{"id":992,"date":"2009-03-20T11:55:26","date_gmt":"2009-03-20T15:55:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/joyfullyjobless.com\/blog\/?p=992"},"modified":"2009-03-20T11:55:26","modified_gmt":"2009-03-20T15:55:26","slug":"banishing-the-money-dragon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/joyfullyjobless.com\/blog\/2009\/03\/banishing-the-money-dragon\/","title":{"rendered":"Banishing the Money Dragon"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Every so often I am asked some variation of the question, \u201cDo you ever worry about money?\u201d\u00a0 The truthful answer to that is, \u201cNot anymore,\u201d but getting free of the Money Dragon had little to do with earning more money and everything to do with challenging\u00a0 my belief system about money. Without realizing it, I had adopted many attitudes about money\u2014and what I deserved to have\u2014from people who dwelt in perpetual scarcity where there was never enough to go around. Changing those beliefs brought welcome relief from the Money Dragon that stood between me and prosperity.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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As I learned, no one has to stay locked in financial despair.\u00a0 Allowing the Money Dragon to rule your world is a surefire invitation to sleepless nights and perpetual poverty. Banishing that monster starts by answering some important questions.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0\u00b0\u00a0Do you live in a world of scarcity or surplus?<\/strong>\u00a0 Many people create scarcity\u00a0 by focusing on everything they don\u2019t <\/span>have. Author Sondra Ray points out that if you have any money anywhere\u2014even a few coins\u2014you actually have a surplus. How many people give themselves credit for that?<\/p>\n

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Thinking abundantly comes from a healthy self-image, knowing you have options, and an understanding of the role that attitude plays in creating wealth. Most of us arrive at that state through conscious work, eliminating thoughts and words of poverty.\u00a0 Books such as Rich Dad, Poor Dad<\/em><\/strong> and Creating Money <\/em><\/strong>can help us get rid of our own blocks and limiting thoughts. <\/span><\/p>\n

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\u00b0 What has goal setting\u00a0 got to do with it?<\/strong> Although more people are coming to understand the importance of the goal setting process, many fail to make the connection between setting goals and generating cash flow. \u201cI\u2019d like to travel,\u201d they sigh, without giving any thought to making it happen.<\/p>\n

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Successful goal setters focus on what\u00a0 <\/span>they want to create; then they figure out how\u00a0<\/span> to make that happen. People who fail to achieve their goals often get sidetracked by thinking they must know exactly how before starting out. That attitude is guaranteed to keep them stuck.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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A great way to build your goal setting muscle is to invent a small project\u2014one that really excites you\u2014and create the funding for it in a totally new way. Then work up to a slightly larger project.\u00a0 Not only will you realize more of your dreams, you\u2019ll build a larger Option Bank\u00a0 for yourself as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\u00b0 Is it an expense or is it an investment?<\/strong>\u00a0 An entrepreneur\u00a0 needs to understand the difference between expense and investment.\u00a0 A successful friend of mine once totaled up all the money\u00a0 he and his wife had invested in stocks, real estate and personal growth. Their discovery? The money spent on self-improvement brought returns higher than any other investment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As Sondra Ray points out, \u201cWhen you say, \u2018I can\u2019t afford that self-improvement seminar,\u2019 it\u2019s like saying, \u2018I\u2019m not a good investment.\u201d The trick here is to know when spending is actually an investment in your future and when it\u2019s just frivolous. Which leads us to the next question.<\/p>\n

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\u00b0 Is it ego or is it essential? <\/strong>People who leave corporate life often take with them a spendthrift attitude.\u00a0 Doing things to create a successful image may seem like a good idea, but you need to consider whether it\u2019s the seductive siren song of your ego urging you to buy that luxury car or spend thousands for a fabulous brochure or whether it\u2019s essential to running your business. Yes, it\u2019s wonderful to have great toys and a successful image. It\u2019s even better if you\u2019ve earned them.<\/p>\n

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If it\u2019s essential, it\u2019s an investment; if it\u2019s ego, it\u2019s just debt.<\/p>\n

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\u00b0 Is it anybody\u2019s business?<\/strong> Several months ago, I was introduced to a man who was\u00a0 working\u00a0 frenetically to launch a business based on an innovative product he had designed. At our first meeting\u2014and in every conversation after\u2014he told me, \u201cI\u2019m absolutely broke.\u201d In fact, he seemed to be wearing his impoverished state as a badge of honor.<\/p>\n

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Your finances are really not appropriate public knowledge. Besides your spouse and your accountant, nobody needs to know the contents of your bank account. This is also true, incidentally, when you\u2019ve hit the jackpot.<\/p>\n

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\u00b0 What have you given lately? <\/strong>Money is energy and needs to flow out as well as in. Make your own acts of generosity count by giving money to causes that you truly care about. Selfless giving benefits the giver by adding to feelings of abundance. A state of abundance is not the natural habitat of Money Dragons.<\/p>\n

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Hot Investment Tip:<\/strong> Join Alice Barry and me for Follow Through Camp<\/a><\/em>, May 15 & 16, Dodge City, KS and banish the Money Dragon and other obstacles once and for all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0Every so often I am asked some variation of the question, \u201cDo you ever worry about money?\u201d\u00a0 The truthful answer to that is, \u201cNot anymore,\u201d but getting free of the Money Dragon had little to do with earning more money and everything to do with challenging\u00a0 my belief system about money. Without realizing it, I…<\/p>\n

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