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[lisam111]

The wealthy and successful think differently than the masses.   It’s really quite cut and dry.   They have already created millions; it’s part of their everyday life.   There are no belief issues… the proof is in their bank accounts, investments, and assets.   You see it in the clothes they wear, the cars they drive, and the vacations they take.   There is a confidence about them and they are able to sleep at night, knowing that their affairs are in order (not to say wealth eliminates all problems, but it provides opportunity).

So, you may ask the question of how does one think and operate as the person who has already attained wealth, when they are still broke?

To reach the goal of thinking as a wealthy and successful entrepreneur, and finding your financial thermostat you MUST understand the following:

* You will never outperform your self-image.
* You cannot earn more than you believe you are worth.
* You will settle for exactly as much as YOU think you are worth.
* You are the only one that can determine what you are worth.

At this stage, many people ask, what does this mean?  How do I know where my financial thermostat is set right now?

To attain the mindset of the wealthy, in a nutshell, you MUST do the following (and of course this can be expanded on, but then my post would be longer than it already is):

* STOP listening to your broke family and friends.   Consider the next time these people try to dissuade you from becoming an entrepreneur.   Chances are that they don’t have the results you want!
* Consider hanging out with others who mastermind the idea of wealth creation.
* Set your financial thermostat where it is uncomfortable, and keep it there until it is comfortable.   At that point, move it to a new level of discomfort.   For example, never let yourself accept $50K per year if you think you are worth $50K per month.
* Shorten your learning curb by doing things that contribute to your relentless pursuit of growth and development as a maketer, leader, mentor, guide and coach.   These things could include books, CD’s, training, coaching and conferences.
* Do self empowering exercises like making a decision to quit your job in 30 days…all successful people take action, especially when it is uncomfortable.   So see if you feel a bit apprehensive about writing that resignation letter.   Write it and date it for 30 days from today.   Then place a stamp on an envelope and address the envelope to your employer.   Place the envelope in a place that can be seen many times per day.

It is the decision to take action that puts the wheels in motion.   The true test will be if you actually believe in yourself.   Here is the most important part of your decision to take action…EXPECT IT TO HAPPEN.   Plan on it; tell yourself repeatedly that you are in the process of attaining this goal.   You are one step closer to the net worth you deserve.

What if…the things that you think are “to good to be true”, could actually happen.   Crazy unrealistic things.   Things that you dare not even say out loud, because you are afraid people might laugh.   Pick a crazy obnoxious dream that could never happen, but yet it could happen.   Write it down and then EXPECT IT TO HAPPEN.   Still have your doubts?  Ask Walt Disney, Bill Gates, Elvis Presley, or any Astronaut.   Plan Big and EXPECT IT TO HAPPEN.

Lets look at Donald Trump as a great example of how different his mindset is.   Late night talk show host, David Letterman interviewed Donald Trump in June 2006 on his show.   Letterman asked “The Donald” what he would do if he lost everything and had to start over from scratch.   Trump’s response was that he would find a great network marketing company and get to work.   When he received some hisses and boos from the audience, he looked out at them with complete and total authority and responded, “That’s why I’m sitting down here and you are all sitting out there. ”

[profitclinic]

Excellent advice, Lisa 

I always taught my kids a couple of things — not related necessarily to business — when they were growing up:

• Expect it to happen — the key to success is self-knowledge, and the key to self-knowledge is the Leap of Faith. But do the necessary preparation to help ensure that it will happen.

• Let go! — learn to let go of your dependencies, especially your fears. Don't tie your perceptions of yourself and your success to anything but rock-solid, desirable principles, values and standards.

Ironically, the real difference between the two is expectations!

The first is about having expectations, while the second is about having no expectations. But that's neither a conundrum nor a paradox. It all depends on WHAT you expect and WHY.

So the REAL secret is learning to tell the difference between expectations that are positive and worthwhile and expectations that are negative and worthless.

Good stuff — thanks!

John

[BradYounger]

Thanks Lisa (and John)

They say things will come when you are ready and in need for them and boy did I need that little reminder today. I have been loosely going about creating product, gearing up for launch of a membership site and trying to learn about all the different aspects of launching a site.

After having many negative thoughts this morning I found myself thinking "why am I doing this again" and it was at that moment I happened across your post. That reminded me to revisit my plans for leaving my J.O.B. and what it would take to do that.

I love the idea about the resignation letter. I'm going to write one out now. It will be backdated to the end of October but that is because that is when I have always planned on making the cut. I know I need to jump to it now to put in place every thing I need to achieve what I want.

Again thanks for the reminder and what a fantastic post.

Cheers
Brad

[lisam111]

It's my pleasure!  I'm so touched to know that I have inspired others.    I will post again soon.   Feel free to keep me updated on your journey.   This is so cool!

[Spider]

Great post, Lisa!  I am particularly fascinated by how money affects different people differently. It is so true that less wealthy people think differently and I believe just a change in the way of thinking is all that is necessary to solve most people's money problems.

You said, "...You see it in the clothes they wear..." (amongst other things.) I think it's not so much the clothes they wear as the way they wear their clothes. It's not the possessions, it's the way they handle their possessions. A rich person and a poor person could own the exact same item and you would still be able to identify who was who.

What you think about, you talk about: and what you talk about, you bring about.

And while we are on cute phrases, I like your, You will never outperform your self-image. I might have to steal that one!

[Michael Mayhew]

There's an excellent book by T. Harv Ecker called
"Secrets of The Millionaire Mind".

Highly recommend it.

[Spider]

So the REAL secret is learning to tell the difference between expectations that are positive and worthwhile and expectations that are negative and worthless...

I think you have made a good point, John. So many pontificators of success state this latter (negative expectations) as fear. I have listened and read a great deal about motivation, inspiration, and success techniques, and this subject of fear comes up time and again.

Sure, I expect some people experience fear of failing and fear of success and fear of being attacked at night and so on, but my experience has been that any talk of fear misses the point for most people. Most people simply aren't actually afraid. But they do have negative expectations.

Now that I am reminded of this, I shall attempt to modify my speech patterns - it's not fear; it's negative expectations.

[profitclinic]

Spider,

I think you might be mistaking effect for cause here.

The fact is that any negative, undesirable emotional response is a manifestation of fear.

Part of the problem is our inability to define cause-and-effect relationships: WHY it happens.

Instead, we tend to describe WHAT happens and HOW it makes us feel.

The reason is simple enough: cause-and-effect is a process that's usually hidden behind some kind of barrier... physical properties, distance, time, limited access to decision-making, etc.

The effects are what we experience — perceived through our physical senses (sight, sound, touch, taste and smell).

The incoming signal is then passed to the mind for analysis — but has to pass through an emotional filter or lens created by past experience, formal education, social and cultural influences including upbringing and religious beliefs, prejudices and other acquired emotional layers.

Hopefully, we're objective enough to recognise the risk of distortion posed by this emotional filter/lens and allow the  signal to pass through to the rational control centre (the mind) for final analysis and determination of an objective response — usually by, first, seeking the most accurate perspective on the situation by seeking more information. This knowledge (rational response) shapes our attitude (emotional response) and our behaviour (physical response).

That's the ideal, where we're in control of our own perception and response and the outcome is aligned with our principles, values and standards. The direction of flow in everything we do is outward...

When the inner control circle (mind) is dormant, ineffective or missing from the cause-and-effect process that determines our own responses (our motives, attitudes and behaviour), the flow is reversed.

The most powerful gravitational force known to science is a black hole. It sucks everything in... even light.

In terms of human behaviour, when there's a black hole at the core, everything flows inward...

So everything that reflects this phenomenon is a manifestation of FEAR OF LOSS — either losing what we already have, or missing out on what we don't have.

We have plenty of descriptions for these manifestations, including...

• Selfishness

• Greed

• Envy

• Resentment

• Anger

• Malice

• Pride

• Vanity

• Ridicule

• Bullying

... and the list goes on and on.

The Bottom Line: they're ALL manifestations of FEAR.

Unfortunately, the reality is that our perceptions are too often hijacked by our emotional filters/lenses and pass right around the rational control centre (the mind), delivering a response that's purely emotional, based on nothing more than past experiences, beliefs, opinions, acquired "values" (prejudices, indoctrination, etc) and fears.

When this happens, we're not in control of our own responses. REAL control is being imposed on us by whatever we're reacting to so emotionally!

Example: You see a HUGE man savagely beating a small boy. What should your response be?

Apart from the initial need to protect the boy from the aggressor's wrath, before rushing to judgment we should first pull back and get the facts, instead of simply reacting emotionally to what we perceive through our emotional filter/lens and decide on the basis of what we like or don't like, want or don't want.

The facts?

The kid just burned down the guy's home — with his entire family inside!

Does that influence your response in any way?

Okay, it may not make HIS violent emotional reaction acceptable or desirable — but it sure makes it understandable! And it will influence any judge and jury deciding his fate.

So what exactly IS fear?

Let's make that a new topic. 

In the meantime, if we want to climb the stairway to success, which of these two people has the more accurate perspective? And how will it influence their respective perceptions and responses as a result?

If the person on the left is your prospect, how can you help them find a more accurate perspective in terms of

• Your product or service?

• Your promised benefits?

• How they'll feel about what they experience?

• Your company?

• Your unseen motives?

• YOU?

And how does all this relate to our own mindset on wealth?

Have fun!

John

Source: http://MasterYourFEAR.com

[Jeff Smith]

Couple of things I've learned having observed some very successful people in business...

1. They go against the grain and are typically perceived of as a pain in the ass by everyone around them because they don't settle for the accepted norms.  Everyone else plays the game inside of the box, these guys constantly try and break out of the box.  Because of that, they attract a natural resistance from all of those trying to play the game by one set of rules and they play by another - so the next factor is...

2. Courage leading to an expectation that if they are not living in a constant state of resistance they are probably not on the right track.   I once had a major corporate CEO who managed a company of over 30,000 that he only trusts the advice of a few inner circle people that the rest of the company can't stand - they have been chided as trouble makers exactly because they operate outside of the normal rules and have the courage to continue to do so in the face of extreme resistance.

Over the last few years I've tried to live under these principles where I question most everything, view most people as only having 10% of the answer (if that), learning to trust my own judgement and instincts more and press ahead no matter what.  I've made more enemies, but I've also made 10X more progress than I had the previous 20-years combined!

Jeff

[Joreymay]

The wealthy and successful think differently than the masses.   It’s really quite cut and dry.   

So far, so good.

They have already created millions; it’s part of their everyday life.   

Not necessarily - unless you are using a circular argument by defining "the wealthy and successful" as "those who have already created millions" or the like. Many of the wealthy have created relatively little themselves.

There are no belief issues… the proof is in their bank accounts, investments, and assets.   You see it in the clothes they wear, the cars they drive, and the vacations they take.   There is a confidence about them and they are able to sleep at night, knowing that their affairs are in order (not to say wealth eliminates all problems, but it provides opportunity).

Again, yes and no. Often it is a matter of confidence that their bets are covered, and that they have other people taking care of business for them.

There are differences in attitude and belief between the truly wealthy and many of the merely successful (together with the less successful).

One of the most vivid concerns the ownership of those "assets" you cited. The "Wealth" belief is: Control  and use of an asset are more important than ownership. It is usually at least as good to simply have the use of the asset as it is to own it, and often it is better.

Think of using a Company car, for a more common illustration of that idea.

Depending on how you have things set up, a big advantage is that litigants and others can't take away "assets" you don't own. At least, not easily.

Some of the least protected, but most common, versions of the "Control and Use" mechanism are mortgaged homes, financed cars, and the like. The people with the use of the asset do not really own the asset. They effectively share ownership with "The Bank". Most (non wealthy) people regard that co-ownership as a necessary evil, and get out from under it as soon as possible.

Closely tied to that is another fundamental idea: Leverage is your friend. Risk other people's money rather than any significant amount of your own, and use other people's money to build your business assets. Also, use other people's efforts and skills for the same purposes.

This one is familiar to those here. We use Associates and JV partners, (sometimes) interns, and (for product creation and the like) contractors. While fewer of us do it, we are familiar with companies raising money by selling stocks or bonds, or by offering part (often a large part) of the company to Venture Capitalists and the like.

If I only keep 10% of my company, but use the other 90% to get money to bring in 10 million dollars in net profits, I am in pocket an extra one million dollars. With little or no risk of my own money or assets. Yes, the investors get 90% of the net profits, and the commission salesmen or associates/JV partners got their cuts from the sales they brought in. Any of them may have walked away with more than my "mere" million. But the difference is that I risked little or nothing, and did little beyond coordinate (if I haven't hired someone for that function) and lend my name and (maybe) image to the project.

The Donald's comment acknowledged that (without spelling out some of the details). Why a network marketing company? He could recruit and motivate a downline, leveraging their efforts to (re)build his wealth. Sure, he might only get 1% to 10% of their sales (depending on the company and structure), but with a lot of them out there selling, that is likely to be a lot more than he could get from his own sales calls. And (again, depending on the company and structure) he would benefit from the downlines of his downline, as well.

And his immediate upline would not exactly be hurting, either.

Another benefit we would recognize is that he is building a list, both formally (his downline) and informally (their customers). I don't need to tell you the uses he could make of that.

Don't get me wrong. Personally, I don't like MLMs and their ilk. But someone like him, with the right skills and experience (and motivation), could build up some decent seed capital that way without taking a lifetime to do so. It's all in the leverage.

But then again, he is one of those people who you mentioned before - the ones who have already created millions.

The ones who started with billions use a similar approach and a similar attitude. The biggest difference is that they can (and do) pay up front to secure the services that will leverage a fraction of their existing wealth into an income which will sustain their chosen lifestyles. They don't have to - and many don't - pay attention to the details. They also have auditors and the like to keep the process honest.

They are more likely to be the investors and fund the VCs, but they are still leveraging the investments of the other investors and the efforts of the company (and the people they are leveraging).

They are (superficially) happy and (more realistically) confident not because they "know" they could make it all over again, but because they have very little (in terms of their overall wealth) at risk. And they don't much care that they don't - technically - "own" their cars, homes, and other assets. "Arthur II" aside, there is virtually no chance that those assets can be taken away from their control and use.

The part of the "success" mindset you promote in the discussion can be useful, but breaking out of the "ownership" and "personal effort" mindsets can be just as important - if not more so. Many of the more successful IM people have broken clear of the second, and a few may even have parted ways with the first (despite the "I bought this car/house/island vacation with cash" ads).

Jorey
.

[Joseph Ratliff]

There's an excellent book by T. Harv Ecker called
"Secrets of The Millionaire Mind".

Highly recommend it.

And right along with that...

Joe Karbo's "The Lazy Man's Way To Riches".

[Ron Killian]

Great post Lisa, thank you for sharing. I love the trump story, and he was so right.

One story I will never forget was about Arnold Schwarzenegger. Steve Chandler was a sports reporter some years back and had the chance to interview Arnold. It was just after winning Mr universe I believe. Steve asked him what he was going to do next, what his plans were. Without hesitation or doubt he said he was going to be the next biggest box office action movie star.

Of course back then, any one that saw his massive build or his heard his thick accent would have thought he was nuts. Steve asked him how he planned on reaching his goal. Arnold said he would do it the same way he became a bodybuilding champion. "He would create a picture of what he wanted to be in his mind and live into that picture."

I probably murdered the story pretty good, but I think you get the point. No one can dispute what he's done for himself and a powerful idea.

[Christopher]

Many people charge lots of money for information that is attainable anywhere.  The difference is that people look to them as mentors.  They really arent doing anything that others cant do. 

Chris
www. youbsafe. com

[Spider]

"Many people charge lots of money for information that is attainable anywhere.  The difference is that people look to them as mentors.  They really aren't doing anything that others cant do."

Quite right!  I just had some work done on the locks of my house - hired a locksmith. Could have done it myself, if I had learned the trade. I also hired a yardman to come and mow my lawn - could have done it myself, if I had been prepared to work in the Texas sun. Later, I drove to a carwash to have my car vacuumed and washed - could have done it myself.

In fact, I was on my way to the doctor's office because I wasn't feeling well - didn't need to, really, because I knew all the symptoms better than the doctor and could probably have diagnosed myself if I had studied medicine long enough.

We can all do things ourselves, but it is usually better to hire people who have experience and knowledge in the subject. Don't you think?

[Josef Benjamin]

Thanks Ron, I'm goign to look into that story and see if I can dig up that video