Part 1 Millionaires vs the Middle Class

Below is the beginning in a series of Blogs based on a book I have been reading, “The Top Ten Distinctions between Millionaires and the Middle Class” By Keith Cameron Smith. I highly suggest picking up a copy of this book; it is inexpensive, very short and to the point, only 95 pages, but some great information.
I have decided to pass along these distinctions in Blog form to you, because as I have stated before, I want to do every thing I can to help as many people as I can get through these trying economic times as possible.

Distinction number 10. Millionaires think long-term, and the Middle Class thinks short term.
“Society can be broken down into five groups of people: the very poor, poor, middle class, rich, and very rich. Each group of people thinks differently about money. Very poor people think day-to-day. Poor people think week-to-week. Middle-class people think month-to-month. Rich people think year-to-year, and very rich people think decade-to-decade.” If you think about this statement, you would have to agree that it holds some weight. Do you agree that most of the people in real estate, mortgages, car sales, and other similar types of small businesses and sales professions fall into the middle class in terms of financial wealth? Why do you think this is? Could it be partly because since the first day we entered the business we have been trained to think of everything on a month to month basis? Whenever I go around and speak with people the question usually comes up, “So, how is your month going?”, or “How many deals did you do last month?”. Nobody has ever asked me how my decade is going, or how many deals I closed last decade, or project to close this decade. Those questions seem kind of crazy, and we may not talk in those terms, but why not plan in those terms.
“Thinking decade-to-decade, as the very rich do, is there you find business plans that reach far into the future… It is where people learn how to pass their assets onto future generations without the government taking part of what they spent their lives building. Very rich people typically make well over $500,000 a year. Most very rich people consistently make a minimum of $1,000,000 a year.”
Do you have a business plan? Do you have goals that are WRITTEN DOWN on paper? If not, why? There is an old saying, “those who aim for nothing, tend to hit it with amazing accuracy”. If you do not have a business plan and goals, what are you aiming for? Right now, with the way the economic state our country and local markets are in, it is imperative that you have a business plan and goals. You might say, why do I need a business plan, I don’t own a business, or I am not self employed. One thing everyone must realize, and all rich and future rich people already do, is that no matter who signs your paycheck, you are self employed, and you determine how much you get paid.
Think about it for a second. If you go to work and do less than what is expected of you, you will probably get fired, and therefore you have reduced your own income. If you go to work and do only what is expected of you, you will make what ever the minimum is your position makes. But if you go to work and do more than what is expect and give everything you have to give to your job, you will get raises, and promotions and bonuses; therefore, you have increased your income. People who are CEO’s and presidents of organizations did not get there by accident. If you want to advance your career, you need to first figure out where you want to be, or how much you want to make, or what position you want to have, and put a plan together on how to get there.
Start with your big goal, then figure out what you need to do to get there ten years from now, then figure out what you will need to have accomplished 5 years from now, then one year, then one month, and lastly figure out what you need to do everyday in order to achieve your goal ten years from now. These day to day activities could be a little as making 5 calls to your database of lead sources, or doing at least one sales call, or sending an e-mail to 10 current or past clients. The problem is that these daily tasks will seem easy, and almost insignificant, which is dangerous, because after a while you will start thinking that they are not paying off, or you are not seeing any results, and that it will not hurt to miss a day, or a week, or a month, and the next thing you know you are not doing this activities at all and you have just blown your 10 year plan. The most important thing to keep in mind is that the activities you are doing today are not designed to get you results today, they are designed to build over time and give you tremendous results over a period of time. Make a poster or something you can place in a location you will see everyday to remind you to win today, in order to win the year, in order to win the decade and achieve the goal.
Lastly, “When you have long-term goals you will find it easier to develop perseverance. All millionaires have had to preserver through challenges in their lives. In order to see your dreams fulfilled you have to become a ‘whatever it takes’ kind of person. Middle-class people give up when the pressure is on. Since they value comfort, they don’t preserver when the going gets tough. Millionaires go the second mile, and the third, and the fourth. They do whatever it takes to experience abundance. Since they think long-term, they keep on keeping on until they achieve abundance and freedom.”

Here are two very short clips, on the basic steps of becoming wealthy, and how to plan your day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXS4XavZCa4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sX0eZxANWmI&feature=related

It's a Good Life!!!
Greg Novak MBA
Branch Manager
Eagle Nationwide Mortgage Company
Office - 386-756-8228 Cell - 386-846-6686 Fax - 386-756-8108
Web site - www.MyNationwideLender.com

Oh, by the way, if you know someone who is thinking about buying or refinancing a home, or anyone who is struggling with or currently behind on their mortgage payment, please give me a call with their name and number, I will be happy to follow up with them for you.