By Pat Van Ash

You saved some money during the past years and put it in one or more bank accounts that pay little if any interest. If you want to achieve important financial goals such as owning a home, helping your kids through college or retiring comfortably, with the profits of these interests you may never reach your goals. There is a better way to make extra money, by investing. However, you must know how to invest well.

As a beginning investor, you do better avoid some very common mistakes.

Here are 5 tips you need to know to get started:

1. Knowledge

Can you tell a good investment from a bad one? The world of investing has its own language. If you want to understand this language, you have to spend some time to study it. You need at least a basic financial education. Knowledge is your primary keystone to successful investing.

2. How much you can invest

You cannot invest if you do not have any money. For most people like you and me, who have to work for our money, we have to save it first. You cannot have too much debt either. Pay off your debts first. Then you wait until you have money to spend you can afford not to touch for at least several years. If you are saving to buy a house or a car in the near future, do not use that money to invest. You have to ask yourself can I afford to lose it.

3. You need to know about risk and returns

When you buy stocks, bonds or other investments, you have to know what a reasonable return is. How much risk do you take? It is very important to take small risks in order to protect the money for which you worked so hard.

4. Will you suffer from losses?

In general, people do not like to take losses when they invest their hard-earned savings. This is the reason why they react in a contrary way when the stock markets are turbulent and their portfolio contains losing positions. They sell their winners and hang on to their losing shares. Can you take one or more losses?

5. Diversification

If you want your portfolio to advance, you have to find the right balance between low-volatility and high-volatility assets. As the saying goes, don ‘t put all your eggs in one basket. The intelligent way to do things is asset allocation. It is relatively unexciting, but in the long term gives you better results.

Good investment is boring, but it is fun if you take only a small percentage of your portfolio and go for some exciting trading. Always keep the other percentage of your portfolio broadly allocated over low risk assets.

About the Author

Pat van Ash is an investor and trader with over 15 years of experience.
If you really love the excitement of the markets, there is a way to invest short term to make extra money. If you want to find out how, then simply visit http://start-to-invest.info.
If you understand and are comfortable with the risks and take sensible steps to diversify you are on your way to building wealth. Diversification is the key to your success as an investor.

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A Millionaire Mindset

By Kevin J Houston

Millionaire – an individual whose net worth or wealth exceeds one million units of currency. It can also be a person who owns one million units of currency in a bank account or savings account. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire, which makes that amount of wealth a goal for some, and almost unattainable for others. – From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mindset – A fixed mental attitude or disposition that predetermines a person’s responses to and interpretations of situations.

How do you see yourself financially? What is your attitude about your current financial situation?

Let me point out one important thing before I begin talking about the millionaire mindset. Millionaires are raised and taught to be that way; they are not just born with that state of mind. Yes, a person can be born into millions but that does not necessarily make them have a millionaire mindset. As we have seen around us many times, there have been people born into poverty that have learn the way of millionaires to change their current financial situation. They did not focus on their current state of living but they envisioned where they wanted to be and begin working toward that goal.

As I have said before in some of my other writings; ” Your attitude determines your altitude .” If you think of yourself as defeated, a loser and that you will never amount to nothing more that you are now; then you never will. If you see yourself as successful, a winner, accomplishing much in life; then you can and will. You must think about and fix your frame of mind on where you want to be and not where you are currently. If you are down and out in life now, you should begin focusing on moving upward and out of your current negative financial condition you are in. You do not have to stay in your current situation any longer. Success, wealth and a healthy lifestyle is within your reach.

Having a millionaire mindset is where becoming a millionaire begins. You do get millions first and then start thinking like a millionaire. You have to read in millions, think in millions, act like a million and dream in millions to have a millionaire mindset. You have to begin training like a millionaire to have a millionaire lifestyle. It just like anything else you have to train first to be successful at what you want to succeed at. You also have to surround yourself with people who understand and respect the millionaire mindset. It just like an athlete, everybody may not want to be an Olympic gold medalist, NBA all star or NFL top pick but they do encourage and support those who do want to. So it should be the same for you in your training to become a millionaire, people should encourage and support you as well. They should understand and respect you in your training to be a millionaire. You should know that it is your responsibility to gain that respect which you deserve in your pursuit for make millions.

Now that you understand that millionaires are developed and trained to be that way. You now have the key to unlock the secrets to have a millionaire mindset. So begin training like a millionaire, doing the things it will take for you to achieve the lifestyle you want and deserve. Do remember this, just like athletes you have to training long and hard to be successful. Success is not just luck; success comes from your hard work and is attained through your visions and well planned out goals you have set for yourself. The millionaire mindset is what separated the wealth from the not so wealth people in life. Millionaires work hard to not only get their million but also to maintain their millions.

So if a millionaire lifestyle is what you wanted, start training today. Begin reading what millionaires read, watching what millionaires watch and learning what millionaires did to become the millionaires they are. You must have this millionaire mindset if you wanted to be a millionaire also.

Kevin J Houston

“Motivating and Encouraging People For Life”

http://www.kevinjhouston.com

Blog: http://www.kevinjhouston.com/weblog

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What is the Best Investment Strategy?

By James Leitz

At first glance the best investment strategy in late 2007 was to sell every stock investment you held; and the best strategy in early 2009 was to put 100% of your investment portfolio into stocks. The result would have been no investment losses in 2008 and big profits in 2009 and early 2010. Your odds of doing this without a crystal ball were about zero. But with a simple and sound investment strategy you can make the best of any market situation.

The best investment strategy is not a formula that tells you when to dump one investment asset and when to buy and hold another on a short term basis. Trying to time the markets is speculation and beyond the scope of sensible investing for the average investor. What you need is a longer-term sound plan that only requires minor adjustments over time. Let’s look at the key elements to putting together your best investment strategy for long term profits with less risk.

You must take risk into consideration when judging the results of, or putting together any investment strategy. Our crystal ball scenario went from an asset allocation of zero for stock investment to 100%. Not only is this strategy very risky, it is also short-sighted. It begs the question: what do you do in 2010 and beyond? When do you cut your stock investment and run, and where do you go next? Overstay your welcome and your stock investment profits could evaporate in a few months, because the truth of the matter is that you have no long term investment strategy at all.

As an average investor, taking risk without a plan is not the way to play the investment game. It’s your money and it’s important to you. View putting together your best investment strategy like this: you want to earn in the neighborhood of 10% a year over the long term taking only a moderate amount of risk. This means that you will likely never make 50% or more in a year because you have no crystal ball. It also means that you have a real good chance of avoiding big losses that can upset your future financial plans (like a secure retirement) as well.

Every good investment strategy focuses on asset allocation. This means that you allocate your money by diversifying and spreading it across all four, or at least three of the asset classes. Starting with the safest these are: cash equivalents, bonds, stocks, and perhaps other investments called alternative investments (like real estate, foreign or international securities, and gold). The simplest and best way for you to do this is through mutual funds that invest in each of these areas: money market, bond, stock, and specialty funds, respectively.

For example, if you want relatively low risk and simplicity you might allocate 1/3 each to a money market fund, a bond fund, and a stock fund. At the beginning of each year you review your investment portfolio to make sure your asset allocation is on track. If, for example, your stock investment has grown from 33% to 40% of your to total investment value, move money from your stock fund to the other two to make them all equal again. By doing this you are taking money off the table from your riskier stock investment when the market gets pricey, and adding money to stocks when prices are lower. In this way you have lower risk, no need for a crystal ball, and you know exactly what you are going to do each and every new year.

If you feel the need to keep it simple, do so as in our example above. If you want to take the best investment strategy to the next level include international stock funds and specialty equity funds like real estate and gold funds. The added advantage here is that in the past these alternative investments have proven to have the potential to offset losses when stock prices in general are falling. In short, they offer even more diversification to your asset allocation.

About the Author

A retired financial planner, James Leitz has an MBA (finance) and 35 years of investing experience. For 20 years he advised individual investors, working directly with them helping them to reach their financial goals.

Jim is the author of a complete investor guide, Invest Informed, designed for average investors or would-be investors of all levels of financial background and experience. To learn more about investments and investing and his new financial guide go to http://www.investinformed.com.

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The most common question that people ask about getting rich is, ‘What is the best career or business that will make me the most money?’

Should I go into education? Food? Insurance? Network marketing? Heathcare? Options trading? Property? What’s the best industry to be in right now?

Well, you will find that in ANY industry, there will be a minority who will be making plenty of money, while the majority will be struggling to survive.

So my answer to that question is that you can become a millionaire in ANY INDUSTRY, only if you are one of the best! If you are not one of the best, you will never become rich in ANY industry.

You CAN become a millionaire in insurance, property, options trading, children’s education, pest-control, retail, food or Internet marketing ONLY when you are one of the best.

So, how do you become the best in the market? The answer is by being totally, absolutely one hundred percent committed towards your particular career or business.

All successful individuals have one thing in common. They love what they do. And because they have such an intense passion for their particular career or business, they do not distinguish work from play.

Their work is their play and vice versa. As a result, they spend every single day and every waking hour working (to them it’s not work), and that is why they become so good at it that they become market leaders and experts.

Have you ever wondered why Bill Gates, the richest man in the world who is worth US$46 billion still works 18-hour days, every single day? Why doesn’t he just sit back and relax on the beach?

The reason is because like all millionaires, what drives him is never really the money per se; it is the love of being at the forefront of technology. It was his obsession of ‘putting a computer in every home running Microsoft software’ that made him the best in the field. Many people have the belief that millionaires are people who are just naturally more motivated, disciplined and focused. The truth is that when anyone does something he or she loves, the motivation, focus and discipline always comes naturally.

If you find that you lack the motivation and discipline to become successful in what you do, the reason is very obvious. It is not your passion!

Think about it. Do you have a natural passion for something? Do you have a hobby? Like playing golf? Looking at beautiful women or men? Computer games? Football? Playing with children? Haven’t you noticed that whenever you are doing what you love, the energy never stops?

It’s like no matter how tired you are, you will always find the energy to do what you love. Well, this is the secret that will lead to your success and wealth!

You have to find something you are extremely passionate about and build your career or business around it!

When you do, you will find that you will be naturally focused, committed and energized to work at it. When you give your best to whatever you are crazy about, you will become the best!

So start asking yourself: ‘What do I love to do?’ ‘What would I do even if I didn’t get paid?’ ‘If I had all the money in the world, how would I spend my time?’ ‘Who are people who have made their fortunes around this passion I have?’

I guarantee you that when you start looking for them, you will find no lack of role models you can learn from. Remember, do what you love and you will never work another day in your life!

Source: http://www.articlecircle.com

About the Author

Adam Khoo is an entrepreneur, best-selling author and a self-made millionaire by the age of 26. Discover his million dollar secrets and claim your FREE audio CD program ‘7 Steps To Financial Freedom’ at http://www.thewaytomakemoney.com

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By Jim Estill

I was inspired to write this article when I read Keith Cameron Smith’s Book “The 10 Distinctions Between Millionaires and the Middle Class”. The book resonated with my ideas so well that I almost could’ve written the book. I have taken some of his ideas, meshed it with my own to create this short article on How To Become a Millionaire.

Image: Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

1. Millionaires think long-term. I’ve long believed that the difference between successful people and unsuccessful people has to do with the ability for delayed gratification. If you think about those people in society whom are respected and successful – they often have a lot of education, which means they delayed making money and worked hard; they delayed gratification. This is also true of great sports figures or Olympic athletes, they spend hours working out and practicing their craft instead of sitting in front of the television.

2. Embrace change. We all wish for the good old days, but the fact is the good old days will never happen again, change is opportunity. Accept it, prepare for it, study for it and you will thrive.

It’s not survival of the fittest, it’s survival of the most adaptable and our world changes rapidly, the more we can adapt, the better we can do.

3. Be a constant learner. I’ve even gone so far as to not have a television. Instead I read, I believe it feeds my mind more. I believe in being a constant learner, I ask myself everyday before I go to bed “what did I learn today?”.

I also choose topics I feel I need to know more about and I study them. That’s the habit of Millionaires.

4. Ask empowering questions. In most cases, empowering questions are how. How can I do this or how can I do that, as opposed to why. If you ask why, you often get the reason and it reinforces an unsuccessful loop.

Asking a big how question also inspires greater action than a small how question. How can you increase sales by 6% comes back with almost no changes to doing things the same way. How can you increase sales 50% creates a change that you’ll need to do something dramatically different.

5. Be frugal. Now I don’t mean cheap – I mean frugal. Frugal is about getting good value for money, so I’m often willing to spend a higher price if I feel the value I’m receiving is better value.

6. Start now. I’ve found that life is much easier for me because I started hard and worked hard from a very young age. That created a momentum effect that has now made my life much easier.

7. Be grateful. I’m a big believer in having an attitude of gratitude. I know I lead a charmed life and I appreciate everything in life.

8. Be giving. To not be generous with both time and money creates the lack of abundance and a fear there is limited resources. Being generous creates the opposite effect.

For myself, the toughest one is time, since I am a time management guy and my time is so valuable.

9. Study time management. I’m a big believer that most of my success has to do with using my time well, which is largely having proper goals, knowing what needs to be done and then setting my priorities.

Although the title of this article is ‘How to Be a Millionaire’ and many people aspire to that, money in itself is a hollow goal. Money is a byproduct of doing something that I love and getting fully involved and immersed in it.

Jim Estill is a highly successful CEO of Billion dollar businesses.

To learn more about his successful business strategies and time management, visit his blog at http://www.jimestill.com.

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By Chris Pine

Every year, Forbes magazine releases their list of the richest people in the world. This year, Forbes sent a team of workers to carefully analyze the files of more than 1,000 billionaires. This list is a snapshot of the world’s richest men as of February 12, 2010. Because of the volatility of the stock market, this list can change quite frequently, and may already be out of date.

Without further delay, here are the world’s top 10 richest men as of Feb 12, 2010:

10. Karl Albrecht ($23.5 Billion)

This German visionary entrepreneur founded the discount supermarket chain Aldi with his brother Theo. Albrecht is the richest man in his country and the tenth richest man in the world. Even though he made $2 billion dollars in 2009, he fell from his #6 position of last year.

Spanish Fashion Designer Amancio Ortega

9. Amancio Ortega ($25 Billion)

Ortega is a Spanish fashion designer who has appeared on the top 10 list for a few years running. Last year he was #10, so this represents a slight improvement. He co-founded Inditex Group, and he has lately been busy exporting his Zara stores all over the world.

8. Eike Batista ($27 Billion)

The richest man in Brazil was #61 last year with a net-worth of $7.5 Billion. What a difference a year makes! This college dropout has made his fortune mining iron-ore.

7. Bernard Arnault ($27.5 Billion)

Arnault holds his #7 position from 2009. This French business man owns the world’s largest luxury goods empire. Perhaps you’ve heard of some of his brands like Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior.

6. Lawrence Ellison ($28 Billion)

This American is the founder of Oracle. Even though he is 5.5 billion dollars richer than last year, he slips from the #4 to the #6 position.

Mukesh Ambani

5. Lakshmi Mittal ($28.7 Billion)

Originally from India, Mittal inherited his fortune from his family. That doesn’t mean he’s content to spend it away. He’s been growing it at a rapid pace in the steel industry. He jumps from the 8th spot to claim #5.

4. Mukesh Ambani ($29 Billion)

Ambani is another Indian who has been diligently growing his inherited fortune, this time in the petrochemical industry. He increased his fortune by almost $10 billion in 2009, catapulting him from #7 to #4.

Bill Gates - Now the 2nd Richest Person in the World

3. Warren Buffett ($47 Billion)

Even though he dropped from his #2 position of last year, Buffett gained $10 billion dollars in 2009. He made some pretty big bets on General Electric and Goldman Sachs. As he told his investors: “When it’s raining gold, reach for a bucket, not a thimble.”

2. Bill Gates ($53 Billion)

Gates has held the #1 spot for 14 of the last 15 years (he briefly lost the position in 2008), but this year he drops to #2 despite increasing his fortune by nearly $13 billion in 2009. This was mostly due to his massive stake in Microsoft, whose stock rose more than 50%.

1. Carlos Slim Helu ($53.5 Billion)

The Mexican telecom investor gained a massive $18.5 billion in 2009 to barely edge out Bill Gates and to become the richest man on the planet. This was largely due to America Movil’s great year, in which Carlos holds a 23 billon dollar stake.

Carlos Slim Helu - The Richest Person in the World 2010

The 2010 list had quite a few surprises. Bill Gates lost his normally secure #1 position, and Eike Batista came out of nowhere to make a solid #8 showing. What’s in store for next year? Only time will tell, but you might want to keep your eye on Warren Buffett, the richest man in 2008, whose investments from last year still haven’t fully matured. Think you’ve got what it takes to make the list one day? Throw everything you know in the kitchen trash can and come see my free top 10 stocks of 2010.

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8 Simple Steps To Manifest Money Fast – as in NOW

By Jeanna Gabellini

Let me start off by acknowledging that I have been flat broke before. Not just once or twice. I have had those times where I was completely stressed about how I was going to pay for the bills sitting in my payables files that were due two days ago (in some cases very past due!) I have also had times where I’ve had more than enough money to pay all my bills and buy boats, cars and take big vacations.

I have had both of the experiences above in a matter of weeks. I tell you all this so that I can give you some back ground about myself and that you know I’m not going to be talking in theory. I’m going to explain, very simply, what I’ve done to get back into alignment with creating more than enough money and how to go beyond my current level of wealth.

1. Draw a line in the sand. Make a choice. From this moment forward you will attract more money and create a structure and habits that support a new and improved level of wealth. You have to mean this. You need to be hungry for change.

2. You must believe you can do this. Even if you are scared that this time won’t be different from the other times, you have made this choice. You will take some actions now that will not allow you to slip out the backdoor on yourself. Take a little bit of effort now to support yourself in the bigger goal.

3. What is it exactly that you want to be different? If you want more money to come in the door, how much and how often? Do you want an extra $10,000 this year or every month? Do you want your business to gross an extra million or net an extra million? When? This month? This year? By next year’s end? You have to choose or it becomes one of those “someday” goals (aka a “wish!)

If, an amount feels way to out of reach, then make it smaller. If the amount you have chosen feels too small and you’ll still be wishing you had more money, than make it bigger. Most importantly, whatever amount of money you are choosing to have, mean what you say. This is so simple, but this is where most people fall down and the rest their efforts don’t yield successful results.

And one more thing, it’s nobody else’s business what numbers you choose. Some people might judge your numbers as being too small or big based on their own life. As long as you feel solid about your choice and you’re not wimping out on yourself, go with it!

4. How will you spend the money? Again, this is your money and you need to be emotionally connected to it. Where is it going to go? If you are going to pay debt off, make a plan for how you will do it and then decide where the money will go once the debt is paid off. Now you have the beginnings of a plan. That was easy, huh?! If you’re going to save money, how much and to where? You may have to do a little thinking and research to complete this step. If you want to expand your business with some of this extra cash, it may take you some extra planning, but you will be very excited. This excitement will help move you toward success.

5. Now, clarify and write down how this is going to feel once accomplished. I know to some of you this step will sound like a waste of your time. Do not skip this step. You want to make this goal so real in your mind and heart that you run, not walk, to more wealth. This step is crucial in both strategy and the Law of Attraction.

6. Create exact actions and habits that you will implement starting today to support this goal of more wealth. You may only need to take a few actions. This is not rocket science. For some of you, it may simply be a matter of creating accountability. You already know what to do. For some of you, it may be about creating an entire new relationship with money. I know a few of you need to quit your job or get rid of or add new team members. Yes, you may dread a couple of things on your list, but will you be happy once you do it? If the answer is yes, keep it on your list. Break down big actions into small steps so they’re digestible.

7. Inspired action. Many of you have heard this a million times but you’re still not practicing it. Are you taking actions that feel good? Are they someone else’s “should’s” or are they truly something you have chosen to do. Your intuition is talking to you. Are you listening?

8. Bring in the big guns. Who is going to support you? Are you committed enough to see this goal through? Will you trust that you will succeed even when you don’t think there are any signs of improvement over a long period of time? Who is going to assist you in a way that truly works for you? Consistency is key.

If you really want to have more cash in your bank account and wallet, then print this out and follow the steps in the next 24 hours. This entire process may take as little as an hour or two.

Steven Callahan was lost at sea in a small raft for seventy-six days. His boat had sunk west of the Canary Islands. He was able to write his book, Adrift, only because he was committed to getting back home. It wasn’t a matter of “if” he got home, he always thought about what he was going to do “when” he got home. Every action he took to keep himself alive was inspired from the passion he felt about getting home. He always found a way to eat, drink and keep his body working from his belief that he could survive at sea alone. And that he did!

How passionate are you about being wealthy? Get yourself into the same frame of mind as Steven. It’s not a matter of “if” you will be more prosperous, but “when.” I vote on choosing it for yourself now.

Jeanna Gabellini is the Xtreme Abundance Coach. She’ll give you all the tools you need to create financial wealth and prosperity with her personal coaching, tele-courses and audio products. Jeanna blends strategy, Laws of attraction and FUN to assist you in creating exactly what you want. Are you ready for Extreme Abundance? Go to www.MasterPeaceCoaching.com to get your free ezine or call 707-747-0447 for more info.

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Millionaire Income or Lifestyle? – Think Carefully Before You Answer!

By: Frank Saffoori, MBA

“Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?!” That’s the simple question Regis Philbin would ask at the start of every episode of the game show (he’s now moved on to his other millionaire ventures). The show quickly became a smash hit from its origin in the UK to the US and instantly around the world. Why?

“Generate Insane Profits on Auto-Pilot & Become an Instant Millionaire While You Sleep!” If you’ve conducted any online research looking for home business opportunities, you’ve likely found yourself on dozens of web sites screaming outrageous promises to you of overnight riches and millionaire status. How come?

Because there is a common bond among the vast majority of people that is the “American Dream.” This dream has one very simple and consistent component: the relentless pursuit of money. It is this pursuit of riches that makes you want to live in a nice house, with multiple luxury cars, and expensive toys.

This Is Unbelievable! Quick Fact from My Quick and Dirty Google Search

First, before I share my findings with you, let me ask you this: If you have a choice (which you absolutely do) of being a millionaire or a billionaire, which would you choose to be?

So here’s what I just did as I was writing this article. I ran two searches. One for the term “millionaire” and one for the term “billionaire.” I found it mind boggling that there were roughly 6.76 million search results for “billionaire” compared to a whopping 16 million results for “millionaire!” But after taking a moment to think about why such a discrepancy exists, it all makes sense.

First, there are many more millionaires in the world than there are billionaires. According to Forbes Magazine, as of March 2007, there are 946 billionaires in the world with 178 of them being newcomers. (I did the math for you: the world now has 23% more billionaires than it did a year ago!) And this compares to the 9.5 million millionaires in the world (Merrill Lynch & Cap Gemini, The 2007 Wealth Report).

The second reason this discrepancy makes sense is that there were millionaires in the world way before billionaires existed. Back when having a $100,000 net worth was considered filthy rich, there were very few millionaires relative to today’s numbers. For example, in 1900, there were fewer than 5,000 millionaires in the US. Not until inflation and world economic productivity grew to a certain level did we have our first billionaire (John D. Rockefeller became the world’s first billionaire in 1916).

Third, it’s getting easier and easier to become a millionaire these days. Inflation plays a key role in this. As prices go up, and household income levels go up, it follows that making a million dollars isn’t as big of a milestone as it was a hundred years ago. But don’t get me wrong, making my first million is probably the most exciting thing to happen in my life!

So let’s get back to the question at hand: is it the millionaire income or is it the lifestyle that you’re really after? Well, that’s entirely based on where you are at this point in your life, where your mindset is, and what you still feel like you haven’t yet accomplished. The answer likely surfaces when you ask yourself this question a few times and take the time to write down what it really is that being a millionaire means to you. How will being a millionaire benefit you, make you happy, and relieve all stress and worries?

Take this simple exercise and let’s get to the root of it right now. Take 60 seconds to jot down all the ways you would complete this sentence:

“Aah, if I had a million dollars I would…”

Time yourself. Go ahead, I’ll still be here. 60 seconds might seem like not enough time, but just do it right now and I’ll explain to you why in a minute.

Okay, if you have your list, then it’s probably short and sweet and primarily comprised of the most important things that you want. And that’s precisely why you only had 60 seconds – to make sure you didn’t go off naming every make and model of every car you want in your driveway! Now you have a list of those things you consider to be of highest priority.

What you want to do next is, beside every item on your list, put a “$” symbol if that item represents something that requires money and a “*” next to the items that don’t. For example, if you wrote “pay off debt,” that gets a “$” since you need money to pay off your mortgage, credit card debt, etc. If you wrote something like “spend more time with kids,” that gets a “*” because you don’t need to write a check to do that.

If you wind up with more $ signs than * symbols, then what you’re probably after at this point in time is the millionaire income. If you have more * on your list, then you’re more likely in pursuit of the millionaire lifestyle. This is a quick, simple exercise to get you thinking about what you really want, income or lifestyle. You might find that you are balanced and you want a little bit of both. And your mindset will change over time as you get closer to achieving millionaire status, and perhaps decamillionaire status!

You might try this exercise in 12 months and realize that your answers have changed significantly. If they change, analyze the reasons why and make sure that you fell comfortable with those reasons. If they haven’t change in a year, you should ask yourself why. There’s a good chance you haven’t taken any steps toward achieving the goals essential to becoming a millionaire.

Final Thought

If you’ve ever thought to yourself, “I will never be a millionaire,” then it’s true. The mind is a powerful thing, and your thoughts are what make or break your reality. If you share the American Dream, then take the time to understand what it is that you’re really seeking and why. Then, and only then, will you be in full control of your destiny.

See you at the top!

© Copyright Frank Saffoori.

About the Author

Frank Saffoori is an award-winning marketer, CEO of his own home business, and coach to 100’s of elite entrepreneurs. With an MBA and 10+ years of climbing corporate ladders, Frank moved on to pursue his dream of working smarter to achieve true time and financial freedom.

Space is very, very limited for Elite Entrepreneurs.

(ArticlesBase SC #198578)

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – Millionaire Income or Lifestyle? – Think Carefully Before You Answer!

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What keeps most people from becoming rich is the habit of wanting instant gratification.

Instant gratification is the habit of always wanting to enjoy now and not having the patience to wait for future benefits. As a result, these people spend a lot more than they invest. By spending on that new car, new widescreen television set or designer watch they get instant gratification. When it comes to investing in books, seminars, stocks or insurance products, they will think twice as they have to wait for future benefits. It is precisely for this reason that whatever money comes into their hands will soon be frittered away and not multiplied.

People who want instant gratification will always look for quick and easy ways of making money rather than building a sustainable business that adds value to (repeat) customers.

They tend to cut corners on quality and deliver shoddy products to save money and boost short term profits. As a result, their profits rarely last and they will soon go out of business.

At the same time, those who desire instant gratification lack the patience to allow their money to grow and compound through investing. When they don’t see huge sums of money in a few weeks, they abandon their investments and never get to reap the benefits. They have no patience to wait for the seeds they sow to grow into huge money trees that bear fruit. On the other hand, all millionaires adopt the habit of ‘delayed gratification.’ They have the patience to wait for greater abundance in the future. Whether in business or in investments, you must have delayed gratification in order to create massive wealth.

People with delayed gratification invest a lot more than they spend. Again, they know that by spending a dollar, they may feel good for an instant, but their future wealth will be destroyed.

When it comes to spending money, they are extremely frugal. However when it comes to investing, they do not think twice about writing a check for a few thousands dollars.

They know that through patience, that money will multiply into a future fortune. Millionaires never take shortcuts in business. They look at always giving the best value to their customers, even if it means earning less at present. They know that by building their reputation, it will lead to huge profit streams in the future. So, develop the habit of delayed gratification and spend wisely and you will see your money multiply.

Source: http://www.articlecircle.com

About the Author

Adam Khoo is an entrepreneur, best-selling author and a self-made millionaire by the age of 26. Discover his million dollar secrets and claim your FREE audio CD program ‘7 Steps To Financial Freedom’ at http://www.thewaytomakemoney.com

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Wealth habit number three is the habit of taking responsibility for your results and wealth! Unfortunately most people choose to adopt the victim’s mindset of giving excuses, blaming and complaining.

Remember when you give excuses to yourself (i.e. no time, no luck, no capital, no experience etc) or blame others for your lack of wealth, then you are putting others and external events in control of your life! When you are not in control, you do not have the power to change your circumstances.

When you ask victims why they are not rich yet they will say something like, ‘my boss won’t give me a raise’, ‘I don’t get any opportunities’, ‘my big family prevents me from saving money’, ‘the stock market caused me to lose everything’.

And instead of finding a way to improve and change, victims spend their time complaining but don’t do anything about it.

The trouble is that when you give yourself excuses, blame others and whine, it means that someone else or something else is controlling your life and your (lack of) wealth.

Since you believe that it is not your fault, then you are powerless to change it. If you have a victim’s mindset and hold doggedly onto the belief that external forces are controlling your wealth, then any strategies you learn will be of no use!

Most people go through life with the Victim’s mindset and this prevents them from ever changing their financial situation.

When they don’t get the results they want, victims tend to give themselves lots of excuses like ‘I’m just unlucky’, ‘I have no experience’, ‘I’m too old to earn more’, ‘I’m too young to be rich’, ‘I have no capital’, ‘I was born poor’ or ‘I’m not a creative person’.

The reason all these are lousy excuses is because we know that there are many examples of people who have created wealth for themselves, despite all these perceived disadvantages.

Instead, millionaires take 100% responsibility for their wealth. They believe that they alone create their wealth through their strategies and actions.

As a result, they know that they have the power to change their wealth by changing their strategies and actions.

They understand that they can create the sort of life that they want because they are willing to take the responsibility for the success and results in their life

It is only when you live by this habit will you have the power to exponentially multiply your income and wealth.

Source: http://www.articlecircle.com

About the Author

Adam Khoo is an entrepreneur, best-selling author and a self-made millionaire by the age of 26. Discover his million dollar secrets and claim your FREE audio CD program ‘7 Steps To Financial Freedom’ at http://www.thewaytomakemoney.com

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