Change Your Life in 5 Minutes or Less Blog Directory - RSS Feed https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/highest_rated/feed Change Your Life in 5 Minutes or Less Blog Directory - RSS Feed en Building Wealth- Self Improvement Bootcamp - Day 14 https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/bootcamp14.html Video: <a href="https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/bootcamp14.html">https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/bootcamp14.html</a> Related Infromation: This bootcamp is designed to help you gain insight into who you are, and help you determine the best approach to improve your life. Summary: In our last videos, we learned about the importance of dealing with financial debt. Today, we are going to continue our discussion on growing wealth by pointing out methods of saving and investing. This section is not designed to be comprehensive. It is really designed to give you a good starting point. Saving money is also critical for your financial health. Here are some tips I’d like to share with you on saving money. Step # 1 is to Develop a concrete plan for saving cash. Write it down in a journal or notebook. Step # 2. If you don’t have one, Open a savings account at your local bank. Step # 3 Do NOT spend your savings on unnecessary things. Only use it for investments, and planned purchases Step # 4 is to Set a goal – write down a specific amount of money that you want to save and work towards it. If you’ve saved up a decent amount of cash, you could try investing it. Be careful when investing, though – if you’re not that experienced in the stock market, you might want to spend some time researching it first. Or if you’re feeling generous, you could make a donation to the charity of your choice. Not only will your contribution go a long way toward improving someone’s life, you’ll feel good, too. Think about your spending habits. Are you a saver or a spender? Do you need to do things differently? Let’s chat about investing your money for a few minutes. Investing your cash is a surefire way of multiplying your assets. But investing doesn’t just apply to the stock market, which is something many people assume – rather, it can apply to variety of other things. In the next few minutes, I’ll tell you all ABOUT some of those areas. Most people think of the stock market when they think of the word “investing.” But I’ll tell you, right now, that there’s more out there than trading stocks. I’ll start off by saying that a good starting point, if you’re looking to invest, is to invest in items that have a proven history of success. A good example of this is real estate, but a general rule of thumb is to consider anything that has a history of increasing in value over time. We’ll move on to one of the most popular methods of investment – the stock market. If you’re not an expert stock trader, the entire concept of buying, selling, and trading might seem a little daunting to you. That’s natural – believe me, there’s a LOT to learn. But it’s also a method that many wealthy people use to greatly multiply their net worth. The important thing to remember about investing in publicly traded stocks is that YOU become an owner – at least in part – of the company you are investing in. Essentially, you’re having that company work for YOU. I’m not a certified financial advisor, so I’m not going to advise you as to what stocks to buy, what to sell, and all the other intricate facets of the stock market. What I can do is direct you to one of my favorite informational resources, that being the Internet. You can find a wealth of valuable information about investing just by doing a simple Google search. I have a very personal example of investing that paid off for me. I had to invest time and money into my internet business. Initially I thought of it as a hobby. But I felt like my idea for this business was powerful – and realistic enough to work into a business. So I invested in my idea, and it’s paid off. Here’s some general tips for investing: 1. Speak to someone with a financial background. Surround yourself with people who know how to invest, and who have done it successfully. Learn from them. 2. Be disciplined. Make sure you know where your assets are invested, and make sure you make the necessary changes as the market fluctuates, or as things change. 3. Start small. Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket – invest in a variety of different opportunities, but don’t put every penny you have into your first investment. That’s how you LOSE money. 4. Be careful what you invest your money in. Do all the research you can before making an investment. After we’ve finished up with this segment, sit back and think about your financial strengths and weaknesses. Identify them, then try to think of ways of nurturing your strengths and improving upon your weaknesses. What are your investing tips and strategies? Let us know in the comments below! Dr. Phil's Ten Life Laws in Five Minutes or Less https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/drphil.html Video: <a href="https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/drphil.html">https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/drphil.html</a> Related Infromation: SelfGrowth.com founder David Riklan explains Dr. Phil's Ten Life Laws. Part of the Change Your Life in Five Minutes or Less series. Summary: Dr. Phil McGraw is one of the most recognized and most controversial talk show hosts in America. Many people credit him for changing their lives. Others are turned off his abrasive, confrontational style. Dr. Phil McGraw has a PHD in psychology and practiced for 25 years. He then turned this experience with how the human mind operates into a hugely successful legal career as a trial strategist. It was through this work that he met Oprah Winfrey, who was so impressed with his style and his insights on life that she brought him to television and made him the TV star he is today. Dr. Phil considers himself a student of human nature first and foremost. In his 1999 book “Life Strategies: Doing What Works, Doing What Matters,” he lays out his ten laws of life. As he puts it; “No one is going to ask you if you think these laws are fair, or if you think they should exist. Like the law of gravity, they simply are.” Agree or disagree – that’s Dr. Phil’s style. Life Law #1: You either get it or you don't. According to Dr. Phil, those who "get it" understand how things work and have a strategy to create the results they want. Those who don't are stumbling along looking puzzled, and can be found complaining that they never seem to get a break. Life Law #2: You create your own experience. This means taking responsibility for your life. Dr. Phil doesn’t believe in victimhood. If you’re in a bad relationship, if you’re in a job you hate, if you’re overweight, then you have no one to blame but yourself. You are creating the situations you are in and the emotions that flow from those situations. You will never fix a problem by blaming someone else. Instead, start choosing the right behaviors and thoughts. Eventually, it will lead to the positive outcomes you want. Life Law #3: People do what works. Even the most destructive behaviors have a payoff. If they didn’t, you wouldn’t do them, right? So, if you want to stop behaving in a certain way, you have to recognize what you are gaining from it. Then figure out other, more constructive ways you can gain what you need. Life Law #4: You cannot change what you do not acknowledge. If you're unwilling or unable to identify and consciously acknowledge your negative behaviors, characteristics or life patterns, then you will not change them. (In fact, they will only grow worse and become more entrenched in your life.) You've got to face it to replace it. Acknowledgment means slapping yourself in the face with the brutal reality, admitting that you are getting payoffs for what you are doing, and giving yourself a no-kidding, bottom-line truthful confrontation. You cannot afford the luxury of lies, denial or defensiveness. Life Law #5: Life rewards action. Talk is cheap. It's what you do that determines the script of your life. Measure yourself and others based on results — not intentions or words. Decide that you are worth the risk of taking action, and that your dreams are not to be sold out. Know that putting yourself at risk may be scary, but it will be worth it. You must leave behind the comfortable and familiar if you are to move onward and upward. Life Law #6: There is no reality, only perception. You know and experience this world only through the perceptions that you create. You have the ability to choose how you perceive any event in your life, and you exercise this power of choice in every circumstance, every day of your life. No matter what the situation, you choose your reaction, assigning meaning and value to an event. Life Law #7: Life is managed; it is not cured. You are a life manager, and your objective is to actively manage your life in a way that generates high-quality results. You are your own most important resource for making your life work. Success is a moving target that must be tracked and continually pursued. Effective life management means you need to require more of yourself in your grooming, self-control, emotional management, interaction with others, work performance, dealing with fear, and in every other category you can think of. You must approach this task with the most intense commitment, direction and urgency you can muster. Life Law #8: We teach people how to treat us. You either teach people to treat you with dignity and respect, or you don't. This means you are partly responsible for the mistreatment that you get at the hands of someone else. You shape others' behavior when you teach them what they can get away with and what they cannot. Life Law #9: There is power in forgiveness. Hate, anger and resentment are destructive, eating away at the heart and soul of the person who carries them. Forgiveness is not about another person who has transgressed against you; it is about you. Forgiveness is about doing whatever it takes to preserve the power to create your own emotional state. It is a gift to yourself and it frees you. Life Law #10: You have to name it before you can claim it. Not knowing what you want — from your major life goals to your day-to-day desires — is not OK. The most you'll ever get is what you ask for. If you don't even know what it is that you want, then you can't even ask for it. You also won't even know if you get there! By being specific in defining your goal, the choices you make along the way will be more goal-directed. You will recognize which behaviors and choices support your goals — and which do not. You will know when you are heading toward your goal, and when you are off track. Those are Dr. Phil’s 10 Life Laws, I hope you enjoyed them. Now for our question of the day. Of the 10 laws, which ones do you consider the most important? Are there any that Dr. Phil has left out? Please let us know in the comments below. Thanks for watching, and a special Thank You to Dr. Phil for all of your contributions to the world of Self Improvement! 12 Goal Setting Mistakes in Five Minutes or Less https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/goalsettingmistakes.html Video: <a href="https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/goalsettingmistakes.html">https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/goalsettingmistakes.html</a> Related Infromation: Karim Ismail is The Official SelfGrowth.com Guide to "Goal Setting". You can find complete information on Karim Ismail and his products by visiting <a href="http://www.LifeChangingWorkshop.com">http://www.LifeChangingWorkshop.com </a> and <a href="http://www.KarimIsmail.com">http://www.KarimIsmail.com</a> Summary: Goal Setting involves establishing specific, measurable and time-targeted objectives. On a personal level, setting goals is a process that allows people to specify then work towards their own objectives -which range from financial or career-based goals to personal development goals. When setting goals, there are a series of 12 mistakes commonly made that can hinder the goal setting process: Mistake #1: Not focusing on Your Most Important and Audacious Goal While it may be comforting to set small, easily-achievable goals instead of big audacious ones, this will work against you in the end. This is because setting large, seemingly impossible goals spurs your mind to think differently. Mistake #2: Not having a clear timeframe or deadline Deadlines are a great way to focus the mind and force yourself to make things happen. Mistake #3: Not defining a clear measurement for achieving your goal If you don’t measure how well you’re progressing toward your goal, you may never know how well you’re doing. Mistake #4: Not defining your Compelling Reasons for wanting to achieve your goal A common mistakes people make when forming their goals is to never ask themselves why they really want to achieve it. This is vital, because once you put your subconscious motivations into words, it often sheds new light onto which approaches are best for achieving it. Mistake #5: Not defining the Benefits You Expect to Gain Mistake #6: Not defining the Consequences of Not Achieving Your Goal In addition to making a list of the good things you’ll get from achieving your goals, also write down a list of the bad things you envision if you never achieve it. Mistake #7: Not pre-defining the Obstacles to Achieving Your Goal Obstacles are unavoidable. If there aren’t any obstacles to reaching your goal, it’s probably not a goal worth having. But you can get around these obstacles if you plan for them in advance. Mistake #8: Not enough focus on the Solutions to Overcoming Your Obstacles If you have defined the possible obstacles to your goal, your mind will suddenly perceive solutions where none existed before. Mistake #9: Trying to do it all alone Most goals we have are social goals that involve other people. Call upon family, friends, professionals, and anyone you think can help you reach your goal. Mistake #10: Not setting clear milestones on your path to success Break up large goals into a series of milestones. Otherwise, you may have problems assessing your goal, determining your progress, and taking corrective action. Mistake #11: Not sharing your goal widely If you keep your goal to yourself, then you’ve only got one person motivating and cheering you on to victory. Mistake #12: Not visualizing with clarity what Your Goal will Look Like, Feel Like, and Sound Like You will find that visualizing success as vividly as you can is a vital step to achieving and exceeding your biggest goals. Question of the day for our viewers: What is your one, big, audacious goal in life? Share it in the comments below. Planning- Self Improvement Bootcamp - Day 5 https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/bootcamp5.html Video: <a href="https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/bootcamp5.html">https://www.selfgrowth.com/blog/bootcamp5.html</a> Related Infromation: This bootcamp is designed to help you gain insight into who you are, and help you determine the best approach to improve your life. In Day 4, we learned about the importance of Goal Setting. Today, we are going to cover a very important area, Planning and Setting Priorities. Summary: One of my favorite old quotes, is “If You Fail to Plan, You Plan to Fail.” I love that quote. You really need a road map. Without a map, you’re going to have difficulty getting anywhere. Every single Fortune 500 company in the United States has a business plan. Every single major sales organization has a sales and marketing plan. It’s only 2010 now, but I can guarantee you that every person interested in running for President of the United States in the 2012 election already has a plan. I have another story about Planning: Two friends were hiking in through the woods and spotted a vicious-looking bear. One immediately opened his backpack, pulled out a pair of sneakers and started putting them on. His friend turned to him and said, “You’re crazy - you’ll never be able to outrun that bear!” “I don’t have to,” he said. “I only have to outrun you.” He had a plan! On a more practical side, your plan should contain several key components. The first is a list of all of the necessary steps involved in achieving your goal. The smaller the steps, the more manageable the process becomes. The next part of the planning is to create a list of all the resources necessary. What do you need to get it done? Is it additional money, time, or assistance? You should Ask yourself, “Are other people available to help you with your goal? If so, who are they and how can I get them to help me? We all have resources available to help us complete our goals. Give yourself some time to really think about what resources you have. Who do you know that can help you achieve your goals? Feel free to post your answers in the comments below. The next step for planning includes identifying the time frames for completions of each of the steps. The more detail the better. Your plans should also include priorities. What are the important steps? What needs to be done first, second, third and so on? You need to first identify what is important to you? Frequently, one step is a pre-requisite for completing a second step. Clearly finishing an undergraduate college degree is a prerequisite for finishing your law degree. In general, each of your goals needs to be broken up into smaller steps and assigned priorities and time frames for completion. For an overall plan, all of your major goals need to be prioritized. You need to figure out what the most important things in your life are, and set your priorities accordingly. There are really two groups of prioritizing going on. The first is prioritizing your overall goals. What are your most important goals and desires. Once you have identified your top goal and identified all of the steps necessary to complete the goal, then you must prioritize the steps. Then, you do the most important step first. Stephen Covey summed it his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Effective People “Do first things first” Your Plans should include daily goals, weekly goals, and monthly goals and most importantly, your plans should include a review process. You need to review the progress you are making and prepare to make changes when necessary. If the directions you are using to get you there aren’t working, you need to find new directions. You have to keep making changes until you achieve your goal. You should also look at long range planning. Life plans should include 1 year, 5 year, 10 year and 20 year goals. My challenge for everybody watching this video is to pick one of your goals and work on a complete plan to get it done. The smaller the steps that you have, the more manageable the process. Write it out with as much detail as possible, and then don’t forget to take Action. Thanks for watching - We’ll talk again on Day 6.

View Site in Mobile | Classic