To Act is to Live

There is a quote by the WWII General Omar S. Bradley:

"This is as true in everyday life as it is in battle: we are given one life and the decision is ours whether to wait for circumstances to make up our mind, or whether to act and in acting, to live."

If you are waiting for the stars to align... or for the perfect moment to pull the trigger that will initiate change... you will stay stuck.  Decisions are a function of information.  The formula is this: d=(f)i.  What our Community does is educate about a path, then educate about a process.  We do not compare ourselves to others... but pose just one option that hopefully "feels right" to people.  We know we are different.  People recognizing this difference is our basic value proposition.

The quote above speaks to living a life of quiet desperation.  Circumstances will not change unless you do.  I saw this attributed to Bill Gates recently:  "Learn to drop the L."  The notion of change involves a great deal of learning and forming of new habits.  I say this over and over, but it bears repeating... the reason most people fail is that they are not successful in incorporating something new into their lives.

It is the same as a New Year's Resolution.  Major intent.  No follow-through.  Why?  Because integrating new behaviors and shedding old patterns is inherently hard.  For me, it was "Good-bye" to evening TV.  Goodbye evening news.  Goodbye Jeopardy.  Goodbye Big Bang Theory.  So long Rachel Maddow.  "See you when I can afford to watch again".

So what do I do instead?  Well, for one, I am writing this.  I communicate with and support new people.  I post things on Social Media.  During the day, I get out of the house and talk to people... but this is a small slice of what I do simply to provide examples.  What you do may be similar, but the point is that your life (will be/needs to be) inherently different from your former lifestyle.

When you make the decision to join us, you are a Business Owner.  To grow a business takes effort.  This effort involves a commitment of time doing new and different things with your time.

I can't say this enough.  If you want to succeed, you need to wrap your head around and embrace this fundamental shift - that - it is necessary to invest segments of your day differently until they become new habits and lifestyle choices.

It is not easy, or everyone would be doing it.  Being exceptional requires you being the exception.

Time to look in the mirror and ask yourself what you want from your life.  In acting, you live on your own terms.  It is a choice you need to consciously make and vibrantly embrace.

Our Community exists to help you, and support this choice.

Have a Monthly Housing Expense? Then,You Need What We Have,

The title of this article helps us define the working poor.  If you have a mortgage or are paying rent, you are captive to this monthly obligation.  As a result, obviously, you have a job to meet this primary expense.  For most, it goes without saying, that if this expense did not exist there would be a world of possibilities of where to direct this money... whether it be savings, travel, toys, better food choices, giving to charity... how many ways can you think of to use money?

The bottom line here is that (given a choice) most would welcome eliminating their mortgage (or) having their monthly housing expense covered by a predictable stream of monthly income.  This is the goal of our Community.  What we work toward is the creation of residual income that will exist over time.

The glue that holds it together is a commitment to the concept of inter-dependence and people buying into (literally and figuratively) the notion that we can create our own economy by pooling our resources and subscribing to a common set of beliefs, values, knowledge, and actions.

The first (micro) goal is to make your first dollar.  The first (macro) goal is to replace your income and have all of your expenses covered.  If you get to that point, the sky is the limit and you will be in a position to eliminate your eight-hour-a-day commitment.  The corollary to this is that if you equal your conventional income once, there is no reason you will not be able to create generational wealth.

I wrote another article recently about never out-earning your self-concept.  If you can not see yourself as being "free" of your job, the probability is that you never will be.  This has everything to do with mindset being borne of mini-success + mini-success + mini-success equalling a milestone.  Then, milestone + milestone + milestone equalling a transformed life.

Part of this transformed life is having no worries about your monthly housing expense (nor any other bill for that matter).

Get Deep In the Rhythm

This is a lighter post.  Some say you get to know people by the choices they make.  I want to share a video that is one of my favorites... for its groove and sophistication.

"I kicked the habit.  Shed my skin.  This is the new stuff.  I go dancin' in."

This is what our community is all about.  Shed your skin.  A crustacean (a crab, a lobster)... sheds its shell to grow.  Vulnerable for a while - but bigger and stronger as a result.

"You could have a steam train if you just lay down your tracks."

Anyway, I love this performance.  Hopefully, you will too!  Got headphones or earbuds?  Enjoy...

Credit goes to my friend Shirley who introduced me to this singer, Morgan James.

Breaking Free of Needing a Job

There is another post I had written recently talking about an alternative to the job economy.  The majority of people are "wired" to have a job with benefits... and the job paying for a portion of health insurance and matching a portion of your 401K contribution...

This is the reality.   This is the pool of people who are future business partners.  This then begs the question of "how" we are able to transform the circumstances of people - to enable them to start to consider breaking free from "needing" a job.

The bottom line is money, right?  If you have enough money to pay for your living expenses, buy your own health insurance and put chunks of money aside... then you don't need a "job"... or, am I missing something?

A good place to start with all this is understanding the math, both in terms of dollars and people participating in your business.  You need to articulate a number.  What will it take for you to comfortably and confidently be in a position to not fear losing your job?  For me, that number is around $5000 a month.  Roughly, this replaces a $60,000 salary.  This number is different for everyone.

With the business platforms we use, we know exactly what-it-takes (academically) in terms of total numbers of people and the total dollars derived.  What is not spelled out is attrition, loss-of-interest, lack-of-effort, and self-sabotage.  Therefore, this has to be built into the equation.

There is no such thing as people participating equally and/or predictable geometric progression.  This is one fault I find with the primary platform we use.  It is much more honest and useful to describe level advancement in terms of phases, and not assign any time references such as weeks, months or years.  If you describe a path to a million dollars in 6 months, it is theoretical and hypothetical - AND (more importantly) not real or plausible.  It, therefore, detracts from the genuineness of the overall proposition.  But, I digress.  Trust me, there is nothing that is perfect.

The point I am wanting to make here is working backward from a number.  That number is the dollar amount you need.  Typically, for most people, this is the amount that replaces your current income.  The strength of an organization is its ability to attract and retain people who are participating fully, committed to the mission of helping others and who are confident ambassadors of being a part of this worthwhile endeavor that truly is a "way out" for the Working Poor.

Our job is to find, educate and engage people to the extent that they are able to "break free".  If you can find and help (a solid) 40 people in our model, you will be well-on-your-way to replacing your income.

This does not happen on its own, but it is a relatively safe bet if you invest the time, acquire the skills and develop the daily habits to make it happen.

Do Good and Keep it Real

The worst advice I ever received is "fake it until you make it".  Here's the thing.  If you fake honesty, you are lying.  If you fake being genuine, you are being disingenuous.

While our role is to be optimistic and ambassadors of goodwill, please understand that being truthful about who you are, where you have been and where you are in your home business journey is critical to your authenticity.  Ultimately, we help people elevate themselves through enhancing their finances.  This alone has skepticism written all over it.  Most people are jaded and negative.  Some are outright hostile, especially if they have been burnt in the past.

Our goal is to wade through the masses and find the ones who "see it".  Then, when someone shows that they are open and receptive to learning more, the last thing you want to be is a "tail feather fluffer" and appear to be bigger than you really are.

Your genuine self is all-that-you-are.  Your genuine self will evolve.  You will add bits of credibility as-you-go.  Yes, you can lean on "the community" as being a great thing to be a part of.  You can talk about your business associates and the affect you have for them.  You can talk about skills acquisition and what you are learning...  What you don't want to do is posture yourself as someone you are not.  This is foundational.  It is where you build your base of credibility.

Being likable and personable is a great advantage.  There is a common adage in the home business industry is that people join with people they know, like and trust.  This is true for anything.

This is why we "lead" with an About Me page.  It is the first step to being real.  It is being open and setting an expectation of what our values are and how we operate.  If it is too great a challenge for you to write a one page summary of your life and learn the skills to put this online for the world to see, (then) how we function may not be for you.

As you grow, this autobiography becomes a work-in-progress.  It is a part of your toolset that you will continue to refine over time.  It is a look in the mirror at first and then quickly evolves into credible examples of success, how you have helped others and the value you offer without expressly stating it.  Ultimately, it will reflect your character and how you choose to operate in the world.

A related way of saying "Do Good" is Do No Harm.  Generally, we deal with a frustrated and bitter lot who are seeking a better way.  Never give them a reason not to trust you.  This is why we don't lead with "the money".  We lead with the reality of what it takes to earn the money... and this has everything to do with you and everyone you encounter understanding that skills + tools + values + daily habits = the size of your bank account.

If you are missing all of the +'s, you will never get to the =.