Do You Have Any Goals For Building Wealth

The money is out there. No matter how many people tell you that we are in the midst of a starvation economy, that the market is doing this or that, and that it's too risky to ‘play the game,’ so to speak, people are getting rich every day. That is the reality.

 

The trick, of course, is to become one of those people.

 

‘Yeah,’ you might say. ‘That guy was just lucky. What are the chances of that happening to me?’ Well, absolutely zero if you don't do anything about your dreams to build wealth. If you walk around thinking that you have only a snowball's chance of hitting ‘the big one’ in the financial game, then you are right. That's because you are depending on chance.

 

Becoming wealthy is not about chance. Oh the guy you just read about may indeed have been lucky - but he was not ‘just lucky.’ Because fortune favors the prepared mind, you have to lay the groundwork in order to take advantage of opportunity when it arises. You have to be able to not only recognize those opportunities, but to actually have the resources to take advantage of them.

 

Laying the groundwork involves having a plan for your financial future. What is your plan for building wealth?

 

If, like most Americans, you don't have one then, like most Americans, you will retain the status quo. But if you recognize that you, and only you, are in charge of your destiny, that is an entirely different matter.

 

According to Robert Kiyosaki, author of the Rich Dad series of books, you have to get a grip on your financial philosophy. You don't have a financial philosophy, you say? Sure you do, even if you don't realize it.

 

In his book ‘Cash Flow Quadrant,’ Kiyosaki outlines the four philosophies as they were outlined for him by the man he calls his ‘rich dad.’ You can recognize your own philosophy by noticing how you tend to make your money. On the left side of the quadrant, are the E's and the S's - the Employees and the Self-employed. The philosophy of the E is based around security while the philosophy of the S is based around doing his own thing. While there is nothing wrong about either philosophy, neither is likely to help you build much wealth.

 

On the right side of Kiyosaki's quadrant, are the B's and the I's - the Business owners and the Investors. The difference between a B and an S, Kiyosaki says, is that the B has built a system which he can rig to run itself, freeing him for other financial or personal pursuits. An S simply ‘owns a job,’ as Kiyosaki says, and is such an integral part of the operation that he is essentially a prisoner of it. The company he has created is his ‘baby.’ But we all know how demanding babies are, and if a business never matures into an adult that can survive without your mothering, it will eat most of your time.

 

The trick, then, is not to build a better product. It's to build a product better - more efficiently with regard to your own resources. Build a system, not a job. Then you will have the money that will take care of your personal needs and allow you to invest.

 

If you already have loads of money to work with, then you can go ahead and jump right to the I quadrant - after investing in your own education and learning how it works. Investing is risky if you jump in blind, but if you know what you're doing, it is a whole different matter.

 

So lay the foundation with education and then build your wealth as though you were constructing a structure. Don't skimp on materials, but instead do it methodically. Eventually you will find yourself staring at an impressive building that will help you weather any storm.

 

Common Wealth Building Myths

There are some common myths that hold work at home businesses and investors from achieving success. These myths can has a powerful psychological impact on small business owners, stopping them from building wealth, and preventing them from reaching their full potential.

 

Money Breeds Money

 

This may have been true pre discovery period, but it is not true in the Internet age. The myth that you need to be born into money, or attend an Ivy League school, or you’ll never know how to make real money is a difficult roadblock to overcome.

 

Millionaires are made every day. Most start with nothing, and use a program that failed for thousands of other business owners. Bill Gates, Ophra, and Martha Stewart all started from humble origins.

 

Money is Made on the Backs of the Poor

 

If you are afraid of going for the brass ring because you fear ruining someone else’s life, then relax. Your playbook can be moral, ethical, and built on old fashion values, and it will lead you to untold wealth. The easiest way to become rich is to create value in other people's lives.

 

This myth is high-grade, premium quality nonsense. There is enough money for everyone. Many ‘work at home’ programs prove this. The company may sell 10 000 programs. Just because only 100 people succeeded doesn’t mean that the program was a rip off. Those who do not succeed don't believe they can.

 

Remember that success starts in the mind. You need to believe that you can succeed before you will succeed.

 

You Must Sacrifice Family to Build Wealth

 

The baby boomers believed this and introduced one of the highest divorce rates in recorded history. However, their children have learned the value of balance, and the truth behind wealth. The rich and famous do not work as hard as the factory workers who run the companies that built their wealth.

 

This generation has coined a new phrase, ‘work hard, or work smart.’

 

There's a difference between working hard and working smart. Successful people learn to work smart. They learn emulate successful people and use them as models so they can avoid mistakes other people make.

 

You can save a lot of time, money, effort as well as some major headaches by finding a mentor, or hiring a life/success coach.

 

Getting your business started and running require work but you can chose to have a successful business and a family.

 

Rich People Cannot Live Normal Lives

 

Most of today’s millionaires live in suburban towns and lead normal lives. The dream of living the rich and famous life has lost its lustre. More people are learning that the fantasy of wealth was more attractive than the reality.

 

However, you can live the good life without giving up a normal life. There is no reason why you cannot take a vacation with your family at a local camp ground on the weekend, and then attend a conference in a $2 000 outfit and $800 shoes through the week.

 

Don’t let the fear of being rich stop you from reaching your dreams.

 

Life is sweet. It will be what you decide to make it as long as you remember that no one can define who you are - unless you give them the power to.

 

Building Wealth Through Joint Ventures

Almost every one of today’s billionaires built their empires on a joint venture of some sort. In the past, joint ventures were built on mergers, friendships, networks, and alliances. The internet has introduced join venture companies which work to join web publishers with products they can sell.

 

The fundamental principles behind joint ventures makes solid business sense. It is often cheaper to pay a content rich website a percentage of sales, or a fee for inbound traffic, in exchange for exposure.

 

Content rich websites are hard to manage, expensive to build, and are usually out of date within months. Adding content weekly can cost $8 - $15 an article. Managing a 1000 page content rich site, including newsletter, forum, blogs, and community can be downright debilitating.

 

That is why the web works to join content rich web sites with small businesses ventures. But, like everything, there is a right way to form a venture, and a wrong way.

 

Affiliate Programs

 

One of the most popular is the affiliate programs run through Commission Junction, Click Bank, and Amazon’s fulfilment program. These let the web publisher choose the products they want to promote. In return, the small business receives a ‘pre-selling’ tool, and increased traffic.

 

However, not all web publishers are equal. Many do not understand the finer points of pre-selling. They believe their only purpose is to create a ‘place holder’ on the web for the ad to appear on.

 

This makes it frustrating for the small business owner who pays for thousands of clicks but makes relatively few sales.

 

Most businesses throw up their hands after a few months and cry, ‘Is there something better?’

 

The answer is a simple - Yes.

 

Joint Ventures

 

There are thousands of joint venture opportunities out there. There are probably less than a dozen legitimate ones. Most of them, priced way beyond what a work at home professional can afford.

 

This forces work at home professionals to do things the ‘old fashion’ way. Take time to surf the web. If one or two websites offered a great ROI (Return On Investment) for your PPC (Pay Per Click) Campaign, then visit the website.

 

If the website includes a forum, blogs, new content, mailing lists, then the small business person found a gold mine. Contact the web publisher and ask them if they would be interested in a Joint Venture.

 

The odds are good that Google is not paying them something equivalent to what you are paying the PPC program. If Google is charging $.50 per click, and the monthly cost is $100.00 then offer the publisher $50 - $100.

 

In many cases, some of these publishers are happy to receive a guaranteed $20 a month.

 

Quality

 

Freedom to surf the website and look for the best content management sites can dramatically increase their ROI.

 

Some of the biggest content management sites have their own advertising fees. This can make life easier, but there are ways to offer publishers more value.

 

Add Value

 

One way to add value is to ask the publisher whether there is anything you can sell for them. Many web publishers can easily whip up a book. Adding it to your ‘package’ can improve their desire to help you sell, and give them more links.

 

Success

 

The success of a joint venture program is wrapped up in the contract. If the venture doesn’t require a legal contract, then contemplate using a service like www.adbrite.com where you can work together, using the Adbrite platform to keep track of data and help build wealth.

 

Building Financial Security Steps 4 to 6

Step 4: Learn to Set Goals

 

Most self-made, successful business people and investors have achieved their success by planning to do so.

 

They have set goals for themselves and achieved them. They invest time in reading and learning about wealth creation and are happy to learn from other people’s mistakes and experiences, as well as their own. They set goals, and realise that they will be far better able to achieve them if they familiarise themselves with the ways in which other people acted and the things that others have done to succeed. Wealthy people create wealth by carefully utilising the income that they have available to them to their best advantage. They know that working harder and longer hours is not the way to achieve financial freedom, instead they have to utilise what they have, and make it grow.

 

Having a goal enables you to focus your energies on devising ways to achieve it. When someone makes a decision and begins focusing on achieving a specific goal (and even better in a specific period of time), the powerful subconscious mind goes to work and begins playing with ideas and developing strategies of various ways to bring about the successful completion of the goal.

 

When you set yourself a goal both your conscious and subconscious start working on it and begin to develop an action plan. You will begin asking yourself questions about what needs to be done to enable you to reach your goal. Many find themselves coming up with amazing ideas and solutions to problems or obstacles that have been in the way of achieving their goal. The subconscious is an extremely powerful tool. The more often you remind yourself of your goal, the more your mind will work on ways for you to achieve it. Some people find answers come to them when they are asleep and dreaming.

 

Have you ever noticed that there is no correlation between being wealthy and having a high IQ or a university degree? If there were, every doctor and university graduate would be wealthy, and as statistics show, most of them end up in the same situation as 95% of the population.

 

Setting Goals helps you to focus your energy on developing workable strategies. Setting long term goals helps you look at the big picture. Once you can see the big picture, you can develop small sub goals. Sub goals are small simple goals that can be followed one step at a time. When you progressively achieve your sub goals, you will get closer and closer to your major goals. Goals are simply plans to succeed. It is said that if you ‘Fail to plan, then you plan to fail’. Goals help you keep motivated. Progressively achieving your goals can lead to a wonderful feeling of fulfilment.

 

Step 5: Learn how to Budget.

 

Budgeting does not have to be tedious. All you need to do is to work out:

What your incomings are. What your regular outgoings are and then make sure that all of your other expenditure is less than the amount remaining. This will allow you to start saving and investing. Budgeting puts you in control of your finances.

 

Step 6: Learn about investing - in particular about property investing.

 

Learn to research the property market, so that you will be able to purchase properties that will not only give a good rental yield, but they will also return the best capital growth possible. Read investment books. Read auto-biographies of successful people. Speak to people who have succeeded in doing what it is that you want to do. The more you learn, the easier it will be to recognise a good investment.

 

Find out about Negative, Neutral and Positive gearing - and why gearing is an invaluable tool, which will enable you to build up a wealth base in accelerated time, compared to if you only invested your own hard earned dollars.

 

Once you have educated yourself and understand why investing in property is such a powerful tool, you will be able to embark on the road to financial security.

 

In Australia, and many other countries less than 5% of the population reach retirement able to support themselves, without government or family assistance. If you want to be one of them, then now is the best time to start striving toward financial security.

Building Financial Security Steps 1 to 3

We would all like to think of ourselves enjoying the good things in life, not having to stress about finances, and not having to be concerned about growing old, poor.

 

But if we are currently living from pay cheque to pay cheque, never seeming to get ahead or having any savings, how do we change things? Where do we start in our quest for financial security?

 

The best thing we can do, is sit down, take a deep breath and contemplate the differences between the haves and the have nots, the achievers and the laymen. What is it that the successful and wealthy do, that is different to us? What are the principles that they utilise to create wealth?

 

Once we find out the principles that others who have created financial security have used, it seems that then the only step left would be for us to try and duplicate the process.

 

Following is a list of some of the wealth building principles that I have discovered in my study of and conversations with successful people.

 

These concepts have been utilised extensively by those who have already created enormous wealth.

 

Step 1: Use the power of Compounding Interest/Growth.

 

John D. Rockerfeller once described compounding interest as the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World’.

 

Compounding is also referred to as Rate & Time because the longer the time, and the higher the growth rate, the greater the effects of compounding become.

 

Compounding works by letting any interest earned get added to the initial investment, and then the next lot of interest is calculated on the sum of the two, and so on. Interest is earned on interest. This gives the effect of exponentially increasing the value of an investment.

 

One of easiest ways to calculate how compounding interest works with different rates of return is to become familiar with the Rule of 72. This rule states that ‘The number of years that it will take for your money to double is 72 divided by the interest (growth) rate’.

 

Therefore if you have $1,000.00 invested at 10% interest, then the number of years that it will take for your money to double to $2000.00 is 7.2.

 

72 divided by 10 = 7.2

 

Step 2: Use the tried and true method of investing in residential real estate.

 

Statistics show that over 98% of the world’s millionaires have made their money through property.

 

It should really not come as a surprise, because everyone needs a place to live, and generally at least one third of the population are renting. Property is a necessity, so it can never go out of fashion.

 

As the population increases, so does the need for housing. The laws of supply and demand therefore will ensure that prices keep rising.

 

Banks consider property to be one of the most secure investments and because of this they will loan you a high percentage of the value. This leads to the next principle.

 

Step 3: Using Other People’s Money or Gearing is a tool used extensively by the wealthy.

 

Why is using Other People’s Money so important? The reason is that it is possible to use ‘leverage’, also known as ‘gearing’ to obtain a greater result, than you could have obtained using only your own contributions. The word leverage comes from ‘lever’. As you know a small amount of force applied on one end of a lever, can produce force far greater than what was initially exerted. A lever has the effect of multiplying the power exerted.

 

In the case of investing, it is referred to as leveraging when you use just a small portion of your own money, say 10% deposit on a $300,000.00 house, and borrow (leverage) the rest, in this case 90%. The capital growth that you benefit from is then calculated on the full $300,000.00, not just the $30,000.00 that you personally contributed, having the effect of multiplying your capital gain.

 

Gearing allows you to purchase a far more expensive property than you could if you were using only your own money. Controlling assets of a higher value means that compounding growth has more to work on, and therefore your net worth will increase much quicker. Gearing allows you to build an investment portfolio more quickly than would otherwise be possible.

Automatic Wealth - The Internet Makes It Possible

Attaining wealth and prosperity is a dream most everyone has, but few ever achieve it. Why? The average person is stuck in a rut with a job they dislike and overwhelming debt. This cycle is hard to break, but many people are breaking out and achieving their financial goals through the Internet. The Internet has made it possible for millions of people to create automatic wealth, and there's still room for you! Here's how you can discover your Internet wealth dreams.

 

Create Wealth, Not Just an Income

 

With the Internet, the opportunity is there for you to create automatic wealth, not merely an income. You can build one automatic business or several until they reach prosperity - right from your own home computer. The Internet creates the ultimate wealth package because it's so vast in the number of people that use it, but yet, so personal in that one little niche market can earn you a fortune.

 

You can choose from thousands of business ideas and pick one small market to target for your business. A small market online, however, can mean big dollars for you because it might contain thousands or millions of prospects around the world. The Internet connects you to the outside world and doesn't limit you to those who drive or walk past your local store location.

 

Automated Business

 

Another reason it's more feasible to achieve automatic wealth online is because you can have an automated business. Automated means it can run on auto-pilot once you design your website and set things in motion. You can receive automated payments through online forms. You can automate an e-zine (email newsletter) to your customers. You can automate electronic products by email such as e-books or training materials. There are a number of ways to create automated wealth with an Internet business.

 

No Longer Wait for Paychecks

 

Another advantage of an Internet business is you can receive daily payments through your website. Many online business owners accept credit cards or use a third party payment processor such as PayPal or StormPay to accept payments from their customers. Through these venues, money goes directly into your account. This gives you a steady cash flow for your business so you can have capital for your income, business promotion, and inventory.

 

Tips to Build Automatic Wealth

 

• Use your free time at home to surf the Internet and find business opportunities that interest you.

• Join with one or a few others who are already successful so you can learn the basics of online business. Even if you need to make a small investment, it could be well worth the training you'll receive.

• Decide on a business that's right for you and schedule daily times to work on your business - promoting, analyzing, and building.

• Keep building until you've acquired enough automatic wealth to quit your day job!

 

Whatever Internet business you choose, remember that it takes patience and consistency to build an online business, just as it would any other type of business. The main differences are that you can work from your home as you're building the business, you can set your own work schedule, and you can earn a lot just by reaching a small niche market for almost any popular product. Start today with your new online business, and you too can soon realize your dreams!

Attract The Wealth You Deserve

Is it good when you have huge deposits in the bank, plenty of valuable possessions, abundance of anything of value? Nearly all, measured wealth is in monetary factors. We say that people are wealthy when we see their grand mansions, different cars, lots of jewellery, or expensive clothes.

 

We assess wealth by material possessions. Wealth can be inherited or created. Only few are born wealthy, most need to work hard and sacrifice a lot of things in order live like a prince. Wealth begets wealth if you know how to manage it.

 

So the more money you have the more you will become wealthy. Richness offers a lot of opportunities and opens closed doors. It elevates your social standing and gives you power. Ordinarily, it gives superficial happiness. Possessing lots of money is heaven here on earth. You can buy anything you desire, go anywhere you want and own anything your heart desires.

 

But too much wealth has also its disadvantages. You can read in the papers, wealthy people committing suicide; children of affluent families involved in drug addiction, or people committing murder because of money. Most of these people become distrustful of others and abusive of their fellowmen. Perhaps the saying that money is the root of all evil is true.

 

Problems with wealth are common that it afflicts people everyday. It affects our everyday relationships, strain on our family lives and even destroys friendships. Wealth problems are mental afflictions that still have to be dealt and overcome; otherwise, it will ruin your life.

 

Hypnotherapy is one way of dealing with problems related to wealth. Hypnosis has been proven to be effective for similar problems. It is a solution to real life physical, emotional and even financial crisis. Focus on going over that mental block concerning your wealth problem. Have a mindset of ruining the dilemma you have and just believe you can actually do it. Once you get over it, it will let you sleep better and eventually improve your life.

 

What does wealth mean to you? Wealth is not just about the amount of money we have, rather, it is more of a state of mind. It may be funny how people spend their lifetime to have abundant wealth and yet so little time enjoying it. Wealth may also be classified in other forms, like having abundant love from family or friends supplemented with good relationships.

 

A Couple of Steps To Help You Be Rich

Your advanced wealth planning strategies should not consist of you going it alone. The key to advancing your wealth is building a quality team of advisor's. Your advisor's will make you or break you. Advancing your wealth cannot and should not be done by yourself. Many people make the mistake of doing everything themselves. Doing everything yourself is fine but if you want to increase your wealth you will need advisor's. Money is an emotional subject for many people. Everyone goes through money problems (even the very wealthy), how you and your team handle your money problems is what counts.

 

First you should hire a bookkeeper. In order to increase your wealth you must know what direction your money is flowing. Is your spending helping or hurting you? Yes there are many people who balance their own check books but you need an outside opinion. The amount of money you are making is irrelevant when it comes to hiring a bookkeeper. Whether you are making 250,000 dollars a year or 25,000 dollars a year you should still have your own bookkeeper. Once you have your bookkeeper you can now go over your monthly financials. You will see what good and bad spending habits you have. Then you can work to out the bad spending habits and increase the good spending habits.

 

The next adviser you should have is your financial adviser. Hiring a good financial adviser is one of the best moves you can make. He can help you plan for retirement and other things. Having a 401 K with your company is not enough, be sure to get a financial adviser.

 

Getting a tax strategist should be your next step. It really does not matter if you are self-employed, own your own business, or have a 9-5 job. Getting a tax strategist is essential because your eyes will be opened when you see the way money is taxed for different people. You will also see how people are penalized with heavier taxes by bringing in a certain type of income.

 

When choosing your advisor's choose carefully. Do not just hire an adviser who makes money off of commissions. You want an adviser who practices what they preach and is successful at it. Your advisor's will be able to help you setup many advanced wealth planning strategies.

 

5 Secrets To Self-Motivation

Why is it that motivating others is easy, but we struggle to motivate ourselves? There’s always another task that needs to be done, another deadline that needs to be met.

 

Yet, we need to learn how to take the time to show ourselves that we’re strong and hard-working. One of the secrets of self-motivation is to get our internal gears turning the right way so that we recognize our worth and value.

 

Everyone has goals they’re working towards. Yet, the degree of self-motivation we allow ourselves determines how hard we’re willing to work to achieve the desired result.

 

So, in a nutshell, with self-motivation, anything is possible. But, on the other hand, if it’s lacking in someone’s life, then life goals become of little significance.

 

To always encourage yourself to do better and be better, you need to show yourself kindness and motivation. Without them, you’ll achieve very little in life. To help you get inspired, we rounded up the five secrets to self-motivation.

 

Be Confident

 

“You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” - A. A. Milne

 

Having the confidence to stand up for your beliefs and dreams is one of the most critical aspects of self-motivation. Yet, it can get difficult mustering up confidence when your brain is wired to shy away from a challenge.

 

To rewire your thoughts and build up your confidence, get a pen and paper. First, write down 3–4 of your achievements just to remind yourself of how much potential you have.

Then, make a habit of writing one thing you achieved each day. Little by little, that page will turn into two, then five, then a dozen—all the while creating a momentum that feeds on your self-confidence and assurance.

 

Track Your Progress

 

“Talk to yourself about your successes; be sure you’re recognizing your own accomplishments, no matter how small they may be.” - Rhett Power

 

Now that you’ve started writing down your daily achievements, even if it’s just watering the plants, it’s important to keep track of how far you’ve come.

 

You can use something as simple as a to-do list where you cross each task as you get each one done. Or, if you want to be more general, just cross off the whole day.

 

There are also numerous apps and software tools that help you create a personalized digital task board. This makes it easier to customize goals on a smaller scale, as well as all the way to the more time-consuming monthly and yearly goals.

 

As a result, you hold yourself accountable. Plus, you wake up each day knowing exactly what you’re supposed to do, giving your life purpose and meaning.

 

Maintain A Positive Outlook

 

“There’s a direct correlation between positive energy and positive results.” - Joe Rogan

 

Maintaining a positive mindset can go a long way in boosting your self-motivation. It’s also a great tool to have when things don’t go as planned. That’s when having that positive outlook can help you see things from a different perspective.

 

When your brain expects positive results, your choices will be geared towards the more positive. You’ll also be less likely to blame others for the unexpected things that pop up in your life.

 

To do this, you need to be aware of your negative thought patterns. Then, each time you feel some negative thoughts starting to pop up, replace them with positive ones immediately.

 

Another way to achieve this is by repeating positive affirmations in the morning to boost your motivation and confidence as you start your day.

 

Set Realistic Goals

 

“It must be borne in mind that the tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goals to reach.” - Benjamin E. Mays

 

Goals give your life a sense of direction, like a promise you make to yourself, then do your best to keep it.

 

For example, it could be something as simple as cutting back on sugar for a whole week. Or, maybe something a bit more consuming, like working out each day for a month.

 

Whether it’s work, family, or something personal, the best way to set goals is to break them up into measurable tasks. This can be monthly, weekly, daily, or even by the hour—whatever works for you.

 

Another tip is to make the goal just challenging enough to pique your interest. Yet, it shouldn’t be too complex that you give up easily.

 

Surround Yourself With Supportive People

 

“Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher.” - Oprah Winfrey

 

Having positive people who help you achieve your potential is a great way to increase your self-esteem. In return, this gives your internal motivation a nice boost.

 

They’re also great for holding you accountable. They keep you pushing forward even when you don’t feel like getting out of bed.

 

The best thing is that it works both ways, which only works to strengthen your relationship. Plus, no one wants to let down that person who’s always there for them through the good days and the bad.

 

What’s the Dream You’re Afraid to Share?

You have a dream in your heart. It’s the one that’s so precious, so fragile, and so important to you that you don’t share it with others. You hold it close, in the hopes that by protecting it, you’ll one day get the chance to live it. 

 

That’s what Maddie did. She’d dreamed of being a writer since she was a kid. She wanted to write books and see them sold at bookstores around the world. She never shared the dream with anyone and by the time she graduated high school, she decided she needed a practical career.

 

So, she went to college for years and got a degree. Then she began a career as a dentist. She enjoyed getting to help her patients but she still went home every night, feeling unfulfilled. She daydreamed in the quiet moments about the books she’d write.

 

Why Does This Dream Scare You?

 

Are you like Maddie? Do you have a dream that you’ve managed to quiet over the years? Maybe you’ve told yourself that you’ll write that book when the kids are grown. Maybe you’ve decided that you’ll have time to travel when you retire. Maybe you’ve said that one day you’ll go back to school and pursue that career dream, just as soon as you have enough money.

 

But stop and think. Ask yourself what you’re really afraid of. What makes you so frightened of going after the dream? Are you afraid of what people will say? Do you worry that your spouse won’t be supportive? Are you concerned about being shunned by others in your community?

 

How Will It Change Your Life?

 

Sometimes, we fear fulfilling our dreams because it means change. Even good changes – like finally working in a career that makes you happy or making room in your life to travel as often as you want – can feel scary. 

 

Before you can go after that dream, you need to ponder how your life will change. You need to imagine the day you’ll leave your job. You should visualize the moment you step on the stage and receive the diploma you’ve always wanted. You need to close your eyes and create the life of your dreams in your mind.

 

Are You Ready to Pursue It?

 

There is a chasm between the life of your dreams and your life now. The space in between the two will be filled with hard work, bitter tears, crippling setbacks, and intense pain. But if you’re willing to persevere, you’ll find the life you want is on the other side.

 

Maddie followed after her dream of becoming an author. She started writing books. She took writing classes. She networked with other authors. She began submitting her work to publishing houses and got feedback that helped her improve her work even more. She hasn’t sold a book yet, but she’s close. 

 

It takes courage to pursue your dreams and it’s tough. But it’s not nearly as hard as sitting on the sidelines of your own life, hoping that one day you get a chance to live out your deepest longings.

6 Strategies to Challenge Your Inner Critic’s Voice

It’s time you cultivated an attitude. 

 

Look, life can be hard sometimes. The last thing you need is your Inner Critic taking the wheel, getting on your case about every last little thing you’re trying to do. Why are you listening to someone who doesn’t have your best interest at heart? No, it’s time to challenge your Inner Critic and silence their voice once and for all. 

 

How? Try these tried-and-true strategies:

 

Start Noticing

 

Inner Critics like to whisper, never to speak out loud. The last thing they want is to be noticed in their nefarious schemes. By paying attention to what’s going on in your head, you draw their lies out into the light where they cannot stand. 

 

Give it a Nickname

 

Whenever the Inner Critic speaks up, give it a silly name. Think to yourself things like “Hey, it’s Moldyvort, back again to cause trouble.” By making fun of this voice, it’s a whole lot harder to take seriously.

 

What about a Voice?

 

Do you hear some pretty negative things? Try saying them out loud. By giving voice to these thoughts, you’ll hear just how ridiculous they sound. 

 

Take a Negativity Break

 

Tell your Inner Critic they can only come out to play at a particular time each day. During that time, take a break and tell the Inner Critic to do their worst. Be sure to set a timer for the space allotted, so you don’t give more time to the negativity than necessary. Sit back and let it speak its piece. The funny thing? Most of the time, you won’t even remember what it was the Critic had to say by the time your negativity break rolls around. Even if you do, when the timer goes off, remind yourself you’re done and walk away. 

 

Question Everything

 

Is there any truth to what your Inner Critic is saying? Examine the statements. Feel free to argue back. Point out the flaws in the reasoning and back it up with examples of times when you’ve proven those things aren’t true.

 

Replace the Words

 

Finally, drop the negative words entirely and rewrite the script to turn each negative into a positive. For example, saying, “I’m terrible at writing reports” can become “I did a great job on the last report I wrote. I bet this one will be fine too.”

 

Remember, silencing an Inner Critic is going to take time and energy. This kind of voice doesn’t just shut up because you told them to go away once. No, you’re going to have to do the work, using these strategies until you’re finally free of the nasty little voice.

 

Once you’ve got it, though? Your world will change enormously in some pretty great ways. After all, without your critic to hold you back, you’re primed for success in a huge way.