Rich People Talk

How many times have you had a great idea for something-the next big product, a new website, how to improve your job, or just about anything-but never followed through? Chances are there are more times than you can remember. Would you believe that a simple change of mindset might lead you to riches, both personally and financially, than you ever imagined?

Sounds like a promise from a snake oil salesman, no?

Do you know why most people never achieve the financial state they long for? Plain and simple; they never actually try. More often than not you spend more time convincing yourself that your idea will not work than actually trying to execute on the idea.

Here are five steps that you can implement right now to change your mindset

Step 1 - Understand your current mindset.

Do you tend to have a fixed mindset or a growth mindset? A fixed mindset is essentially one where you believe that things are fixed, or predetermined. You are who you are, and nothing short of luck is going to change your course in life. In contrast, with a growth mindset you feel that you have the control to be successful and make the changes necessary to get there. Keep in mind it doesn't have to be one or the other. Plenty of people have different mindsets depending on the situation.

Step 2 - Evaluate Where You Have Been Limited and Why

When you're faced with a challenge, how do you respond? Do you embrace the challenge and roll up your sleeves to do whatever is necessary to reach your goal? Or does self-doubt creep in and you focus on what will happen if you don't reach your goal?

Look at all aspects of your life to see where your mindset has been a limiting factor. Maybe you passed up the chance to interview for that dream job because you didn't feel like you were qualified

Step 3 - Recognize the Importance of Change

As you look at how your life has been impacted by your mindset, take time to recognize what might have been different had you approached the situation with a more positive mindset. As Henry Ford said, whether you believe you can, or whether you believe you cannot, you're right.

Step 4 - Develop an Action Plan

Now that you understand your current mindset, how it has limited you in the past, and the importance of making a change, start to create your action plan.

There is nothing wrong with starting small and building towards a more widespread change. Baby steps is often a great strategy to tackle any significant change in your life.

Identify one challenge in your life and develop and action plan on how you can approach it. What do you need to do to be successful? What skills will it require? If you don't have the skills right now, plan your strategy on how to acquire the necessary skills. Note down any potential barriers to success and identify steps to overcome them. Tackling challenges and having a successful mindset in one area of your life will spill over into all areas of your life, personal and professional

Step 5 - Execute and Manage the Action Plan

To borrow a cliché, this is where the rubber meets the road. You've got the action plan on how to face your next challenge, now it is time to take action.

It is critical to remember that whether you succeed or fail on a particular attempt is not important. A large part of having a positive mindset is learning from your setbacks and adjusting your action plan the next time. True success comes in the fact that you're approaching each challenge with the best possible mindset and continuing to try until you succeed.

Apply these steps to your own life and you will soon appreciate how a change of mindset can truly lead to riches.

So I was relistening to Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth again. T. Harv Eker was commenting to think about negative comments you may have heard about rich people or money or wealth as you grew up and how those beliefs could be holding you back from becoming rich now.

And the quote that I always remember as a child, was hearing scripture read in church that said it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Now, since camels can NOT fit through the eye of the needle, to me, this meant rich people didn't go to heaven. And if they weren't going to heaven, then seemed pretty sure they were going to hell.

Now part of me didn't really buy the idea that becoming rich meant you were going to hell, part of me simply thought that was an exaggeration, BUT that the idea was the richer you were, the less likely you'd be going to heaven. But, seriously, if I evaluate my plans for additional income, here are two items high on the list.

First, I've committed that I will not change the percent of income from my Squidoo lenses (including this one) that goes to charity. It is a large percent. When I first started creating pages on Squidoo, it was easy to say, sure I'll give a big chunk of my income, which is only a dollar or two each month, to charity, why not? But, as my income has risen, I've been tempted to change the percent, reasoning that I'd still be giving the same dollar amount to charity. But, I won't. I made a pledge and I'm keeing that pledge and so for one of my online sources of income, every time I increase my own wealth, I increase my giving. Hardly seems like that would hurt me if I'm to be judged at the pearly gates.

And now, I have $47K as a money-raising goal, why? Because I want to adopt a child and that's the estimated cost of fees, travel. When I look at my motivations and plans based on accumulating wealth, I realize this is not the road to hell. And so, I will cast aside any notion that I've clung to since I first heard those words in church. A rich man (or woman) CAN go to the kingdom of heaven.

See you there (though not any time soon).