5 Reasons Why You May Be Financially Poor (Part 1)

Being financially poor is not only a physical state of being; it is a state of mind. You are financially poor because you created a situation that makes you poor. It has nothing to do with your parents' financial situation, or because you were born into a poor family.

If you are willing to change your situation, you can bring up your financial status. Only you are preventing yourself from become financially rich.

Not convinced that it is your mindset and not your family situation? Here are 5 reasons why I believe you are still not rich:

1. Limiting beliefs

The famous Henry Ford once said, "Whether you believe you can do it or not, you are right". What he means is your mindset determines your action and situation. When you believe you can, you will. When you believe you cannot, you will not.

Putting your financial status aside, what is the mentality you have towards finances? Are you telling yourself "I am broke" or "I am a millionaire"? Inspiring and motivational as it seems, it is actually the most difficult aspect to change.

Why? Because your situation is more tangible than your mentality. Your mentality is affected by your mood, which is directly affected by your situation. When your finances are tight, you are easily agitated. Yes?

Successful people have these 5 common mentality:

1. I attract money.
2. Poverty is the root of all evil.
3. Earning money is easy.
4. I will be a multi-millionaire.
5. I can afford it.

Let's look at J. K. Rowling as an example:

Her journey as an author was not an easy one. She was rejected by twelve publishing houses (can you imagine the thought of no Harry Potter on book shelves and cinema?). But a small publisher Bloomsbury gave her a chance with a small advance.

If you ever think only the big opportunities matters, the small opportunity from Bloomsbury propelled her books to success. When she launched her seventh and final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, it broke sales records as the fastest-selling book ever!

She achieved a record sales of 400 million copies worldwide and a best-selling book series in history! Rowling went from being unemployed and living on state benefits to becoming the world’s first billionaire author!

Are you convinced now that your mentality plays a huge role in your success? Rowling could have gave up, and there will be no Harry Potter today.

2. Decoding the "F" word.

This F word is the most sensitive word to human beings. No, it is not the four-letter-word. It is Finance.

People desire financial freedom, but many refuse to admit it. People fear that they appear greedy or money-minded. Bad news, everything in life requires money. You should pursue financial freedom, but not greed. There is a difference.

While the internet has tons of information for all to read on finance, some content providers abuse this and create scams to lure greedy people. Greed produces evil, financial freedom produces happiness.

There are several different financial instruments in the market to grow your wealth; stocks, bonds, gold and silver, currencies, commodities, and property. Before you jump straight in to increase your wealth, there are a few basic things you need to know:

1. Always listen and read up on news from the central and commercial banks, Finance Ministers, and hedge funds managers.
2. Understand what is the current market sentiment. It shifts from "risk-on" to "risk-off" quickly.
3. "Risk-on" can be mid or high growth investments. "Risk-off" can be low or no growth investments.
4. On the other hand, these risks also bring another set of mentalities that needs to be managed: "Risk-on" mode brings hope and greed when growth is good. "Risk-off" mode brings fear and panic when the investment is losing money.

Do not jump into these investments without any knowledge. Study, find an investment mentor, or a finance manager to guide you into the financial market. Remember, do not let your greed overpower your path towards financial freedom.

3. Instil passion

Passion is important, it gives you the drive to achieve your dreams and goals. On top of it, passion brings you success. It gives you the ability to think of all possible ways to make your idea work. Without passion, you will only wait for the day to end, go back home and sleep.

Remember Steve Irwin? He is the famous crocodile hunter and owner of the Australia Zoo. He says, “If there's one thing that I, Steve Irwin, would wanna be remembered for, it's my passion and enthusiasm. Conservation is my job, my life, my whole persona.” Even after his passing, his legacy remains. That is the power of passion.

Do you know why Steven Spielberg movies are famous? It is because he is passionate about it. He says, "The only time I’m totally happy is when I’m watching films or making them".

How can you instil passion?

1. Get curious about the things that interests you. Understand every aspect of that field or industry. If you are looking for investment portfolios to grow your wealth, be curious and learn every aspect of it. This can prevent you from being attracted to "get rich quick" schemes.
2. Piece the jigsaw puzzle of your interest. When you build a jigsaw puzzle, it is impossible to do it within a short time. Similarly, you need to invest time into your area of interest to piece every piece of it together.
3. Surround yourself with like-minded people to drive your curiosity and commitment towards your objective. Draw strength from another who is more committed and disciplined than you are, keep them as your guiding light. With such people around, information can be shared to shorten your duration to build the puzzle!
4. Get moving and stop procrastinating! Motion creates emotion. As you move, your emotions drive positively which creates energy to push your to break boundaries and discoveries!

4. Take massive action!

As Anthony Robbins once said, "The path to success is taking massive, determined action". Little action brings little results, massive action brings massive results. Usually, people who take little action is only due to one reason: no goals setting.

Without setting goals, you are moving blindly. Your energy and focus is split amongst many other things. But with goals set in mind, you will focus your attention to the objective.

According to a study by Yale university in 1953, they measured the differences between students who set goals and those who do not. In their research, 97% of the students did not set goals, whereas only 3% do. 20 years later, the possessions that the 3% have far exceeds the total combined possessions of the 97% who did not. Let this sink in.

How to set goals that are effective? Make them S.M.A.R.T

1. S = Specific. Be specific in the goals that you want to achieve.
2. M = Measurable. Make sure that your goals are measurable to measure the percentage you have achieved towards that goal.
3. A = Achievable. You need to make sure that your goals are achievable within your resources and time.
4. R = Realistic. Be realistic about your goals. Don't aim for a million dollars when you have not reached a hundred thousand in a year.
5. T = Timely. Make sure that the time set for your to achieve your goals is doable. Nobody is asking you to reach your goal within 6 months. Give yourself appropriate time to achieve them.

5. Find a mentor

Having a mentor is important and essential for anyone. Ask those who are successful their field, they always have a mentor to guide them through the processes of their field. Never be above the process and your mentor will ensure that.

Want to know more about the treasures of having a mentor? Read it here.

Sincerely,

Mario Singh