Tag Archives: Habits

Financial Life Planning

Posted on by

“People have the potential to live longer than any other time in history. This gift of extra time requires that we fundamentally redefine retirement and our life journeys leading up to it.” What is “Retirement’?  Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies

Financial Life Planning connects the dots between our financial realities, our values and the lives we long to live. It helps both pre-retirees and retirees identify their core values and connect them with their financial decisions and life goals. It is an financial planning and investing approach which helps people manage their portfolio.

Financial life plan focuses on the human side of financial planning, including people’s anxiety, habits, behaviors and other emotions (e.g., fear and greed) tied to investing money and accumulating wealth. People struggling with retirement and other finances really need a plan that helps them manage their attitudes, habits, goals and resources.

George Kinder, known to most as the “father” of the life planning, is the founder of Kinder Institute. He views life planning as “a way of holistically delivering financial planning that focuses on delving into people’s real goals, beyond just their financial concerns, in an effort to help them use their money to deliver freedom into their lives”.

Financial Life Planning combines personal finance and wellness. It spends time to discussing life planning and to building an intentional life. There is more to living a life of freedom and purpose than money and wealth. To live a life of freedom and purpose, people are encouraged to consider George Kinder’s famous Three Questions, which are:

Question 1: Design Your Life

“I want you to imagine that you are financially secure, that you have enough money to take care of your needs, now and in the future. The question is, how would you live your life? What would you do with the money? Would you change anything? Let yourself go. Don’t hold back your dreams. Describe a life that is complete, that is richly yours.”

Question 2: You have less time

“This time, you visit your doctor who tells you that you have five to ten years left to live. The good part is that you won’t ever feel sick. The bad news is that you will have no notice of the moment of your death. What will you do in the time you have remaining to live? Will you change your life, and how will you do it?”

Question 3: Today’s the day

“This time, your doctor shocks you with the news that you have only one day left to live. Notice what feelings arise as you confront your very real mortality. Ask yourself: What dreams will be left unfulfilled? What do I wish I had finished or had been? What do I wish I had done? ”

Society tends to attribute personal and professional success to the acquisition of material things and the accumulation of wealth. Most of us find ourselves inextricably caught in a cycle of earning, spending, and investing often induced by societal and peer pressures to fit into a perceived definition of success.

And in spite of this, how many times have we heard from even well-to-do friends, acquaintances and relatives that they are not exactly happy with how their lives have shaped up, how they don’t enjoy what they are doing, how they are drowning in debt or living paycheck to paycheck, or how they don’t have any time to pursue their dreams and interests?

If you look closely, there is a common undercurrent running across all these statements that we find ourselves ‘enslaved’ to a script or lifestyle broadcast by social media which was not exactly aligned to our values and innermost dreams.

No one ever wanted to spend more time in the office

“No one ever said on their deathbed ‘I wish I’d spent more time at the office.’ ” Harold Kushner

Having read many anecdotal reports regarding end of life issues, it is important what truly matters to most people in the end. Typically, people do not say that they wish they had earned more money, spent more time at work, or had one more side hustle.

Most often instead, they wish they had spent more time with family and friends. They had more experiences with those that they love. They had taken better care of their health and bodies over the decades. They had saved more and planned better for their retirement. And finally, they wanted to make sure that those they left behind would be taken care of once they were gone.

References:

  1. https://www.kiplinger.com/article/retirement/T023-C000-S004-retirees-build-a-financial-plan-based-on-you.html
  2. https://www.kinderinstitute.com
  3. https://www.kitces.com/blog/george-kinder-institute-life-planning-podcast-seven-stages-maturity/
  4. Podcast: #FASuccess Ep 015: Why Life Planning Is Simply Financial Planning Done Right With George Kinder

Goals, Systems, Habits…Oh My

Posted on by

To live the life you want, you must know what you you want!

To live a rich and fulfilling life, it important to have goals that aligns with those things you value most and habits, or a system, to achieve those goals. You must be able to distill those goals into a few seconds of spoken words you’ll remember.

Studies show that people who can clearly craft a narrative for their personal goals—and mentally and emotionally embrace their goals—have a better chance of reaching those goals.

It is recommended that people create several lists of goals: one for emotional, another for finances and another for health. State your goal for the current year, in the near future (years three and five), and further out (years seven and 10).

For example: A current emotional list includes going out for dinner with friends every month. In year five, the gal could be to take a dream vacation to Tahiti. In year 10, the goal could be to become debt-free or financially secure.

It’s about creating your own vision and speaking your goals aloud, which makes it much easier to stay focused on them. Having goal clarity is essential to motivation. Consequently, in order to get motivated to achieve your big dreams, you need to be clear on the next step or two. You’re finding clues and guides along the way. This is the process and emotional experience of pursuing a big dream.

Here’s what you need to move forward:

  1. A clear direction so you actually know what to do
  2. A hard and fast timeline
  3. The right system

“Goals are about the results you want to achieve. Systems are about the processes that lead to those results.” James Clear, Atomic Habits

Most personal goals are hard to reach since progress is often slow and occur in small increments, they’re boring and unmotivating, and they’re difficult to ultimately achieve. In the end, most well-intended individuals tend to abandon their goals and revert back to the old bad or undesirable habits they were attempting to change or eliminate. It takes willpower to achieve a goal without a system and there is a limited supply of will power. Willpower is a finite resource.

Instead of creating a goal, implement a system. Implementing a system would go along towards forming a new habit. For example, with financial security and planning for retirement, you could spend time educating yourself about cash flow, net worth, financial planning, saving and investing. In short, we should focus on the knowledge we need to form good personal financial habits.

“The real reason habits matter is not because they can get you better results (although they can do that), but because they can change your beliefs about yourself.” James Clear, Atomic Habits

James Clear, author of “Atomic Habits”, wrote a practical book on how to optimize your habits and get 1 percent better every day. He believes the most important key to achieving most of our goals are habits. Habits are those automatic routines we follow every day, day after day after day. If we make small changes to these automatic daily routines we all have, then we will see huge changes in our life quality and success over the months, years and decades later which is why this book is called “Atomic Habits.” It’s about small changes that lead to powerful explosive progress over a long period of time.

Scott Adams, the cartoonist behind the Dilbert comics, is an vocal advocate of building systems and says that you’ll “…be more successful by ignoring goals and focusing on building great systems in your life”.

The problems inherent in goals are many. The first and biggest problem, as James Clear points out, is that “winners and losers have the same goals.” And since winners and losers have the same goals, then your goals cannot make the difference between success and failure.

Instead of goals, it’s much better to focus on systems. Systems are the processes by which we achieve our goals. For example, if you have the goal of being an investor, then your systems may be paying yourself first with saving and investing 15 to 20 percent of your income every month and increase financial literacy by reading 5 financial and investing articles every week.

A systems-centred approach puts our focus on the process or daily habits rather than the end goal. It’s about finding ways to improve our skill of saving or investing, and most importantly finding enjoyment in the activity itself as our driving motivation.

“The purpose of setting goals is to win the game. The purpose of building systems is to continue playing the game. True long-term thinking is goal-less thinking.” James Clear, Atomic Habits

Goals have many built-in problems. They make us believe happiness is found in the future and sabotage lifelong progress. Focusing on systems, which are the processes and daily habits of our lives, will make us both more happier and more successful.

Sources:

  1. https://www.samuelthomasdavies.com/book-summaries/self-help/atomic-habits/
  2. https://growth.me/book-summaries/atomic-habits/

Economy and Markets will Recover

Posted on by

“There are ‘tremendous opportunities’ in markets.”  Larry Fink

To build wealth, it is advised that investors should take a long-term view of markets; and that they should take a long-term view in the way they manage their personal finances and investment portfolios.  It is certain that the world will get through; and, the economy and markets will recover once the COVID-19 crisis has abated.

For investors who keep their focus on the long-term horizon, “there are tremendous opportunities to be had in today’s stock markets”, according to Blackrock’s Chairman and CEO Larry Fink. For many of Blackrock’s clients, “the recent sell-off created an attractive opportunity to rebalance into equities,” Fink said.

Take banks as an example, “the damage has already been done” to the industry according to most financial professionals and traders.  Yet, the banks are in better condition financially than they were during the 2007-2009 financial crisis.  Once the virus spread stalls and the economy returns to normal operation, the Fed will still be supporting the banking system.

Positive sign for comeback

“Don’t watch their lips, instead watch their feet.”

Extraordinary monetary stimulus measures by the Federal Reserve and fiscal stimulus measures by Congress and the White House have put a proverbial floor under the market in late March.  As a result, many C-suite executives are buying up their own company’s stocks at a record pace, according to InsiderSource.

“Insiders have a 35+ year track record of buying on the type of extreme weakness experienced in Q1′20,” InsiderScore director of research Ben Silverman said in a note. “A dramatic increase in insider buying volume combined with dampened levels of insider selling has resulted in the generation of industry buy inflections – our strongest, quantitative macro signal – for the entire market.”

In his 2010 newsletter to Berkshire-Hathaway shareholders, Warren Buffett wrote: “When it’s raining gold, reach for a bucket, not a thimble.”  Based on his vast and highly successful investing experience, he states that in period like the present, “Big opportunities come infrequently”.

  1. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/30/larry-fink-says-economy-will-recover-from-coronavirus.html?recirc=taboolainternal
  2. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/30/coronavirus-stock-market-jpmorgan-top-bank-stock-pick-for-trader.html?__twitter_impression=true&recirc=taboolainternal
  3. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/26/executives-are-buying-stock-in-droves-giving-a-strong-signal-that-the-comeback-is-for-real.html?recirc=taboolainternal
  4. https://www.cnbc.com/id/35616702

The Wealthy Next Door

Posted on by

To accumulate wealth, you should start by reading and studying the behaviors of people who have successfully accumulated wealth and achieved financial independence.

In the groundbreaking financial book, “The Millionaire Next Door: Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy”, written in 1996 by William Danko and Thomas Stanley, found that people who appear wealthy may not actually be wealthy.

Their findings reveal that people who appear wealthy tend to overspend or live paycheck to paycheck. They often overspend on symbols of wealth like luxury vehicles and large homes — but actually have modest or negative personal net worths. On the other hand, wealthy individuals tend to live modestly in middle-income communities, drive modest vehicles, and shop at Costco Warehouse.

Lessons Learned from “The Millionaire Next Door” are enlightening on how the wealthy actually spend and save. Instead of appearing to be wealthy, they tend to:

Understand that Income Does Not Equal Wealth

It is a fact that higher-income households tend to have more wealth than lower- and middle-income households. But the size of a paycheck explains only approximately 30% of the variation of wealth among households. What really matters is how much of the income is not spent on discretionary things, but is saved and invested. On average, wealthy individuals invest nearly 20% of their income. And, it finds that those in the top quartile of wealth accumulation are prodigious accumulators of wealth (PAWs), according to Danko and Stanley

Work with a Budget

The majority of wealthy individuals have a budget. Of those who don’t, they have what the authors called “an artificial economic environment of scarcity,” more commonly known as “pay yourself first.” In other words, they invest a good chunk of their income before they can spend any of it. As the authors wrote, “It’s much easier to budget if you visualize the long-term benefits of this task.”

Manage their Spend

Nearly two-thirds of the wealthy can answer know how much their family spends each year for food, clothing, and shelter. In contrast, only 35% of high-income non-wealthy answered yes to this question. The wealthy manage and track their spending.

Have Defined Financial Goals

About two-thirds of wealthy have clearly defined short-, intermediate- and long-Term goals. Many of the wealthy are retired and have already reached their goal of financial independence.

Dedicate Time To Financial Planning and Education

Creating a budget, goal setting and financial planning all take time, but the wealthy were willing to spend it. Danko and Stanley found that people they labeled “prodigious accumulators of wealth” (PAW) spend many hours per month planning their investments. In fact, they found “a strong positive correlation” between investment planning and wealth accumulation. Each week, each month, each year, the wealthy plan their investments.

Buy and Hold Smaller Homes

Your purchase of a home — and how often you choose a new one — will determine your ability to accumulate wealth. According to The Millionaire Next Door, that wealthy family has been next door for quite a while. Half of the wealthy have lived in the same house for more than 20 years.

Stay Married

The majority of wealthy people are married and stay married to the same person. Several studies have shown that people who are married accumulate more wealth than those who are single or divorced. Conversely, it’s important to partner with someone who possesses similar healthy financial behavior and habits.

Buy and Hold Pre-Owned Vehicle

The majority of wealthy individuals own their cars, rather than lease. Approximately a quarter have a current-year model, but another quarter drive a car that is four years old or older. More than a third tend to buy used vehicles.

Live Happier Lives

Bottomline, living below your means is the one sure way to accumulate wealth and to live happier. Since, there exist a peace of mind living below your means and saving money. Danko and Stanley’s research indicates that, “financially independent people are happier than those in their same income/age cohort who are not financially secure.”

Essentially, when it comes to financial security and retirement planning, adopting the lifestyle of the wealthy means you can save more toward your financial goals and destination. That’s a formula that can help anyone to accumulate wealth and achieve financial independence.

  • References:
    1. Thomas J. Stanley, and William D. Danko, The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy Paperback, November 16, 2010
    2. https://www.getrichslowly.org/nine-lessons-in-wealth-building-from-the-millionaire-next-door/

    Accumulating Wealth

    Posted on by

    The wealthy accumulate wealth by being frugal

    Frugality – a commitment to saving, spending less, and sticking to a budget – is a key factor in accumulating wealth, according to DataPoints’ founder, Dr. Sarah Stanley Fallaw.  Dr. Fallaw is also the co-authored “The Next Millionaire Next Door: Enduring Strategies for Building Wealth“.

    img_0788

    In an University of Georgia’s financial planning performance lab research paper examining the topic of “what does it take to build wealth over time”, the key findings were that those who were successful at accumulating wealth frequently exhibited the following behaviors:

    • Spending less than they earned
    • Having a long-term outlook on their financial future
    • Maintaining sound financial records
    • Keeping up with financial markets
    • Saving regardless of income level

    Essentially, her research shows that anyone can accumulate wealth if they know the right steps to take. And, if individuals possess a certain set of characteristics, they may be more likely to become wealthy, according to Dr. Fallaw, who is also director of research for the Affluent Market Institute.

    In her research, she found that six behaviours, which she called “wealth factors,” are related to net worth potential, regardless of age or income:

    • Frugality, or a commitment to saving, spending less, and sticking to a budget
    • Confidence in financial management, investing, and household leadership
    • Responsibility, which involves accepting your role in financial outcomes and believing that luck plays little role
    • Planning, or setting goals for your financial future
    • Focus on seeing tasks through to their completion without being distracted
    • Social indifference, or not succumbing to social pressure to buy the latest thing

    In order to accumulate wealth, it is imperative for investors to understand that their underlying financial behavior and habits matter significantly. DataPoints research supports the notion that, “…individuals who successfully accumulate wealth often engage in basic and identifiable productive financial management behaviors.” And, they are often “socially indifferent” to the latest “must haves” and they resist the “lifestyle creep,” which is the tendency to spend more whenever they earn more.

    To properly build wealth, financial experts recommend saving 20% of your income and living off the remaining 80%. Many wealthy individuals, who religiously follow this principle, espoused the freedom that comes with spending and living below their means.

    Reference

    1. Grable, J. E., Kruger, M., & Fallaw, S. S. (2017). An Assessment of Wealth Accumulation Tasks and Behaviors. Journal of Financial Service Professionals, 71(1), 55-70.
    2. https://www.datapoints.com/2017/04/06/tasks-of-wealth-accumulators/
    3. https://apple.news/A4YIQ2ahsSKqzUG3rh1PmTQ

    Ideas for Frugal Living | Three Life Lessons | Fidelity

    Posted on by

    “The lessons they taught us about money—about not spending more than we have, saving what we can, and splurging occasionally and mindfully”

    Three (3) lasting lessons from my frugal parent

    Frugal living can help separate the important financial expenses from the not so important. Learn helpful lessons and ideas on frugal living here.

    BY JEANNE THOMPSON FROM FIDELITY – 06/07/2019

    I’ll never forget my first “real” vacation.

    Most of our family vacations were camping trips where we slept together in a tent or a pop-up trailer and my mom cooked for my 4 siblings and me at the campsite. But the summer after fifth grade, my father decided to take me, my mom, and my 2 older sisters with him on a business trip to California.

    That trip really stood out. I remember relaxing by the pool in sunny San Diego, sipping Shirley Temples with my sisters. We were fascinated by the elevators in our big hotel and rode them up and down until we were sternly told to stop. Simply put, it was paradise.

    This trip was an unusual extravagance for my parents, too. You can’t raise 5 children on a limited income without being very frugal. And my parents, who were both first-generation Americans, were used to getting by on very little. Excess was not an option. At Christmas, my mom would save nice wrapping paper and reuse it; boxes were also recycled for many holidays to come. Folding a little piece of wrapping paper in half, writing a note inside, and taping it to a gift worked just as well as buying a greeting card. She reused everything from tin foil to plastic baggies. Her approach to money and possessions was pretty consistent: “Make do with what you have.”

    These habits and quirks used to make us laugh. Today, I appreciate the example my parents set. I resist spending money on big-ticket items. My car, for instance, is a 2010 model and has 150,000 miles on it. And most of the furniture in our house is at least a decade old (if not a few decades). I’m not about spending a lot on furniture —with a teenage son, our couch becomes a dumping ground for lacrosse equipment more often than not. I even save nice wrapping paper from time to time, much to the amusement of my kids. And because of the warm memories from that long-ago California trip, I’d much rather spend money on experiences my family can enjoy, like vacations, than on stuff.

    Maybe it’s wishful thinking, but I like to believe that my parents’ mindful approach to spending lives on in my kids, who seem to appreciate the value of a dollar on some days at least. My college-age daughter takes pride in her 5-star rating on a ride-hailing app because it entitles her to discounts and coupons. My son, a high school senior, is already savvy about mutual funds and 401(k)s—thanks to conversations he tunes into at home and an intro to business class he takes at school. Both kids know that they need to budget for indulgences beyond the basics and that they’ll have to pay for them with money earned from their jobs.

    Both of my parents are gone now, but their frugal approach to working diligently and saving money allowed them to raise kids. And not only that: They put enough away to build a nest egg that funded some retirement travel to Europe, Russia, and Alaska in their golden years. By then my father came around to reasoning: “You can’t take it with you.”

    They still managed to leave something behind. The lessons they taught us about money—about not spending more than we have, saving what we can, and splurging occasionally and mindfully—are with all of us. And those occasional splurges they encouraged us to enjoy are as sweet as those long-ago Shirley Temples under the warm California sun.

    — Read on www.fidelity.com/mymoney/frugal-living-ideas-and-life-lessons

    Solving the Financial Literacy Problem

    Posted on by

    “A compelling body of evidence demonstrates a strong association between financial literacy and household well-being. Survey after survey shows that households that demonstrate low levels of financial literacy are those that tend not to plan for retirement, borrow at high interest rates, and acquire fewer assets.” Shawn Cole

    Numerous reports show that a majority of American adults lack basic financial knowledge, behaviors, habits or skills to make good decisions about managing their money. Poor money management habits and a lack of financial literacy continue to be significant concerns for Americans and might pose a future a threat to the continued prosperity of America, since we cannot expect government to run huge fiscal deficits to provide essential needs of its citizens.

    Additionally, it is one problem that has caused many Americans to be left behind despite ten years of economic expansion and a roaring bull stock market over that same timeframe. The economic good times have benefited high income and high net worth Americans; and it has led to an ever widening income gap, wealth gap and retirement gap within the United States.

    Lack of Financial Literacy

    “The number one problem in today’s generation and economy is the lack of financial literacy.” Alan Greenspan, Former Chairman, Federal Reserve

    Forty-seven percent of college students surveyed said they do not feel prepared to manage their money. Managing money remains the most daunting challenge for college students for the fourth year in a row.

    A recent survey, by financial firm AIG and education training company EVERFI of more than 25,000 college students, revealed that students struggle with even basic financial literacy about things like student loans, credit cards and investing.

    When asked six personal finance questions, the survey revealed that more than one in 10 college students answered none of questions correctly, and another 20% got just one question right. Still, more than half got just two or fewer questions correct — even incorrectly answering simple questions about net worth and savings.

    Furthermore, fewer than 1% of college students taking the test got them all right.

    This survey reveals a widespread problem inside America. It reveals that there is a Financial literacy problem in America and one that we must solve.

    This is a major issue because of the financial realities facing college students and all Americans. For example, according to Sallie US:SLM data revealed that 83% of college grads have a credit card, though only about six in 10 say they pay the balance on time and in full each month.

    Not Taught in High School

    “You can come from humble beginnings, live frugally, invest as much as you can, save 10% to 20% of your paycheck, invest in low-cost ETFs, and become a millionaire.’—Dan LaSalle, Olney Charter School’s assistant principal

    Why the shortfall in financial literacy? The reason is because not many students in the U.S. learn about personal finance in school, regardless of the income-level where they live. According to the nonprofit Next Gen Personal Finance, only five states require high-school students to take a personal-finance class: Virginia, Alabama, Utah, Missouri and Tennessee.

    In other states, personal finance classes are often offered as an elective. (https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-one-high-school-is-teaching-hundreds-of-students-to-become-millionaires-2019-05-03). As a result, we have a nation where a vast majority do not understand or even the basics of smart money management habits and behaviors.

    “The single biggest difference between financial success and financial failure is how well you manage your money. It’s simple: to master money, you must manage money.” T. Harv Eker, author Millionaire Mind

    Financial Literacy is one solution

    Financial literacy is about knowing how money is made, spent, and saved, as well as the skills and ability to use financial resources to make decisions. These decisions include how to generate, invest, spend, and save money.

    This concept is applicable to both individuals and organizations. Individuals must be able to balance a checkbook, comprehend personal income taxes, and understand the concept of budgeting in order to make wise decisions with money. These skills are vitally important; yet, many individuals lack this basic knowledge and consequently are unable to meet their daily expenses.

    References:

    1. https://everfi.com/insights/white-papers/2019-money-matters-report/
    2. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/solving-americas-financial-literacy-crisis-starts-with-teachers-not-laws-2019-11-19
    3. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/more-than-half-of-college-students-fail-this-6-question-money-quiz-would-you-2019-06-05
    4. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-one-high-school-is-teaching-hundreds-of-students-to-become-millionaires-2019-05-03

    A Man is What He Thinks

    Posted on by

    “A man is literally what he thinks.” James Allen

    James Allen, a British philosophical author of ‘As a Man Thinketh’, wrote, “A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts. As the plant springs from, so every act of a man springs from the hidden seeds of thought, and could not have appeared without them.”

    The things you choose to focus on, your thoughts, determines how you perceive the world – and influences many of the experiences you have as a result. If you focus only on the negative things in your world, the world can seem like a terrible place and your mood and outlook may suffer.

    “Every one of us is the sum total of our own thoughts. We are where we are because that is exactly where we really want or feel we deserve to be, whether we’ll admit it or not.” Earl Nightingale

    But when you focus on the positive things in your world, you see that the world is actually full of faith, hope, love, and joy. There is kindness and beauty that inspires people to do incredible things.  Each man holds the key to their own perception and focus, good or bad. He also hold the key to everything that enters into his life. By working patiently and intelligently upon his thoughts and focus, he may remake his life, his behaviors and transform his circumstances. 

    “You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.” James Allen

    Thoughts of doubt and fear never accomplished anything, and never can. They always lead to failure. Purpose, energy, power to do, and all strong thoughts cease when doubt and fear creep in.

    “He who has conquered doubt and fear has conquered failure.” James Allen

    The will to do springs from the knowledge that we can do. Doubt and fear are the great enemies of faith and knowledge. The people who embrace readily doubt and fear, who refuses to slay them, hinder himself at every step.

    Changing the Subconscious Mind

    Daily affirmations are techniques you use to begin he process of improving your life. Affirmations are simply statements that describe a goal or thought in its already completed state. Positive affirmation helps eliminate negative and limiting beliefs.

    Affirmations can transform an individual’s comfort zone from a limited one keeping them trapped in mediocrity to a more expanded one where anything is possible. It helps to replace your “I can’ts” with “I cans,” and your fears and doubts with confidence and aspirations.

    Affirmations are reminders to your unconscious mind to stay focused on your goals and to come up with solutions to challenges and obstacles that might get in the way.

    “These things we bring on ourselves through our habitual way of thinking,”

    Daily affirmations are simple, positive statements declaring specific goals in their completed states. Affirmations also hold a key to creating the life of your dreams. Successful people have long known that using willpower alone to energize their success isn’t enough.

    Let go of negative beliefs

    It is important to let go of and not focus on negative thoughts and images. Instead, individuals should bombard their subconscious mind with new thoughts and images that are positive and stated in the present tense.

    In closing, William James said: “The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind. We need only in cold blood act as if the thing in question were real, and it will become infallibly real by growing into such a connection with our life that it will become real. It will become so knit with habit and emotion that our interests in it will be those which characterize belief.”

    James also said,

    ”If you only care enough for a result, you will almost certainly attain it. If you wish to be rich, you will be rich. If you wish to be learned, you will be learned. If you wish to be good, you will be good – only you must, then, really wish these things, and wish them exclusively, and not wish at the same time a hundred other incompatible things just as strongly.”

    References:

    1. Allen, James, As a Man Thinketh: Original 1902 Edition
    2. http://www.jamesallenlibrary.com/authors/james-allen/as-a-man-thinketh
    3. https://www.jackcanfield.com/blog/practice-daily-affirmations/
    4. https://www.jackcanfield.com/blog/become-a-millionaire-never-too-late/

    U.S. Markets Overreacting

    Posted on by

    Updated:  Monday, 2/3/2020 at 8:25 am

    We never want to downplay the threat posed by the Novel Coronavirus in China and globally. The highly contagious coronavirus is a pneumonia-causing illness that infects an individual’s respiratory tract. It is now responsible for a reported 360 deaths in China as of Monday morning and 17,000 infections, according to Chinese officials and official figures from the World Health Organization. Furthermore, it can be confidently assumed that the Chinese Communist government has drastically under reported the magnitude of the spread and the total number of its citizens effected by the virus.

    Consequently, the U.S.represents a relative virgin population for the Novel Coronavirus. Americans have little to no immunity to this strain of virus from previous spreads or vaccination.  Thus it does pose a potential temporary risk and impact to the U.S. economy.

    Subsequently, the World Health Organization has declared the fast-spreading coronavirus a global health emergency — a rare designation that should help to contain the spread and outbreak.

    On Friday, the Federal government decided to quarantine Americans arriving on U.S. soil from Wuhan and the Guangdong province in southern China. Additionally, the U.S. initiated measures to screen passengers arriving from all other regions of China. Those found without symptoms are released and asked to self isolate themselves for the fourteen days, the prescribed incubation period for the Coronavirus.

    U.S. Influenza Season

    However, most Americans are not aware that the CDC estimates that there has been 25 million cases of seasonal influenza in the U.S., 250K hospitalizations and 20,000 deaths reported. This is not abnormal for influenza season in the U.S. Moreover, influenza has been assessed as widespread in Puerto Rico and in 49 states.

    Image if the media chose to report these statistics like the quantity of seasonal influenza cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the U.S. every hour and had quasi-infectious disease experts on-air to pontificate about the potential severity and potential deaths. Additionally, image if they had their reporters stoke fear by wearing a nurse’s mask to cover their respiratory system and displaying concern in their voices while reporting live from a mall in Chicago.

    More than likely, the market would have been impacted by the over reporting of news.

    Conclusion

    Bottom line, the market has been  freaking out over the coronavirus outbreak, which doesn’t pose a threat to any long-term investor, as long as they remain calm and disciplined.  The media’s coverage and reporting of the coronavirus might be best described as over-dramatic. The effect has been the market sell off and market volatility. Additionally, the media appears to be now over hyping the preventive measure U.S. officials have taken to prevent the spread of the highly contagious virus on U.S. soil.

    Friday’s U.S. stock market two percent sell off was definitely an overreaction to the over-reporting and over-hyping by the U.S. entertainment media.

    References:

    1. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm#ILIActivityMap

    The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business

    Posted on by

    Habits are choices that you continue doing repeatedly without actually thinking about them.

    The Power of Habit, written by New York Times business reporter Charles Duhigg, explains why habits exist and how they can be changed. According to Duhigg, if people can understand how behaviors became habits, they can restructure those patterns in more constructive ways.

    Additionally, understanding and changing habits is one of the most important thing in developing good personal financial behaviors or eliminating bad personal financial behaviors.

    https://youtu.be/W1eYrhGeffc

    Source:

    1. https://charlesduhigg.com/books/the-power-of-habit/
    2. https://www.shortform.com/summary/the-power-of-habit-summary-charles-duhigg
    3. https://fastertomaster.com/the-power-of-habit-by-charles-duhigg/