, engineer or any other professional high paid profession. That is not the question is all about. The truthful answer to the question is about whether you would become a more honest or less honest, more integrity or less integrity, more truthful or less truthful person. What turn out to ourself, has very little to do with what we are from the outside, rather is what we are from the inside. I heard some people said, he become successful because he has a high paid job. Yet, I had seen people who come from rich family, high educated, big corporation management cadre, run down into bankruptcy. That simple anecdote can nullify the belief of by getting a high paid job will bring you wealth.

So, what about the idea of being honest, integrity and truthful will effect the outcome of each of individual life? The concept is come from the word, "Excuses". Every time, when we about to do something that should be done, but, we are reluctant to do so, excuses set in. For example, everyone want to have a good body like Arnold Schwarzenegger, but very few willing to do the work out. There will always be the excuses like, "I don't have the time". The more honest truthful answer on that excuse is "I am not willing to make the time!". The concept will same apply to the smoker who want to quit smoke but never did, and the investor who want to invest but never did. Nothing hold us back from being success, other than the excuses that lie in ourself. So, start asking yourself, what you want to become when you grow up? or what are you now, if you think you had already grown up. Stop saying "you can't", instead start asking yourself, "How can". If you be able to doing it for sometimes, something big will change in yourself.

Becoming Rich without Cutting Your Credit Card

Often we heard from the so called "financial gurus" teaching people to become rich by preaching the virtue of cutting off your credit card and live below your means. I personally do not agree with that statement. Cutting off your credit card will not make you rich. Cutting off my credit card only make me miserable. I believe that if given a choice, most of us, will not choose to live below our means. We will like to enjoy the finest things that money could buy, spend all we can, while the bill will be paid by our rich uncle. Believe me, it is not the money that motivate the people become rich. It is what you can do with the money that make us want to be rich. However, when come to the subject of getting rich, the first item most people look at, is the "expenses". Well, it is true that spending recklessly is very unwise. Yet, what i trying to say here is, why choose to live below your means, while there are many other better ways. Why focusing on the expenses. Why not try to divert your attention to the income. Why cut the expenses, since, there are much possibility to increase the income. This is the key, that make different of the rich from the poor. It does not take any intelligent to cut your expenses and do your saving. We can train a monkey to do that. On the contrast, it take massive intelligent for us to increase our income. Start asking ourself "how to increase our income?" rather than making the statement of "We can't afford to increase our income". When our mind start working, amazing things will happen. To become rich it actually only require you to change your way of thinking, your reality, your contexts. Focusing how to increase your income, your financial intelligent, then you shall able to see a different kind of world, a world of abundance, the world of possibility, the world of getting rich without needing to cut off your credit card.

Financial Success: Don't Predict But Be Prepared

In every community at any corner of the world, we had heard and seen there are some rich tycoon who seem to be a midas touch on every deal. They seem to be knowing things, they seem be able to predict the future, they were like having a crystal ball hiding in their home. This is why, there are such a frenzy theory about getting rich by seeking a way to see the future. For instance, we can see a lot of people like to go to temple, asking for numbers, and buying the lottery. We also can see people who going to fortune teller, hoping to see which stock will be hot in the coming days. These are the people who often let the LUCK to dictate their everyday life. These people are not really an investor, they are just a gambler.

For me, LUCK is a acronym of "Laboring Under Correct Knowledge". It means, to success, we shall not rely on prognostication, but be prepared. The true winner, is the one who always well-prepared. They are the one who diligently building their financial foundation. They do not need a once in a lifetime lucky deal to come to their hand in order to success. They are the people who do not believe in fate. They preach the virtue of effort produce result. They know preparation is the only key to success. They focusing on education, training, research, building a team, try and error. They do not let a temporary failure to hold them back. They do not afraid of mistake. In fact, they make more mistake than any other people, yet, they from the mistake, correct it and come back stronger. Making mistake is part of the preparation. They do not care what might happen, because either way, they know, they will do well eventually as long as they are well-prepared. The bottom line is, until we are no emotional attached on the up and down cycle of the market, we then in this context are well-prepared.

Financial Success: Building your Own Ark

In biblical story, I love the very famous tales of Noah and the Ark. Imagining that when God told Noah to build the Ark, it took Noah a great courage to come home and tell his wife and children about the news. Noah told his wife :" God told me to build the Ark. There will be storm rain coming. If we don't build the Ark, we will not going to survive." But his wife answer: "But, Noah, we are living in the middle of dessert, it not even rain out there, why there is a flood?" Despite the discouraging response from his family and friends, Noah determined and built the Ark, as told by the God. And the Ark was built, and Noah survive the flood. What make Noah being so determine on the belief different from everyone, is the vision he saw. The vision that took great mind, leadership, tenacity, perseverance and discipline to success.

In today economy world, many investor are living in the dream world. They worship advises from the poor, they worship Invest for the long term and diversify. They only see the market will only goes up. Most of them are only putting their money in the hand of stranger, hoping he or she will make their money growth, and when they are retire, the money will be there for them. They believe the government should take care of them. Their reality is on the victim hood of all external factors such as luck, parent, friends and environment. If any pitfall happen to their life, they will simply find someone or something else to blame. They are the dependent kind of people. This belief had and will cause the biggest crush of financial market.

Market always moving in cycle, market crush is part of the cycle. Yet, most of us are living in the figment of imagination that everything will be fine - market will always goes up. To survive the financial crush, we need to change our vision. We need to be different, to change despite any external negative feedbacks upon the acting. We need to act like Noah. We need to build our own Ark, the Ark to survive any coming financial crush. Today, we read financial news, we can see trillion dollar of debt currently bare by most powerful nations in the world. The government has no means to push the problem forward anymore. The problems has becoming too big, whereby most the government social program had and will failed to function. The bottom line, we all are on our own.

How to build the Ark? The answer is we need to act as independence and responsible kind of people. Obviously, the Ark size will be differ depend on each individual situation. A poor person's ark will be a leaky boat, which basically, you shall need no effort to build it. Social security, government pension plan such as 401k, EPF, CPF and other perks are often the case. A middle class person's ark will be slightly bigger, perhaps with some additional structure on it, that enable the vessel to float and nothing more. This is where mutual fund, long term and diversify investing theory come into play. They has debt to pay until they die. They are the best client to the rich, and because of them, the rich become richer. For rich person's ark, we need a strong big iron ship that has many cargo holds. The cargo holds is to load assets on it. This is where financial intelligent is so important. Our mind is the greatest asset we ever had. What we learned to becoming a better investor, the skills, the know hows, will never be taken away. These people, invest in themselves, before they invest in the market. These are the few people who driving their own future direction. They know how to control risks. Money or gain is not the issue. They are the breed that continuously learning and focus becoming a better investor, to make them the greatest asset of themselves.

By building your own financial Ark, you be able to archive and dictate your future. You will be more control over your own life. You can do the things you wanted to do. You will be free from the being slave to the money.

No Money Down Deal?

One of the main reason that most people do not invest in real estate is he or she claims to be no money. The first impression for real estate is "expensive". So, how could we invest in real estate without money?

Yes, there are deals out there that is no money down. For example, you can loan to 100% for buying a property at bargain price relative to its market value. Yet, the point that i try to bring out here, it is not the no money problem that is concerned. It is the lack of money management skill that is matter. What make you think that you be able to run the deal, if you could not manage your own budget? What make you think that you can manage the property well financially , if you could manage your own personal financial. Here is why, i personally believe that why bank require down payment for every mortgage you apply. The down payment is kind of justification or prove that you are in the context of well self-managed financially. It is not the deal that make people rich, it is skill on "how to" that make people rich.

The bottom line, if you could not raise up your own initial down payment to invest in real estate, stay out of any investment deal first. Learn to discipline yourself to manage your own financial before starting to invest. If you could not manage yourself well, your self personal management problem will be transferred to any deal you invested in. "Idiot will always an Idiot regardless what he or she invested in!"

Rich Habit: Choose your Friend Carefully

Friends, apart from family members, your relatives and your pets, is the person you spend your times the most with. Friend is a the acronym of "Few Relationship In Earth Never Die". Friends can be sweet dream and nightmare. Friends is like a double edge sword which can cut both side. Friendship is one of the most influential relationship in everyone life.

Choose your friend carefully, is an important habit for those who want to become rich. Who you become often factor by who you hang out with. See the 6 closest persons you spend most of the times with, and you shall see your future. We tend to speak the same language with our friends, or at least has the tendency change our tongue according to our friend. In Sunday school we learn, "The words become Flesh!" Simply, it means what we say become our reality. If we say "I never become rich", that will become your reality. If you say "I ll be rich", that will be true also. It is why hang out with pro dance, you dance better; hang out with pro golfer, we play golf better; hang out with crook; you act like one; hang out with rich, you become richer. They make you spoke and speak the same tongue. Friendship is a relationship that influence each other for better or worse. Friend will tell you this, tell you that, basically what they do is "why don't you do what i do". The problem is when you stick with bunch of poor mindset people, what is the chances you become rich by get used to their language? Remember, the words become flesh! So, choose your friend carefully.

Passion: The Key to Success in Business

Passion is the combination of hate and love. "Love to have you want, and hate if you don't have what you want." Passion come with leadership. A leader who willing to take responsibility higher than anyone in the team for victory. Responsibility come with mission and vision, a mission and vision that is so strong, making victory is the only word in the dictionary to the leader. It is like a law of victory.

When the mission and vision is so strong can create passion to the leader and the team, the leader will take whatever it take to win. There are no second best, only to win. Challenges are not excuses to give up. In history wee can see great leaders apply the law of victory, such as Winston Churchill of great Britain during world war 2, to fight against German. Mother Teresa who advocate the abolishment of poverty. Commander Schwartzkopf who leading the 6th Battalion infantry during Vietnam war. Michael Jordan in the basketball game. Magic Johnson a MVP in basketball league who turn himself into successful entrepreneur. These people practice the law of victory. "Give up" is not in their dictionary. Defeat is unacceptable. They vision only victory. When these leaders could apply themselves to the law of victory, they attract great team people who sharing same mission and vision, thus archive great success.

Often we see a strong team made of strong people, failed, the give up, is because the leader does not practice the law of victory. The leader has no passion in the way or task of the team. Why? Often is because of the Mission and Vision is not strong. When the mission and vision is not strong enough, there is no motivation on the task. The leader and the team will often fell empty, when the mission and vision is not clearly defined, meaningful, and produce great values. There is no sense to archive something. Therefore, people could not focus, distracted, half-hearted. It is no different for most employee in the big corporation. They did what they been told, but do not sure why or even how. They been called a Corporation is because it is a bunch of corpse in operation. Their physically is there, but mentally, they all are checked out. They only surviving the daily routine by sticking to the pay check. These Corporation will eventually die, such as Enron, AIG, Lehmen Brother, GM and so and so.

Long story cut short, the law of victory is by context, making a strong mission and vision to yourself as a leader, that is strong enough to blow out your mind to do whatever it is take to make it success. BE passionate about the goal, be responsible to the victory!

Business and Investment is a Team Sports

In school, we been taught to take exam as individual. If we try to cooperate during examination, that will be cheating. That individualism system taught by current education system has greatly hindered most of our generation people to success in business and investment. People mind is mold to operate in individual in undertaking any task. They perceive cooperation as cheating. They worship individualism and competition. They afraid of sharing information, asking for help or undertaking any manners that might make them look like a "stupid person". The school system has deliver a deadly message to most of the students as if you showing that you don't know, then you are stupid. Taking exam by individual might work in school, but in the real world, real business people cooperate like hell in order to win. In business and investment, there are so many important elements involved such as cash flow, communications, legal, system and product/services. Non of us are expert in all those area. Therefore we need a team, a team that make of people come from various areas of expertise to fill in the slot of business and investments elements mentioned above. The idea is simple, yet, most of us just can't fit that simple idea into our daily life.

One of the best quote I love about professional football coaches is :"regardless you are Roberto Baggio or Eusebio, you can't beat the game against 11 players by your own, It is impossible!". The quote has simply reflected that it take a team to win regardless how capable you are.