Posts Tagged ‘Financial Freedom’

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Should I Move My Money Out of the Stock Market? Where?

Wednesday, August 10th, 2011

With the Dow losing 15% over the last 3 weeks, many are wondering what to do next. Should we wait it out, or should we get out? When’s enough enough? What if it comes back?

Are you frustrated with how your money has grown (or not grown) over the last 10 years?

If you see virtually every article on this topic, they will tell you to calm down and ride the wave. Besides, you don’t want to get off the roller coaster when it gets exciting, would you? These article contributors will make it sound like you are on anti-depressants and can’t think for yourself because you’re too stupid to keep your emotions in check.

In reality, I think you’re smarter than they say you are. Using fear is a great way to keep their advertisers (investment firms and banks) happy. Despite this, you don’t want to make a mistake either. After all, you don’t want to get out when everyone says to stay in, do you? Shouldn’t we follow the herd and play it safe?

My own personal motto with any kind of investment or business deal is “When in doubt, stay out.”

However, I legally can’t tell you to buy or sell. Besides, it would be bad to tell you what to do without knowing who you are. But, I would have you consider a few things to help you make up your own mind.

  1. Are you avoiding looking at what’s happening so you don’t stress out?
  2. Do you have doubts about the future of the economy and government decisions?
  3. Are you really passionate about the stock market, or do you just want to invest where you can create freedom and security?
  4. Do you know what you’re doing in the market?
  5. Does your financial advisor have any control of the markets, or are they just telling you to “trust them?“
  6. What would you do if the market kept going down?
  7. Why do Chris Miles and Dale Clarke laugh when the market tanks? =)

If you could answer these confidently (except for question #7), then you may be fine keeping your money there. If you had doubts about your investments, you may want to consider talking with a professional (hopefully someone who’s not paid to sell you products) to know what would be best for you. Ignoring what’s happening to your money is as bad as ignoring your spouse. Like in relationships, if you ignore them too long, you lose them. Don’t ignore and lose your money either!

If you want to learn ways to not only make money, but keep it, then I would recommend educating yourself further about the NEW RULES OF MONEY. If you like the gamble, that’s fine too. Go ahead and follow the herd, and let us know how it goes.

The good news is that Dale and I sleep well no matter what the news is saying. How have you been sleeping lately?

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The Sure-Fire Secret to Riches

Wednesday, June 15th, 2011

Often, you will hear us tell you that dollars follow value you create for others. Although true, are you tired of hearing it yet? ;)

Would it be valuable if we tell you how to do it so you can create faster, more guaranteed wealth rather than asking you to just do it?  Would it be worth it if it was only one, simple strategy that WORKS EVERY TIME? If so, keep reading!

This is a tip I began applying while listening to the audio book AND reading and taking notes on the book, “Master Key to Riches” by Napoleon Hill. He wrote this about 25 years after writing “Think and Grow Rich.” However, this book helped me retire 5 years ago and I felt it was helpful to review again. I wasn’t disappointed!!!

This one principle inspired me to test it more intentionally and it has yielded great rewards. In fact, this easy strategy just made me $3,090 during a one-hour lunch yesterday…and I didn’t have to pay for the lunch! Alright, I’m done teasing you now =)

This simple, yet powerful principle is GOING THE EXTRA MILE!

Lately, I have found every reason to go the extra mile in my career, family, and other responsibilities, and every time it pays handsomely. However, to make this work, you must have faith enough to actually do it! Many feel they are taken advantage of by applying this principle. Some wonder if their efforts even go noticed. Heck, I began wondering the same thing yesterday morning and had to remind myself that it does. Ironically, 4 hours later, it paid off for me!

Another example of this in the book “Master Key to Riches” is the story of Charles Schwab. Charles Schwab worked for one of the wealthiest men of that time (around 1900), Andrew Carnegie.  Although Charles started as an entry level worker with little schooling or experience, he quickly worked his way to the top as president of Carnegie’s US Steel. According to Napoleon Hill’s interview with Carnegie, Schwab made it impossible for him to NOT promote him due to his “can do” attitude and his willingness to go the extra mile.

As president, he was paid a hefty salary of $75,000/yr. Now that may not sound like much, but as I researched inflation statistics, that would be the equivalent of about $1.95 Million/yr. How many of us wouldn’t mind a base salary of $1.95 Million/yr?

On top of that, Carnegie gave Schwab a bonus of  $1 Million! That’s equivalent to a $26 Million bonus!!!

The reason? Carnegie said that he gave Schwab $75,000/yr for the job he was hired to do. And the $1 Million bonus for everything else that he did. Was Schwab “lucky”, or did he do everything possible to create value and go the extra mile to ensure his own success by helping others succeed as well? I think you know the answer to that.

So here’s how to apply this correctly. You must….

  1. Have a positive mental attitude KNOWING that it always works
  2. Understand that there is an irrefutable law of compensation where “what you reap is what you sow”…good or bad.
  3. Keep your eyes open for opportunities to serve others, even if it doesn’t seem to make you any money (This is what happened to me yesterday)
  4. Don’t hesitate to apply your strengths and passions in a way that helps others, especially when it’s not expected.
  5. Give your employer, customers, or anyone else every reason to return value to you by FIRST creating value for them. Always give more than what you are compensated for, and do it with a positive attitude.

Action Item - Go have fun going the extra mile, and COMMENT HERE how you have applied this principle to work in your life!

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Posted in Business, Financial Freedom, Soul Purpose, Universal Laws of Wealth | No Comments »

Self-Made Millionaires…Really?

Monday, May 23rd, 2011

As a child did you ever dream about becoming a Millionaire?  Driving a fancy sports car? Living in a castle in Germany?  Wealth beyond imagination?  Perhaps you day-dreamed about where you would travel or what you would do with your life if money were of no concern.

Being a “self-made” millionaire is something that is at the heart of many in search of the American Dream.  The idea of creating an innovative product or service, starting a business, and marketing that product and/or service to the world is what drives most entrepreneurial minds.  The truth of the matter is that there are no self-made millionaires.  In fact, every time I hear someone say it, I cringe. It’s simply not true!!! We live in an interdependent world where everyone must work with others to succeed. Our relationship capital and ability to exchange value with others is what accelerates more wealth. Did Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, or Carlos Slim do it alone? Of course not!!!

For instance, I used to be the “jack of all trades” financial advisor. You could come to me for mutual funds, life insurance, health insurance, mortgages, and even help with your debt! Heck, I would even offer to babysit if you would do business with me ;)  But seriously, despite all of these services, I struggled to make a decent living. Ironically, I made a lot more money when I began using my financial knowledge and ability to teach the “why” and the “how”, and then delegate a lot of the implementation of those services to others. I found out that I was better off making 50% of something than 100% of nothing. I was happy, the clients were happy, and my team was happy. How cool is that?! I figured out the fastest way to make money is to look for the “win-win-win.”

In the real business world, the more we focus on our using our strengths, and allow others to use their strengths, towards a common objective, the wealthier we ALL become.

What do you offer and who can help you deliver it so you can become more financially wealthy?

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Get Off Your Assets!!!

Friday, November 5th, 2010

I have had several people ask me in the last few weeks, “How can I make money living my Soul Purpose?” Or they would ask, “What can I do to get more cash flow right now?” Each of these are fantastic questions that I asked of myself at one time or another. Now, I have a simple, yet misunderstood, answer for them, and any of you, that may be asking this same question….“GET UP OFF YOUR ASSETS AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!” Simple, yet often overlooked. Let me identify two types of assets I am referring to here - Financial Assets and Human Assets.

Financial Assets

We are taught to save all of our money in a retirement plan and pay all of our debt off so that one day we can retire. The reality is most are not able to retire because this method is a slower, riskier way to achieve that goal. Most lose some of that money in the market or barely make a return over time. As you may have seen us illustrate before, paying off certain types of debt can actually cost you more than it saves you. Instead, what you can do is coordinate your assets to produce for you while still taking less risk. Many don’t even realize that they could free up at least $500-$1000/month just by making a few adjustments to how they use their assets and pay off their debts. Usually, what we see is someone who is so scared to touch their money in retirement accounts that they will lose more money outside of those accounts and never get ahead.

Human Assets

Most of us have the hardest time figuring this one out, even though it is usually why you have income today. In fact, many in financial trouble think that they just need to know what their Soul Purpose is before they can make money. This is completely false!!! How did you make money prior to learning more about your Soul Purpose? The same way everyone else has…you went to work using the human assets that you possess. You and I already know this “secret,” don’t we?

Dollars follow the value we create!

To earn (notice the word “earn”) more money, you need to offer a service and/or product that is valuable to someone else. That’s it! In fact, I guarantee that is how you got a job at some point. You gave them a resume of your experience and skills (aka Human Assets), and they hired you for a certain wage. You may have done something as simple as doing manual labor. I mowed lawns when I was 12. In fact, I was so obsessed about collecting baseball cards, I knew I had to make more money to buy more. Now that I think about it, I probably made more money during those years than when I was just paying for college. I knew what I wanted and then I worked for it.

If you want to “earn” more money, you have to get off your butt and do something! It’s so simple, most miss out on it! Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”

Do whatever it takes to use your body, mind, experience, or any other skill or strength to provide real value for someone so they will want to pay you to have what you offer. In fact, if you really want to earn more money, do whatever it takes to become irreplaceable with your unique set of skills. In the meantime, start wherever you are and get to work!

Action Item

First, list your financial assets and your human assets and identify which ones are making you money right now. Keep using them! Second, list your underutilized assets and create an action plan to start capitalizing on those too. Then, listen to our podcast about how to make the Law of Attraction work. Remember, start doing something, and start doing it right now!

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Posted in Cash Flow, Financial Freedom, Soul Purpose, Universal Laws of Wealth | 2 Comments »

What Is One Secret to More Success Right Now?

Thursday, October 21st, 2010

What is the one secret to becoming successful that most never figure out? What is that small pitfall that traps most of us in a world of mediocrity, frustration, and uncertainty?

Warren Buffett is currently the wealthiest investor & business owner in the world (depending on the value of his and Bill Gates’ companies). One of our mentors, Rick Sapio, interviewed Mr. Buffett for 40 minutes. There was statement made that stuck with Rick to this day. It is one of the biggest reasons why most never achieve financial freedom, greater health, or fulfilling relationships. It keeps us busy, but never attaining the results that we really want. In fact, by just implementing this one idea in your business, your money, and your life, it would transform the results you have seen up until this point!

Warren Buffett said this….

“The difference between those that are successful and those that are ultra-successful is that extremely successful people say ‘No’ to almost everything.”

Just saying “No” applies to a lot more than just drugs! Think about it. Have you ever over-committed to something? Have you ever said “yes” to too many things? Have you ever felt like you are running around with your head cut off? Sure, we all have! This is why Warren Buffett tells you that diversification is for those who don’t know what they are doing.

Focus is the key to seeing extraordinary results. This is why multi-tasking really doesn’t beat out focusing on one project at a time. Many go bankrupt or severely in debt because they tried to take on too many investments or projects. Those that try to implement a business idea, and then jump to another because they haven’t seen any results in a month or two, usually will never see results no matter what they do. You may know some of these people, and they drive you nuts! Well, let’s make sure we’re not one of them.

Here are some questions that will help you say “No” to the many wrong opportunities and “Yes” to the few right ones.

  1. Do I have sufficient knowledge or expertise about this investment or business?
  2. If money were no longer an issue for me, would I still do it?
  3. What other reasons, other than rate of return, would I invest in this?
  4. Would this distract me from being successful with my other investments or businesses?

Use these questions to guide your decision making and ensure you focus your energies towards the right activities to being “ultra-successful.” For further discussion on this, comment on your experiences with this and listen to our previous podcast, “The Power to Say NO.”

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How Can I Be Financially Independent Faster?

Tuesday, September 14th, 2010

This last week, I had a coaching member ask me how we apply our model to know how much they will have in retirement. Although I hadn’t heard this question for awhile, several others had the same question this week.

They would all ask, “Chris, we know that what you teach works better, but (notice it followed by a “but”) we aren’t sure what it will eventually equate to be. What do you think?”

My honest reply was, “I really don’t know. My crystal ball is broken. I could tell you what it could likely be, but I might be limiting your expectations or you may not be alive to see the bigger results. This is why we focus on generating more cash flow TODAY rather than 15-30 years from now.” Let me explain more what I mean.

Traditional Planning Model

This brings back painful memories, but it is useful to understand =) If I were a traditional planner again, and you sat down with me, I would pull out my fancy little financial calculator to “predict” your life.

Let’s say you are 50 years old, have $80,000 to work with for your retirement, and you are currently putting away $600/month. I would “assume” that you would earn 8% average in a mutual fund. I remind you that past returns does not guarantee future results. (See our video on how traditional planning can manipulate figures.)

If you were to retire in 15 years and everything worked out perfectly, you would have $457,640. To some, this would sound like a good deal of money. However, traditional planning will tell you to live off the interest (Listen to our podcast as to why they say this).

Therefore, to be “conservative” in our figures, I would suggest that you “plan” on living off of 5% of the balance each year. In this example, this would be $22,882/yr.

How many of you could live off of that? You could live off of more, but now you risk running out of money before you pass away.

But wait! A really good planner will account for inflation at 4%. Naturally, in 15 years, it is very likely that you will have to have more to live on. Your purchasing power is now only worth $254,111! That would be like living on $12,700/yr. today!

Note: the REAL inflation rate is much more. Listen how!

This was the dilema I was caught in that caused me to question if this really worked. To have at least a $50,000/yr lifestyle, you would have to put away at least $5000/month in this example! Pocket change, right? Sense the sarcasm? You could work an extra 10 years to age 75, and then “only” have to put away $2500/month…as long as inflation stays down and you actually get 8% average (which many haven’t).

Recommendations from a truthful financial plan? Live on less income, get a 2nd job, and put away more!

Our Model

Our answer? Live your appropriate lifestyle and create more cash flow TODAY thru better use of your money! Although it’s not mainstream, it’s simpler and more attainable.

For example, last week I showed one of my coaching members how to free up at least another $15,000 or more this year by using their money more effectively without having to spend more money! On top of that, as we show people how to leverage their human capital by coordinating it with their money, they realize that having a $50,000/yr. lifestyle is not as hard as they thought. This is the same thing I did to do it with virtually no financial capital and only investing a few hours of each week.

It doesn’t take a lot of money to make money, only simple creativity!!!

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Robert T Kiyosaki is a Copy Cat?

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

Is it possible that Robert T Kiyosaki, author of the highly acclaimed financial books “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”, is a copy cat? Is he a “has-been” financial guru? We did a podcast interview with Garrett Gunderson, author of the NY Times Best Seller “Killing Sacred Cows” last year about his “New Rules to Get Rich.” However, Robert Kiyosaki will soon release his newly anticipated book “Shooting the Sacred Cows of Money.” Could this be a random coincidence? Did Robert just happen to have nearly the exact title as Garrett Gunderson’s best seller from 2 years ago?

Fortunately, for Garrett Gunderson, it’s NOT a coincidence! I personally know that several copies of “Killing Sacred Cows” were sent to Kiyosaki and his team members. So, why did I say this is a fortunate event? Believe it or not, I love the fact that Robert is doing this book. In fact, I hope he gets a ton of publicity about it. Couldn’t this be good for Garrett since his book came out more than 2 years before Kiyosaki’s? This plainly shows that Robert T Kiyosaki is a “has-been” financial guru, and needed some fresh ideas.

Kiyosaki is on the way out, Gunderson is on the way in!

Now, don’t get me wrong. I believe his “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” books have served a great purpose and inspired me before I left the financial advising industry. He has rightly deserved the attention he has gotten by being a great marketer for the last 10-15 years. In fact, I still believe you can learn some great concepts from him. However, many of his critics and fans will tell you that he offers very little in telling you HOW to get wealthy. Lately, he merely addresses the problems, and refers to his team of “Rich Dad Advisors” that offer a little bit more education than Robert does. Ironically, Garrett Gunderson’s Freedom Fast Track coaching process has offered a team of specialists and results-driven coaching for several years.

So, is Robert T Kiyosaki a fraud? No, I don’t believe so. Has he taken some of Garrett’s ideas knowingly? It’s hard to believe he didn’t with such a unique name in the title as “Sacred Cows”, especially since Kiyosaki changed it to “Shooting Sacred Cows” instead of “Killing Sacred Cows.” Garrett Gunderson is less-known despite his growing popularity, but that isn’t what really matters. What really matters is that we learn from those, like Garrett, that are in the trenches with us practicing what he preaches.

We want the real deal that’s doing it now! And apparently, so does Robert Kiyosaki.

What’s your opinion on this?

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How Do I Get Rich Doing What I Love?

Wednesday, August 25th, 2010

Have you ever wondered how you could make money doing what you love everyday?

Do you ever ask yourself, “Why would people pay me so much for doing something that I would practically do for free? How can I get others to be on board with what I am passionate about so I can not survive living paycheck to paycheck, but thrive in any economy?” Imagine what your life would look like when you could do what you love each day and get highly compensated for it.

Chris Miles teaches the secrets that have worked for him, and many others that he has coached, and what didn’t work. Even though these simple tips may seem obvious, they are still elusive to many people out there right now. Listen to learn what really works, and what only makes you work hard to get little or no results!

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Posted in Business, Financial Freedom, Podcast, Soul Purpose, Universal Laws of Wealth | 2 Comments »

Should I Be in the Stock Market Right Now?

Thursday, August 19th, 2010

So many people lately are asking me more frequently, “Chris, should I be in the stock market right now, or should I get out?” With governments and economies teetering on the brink of a deeper recession, more people feel uncertain about the stock markets right now.

The first question to ask about whether you should be in the stock market now or to bail out before it’s too late is:

“If money were no longer an issue in my finances, would I still want to be in the stock market?”

Your answer will vary based on how you answer this question. Listen to my reply to both responses and what I predict the stock markets will do over the next few years.

*As a reminder, to cover my “you know what,” I am not recommending any specific investments or strategies. I am merely presenting information that will help you get more clear.

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