Change Dynamics

How are you investing in yourself for the coming economic crisis? (I sure hope I’m wrong, but all the sign are there.)

Your most important investment is what you invest in yourself and your own learning and growth.

Here’s a link to a resource by Dr. William Horton that’s free, but you will have to invest about an hour of your time. It will be well worth it.

The Millionaire Mindset, Part I   The MIllionaire Mindset, Part II

(In case you’re wondering, I am not an affiliate, and I don’t get any commission or fee for referring you to his site. It’s just another site I recommend.)

In my previous post I made the point that you choose your beliefs and when your beliefs no longer serve you you can change them. The bad news is that to do so is easier said than done. The good news is that there is more than one way to change beliefs.  So here is a variety of means:

1) Take contrary action. If as assigned in my proevious post you made a list of limiting beliefs you can start to dismantle thoses beliefs by taking actions that you would take if the belief were not true. For example, say you have the belief “there’s not enough to go around.” First decide what would you do differently if you knew as an absolute fact the that belief was not true, that in fact, there is more than anough to go around. Or if you believed, “I’m too old to start a business” what if you knew that “I’m the right age to start a business.” What would you do?

Be for I say just do it, let me first say, you know that there’s not way to know with absolute certain that this contrary belief is right, right?

But to be fair, you also have to admit that you can’t know with absolute certainty that your original limiting belief was true either. So what I’m suggesting is really just an experiement.

What is that contrary action? Take it. Do it wholeheartedly. and watch what happens.

2) Find the proof. Remember that we choose or beliefs based on evidence– primarily evidence of what we observe and what we recieve second hand from others. But it is just as true that we find the evidence we are looking for based on what we believe.

So if taking contrary action is too scary try this instead. Pretend, imagine or just think what it would be like is you believe the opposite of youor limiting beliefs. For example you used to believe, “It’s not spiritual to have too much money.”,  Now imagine , pretend, or just think about what it would be like to believe that  wealth is a sign of great spirituality.

Find proof for that new belief. There is evidence for that new belief all aound you. Find it.

3) Mental reprogramming. Hypnosis, self-hypnosis, NLP. EFT and a number of other techniques provide means of reporgamming beliefs on a  subconscious level. I’ll write more about hese in future posts, or look through many of the resource on these pages.

What are your deep-seated beliefs about your self yourself and about success? What are the positive and negative expectation you have of yourself. What are the limits you place on yourself?

For example if you decide to be the top sales person in your group, or earn a specific income level do you find it easy or is there a “little voice” inside you that whispers: “No, you’re just wasting your time, you’ll never make it….”?

Those whispers are limitations you have imposed upon yourself.

Those are limiting beliefs, and all like all beliefs they were learned. Like all beliefs they may or may not be true. So far so good, most people agree so far.

Now consider this: like all beliefs, those belief were chosen by you.

“Wait, a second, you can’t just chose your beliefs. You can’t just choose to believe the sky is green, or that the world is flat.”

Yes you can. Granted some of those choices will be harder to support than others, and for some beliefs there’s no pay off, but the fact is, you chose your beliefs based on the evidence you had at the time you chose them. And that’s the rub; you can’t just chose to change your belief and then it happens. All beliefs are chosen on the basis of evidence. Sometimes it’s the evidence of personal observation, but more frequently it the evidence of someone in authority or with credibility telling us.

When there is contradictory evidence we generally choose to believe the earliest source, or the source to which we have the greatest emotional attachment. That’s why some closely held beliefs persist even after being presented with contrary evidence.

Take for example the belief in Santa Claus. Most children come to believe that Santa Claus is a fictitious person by a process. First the doubt in Santa is aroused, typically followed by denial. If our parents told us there was a Santa Claus that’s a hard source of evidence to refute. It’s only as contrary evidence mounts, and often only after the parent acknowledges the fact, the child comes to realize there is no Santa Claus.

Consider beliefs that limit success. Here are some typical ones:

“You can’t be successful with out compromising your family/ethics/morals”

“I’m too __________” (Fill in the blank: old, young, fat, short, uneducated, shy, etc.)

“There’s not enough to go around”

“Rich people are greedy”

“Money is the root of all evil”

“People without a lot of money are happier/ more spiritual/our type of people.”

“Don’t try to be better than others”

There are hundreds more. The important thing is to recognize what are your limiting beliefs.

So here’s you assignment:

Spend some time identifying limiting beliefs, write them out. Set aside some time and just write out as many beliefs that limit success that you can think of. Some you might have just hear, but think, “I don’t believe that.” That’s fine, write it down any way. In my next post I’ll say more about what to do with that list.

You can still prosper in this economy if you take the propers steps to 1) prepare yourself, 2) protect yourself, and 3) provide value to others.

With financial institutions failing, the stock market crashing and a recession or worse looming, what should you do with your money now? The fact is we are heading in to new uncharted waters with this economy and noone knows for sure.

I’m a hypnotherapist, not economist, so I surely can’t tell you, but I will share with you who I turn to for my information, but first I will still tell you about the best investment you can make in this or any economy.

The best investment you can make is in yourself. As was stated nearly a century ago by Journalist William Ennever, “A thoroughly trained and efficient mind is the only universal asset in the world. Even Money cannot complete with it. Every country, every trade, every profession is eager to welcome and employ it…it is the key to successs in life.”

The economy good or bad, does not determine your destiny. You do. Certainly it will be more difficult for most in the coming years, but even through the years of the Great Depression, many prospered and the new millionaires numbers in the thousands.

The difference between those who prosper and those do not is a matter of many factors, but at the core it is a mindset, an attitude and the courage to take action.

How can you prepare your mind for the new economy?

At the end I tell you who I turn to for economy advice, but first let me repeat my recommendations from my last post:

Financial worries is an audio hypnosis session which make the process of mental compartmentalization – keeping financial worries in their place – both relaxing and enjoyable. The powerful hypnotic techniques are used in this session help you relax deeply amid the stresses and strains of dealing with financial problems. At the same time, your mind will be fed practical inspiration that will help you develop creative and effective responses to your situation.

Millionaire Mind-Set Wealth, in any economy comes down to your mindset - the habits, attitudes and behaviors you use every day that move you, step-by-step, towards your goals status. In every economy, just as fortunes are being lost by some, others are seeing the opportunities that abound and create new fortunes

This Millionaire Mindset 6-part hypnosis program is designed to program your subconscious mind with the common attitudes of millionaires

Money Wealth & Prosperity - Wealth is created first and foremost in our minds - through goals, beliefs, and a strong sense of self worth. It sounds simple, but many people never learn the basic tools of visualizing success, believing they deserve it and working towards this goal with the belief they will succeed. This simple-to-follow program will help you develop new daily patterns concerning money, success and wealth. This program uses Hypno-Peripheral Processing, or HPP, a dynamic technology that puts the tremendous and largely untapped power of your subconscious mind into your hands. http://www.mindperk.com/Glauberman.htm - 44

Investment Advice

I will not give investment  advice. I will say, however, that thanks to these two resources my investments are up more than 14% for the year, most of the gain being in the last month.

Money and Markets

From  “About us” page: Weiss Research, Inc., founded in 1971 and a subsidiary of industry-leading Weiss Group, is one of the largest, most reputable sources of global investment information. It has a long history of providing research and analysis designed to empower investors with information and tools to make more informed, independent decisions. In addition, over the last 14 years, Martin Weiss and Weiss Research have continually dedicated their time and resources to public service efforts, including Congressional testimony, constructive proposals for reforms in the securities industry, proposals for standards of practice and advocacy for accurate accounting and sound fiscal policy.

With over 400,000 active readers, Weiss Research is one of the most widely read investment newsletter publishers in the U.S. The company’s highly acclaimed, daily flagship e-newsletter, Money and Markets, contains unbiased market commentary you just won’t get from Wall Street.

Louis Navellier

Navellier one of Wall Street’s most renowned growth investors. For over 20 years he’s empowered individual investors through his newsletter and trading services, live investing seminars and now The Little Book That Makes You Rich.

Tim Ramsey

Commented on an early post of mine. You might want to check out his blog on eliminating debt.

Even in the best of times finances are one of the things in our lives that stress us  the most.  What are the financial stressors in your life? For many people, these include: worries about debt, paying bills late, not having a financial security net, not having a sense of control over your finances, and arguments over finances.

This Is Not the End of the World; It’s Just the End of a Crazy Era. (Martin Weiss)

In the midst of recent market turmoil, it is more important than ever to focus on long term goals and develop patience in order to achieve financial peace of mind. We know where the market has been, but nobody truly knows where it is going in the future. Historically, in fear driven markets such as the one we are experiencing right now, there usually is a bounce back, or rally, in stock prices when normalcy begins to set in again, but this country has never quite seen a financial crisis like it is currently experiencing. There is no true precedent, as times have changed significantly since the Great Depression.

This is certain:  our country has a wealth of resources and knowledge. Even after a great fall, we will still have the elements for a great recovery.  This decline will undoubtedly deliver severe financial losses to most of those who endure it. But it can also deliver long-lasting benefits to all those who survive it.

The ultimate outcome may be for the best. Burdensome debts will be liquidated. Wild spending will be replaced with prudent saving. Unaffordable luxuries could give way to affordable bargains. And after the worst is over, thousands of new, innovative companies will burst onto the scene with clean balance sheets and a new vision

The current economy has magnified financial worry. What’s the worst that can happen in this economy? Loss of job? Loss of home? No income for the bare necessities?  Severe relationship stress? A real nightmare scenario. How could anybody cope with all that? And that’s not even all of it. If you were doing okay before, and now you’re in financial difficulties, you may also be painfully struggling inwardly with what it all means about you, personally.   

The way you respond to financial worries is under your control

Even if things never reach the nightmare proportions listed above, most of us face financial worries of some kind during the course of our lives. These may come our way due to our own actions, or be forced on us by circumstances outside our control. However they come about, the way we respond is within our control. And keeping your financial worries in their place is a vital mechanism for surviving the strain.

So what is the place of financial worries?

The real purpose of financial worry

Like any worry, financial worry is there for a purpose. It’s alerting you that you need to pay attention to your circumstances, and take any necessary steps. Of course, taking action may mean doing a number of things that you don’t really want to do. That may tempt you to ‘put your head in the sand’ or at the very least to procrastinate. Worry is there to encourage you to get on with what you need to do.

Some Practical Steps

To survive uncertain economic times while keeping your sanity, it is essential to get down the basics. Here are 7 things that you can do to find peace of mind when times are tough

1.      Aggressively Pay Down Debt

If you have income that can go towards paying down your debt, now is a great time to tackle your debt. Apply income towards paying down your mortgage, or if you have credit card debt, or other high interest, unsecured forms of debt, they should be your first priority. 

2.      Analyze your Monthly Recurring Expenses & Trim the Fat

Most recurring monthly expenses come in the form of entertainment.  These non-essentials add up over time. For example, do you need to spend $90 per month on cable or satellite TV, especially when digital TV will soon be accessible to all for free? Look at your monthly expenses, such as movie rental subscriptions, magazine subscriptions, newspaper, cable or satellite TV, land line phone, cell phone data plan, etc. to see if you really NEED them. Pay attention to food and related expense as well and cut back where possible.

3.      Keep More of your Paycheck

If you are getting a large tax refund every year, but struggling on a month-to-month basis, you may want to consider raising your tax allowances. The more allowances you claim, the less the government holds onto over the year and the lower your refund will be. This allows you to use more of your earned income over the year instead of giving an interest-free loan to the government.

4.      Increase your Emergency Savings

Experts typically recommend that you save three to six months worth of living expenses Perhaps it is time to increase your emergency savings account as a safety net in the event of a family member losing income due to economic slowdown.. In times like this it may be wise to push it to a year or more if you have the means to do so.

5.      Recognize Wants vs. Needs

With all one-time purchases it is more important than ever to really ask yourself if you truly need the item you are about to buy. Focus on recognizing when emotion is driving your purchasing behavior. Eliminate impulse spending.  In order to delay emotional purchase gratification, resist buying things immediately. Sit on your decision to purchase for a few days. Check out this post for ways to delay instant purchase gratification.

6.      Bring more value to your work

In the unfortunate event that your employer should make cutbacks in an economic slowdown, make it hard for them to cut you. Not just not a matter of bringing more skills, but also a better attitude, being friendly and helpful when appropriate, having a positive attitude, and being efficient in what you do.

7.      Keep Some Cash on Hand

With uncertainty about which banks will fail next, your mattress never looked as safe as it does now. Even though the FDIC insures your deposits up to a certain amount,  if your bank fails it could take weeks, possibly months to get your money back. If you need this money in a pinch, you would be out of luck. Keeping a little cash on hand is an extra safeguard in the event of a bank run.

What to do when financial worries invade

Taking informed action is a big step in establishing financial peace of mind. But  financial worry, can overstep the mark. Because it’s big and scary, we are prone to letting it invade parts of our life where it doesn’t belong. It’s important to remember, and keep separate, those parts of your life that are okay and going well. If you’ve taken the action that the worry called for, you don’t need it to be invading your sleep, or your leisure time, or your relationships.

How hypnosis can help you take control of financial worries

In theory, you can use willpower to keep worry in its place, but it’s much easier if you also make use of the capacities of your unconscious mind to create and maintain appropriate states of wellbeing. Hypnosis is a powerful and effective way to do this.

There are a number of hypnosis audio programs that are always a good investment, but especially now. Each comes with a guarantee of satisfaction , so there’s no risk. Click on any of the titles below for more information.

Financial worries is an audio hypnosis session which make the process of mental compartmentalization – keeping financial worries in their place – both relaxing and enjoyable.  The powerful hypnotic techniques are used in this session help you  relax deeply amid the stresses and strains of dealing with financial problems. At the same time, your mind will be fed practical inspiration that will help you develop creative and effective responses to your situation.

Millionaire Mind-Set  Wealth, in any economy comes down to your mindset - the habits, attitudes and behaviors you use every day that move you, step-by-step, towards your goals status. In every economy, just as fortunes are being lost by some, others are seeing the opportunities that abound and create new fortunes

        This Millionaire Mindset 6-part hypnosis program is designed to program your subconscious mind with the common attitudes of millionaires

  Money Wealth & Prosperity - Wealth is created first and foremost in our minds - through goals, beliefs, and a strong sense of self worth. It sounds simple, but many people never learn the basic tools of visualizing success, believing they deserve it and working towards this goal with the belief they will succeed. This simple-to-follow program will help you develop new daily patterns concerning money, success and wealth. This program uses Hypno-Peripheral Processing, or HPP, a dynamic technology that puts the tremendous and largely untapped power of your subconscious mind into your hands. http://www.mindperk.com/Glauberman.htm - 44