Financial Independence: What Is It? Why Should You Want It?

“True individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.”– Franklin D. Roosevelt

Twice a year, on January 1 and July 1, I review and revise my goals. When I think about Seven Years to Seven Figures — an important part of my life — I think about you and what I want for you this coming year. Here is what I came up with … You should be able to enjoy your life — whatever life you choose — without having a shroud of money-related problems over you at all times.

You should be able to quit your job if and when you want and start doing whatever it is you’ve been dreaming of doing.

You should feel confident that if something unexpected happens — an accident or illness in the family — you can take care of it.

I don’t want you to be rich, unless you want to be rich. I want you to have choices. That’s what financial independence means. Being able to choose or change your paths in life. Not being dependent on someone you don’t trust or don’t like. Having the power to take care of yourself and your loved ones. It doesn’t take a million dollars to do that. All it takes is a passive income that’s large enough to pay for your basic bills — housing, food, utilities, education, and entertainment.

Passive income — that’s the key. Passive income means income that you don’t have to spend 40 hours a week generating. It’s the income you get from your stocks, bonds, real estate, or a share in an income-producing business.

The traditional path to financial independence went something like this: Get a job with a good (preferably large) business and work hard for 40 years. Then retire on your pension and savings. You can still do that today, but it’s difficult. For one thing, there are very few businesses — large or small — that can offer you secure lifetime employment. For another thing, the cost of living is going up faster than average wage increases. Most people in the world who are strictly employees have been getting poorer, not richer, these past 20 years.

To become financially independent today, you are better off developing some kind of second income. That may be part-time consulting. Or a financially valuable skill that you can practice on the weekends, such as copywriting, resume writing, or graphic design. Or a side business like direct marketing. 

The idea is to add a second income to the income you currently have and to invest that second income in something safe and reliable that will give you passive income.

My recommendations for safe and reliable sources of passive income are bonds and real estate. The advantage of real estate is that you can generally get a much higher yield (ROI) from it than you can from bonds.

Your initial goal — in terms of becoming financially independent — is to generate passive income equal to the income you have now. If, for example, you are currently making (after taxes) $40,000 a year and that $40,000 is enough to cover your basic needs (as outlined above), your goal should be an after-tax passive income of $40,000.

To generate that much with bonds, you’d need about $800,000 in savings. To make that much with real estate, you’d need to have between $300,000 and $400,000 invested in income-producing properties. (Now you can see why I like real estate — even though it requires more work than holding bonds.)

Saving that amount of money may seem very difficult right now. But many of the people who have taken my advice about developing a side income were able to become financially independent much sooner than they expected. (All hit the mark in less than six years.)

Surprise Bonus: Once you’ve achieved financial independence, you can (and probably should) quit your job — even if you are years and years away from retirement age. The reason is that getting from financial independence to wealth is just a matter of doing more of the same thing. Not necessarily putting in a ton of extra hours but just doing more of what you like to do.

You should be able to enjoy the freedom of financial independence too. Every day in every message, I make sure that there is at least one bit of advice that will help you achieve that goal.

And every day I try to say something — or publish something that someone else has said — that will inspire you to get, and stay, on your own path to financial independence. No one cares as much about your financial future as you do. Use Seven Years to Seven Figures to help you and you’ll have helped me achieve my No. 1 SY2SF goal.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

Seven Years to Seven Figures: Who Makes The Big Money?

You can live very well, and even become financially independent, by earning between $100,000 and $150,000 a year. So, how do you boost your income to that level? According to a CNN/Money series titled “Who Gets Paid Six Figures?”, the best-paid workers in the U.S. are CEOs of profitable businesses. No surprise there. Top business leaders enjoy a median base salary of $528,000 (according to Salary.com.).

Next on the mega-income ladder are surgeons. Orthopedic surgeons make about $290,000, while their heart-bypassing counterparts bring in $250,000. Anesthesiologists make more than most people think, typically in the $230,000 range. Working your way up the corporate ladder to become CEO takes years and years of work, not to mention talent.

And chances are you’re not about to start on a medical career at this point in your life. But, as the CNN series pointed out, there are many other ways to earn a $100,000+ living — professions that not only are easier to get into and master but also may be more appealing to you. For example: General Merchandise Manager If you have a good deal of experience in buying retail goods and you know how to keep inventories down and merchandise flowing, you can make $100,000 or more working for a top retailer.

Hair/Makeup Artist for Advertising and Film

If you’ve mastered your trade at the salon, you may be able to jump up to this higher-paying and more glamorous calling. “As a freelance hair and makeup artist in commercial advertising,” says Jon Luca, CEO of Artist Untied (an agency representing stylists, makeup artists, and prop designers), “you can make a pretty penny if you’re good at your art. With each job you get, you build your Rolodex of photographers and your reputation among commercial directors.”

Retail Home Furnishings Consultant

You don’t need a degree in architecture or design to make a good living helping people beautify their homes. The trick is to learn what kind of decor the wealthy people in your area like and then specialize in that type of design. Make the trend your friend. Find out what’s hot, determine where you can buy it inexpensively, and set yourself up in business.

Fitting Model

If you fit perfectly into one of the standard fashion-industry sizes — plus, petite, and big-and-tall included — you can make good money working as a showroom fitting model with a clothing company or clothes designer. You don’t need perfect cheekbones to find this kind of work, but you do have to be attractive and well-groomed “The most successful fitting models,” says Susan Levine, owner of Model Service Agency, LLC, “know how different fabrics behave and are very knowledgeable about the line they’re modeling.”

Court Reporters

Top court reporters can make up to $88,000 working for the New York State Supreme Court. On top of that, they make money on transcripts. That brings their overall compensation to more than $100,000. The transcript rate in New York ranges between $2.50 and $4.30 a page. Six hours of testimony works out to about 250 pages. In terms of initial training, you’ll need between two and four years of education.

Broadcast Captioners

Broadcast captioners are the people who write the real-time subtitles on live television programs that are used by hearing-impaired and foreign-language viewers. According to Kathy DiLorenzo, director for VITAC, a captioning company, they typically earn $50 to $100 for every programing hour they caption. To make over a hundred grand a year at $50 an hour, you’d have to caption 40 hours of programs a week.

Video-Game Artist

Computerized visuals are created by artists who work in conjunction with designers, programers, engineers, and producers to create the amazing effects seen on modern video games. The job of the artist is to understand the game concept and convert it into computer art. While many have degrees, many don’t “You need to be talented before you’re educated,” says Robin McShaffry, director for Mary-Margaret.com.

Perfumer

For this highly paid profession, all you need is a good nose. Perfumers typically work for fragrance houses, developing aroma formulas for everything from perfumes and shampoos to candles and furniture polish. “Creating the right scent is 50% art and 50% science,” says Ken Lesenko, a fragrance-industry veteran at KWL Research Associates. “The science involves creating a formula that won’t taint the client’s unfragranced base in terms of viscosity or color, for instance,” Lesenko says. “The art part is like creating music.”

Then, of course, there are these lucrative careers that I routinely recommend:

Advertising Copywriter

In this position, you write the words that persuade potential customers to purchase products or services. You are essentially a salesperson — but instead of talking to just one customer at a time, you are communicating with many. Imagine how much a salesman would be worth if he could convince tens of thousands of people at one time to whip out their credit cards and BUY!

Graphic Designer

People who have a skill for graphic design and development are always in high demand. Effective graphics — in advertising and packaging — can have a huge impact on the sales of a product. The designers are compensated accordingly. Professional Travel Writer How would you like to take a first-class trip to Cancun, where you and your spouse would be wined and dined over a long weekend at a new luxury hotel? Or would you be more enticed by a rafting expedition down the Amazon in Ecuador’s rainforest? By taking up travel writing as a side business, you may not make huge money, but you will enjoy many of the perks of a millionaire lifestyle — at absolutely no cost to you. .

Resume-Writing and Career-Counseling Specialist

Statistics show that at any given time 57% of the roughly 80 million American workers are looking to change a career, go for a raise, or take on a better position. Another 5.8 million people are either on unemployment or trying to find a job for the first time. That means there are a lot of potential customers for anyone who can create effective resumes and/or provide professional career-counseling services. As a resume writer and career-counseling specialist, you could establish a part-time or full-time home business that earns you anywhere from $15,000 to $150,000 a year.

Direct-Marketing Entrepreneur

You can earn $75,000 to more than $1 million a year in your own direct-response business. What does it take to get started? I estimate somewhere between 200 and 400 hours of your time over a 12-month period — only 4 to 8 hours a week. Just stop watching TV and you’ll have all the time you need.

Professional Consultant

The old saying “Those who can’t do, teach” is a bunch of bull. In business, it’s more like “Those who want to get rich, teach.” The trick is to pick out one business skill that you are good at and become THE authority on that specialty. You can then market yourself as an expert consultant. This will not only get you out of the trenches, it will also likely double your income.

Real-Estate Investor

Get started as a part-time real-estate investor by buying and selling rental properties or by buying them and renting them out. Choose properties in a local area that you’re familiar with. Buy the least-expensive fixer-uppers in good or up-and-coming neighborhoods. Flip pre-construction properties in booming areas. You may not become the next Donald Trump, but you will quickly develop a high-dollar second stream of income.

There are dozens of additional ways to make good money — even six-figure money — in a career that excites you, allows you to work from almost anywhere, and provides you with a substantial amount of control over your future. The important thing is to know that you are not bound by your current job.

You don’t have to spend the rest of your working life answering to the same boss, dealing with the same clients, working in the same place, making the same commute, and earning what you earn now. You can make a change — a dramatic change — and, in a relatively short time, be enjoying a new and completely rewarding career.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

Investing in Your Own Business

Previously, I urged you to resolve to increase your family income by between 10% and 25% in the new year. The way you are going to do that is by developing a financially valuable skill — selling, marketing, or profit producing. That resolution, by the way, applies even if you are employed by your own company. Having your own business is a good thing — but unless you make yourself more valuable to it each year, there will come a time when your business will outgrow you.

So, whether you work for yourself or someone else, you are going to make more money this year by helping that business become more profitable. Today, we are going to make an entirely separate resolution. Today, we are going to focus on the business’s income, not your own.

Today, you are going to promise to do one of two things: Increase the profits of the business you own. Start a business and make it profitable. Having your own business is not the only way to get rich, but it is — far and away — the most reliable way. And it’s also the way that most wealthy people got that way. Many people I know are hoping to make up for all the money they’ve lost in the stock market by investing in speculative stocks, commodity futures, options, etc. On the other end, just as many are paralyzed by fear, not knowing what to do next.

Starting your own little business and learning how it operates from the bottom up is a surer way. Every year, millions of people all over the world strike out with little ventures of their own — and that some of those people, hundreds of thousands of them, are successful. I am bold enough to think that I understand a good deal about starting small businesses. And I will continue to tell you in regular messages everything I know about being successful in little entrepreneurial ventures.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

10 Things You Can Do This Year to Be a Better and Happier Person

The secret to substantial and enduring happiness, I have discovered, has nothing to do with putting yourself first, nurturing your inner child, or any of the many other forms of narcissism so popular among today’s pop psychologists. As someone who has spent too much time in the vain (and I do mean vain) pursuit of self-satisfaction, I am here to tell you that fulfillment in life is usually about doing less for yourself and more for others.

This is not a revolutionary concept. It was, it seems to me, the essential message of Christ and Gandhi, to name just two. “Happiness and fulfillment in life,” they seemed to have been saying,” will come to you not when you are making yourself the center of your universe but when you forget yourself and look outside.” You may know that already. And you may be much further along in making it part of your life than I am in making it part of mine.

When I think about the happy people I admire, they are invariably those who are always looking out for others. I’m not speaking of missionaries and professional do-gooders but of ordinary people who make it a habit to care about those around them. They are the people who ask you how you are doing and care about your answer. They visit you when you are ill, and give you little gifts or kind words when you need them.

When involved in a negative conversation (particularly one that involves gossip or badmouthing), they find something positive to say. They are ordinary people with the same number of problems that other ordinary people have — yet, they don’t ask you to pity them. When they see you limping because of an injured knee, they don’t tell you about their aching backs. They give you sympathy and recommend helpful treatments.

When everyone gets up from the holiday meal and rushes off to have an after-dinner drink or smoke, they linger with the host — helping out by cleaning the dishes or wiping off the table. They know the names of your children. They remember your birthday. They know how you take your coffee. And though they want you to be better and stronger and more successful than you are, they never give you the feeling that they are unsatisfied with what you are, in fact, right now. I know people like that. And I am fortunate enough to be around them. 

They are also, I am really blessed to say, in my extended family and among my closest friends. And although I don’t say so enough, I am always astonished by their goodness and humbled by their strength. I am naturally inclined to be one of these good people. I am a living composite of every bad habit, obnoxious inclination, and selfish reflex known to man. But lacking those qualities makes them all the more admirable to me. And makes me want to be, a little bit each year, a better man.

So that’s my 10th big resolution this year — as it was last year: to be a better person. I invite you to make the same New Year’s resolution — to spend less time thinking about your own happiness and more time trying to make other people happy. Start with your immediate family. Your spouse and children, mother and father, aunts and uncles, and nieces and nephews were not brought into this world to listen to and/or solve your problems.

That’s your job. Resolve to spend less time complaining to them and more time listening to their complaints. Do share your dreams and ambitions with them, but don’t talk too long. And be sure you give them the time and attention they need to share their dreams and ambitions with you. Make your friends happy too. Smile when you see them. Listen to their stories. Give them the advice they want and shut up when they don’t want any. Become the person they turn to when the chips are down. Learn to love their relatively minor sins or annoyances and encourage them to overcome their faults.

Above all, be loyal to them. Be a reliable and steady resource for your business colleagues. Help them achieve their goals — not because you want their loyalty but simply because you care about them and want them to succeed. And do something for someone you don’t know — a stranger you come upon, a foster child, or a sick or poor person who can benefit from your help. Spend time and money.

Make this outward focus a natural part of your daily life. Do it purposefully and deliberately — by beginning with a set of resolutions and then transferring them to your weekly and daily task lists — till it becomes second nature to you. This is not the kind of resolution one can make and achieve in a single year. It will be on my list next year. Perhaps it will be on your list too.

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

The Richest Man in Babylon: Perpetual Income

Babylon was reputed to be the wealthiest city of the ancient world. Not just in terms of its ruling class, but also among a large population of merchants and professionals and farmers who lived in beautiful homes, enjoyed produce from their own gardens, and were able to comfortably retire well before they were too old to work.

So says George S. Clason in his 1955 best seller, “The Richest Man in Babylon”. It’s not a serious book, but it’s an amusing read if you have a taste for success parables. It’s also a reminder of the wealth-building principles in the tradition of Ben Franklin that we hold to in Seven Years to Seven Figures.

The story begins with Bansir, “sitting upon the low wall surrounding his property, gazing sadly at his simple home and the open workshop in which stood a partially completed chariot.”

Kobbi, a friend and musician, stops by to borrow two shekels.

“If I had two shekels,” Bansir replies gloomily, “to no one could I lend them — not even to you, my best of friends; for they would be my fortune. No one lends his entire fortune, not even to a best friend.”

Floored by the thought that the two of them haven’t got two shekels between them, the old friends begin to speculate on the disparity of wealth in Babylon, even among free men, and cannot understand why they, who have worked so hard for so many years, are still so poor.

They decide to consult with Arkad, who is said to be the richest man in Babylon.

“So rich the king is said to seek his golden aid in affairs of the treasury,” Kobbi says.

“So rich,” Bansir interrupts, “that I fear if I should meet him in the darkness of the night, I should lay my hands upon his fat wallet.”

“Nonsense,” says Kobbi. “A man’s wealth is not in the purse he carries. A fat purse quickly empties if there be no golden stream to refill it. Arkad has an income that constantly keeps his purse full, no matter how liberally he spends.”

“Income — that is the thing,” exclaims Bansir. “I wish an income that will keep flowing into my purse whether I sit upon the wall or travel to far lands.”

And with that goal in mind, the two old friends go to seek the wisdom of Arkad.

Thus ends the first chapter of “The Richest Man in Babylon,” with Basir coming to an important understanding: “The reason why we have never found any measure of wealth,” he says, “is because we never sought it.”

When it comes to wealth, the two most common mistakes people make are:

1. Believing that if they want it badly enough they’ll one day get it.

2. Believing that working harder and longer than their neighbor will achieve it.

I am involved in three personal wealth-building projects. In each case, I’m working with an intelligent, energetic, and serious person who has spent 20 or more years working long hours, enduring great stress, and making enormous sacrifices. All three of these people have arrived at middle-age with very little to show for it. Some memories, some good stories . . . but virtually nothing in the bank.

One has been an executive for non-profit organizations all her life. Another has owned and run his own business. A third has spent 25 years trying to get an import-export business going. All three are extremely smart, hard-working, and at least as ambitious as I am.

So why aren’t they rich?

Simply this: They have not sought wealth in the sense that Bansir describes it. They have not directed their working lives according to a proven, practiced method of wealth building.

In pursuit of wealth, most people make foolish mistakes — simple mistakes that add up to a lifetime of disappointment and, ultimately, failure.

Becoming good at producing wealth is no different from becoming good at any other complex skill — singing, acting, surgery, etc. You must develop specific, individual skills. By practicing these specific skills, you become better at them. As you pair one skill with another, new strengths emerge. Gradually, you change from being a hardworking person who cannot seem to save money to a wealth-creating dynamo.

It’s all about habits — developing specific little habits. Each one is not difficult to master. But each one must be studied, learned, and practiced.

It takes 1,000 hours to master painting, dancing, or gymnastics. It takes no more time to master the skill of building wealth.

I know you can do, it because I did it. For the first half of my life I worked like a madman, helping other people get rich. But it was not until I stopped to figure out how I could actually acquire wealth and made that acquisition plan a formal part of my life that things changed for me. You too can start to become wealthy by coming up with a plan that will make it happen.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

Seven Years to Seven Figures: How Much Are You Worth?

“We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

A French woman, upon seeing Picasso in a Parisian restaurant, approached the great master and insisted that he put down his coffee and make a quick sketch of her. Graciously, Picasso obliged. When he was done, she took the drawing, put it in her handbag, and then pulled out her billfold.

“How much do I owe you?” she asked.

“5,000” was Picasso’s reply.

“$5,000? But it took you only three minutes!” she exclaimed.

“No,” Picasso answered. “It took me all my life.”

That’s how I feel about the work I do. My skills — as a marketer and small-business builder — are very valuable. If you want me to help you sell your products or grow your business, you can expect to pay me at least $2,000 an hour. And that’s only if I have the time … the work time … left in my schedule. If you want me to work evenings or weekends … or during my vacation … how much would it cost you to take up my personal time? You don’t want to ask.

Now, let’s talk about you.

If you are making $10 or $20 or even $50 an hour now, you are not practicing a financially valuable skill. I’ve told you how to solve that problem. And I’ve given you plenty of ideas about what kinds of skills bring in the big bucks (and where to go to learn them).

But let’s go back and review the whole process right now.

First, let’s talk about how to figure out what you are worth. Previously, I told you how to figure out how valuable your time is: Take your yearly income and divide it by 50 weeks and then by 40 hours.

Now you know your dollar value per hour — today. If that number is less than $50 or less than you want it to be, go back and reread past my past messages on (1) learning a financially valuable skill and (2) creating a second, part-time income.

The next thing you have to do … and you need to start this now … is make yourself as valuable as you can be at your present job. By delegating tasks that someone who is paid less than you are can do, you give yourself free time to focus on the really important, wealth-creating jobs that will propel your business forward and put you at the center of the action.

Today, I think we should apply this same formula — with a twist — to your non-working life.

In a nutshell: Figure your hourly value and then double it. From then on, make sure that every personal task you engage in is “worth” that amount of money to you.

Let’s say, for example, that you are currently worth $25 per hour. Your personal time would then be valued at $50 per hour. Let’s also say that you spend eight hours every weekend watching football on television. Ask yourself if you think the pleasure you get from watching football is worth $400 ($50 times eight hours) of your working time. If you feel it is, enjoy it. If it’s not, consider cutting down on the time you spend watching the boob tube. And when it comes to sitting down and spending time with the kids, do it as if you were a professional getting paid $50 an hour to do so.

We all have the same amount of hours in the day. How much you get paid for your hours of work and how much pleasure you get from the hours you don’t are both up to you.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

Five Good Reasons to Own a “Vacation” Home

“Home is where the heart is and hence a movable feast.” – Angela Carter

There are at least five good reasons to buy a second home:

1. It can become your future retirement home. Buy it now and have it paid off in today’s cheap dollars. Years from now, when your friends and neighbors are struggling to buy a shack, you’ll have a dream home, completely upgraded, decorated, and paid for.

2. It is a great way to increase your wealth. For most Americans, the house they buy turns out to be their biggest asset when it comes time to assess their wealth. If your main house might someday make you worth, say, $500,000 …why not buy another one and make yourself a millionaire? (This is especially possible if you can have the cost of the second home covered by rentals.)

3. It can be a special gathering place for friends and relatives and provide a second sense of “where I belong” to your children. Second homes that are regularly used for vacations and holidays provide a unique and valuable contribution to the spiritual wealth of any family.

4. Passive real-estate ownership can help diversify your portfolio, increase your overall ROI (especially if you are a conservative investor like me), and provide a comforting level of financial security (something that is obviously needed given today’s market fluctuations).

5. If you buy right and manage it right, a second home can provide you with years and years of additional income.

These are the biggest and most obvious benefits. There are others too. My future home in Panama will give me an ongoing sense of relief from the daily pressures of business. If things ever get to be “too much,” I know I will be able to hop on a plane and, in a few short hours, be sipping rum cocktails on my patio overlooking the Pacific Ocean. This will be a psychological reward that benefits me almost every day of my life — even if I never have to “use” it that way.

It is also a place where I will be able got practice my Spanish and go to festivals, colorful parades and parties that I could never experience in the United States. My Panamanian home will offer me an entry into a second culture — and give me a chance to enjoy it in a way I could never do as a tourist.

It’s good to know too that the value of this home will be appreciating tax-free and out of the sight of virtually everyone.

Another advantage — the mortgage interest you pay when you finance the purchase of a second home is tax-deductible, provided that the property qualifies as a personal residence. You can deduct up to a combined total of $1 million in mortgage interest on your primary and second homes. A property is considered a personal residence if you use it more than 14 days a year.

Now … here’s what you need to know before you start looking for your second home:

* It may be more difficult to get a mortgage on a second home. And if you do, be prepared to pay more in points and a higher interest rate.

* Your second home needs to be maintained. This can get expensive. When you figure out the cost/income balance sheet, be sure to allow enough for maintenance. * Insurance can be more expensive too, especially if the home is not occupied for much of the year.

* Finally, you may grow tired of the second location but feel compelled to use it.

All these problems can be overcome if you observe these rules:

* Buy value. Select a home that is underpriced relative to the market. That way, if you should decide at some time in the future that you don’t want it you will be able to sell it quickly.

* Consider renting out the home for part of the year. Make sure it is the right size and in the right location to provide good and steady rental income. So long as you can get positive cash flow out of it, it will be a good investment for you.

* Be conservative. Resist the urge to overbuy. When it comes to a vacation home, keep in mind that you won’t be using it very much and therefore won’t need very much room — probably no more than two bedrooms. Get just enough so that the rental income you can get for it will exceed your expenses.

* Buy the most desirable location (from a vacationer’s point of view). To get a steady income from your second home, be sure the location is attractive to vacation renters. Renting a vacation home on a weekly basis is usually the most productive way of generating income.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

When Are You Going to Start? Tomorrow? Next Week?

“Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” – Don Marquis

If you asked me what the most common reason for failure is, I’d say procrastination.

Most of us know this. Yet, we often fail to recognize how often we make this mistake. Because we are busy with the everyday pressures of making a living and having a family, we feel it is only sensible to delay new projects until we have time “to do them well.”

As you can guess, I spend a lot of my professional and even my personal time encouraging people to carry out their ambitions. Almost every day, I am in a discussion with someone who tells me that she wants to accomplish something but admits that she hasn’t begun doing anything about it.

“I’m planning to get started as soon as I finish my master’s degree.”

Or …

“I’m going to begin next month, after I’ve finished filing my taxes.”

Or …

“I’m really eager to get started. First thing Monday morning …”

Procrastination is expressed in many ways and has many reasons, but it all means one thing: “I don’t want to start now.”

I have a 24-hour rule when it comes to getting things done. Whenever I come to the conclusion that I “have to” do something, I give myself 24 hours to take at least the first step toward getting it done.

I write it down on my daily task list. It’s highlighted in yellow. If it isn’t crossed out by the end of the day as “done,” I cancel all appointments for the following day and commit to doing nothing else.

I don’t take phone calls. I don’t read e-mail. I don’t allow people to come into my office for emergency visits. I come in early — extra early — and do nothing else but work on it.

Since I’ve been using this radical approach, I’ve been able to dramatically increase my personal productivity — and particularly in terms of goals that I have traditionally put off and put off.

By not allowing myself to procrastinate, I am doing many things I’ve always wanted to. I am healthier, wealthier, and wiser — and I wasn’t doing so badly to begin with.

Sometimes (and this honestly doesn’t happen too often), I get to my 24-hour deadline with nothing done — despite having set aside the time to get started. In those rare cases, I admit to myself that I’m emotionally incapable of accomplishing that goal. So I pull it off my list either permanently or for six months or a year, whatever feels right.

If you are putting off doing something important, it’s almost certainly because of fear. It helps to identify what exactly you are afraid of. Ask yourself, is it a fear of …

* failing?

* working hard?

* facing your ignorance?

Or could it be a fear of succeeding? I believe that some people procrastinate because they are actually content with their lives as they are and don’t really want them to change. They say they want to accomplish this or that because it seems like the right thing to do, but, in their heart of hearts, they actually don’t want anything to change (as it would if they succeeded).

I don’t know why my buddy is putting off doing his Jiu Jitsu, but I think he needs to figure out what he’s afraid of. If he can do that, we can have a productive conversation about it. We can figure out if his fear is founded and, if it is, how it can be overcome.

Take notice of the deadlines you are setting for yourself. If they are more than 24 hours away, beware. You just may be fooling yourself.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

Become A Millionaire By Investing Only A Dollar A Day

In “The One Minute Millionaire,” authors Hansen and Allen say there are two routes for climbing “Millionaire Mountain”: the long route and the short route. The long route is the safest and easiest. You can become a millionaire by simply investing a dollar a day (roughly $30 a month) over a period of time.

Here is how long it would take you to become a millionaire by investing a dollar a day:

* at 3% interest: 147 years

* at 5% interest: 100 years

* at 10% interest: 56 years

* at 15% interest: 40 years

* at 20% interest: 32 years

Thus, you can become a millionaire in your lifetime by finding investments that yield at least 10% annually and sticking with the investment program. Most people don’t want to wait that long. But most impatient people never get rich. The authors wisely advise that while following their get-rich-quicker scheme, you “take the long route at the same time” by putting aside an extra $50, $100, or even $500 a month toward your retirement. Who could argue with that? The secret to becoming a millionaire faster?

Invest more money and get a higher return on your investments. That’s basically right. I have covered both of these strategies numerous times in past messages. You can invest more money only if you have more money to invest — and having more money is a matter of making more and spending less.

In one of our first New Year’s resolutions for 2015, I asked you to get to work on increasing your income by taking steps to increase your salary. Are you making satisfactory progress? Regarding higher returns: We’ve talked about this too. You can and should try to get good returns on your stock and bond investments — but don’t get greedy and put a big chunk of your money into speculative investments. You’ll get burned. Instead, shoot for 10% in the stock market and whatever you can get with bonds.

Rely on real estate and your own side business to bring you the really big ROIs. How are you doing on these goals? Now is a good time to do a year-end progress report and get started on next year's plan. 2016 is right around the corner. Lets's great things!$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the Internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]