Lifemoney

Lifemoney
The Proven System for Creating the Money You NEED for
the Life You WANT
By Self-made Millionaire Brad Turk
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life·mon·ey (n): the non-monetary currency needed to attain
success and develop wealth and personal satisfaction
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Copyright (©) 2007 Brad Turk
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in
a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or any other means electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written
permission of the publisher.
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This book is dedicated to all those success stories that were earned
through a smart plan, hard work and dedication. To the underdog that went
beyond what they imagined they could achieve by never giving up. To those
that are on the road to accomplish this success, are committed to their cause
and will not be sidetracked....
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Table of Contents
Introduction: Millionaire by 30, Retired by 35: What Lifemoney Means

to Me........................................................................................................... 1
My Lifemoney ............................................................................................ 6
Overview.....................................................................................................................6
If I can do it… .............................................................................................................6
My Early Years ...........................................................................................................8
Persistence Pays Off ....................................................................................................9
Looking for Motivation .............................................................................................10
Knowing Myself........................................................................................................11
Learning About Business...........................................................................................13
Getting Focused.........................................................................................................15
This Was Only the Beginning ....................................................................................17
Global Business Solutions, Inc. .................................................................................18
Heat Wave Tanning, Inc. ...........................................................................................19
Self Made Records, Inc. / MyMusicSite.com .............................................................21
…You Can Do It, Too!..............................................................................................23
Lifemoney Lesson # 1: Defining Success..................................................24
Overview...................................................................................................................24
Want to Succeed? Sleep Late!...................................................................................24
Success on Your Terms .............................................................................................27
Find the “U” in “SUCCESS” .....................................................................................28
WHOSE Dream Is It, Anyway? .................................................................................31
Goal Achievement Exercise A.......................................................................................32
Win Life’s Lotto (Real Wealth is Measured by Achievement, Not Cash) ...................33
You Are in Control....................................................................................................34
Defining Success Summary .......................................................................................36
Millionaire’s Checklist: .................................................................................................37
Lifemoney Lesson # 2: Knowing Yourself ...............................................38
Overview...................................................................................................................38
Sometimes It’s Better to Strike Out ...........................................................................39
Who are you? ............................................................................................................39
Don’t Be a Stranger (To Yourself).............................................................................41
Goal Achievement Exercise B .......................................................................................42
Goal Achievement Exercise C .......................................................................................44
What Are Your Limitations?......................................................................................46
Goal Achievement Exercise D.......................................................................................47
Get Rid of It! .............................................................................................................48
Buy Stock in Yourself ...............................................................................................50
Goal Achievement Exercise E .......................................................................................51
Make Less - Find More..............................................................................................52
A Fish Story ..............................................................................................................53
Can You Dunk?.........................................................................................................56
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Knowing Yourself Summary .....................................................................................57
Lifemoney Lesson # 3: Goal-Setting and Overcoming Obstacles...........59
Overview...................................................................................................................59
A Quick Review ........................................................................................................59
Step Up .....................................................................................................................60
Start by Writing a Goal..............................................................................................61
Goal Achievement Exercise F .......................................................................................61
Establishing Action Steps ..........................................................................................63
Goal Achievement Exercise G.......................................................................................63
Timelines ..................................................................................................................64
Goal Achievement Exercise H.......................................................................................65
Write It Down ...........................................................................................................66
Goal Achievement Exercise I ........................................................................................67
Nothing Can Stop Me Now…....................................................................................69
Goal Achievement Exercise J ........................................................................................70
Goal: To pilot my own airplane ...............................................................71
Three Huge Obstacles................................................................................................72
Goal-Setting and Overcoming Obstacles Summary....................................................79
Lifemoney Lesson # 4: Gathering the Tools for Success.........................81
Overview...................................................................................................................81
A Successful Person’s Tool Belt ................................................................................81
Tool #1: Focus ..............................................................................................................83
Goal Achievement Exercise K.......................................................................................84
Tool #2: Time Management ..........................................................................................85
Tool #3: Efficiency .......................................................................................................88
Goal Achievement Exercise L .......................................................................................89
Tool #4: Priorities.........................................................................................................92
Tool #5: Do or Die Trying Commitment........................................................................95
Gathering the Tools for Success Summary.................................................................98
Millionaire’s Checklist: ............................................................................................... 100
Lifemoney Lesson # 5: Evaluating Your Progress ................................101
Overview................................................................................................................. 101
Progress Report ....................................................................................................... 101
Don’t forget the map! .............................................................................................. 103
Goal Achievement Exercise M .................................................................................... 105
Maintaining Your Course ........................................................................................ 107
O.K….What If You’re Way Off Track?................................................................... 110
Goal Achievement Exercise N..................................................................................... 111
Evaluating Your Progress Summary ........................................................................ 114
Lifemoney Lesson # 6: Resourcefulness.................................................116
Overview................................................................................................................. 116
Can’t Get a Job? Buy the Company! ........................................................................ 116
MacGyver It!........................................................................................................... 118
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Keep Looking - You’ll Find It ................................................................................. 122
There’s No Need To Grow Up................................................................................. 125
Goal Achievement Exercise O..................................................................................... 127
Find An Expert ........................................................................................................ 128
Goal Achievement Exercise P ..................................................................................... 130
Resourcefulness Summary....................................................................................... 131
Lifemoney Lesson # 7: Creativity ..........................................................133
Overview................................................................................................................. 133
A Lesson From Trump ............................................................................................ 133
Goal Achievement Exercise Q..................................................................................... 135
Dream It, See It, Do It! ............................................................................................ 135
Goal Achievement Exercise R ..................................................................................... 137
Five Creativity Factors ............................................................................................ 137
Lifemoney Lesson # 8: 12 Steps for Power with People........................149
Overview................................................................................................................. 149
Sharpen Your People Skills ..................................................................................... 149
Goal Achievement Exercise S ..................................................................................... 151
Turk’s 12-Step Plan for Bridge Building.................................................................. 152
12 Steps for Power with People Summary ............................................................... 164
Lifemoney Lesson # 9: Positively Thinking ...........................................166
Overview................................................................................................................. 166
Where’s Your Head At? .......................................................................................... 166
The Multi-Millionaire Blues .................................................................................... 167
Change the Mental Channel..................................................................................... 169
Goal Achievement Exercise T ..................................................................................... 170
Don’t Complain - Fix It ........................................................................................... 171
Goal Achievement Exercise U..................................................................................... 173
The Key to Success? Live Out Of Your Car............................................................. 174
Worst Case - Best Case............................................................................................ 175
Keep It Moving ....................................................................................................... 175
Eliminate Negative Self-Talk................................................................................... 176
Create a Repeatable Success Thought ...................................................................... 177
Goal Achievement Exercise V..................................................................................... 178
Positively Thinking Summary ................................................................................. 179
Lifemoney Lesson # 10: Sacrifice ...........................................................182
Overview................................................................................................................. 182
Borrow, Go into Debt and Max Out Your Credit Cards ........................................... 183
Sacrificing for Success ............................................................................................ 184
Goal Achievement Exercise W .................................................................................... 185
Goal Achievement Exercise X..................................................................................... 189
Sacrifice Summary .................................................................................................. 194
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Lifemoney Lesson # 11: Be Patient and Enjoy the Journey .................196
Overview................................................................................................................. 196
Doing Time ............................................................................................................. 196
Mañana ................................................................................................................... 198
So what should you do to be more patient? .............................................................. 200
Enjoy the Journey.................................................................................................... 201
The 5 Year Test ....................................................................................................... 201
Goal Achievement Exercise Y..................................................................................... 202
Seek Happiness in Simplicity .................................................................................. 202
GOAL (Go Out And Live)....................................................................................... 204
Goal Achievement Exercise Z ..................................................................................... 206
Patience and Enjoying the Journey Summary........................................................... 207
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Introduction: Millionaire by 30, Retired by 35: What
Lifemoney Means to Me
“The question isn’t at what age I want to retire, it’s at what income.”
-George Foreman
Life comes first, not money.
Money is simply a tool to help you get what you want out of life.
But how do you create the amount of money you are going to need to build your
dream life?
Lifemoney is how.
Lifemoney will show you what you really need to live the life you want. It’s the
actual personality currency that successful people use to build the financial wealth that
lets them put “life” first. Lifemoney will help you understand what success really means
and teach you how to attain it. Consider it a revolutionary new way of thinking about
money and success that fits the modern world of young, new entrepreneurs perfectly –
but can be adopted at any age.
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One of the most unique features of Lifemoney is that it’s entirely personal. For
example, if it’s money that you’re after, it’s not the dollar figure I define as Lifemoney
that’s important; it’s the dollar figure you define. It could be $240 a week or $240,000 a
year or $2,400,000 in quarterly bonuses. If it’s career happiness you’re looking for, it’s
not the job that I feel is prestigious that matters; it’s the job that makes you happy on a
daily basis or brings you closer to your goals.
Lifemoney begs the universal question: What do I really want? Is it money?
Happiness? Health? Self-worth? Or a life where money is merely a tool and not the
measuring stick by which we rank ourselves against one another? When it comes to
Lifemoney, we’ve finally got our priorities straight: We go after what we really want!
You don’t have to be a celebrity – or even a millionaire – to feel successful and
enjoy an intense and satisfying feeling of self-worth and accomplishment. Most people
are looking to achieve different things – whether it’s making a million dollars or simply
just being happy, yet most people don’t use the correct tools to get what they want.
Imagine having the task of hammering a nail. Would you use your shoe? Would
it work? Possibly. But how much easier would it be using a hammer? Lifemoney is a
hammer: it teaches you how to realize your goals and become a happier person by using
the right tool for the right job. In this book, I will show you how to do this by illustrating
the attributes needed to become successful at whatever you are trying to achieve, be it a
million dollars, a new home, a new job or just a raise or promotion in your current job.
Part self-help, part financial management, part how-to, Lifemoney is just what its
subtitle implies: The proven system for creating the money you NEED for the life you
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My Lifemoney
WANT. Lifemoney will give you a blueprint for success in all facets of life, not just
financial.
So who is Brad Turk and why am I qualified to write a book about life or money,
let alone both? I was a millionaire before the age of 30 and retired soon after. But more
importantly, I am living the life that I want to live. My schedule and time belong to me
and I do what I want with my days. Through my interactions with many successful and
famous people (some recording artists, some executives, etc.), I have been fortunate
enough to learn that most successful people share a lot of the same attributes. I have
distilled those attributes, used them for my own personal success, and want to share them
with you.
This book gives you a systematic approach to understanding your goals and
abilities and walks you through achieving what you want out of life. It offers a set of
tools, along with real-life examples you can use to plot your course for success. Instead
of concentrating solely on the financial aspects of making your first million, Lifemoney
focuses on personal attributes that are prevalent amongst the many successful people I’ve
met and studied - most of whom happen to be multimillionaires. This book’s objective is
to show you how to attain and use these attributes to achieve any goal you desire. If you
learn these lessons – and actually follow them – you can and will succeed.
My definition of success is simple: Accomplishing what you set out to do.
Whether you are looking to be the next pop star or the perfect housewife, there are
common qualities, characteristics and personality traits that you will need to get you
there. This book will show you what those characteristics are. The exercises in the book
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will help you discover those personality traits within yourself and develop a plan for
using those traits effectively.
The book’s lessons are designed to move quickly and are broken up in bite-size
pieces for easy understanding and implementation.
In this book, you’ll find ways of:
• Understanding what success means to YOU
• Matching what you want with your abilities
• Learning to go after goals by setting specific tasks with timelines
• Learning how to focus, prioritize and manage time
• Learning the value of determination and commitment in attaining
goals
• Learning how to evaluate progress and welcome criticism
• Learning how to be resourceful when overcoming obstacles
• Learning how to deal with people effectively
• Learning how to use creativity to get more out of life
• Using the power of positive thinking
• Learning to sacrifice some of what you have to get more of what you
want
• Being patient and enjoying the journey
Lifemoney is designed to walk you through each of these attributes. While reading
Lifemoney you will become familiar with these attributes, see what works for you and, as
a result be able to adopt them to fit your needs to reach your goals and attain the success
you’ve always been looking for.
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My Lifemoney
Each Lifemoney lesson ends with the Millionaire’s Checklist. This checklist will
help you quickly see if you are developing the skills that were discussed in that lesson.
The higher your score – the higher your Lifemoney skill level. Sprinkled throughout the
lessons are A-Z Goal Achievement Exercises that ask you to reflect on how to apply what
you just read to your own life. Both the Millionaire’s Checklist (Code: BAyyRJ) and the
A-Z Achievement Full Exercise Workbook (Code: m3sUMQ) are available for FREE
download on my website at www.bradturk.com. These proven tools are specifically
designed to help you plot, list and track your progress. Lifemoney also provides quotes
from real people from all walks of life and professions who have achieved extraordinary
success.
Because Lifemoney is about finding what will make you happy in life and
developing a plan for getting it, you don’t want to forget to enjoy the journey! I find a
good way to stay happy and motivated is by constant reinforcement. Everyone needs
some kind of stimulation and/or support to keep their spirits alive. I have created a list
(that I use) of affirmations that you can also download for FREE at www.bradturk.com
(Code: naNtZB). Feel free to use mine – memorize a few of them and repeat them to
yourself when you feel like you’re not making progress – or add some of your own.
Repeat these affirmations to yourself when you need a quick boost.
Remember that this book is designed to fix one of life’s biggest problems:
blending your wants and needs. Clearly, there is more to life than money but you just
can’t live in this world without money. What’s the answer?
Lifemoney.
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Lifemoney
My Lifemoney
“It’s never too early…to make your first million.”
-Brad Turk
Overview
I want to take just a few pages to introduce myself, tell you a little about my
journey and show you how the success I’ve experienced is something you can create for
yourself. Through experiences as diverse as being a break dancer, actor, salesman,
business owner and entrepreneur, I’ve found the American dream and retired early.
If I can do it…
My name is Brad Turk and I’ve done what some might say is a very difficult
thing. Over the course of my very short professional life I’ve achieved the American
dream: I’m young, rich and retired. I achieved personal and financial success through
various ventures in the telecommunications industry, entertainment field and having a
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My Lifemoney
retail tanning salon. It’s not that hard really, and if you’re willing to be my student for
just a short time I can show you how.
I am going to share just a little bit of my personal history first because I know
myself that to trust someone I need to know a bit more about their background – what has
formed them into the person they have become. I think it’s helpful to see patterns in
people’s lives to chart how they attained their level of success. It is also encouraging to
see that many successful people have started with nothing and were still able to achieve
tremendous feats. It is often hard for us to look at a Russell Simmons or a Donald Trump
and think we could ever attain that level of success. But if you look carefully at the
histories of most success stories you’ll find a lot of similarities. I did not strike it rich in
the dot.com arena or hit the lottery. Instead, I have used the attributes I describe for you
in this book over and over again in many different businesses – all with the same
successful results.
That’s what Lifemoney is all about; adapting the rules of success to your personal
situation. Think of the old story about giving someone a fish or teaching them how to
fish. Give someone a fish and they eat for a day; teach them how to fish and they eat for
the rest of their lives. Consider these lessons to be the fishing rod, boat and everything
you’ll need for a life of accomplishment and success. You’ll never need to go hungry
again.
These lessons can be learned by anyone. All the successful people I discuss
throughout this book including Warren Buffett, Diddy and even myself have been “taught
how to fish” at some point in their lives, whether it was through direct interaction with a
mentor or learning from other sources. Not all of these successes share the exact same
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Lifemoney
attributes, but they usually have a lot of similarities. I’ve learned that they’ve come to
their successful place in life by either having or by acquiring the attributes I discuss in
Lifemoney.
I learned these lessons by reading books of successful people and from my peers.
I relate this in the hopes that you too can see similar possibilities for learning in your life
and understand that you can acquire the tools that are needed to be successful. In
addition, you can see the learning process I went through and how I overcame obstacles
and dealt with adversity. (Oh, and by the way, if you don’t care about me and want to
jump right into Lifemoney Lesson #1 and see what YOU need to do to be successful, I
won’t be insulted. You can always come back to me later).
My Early Years
I began life in the Pomonok public housing projects in Flushing, New York. My
parents divorced when I was two and I was raised by a single mother with little to no
communication with my father, and no money. Mom didn’t let it stop her, though. She
kept right on plugging away with her 3 jobs. That’s where I first learned about work
ethic, and she was a tremendous teacher.
By the time I was in fifth grade, my mom and I had moved to Forest Hills, New
York. It was a much nicer neighborhood. The move brought my working mother closer
to her jobs and me closer to seeing what life could be like on the other side of the tracks.
There were new surroundings, new neighbors, new friends and, best of all, new
opportunities.
When I got to junior high, I got heavily into break dancing, rapping and acting. It
was then that I finally started to realize I wanted to be involved in the entertainment
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My Lifemoney
industry. I’ve always been a hustler, and I began going into the city (New York) for
auditions to try breaking into the business.
To follow my dream I had to overcome several obstacles. For starters, I was a
fifteen year old kid and didn’t have a car or money for taxis to get into the city and back.
But the first rule of success I learned was to work around your obstacles, not succumb to
them. Since my working mom didn’t get home until late I would go alone by train.
Persistence Pays Off

To make it in the acting field you need an agent. Finding an agent to represent
my efforts was, as you can imagine, not easy. This is when I first began to learn about the
value of persistence, dealing with people, and thinking outside the box. I bought a
reference book called The Ross Report, which listed talent agents, as well as how to
contact them. Most emphasized the boldface message “not to be called or visited.” The
do-not-call rule was strongly enforced. In fact, the only way to contact agents was to send
query letters with photos and resumes.
I followed directions exactly and sent my headshot along with a resume to one
hundred agents. Actually, I sent the package out to the same agents two times but didn’t
get one response either time.
Frustrated by the lack of response, I decided not to sit around and wait for
something to happen. Instead I went to visit each of the people who had received my
packet to find out why they had not contacted me. I planned to visit five agencies each
weekday for a month to get to all 100 that had received my materials.
The first agency I visited was Schuller Talent, a renowned child talent group.
They represented such actors as Emanuel (Webster) Luis, a huge child actor of the time
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Lifemoney
and Danny Pintauro, the child actor from television’s Who’s the Boss? Walking through
the agency’s door I met a pleasant secretary and introduced myself. She listened for ten
minutes as I explained that I hoped my package had not been lost or tossed into the trash.
I told her I just wanted to make sure it got into the correct person’s hands. From
the corner of my eye I noticed a woman standing in the doorway, I thought that she was
listening to what was going on. I continued my conversation with the secretary, who was
extremely nice and reassured me she would get my packet into the right hands. This was
one of the earliest times I realized how important it is to be nice to everyone and build
relationships versus burning bridges.
After thanking the secretary, I turned to leave, going out near the door where the
other woman had been listening. She followed me out and introduced herself as
“Davina,” the agent in charge of the group that I wanted to join. She must have seen
something about me she liked – I think it must have been my persistence – and she asked
me to come back and audition for her. I returned the following week, auditioned, and
signed with Schuller for representation.
Had I continued to wait for calls that never came, I might not be where I am
today. But taking the initiative, I set out to get answers to my questions, and found the
success I was seeking.
Looking for Motivation

Unfortunately, I spent a lot of time learning the ins and outs of the entertainment
industry and not as much on homework. As a result, I didn’t do very well in high school.
I often skipped classes, and when I did show up I didn’t pay much attention. Hanging out
with my friends and social activities seemed more important. Not surprisingly, I barely
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My Lifemoney
made it through. For these reasons, I had a hard time getting into college. And, I didn’t
have much reason to go to college at the time – I just didn’t know what else to do!
Someone in my homeroom class during senior year suggested a college she
thought I could get into. I applied for a double major in business and theater and, using
my acting resume, I got accepted.
After getting in, I realized that my next job was staying in. My father had
resurfaced in my life to pay for college. But he and my mother told me that they would
only support me if I did well the first semester. If I was going to “screw up” like I did in
high school, they explained, they didn’t want to pay for it.
With this pressure from my parents, I decided I didn’t want to end up stuck with
no way out. I changed my habits and learned how to be a student. Through hard work, I
earned a 3.88 grade point that term. The following semester I got a 3.92, and was
eventually inducted into the Phi Eta Sigma national honor society. It was a great lesson:
Not all of success is flashy and easy. Sometimes you simply have to put your nose to the
grindstone and finish what you started to end up where you want to go.
Knowing Myself
In time I would become a very successful entrepreneur. How? I practiced all of
the Lifemoney lessons you’re about to learn and I was clear about what I wanted. The
only thing to be decided was how I would get where I wanted to go. I learned early on
that being a struggling actor was not for me. I was looking to make a lot of money and
enjoy nice things. Although you can make a good income from acting, the odds are
severely stacked against huge financial success. In the end I was unwilling to make the
necessary amount of sacrifice that most actors need to reach their goals.
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Lifemoney
I remember meeting a good friend of mine, a struggling actor, for lunch one day.
When he only ordered soup, I asked him if he was going to order anything else. He
answered, “It’s cheap and it fills me up.” I bought his lunch that day. But his limited
income made it clear to me that this was something I did not want to do. For him, the
sacrifice has paid off. Today he’s a successful actor who can go anywhere and order
anything he wants. Being a struggling actor and making those sacrifices was the right
path for him – it wasn’t for me.
Looking back, I could see the moment in that restaurant as a turning point. I could
have put all my drive and energy into acting and reached the success my soup-loving
friend enjoys today. That could have happened for me but I knew in my heart it wasn’t
MY reality.
When it came to making money, I wanted more of a sure thing than acting. I knew
myself and knew movie stardom wasn’t the right route at that time. So I took a different
route and it has paid off for me. It was another important lesson: knowing yourself
guarantees that any success you have will be tailor-made for you.
But before I fully ventured into business, I still had some entertaining left in my
system. From my break dancing and rapping days I had always kicked around the idea of
being in the hip-hop industry as a rap artist. I spent the last years of high school and
beginning years of college working toward that goal. I spent a lot of time in studios
developing a demo to get a recording contract and learning the business. It was a real
education.
As with my junior high acting days, I sent out many demos to try and get people
interested. But, as with acting, the music industry does not often accept unsolicited
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My Lifemoney
material. In fact, attorneys for the record labels advise them not to listen to demos to
avoid a lawsuit later on. If the artist believes a later recording is similar to his or her
music, a lawsuit can result.
I kept working toward my goal of becoming a rap artist and trying to learn the
business. My goal was to get noticed and possibly get someone interested in working
with me. In 1991, I entered the Pepsi Rap Up the Summer Contest, co-sponsored by 98.7
Kiss FM in New York. I was chosen as a semi-finalist out of 500 entrants. I sent in my
tape, and I think they were shocked when I arrived to perform at Victory Park to discover
that I was white. This was pre-Eminem and not too many white people even listened to
rap, let alone were successful at it.
Although I didn’t win the contest, I did win over one of the judges—Chubb
Rock—and was asked to work with Chubb Rocks Production Company. It was validation
that hard work could pay off, even when you’re going against the grain. I recognized the
value of this attribute and stored it away for later.
Learning About Business

In addition to finding some measure of success in the entertainment side of music,
I also tried to learn the business side of the industry. I got a job as an intern (for no pay)
working for PolyGram Records. Although no longer in existence they were one of the
premiere labels at the time. A key lesson I learned was that if you want to understand an
industry, you need to work in it, even for free.
Does it seem strange that a book about success begins by telling you to start by
working for free? It shouldn’t. This is exactly how you build Lifemoney. In this world
you have to take opportunity where it comes if it will help you achieve your goals. I knew
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Lifemoney
that working with PolyGram would give me access to some of the industry’s biggest and
brightest minds; both the stars - the talent - and the men and women behind the talent -
the producers, mixers, agents and managers. There are more important things than money
in this world, and access is one of them. It paid off. The access I got taught me lessons I
could have never learned anywhere else.
If you want to learn a business, learn it from the ground up. For example, if you
want to someday own a bar you should work at a few for a while to learn the business. If
you want to work in politics, volunteer for a campaign or move to DC. Most of the time
the experience will be a positive one and you’ll learn what you need to know to be a
success. Other times the experience will be a real eye-opener and convince you that you
never want to see another bar – or Congressman – again. But it’s all valuable. It’s
important to understand what you are getting into before you are knee deep. You might
find it’s not what you expected it to be.
And always be resourceful; feel free to import ideas from wherever you can find
them. For example my rap name was “Sneak.” I once sent a sneaker in a box to a record
label with the note, “I just want to get my foot in the door,” along with my demo tape. It
was one of my earliest stabs at being resourceful. Door after door was being closed to
me; no one was listening to my demos and I knew to get to the powers that be I would
have to get through to someone. I figured if I sent a package, my targets would be curious
enough to open it rather than throwing it away. It worked. Basement Records, a recording
label, picked me up and got me signed to BMG for distribution.
The following year I released “That’s Evil Man” on ZOO Entertainment, BMG.
The single reached Billboard Magazine’s “The Street Sheet Mix page’s Top 10” and
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My Lifemoney
showed up as bullet number 42 on the Maxi-Singles sales sheet. Eventually it went to
number 27. It was pretty exciting to walk into a record store and see my CD for sale and
have friends call telling me they were hearing it played on the radio.
It didn’t stop there. In 1994, I released “African Prayer” for Peace records and
received writing credit on “Got Your Head Boppin,” Next Plateau, PolyGram Records. It
was an exciting time, for more reasons than just getting airplay. I was finally seeing a
dream come true; actualizing my goals and watching them come to life.
While I enjoyed working in the music industry, I was concerned that I might not
make the money I was looking to make – and I thought I might be able to make it easier
somewhere else. It is a difficult business to really make money. That’s a hard truth to see
from the outside. But the truth is making money is hit or miss and is more often just
smoke and mirrors. The music business seems glamorous, full of rich stars and power
players, but in reality there are very few people that make it big – and make the big
money. I decided since making money was a priority that it would be easier to make
money in another industry and that I could always return to the music world later, which I
did. You see – I already understood that making money was a priority for me – an
important goal. I needed the sense of security that comes with a regular income and the
knowledge that I would be able to pay the bills and live a comfortable lifestyle. I knew a
prerequisite for a happy life (for me) was stability and the ability to enjoy life’s
conveniences. Money provides those things.
Getting Focused
Looking back on it now I can see all the stair steps that were being put into place
for my ascent to success in telecommunications and various other ventures. But like
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Lifemoney
most young people I didn’t understand what was going on. My instincts were just
forming and for whatever reason I felt the need to become focused on knowing what I
wanted specifically.
After leaving college, I took over a job for a friend as an office manager for a life
insurance company. The branch owner wanted to train me to sell life insurance. I was
interested in sales, so I pursued this opportunity. I went so far as to get licensed to sell life
insurance. Unfortunately, I did not find that product to be a perfect fit for me or my
personality. For one thing, I did not have a wife or family, and could not fully understand
or relate to getting life insurance for protection for other family members. In addition, I
figured that my potential customers might question why I was selling a product that I
didn’t have for myself. Also, the branch focused on selling long-term care and retirement
planning. Imagine what a retiree would think about a guy that appeared to be 18 years old
providing advice on retirement!
Recognizing that only true passion creates true results, I decided to make business
decisions that would bring me closer to where I wanted to be. How did I do that? I
started selling real estate at night. Becoming successful, I saw that real estate was more
suited to my personal goals at the time. And guess what? I started making more money
working part-time than at my day job. I figured if I spent more time on my part-time real
estate job, I could make even more money.
I decided to take my hustling a step further. I understood the insurance office
management job completely. I also knew that I had fine-tuned all the systems there to do
my job in half the time than I had been doing when I started working with the company.
Not to sound conceited, but it was apparent that I was a tremendous asset. I decided to
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My Lifemoney
leverage all that, and I made a deal with my boss to move to a three-day-per-week
schedule at the same pay. This would permit me to have two more days to sell real
estate. He reluctantly agreed on a test basis. I was putting those early Lifemoney skills
into play and getting the same amount of work done in three days as I had done before in
five. I made sure I did everything efficiently and wasted no time at all.
Best of all, my gamble worked! Eventually, I was doing well enough and was
confident enough in real estate to do it full-time and get rid of my “day job.” It was a risk
to leave the security of a full-time job, but I had hedged my bet by learning the ropes first
and not jumping ship from the corporate job too quickly. When I went to my boss to
resign, instead of just quitting I told him I could do the work in one day that I had been
doing in three. I also promised him that the quality of the work would not change. I
guess the company trusted me enough to give it a shot, and I went from initially working
five days a week to just one day per week, at the same pay. You never know what people
are willing to do – or what you can accomplish – until you try. You never know if
someone will say yes or no to a question until you ask the question.
This Was Only the Beginning

I mark this moment as the official beginning of my entrepreneurial life; the one
you’re probably most interested in. I didn’t know it at the time but I was to go through
many more experiences that taught me how to build and run successful businesses and be
happy at the same time.
But my education was just beginning, and there was a lot more to learn. For
example, I began to learn about the importance of defining success for myself, making
my own way and even started knowing myself and where my real talents and desires
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Lifemoney
were. But I still had to learn about setting goals, evaluating my progress, resourcefulness
and creativity, dealing with people – especially difficult people, sacrifice and patience.
Especially patience! It was a lot for a young person like me to absorb, but the skills that
were created in me were worth more than cash. Those skills were actually like internal
money – fueling my daily existence and my motivation to reach the next goal. That is in
fact how this book got its title: I literally realized that all the triumphs and setbacks were
creating skills and qualities inside me that were worth something real, like actual cash. I
used them to create many business successes.
I was not an overnight success story, and I didn’t hit it big with the lottery.
Rather using the attributes I list for you in this book I became successful in project after
project and business after business. I started building and using this knowledge in real
estate but I really kicked it into gear when I decided to take a corporate sales job at MCI
Telecommunications. At MCI, I became one of the top salespeople in the nation. It was a
great place that provided huge opportunities to apply myself and use Lifemoney to make
a ton of cash money. By my second year, I was already bringing in a six-figure salary
and at the end of my third year there I earned $387,086.07.
Global Business Solutions, Inc.

After this very successful stint at MCI telecommunications (I will share more
detailed stories with you later) I created Global Business Solutions (GBS). It was
basically a mini-version of one of the larger telecom corporations. I’d learned that when
the big companies couldn’t supply a product, they bought it from someone else and still
sold it as theirs. I also noticed that the larger companies were not flexible enough and
many times did not fulfill their customers’ needs.
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My Lifemoney
My experiences over the years taught me to be alert and on guard for niches to fill
and blank spots to cover. One of these areas was in the pre-paid calling card business. I
made a huge profit in this area by recognizing this as an opportunity where I could fill a
void. My Lifemoney lessons had shown me that some of success is seeing an opportunity
where none exists, and seeing niches before everyone else. My Lifemoney lessons also
taught me to be honest with my customers and do my best to help them out, remain loyal
and protect them as much as possible, and to always be so reliable that I would always be
the “go to” guy in the future.
I let the customers guide my business. I saw what the needs were and I fulfilled
them. I eventually contracted with many providers, allowing me to sell anything the big
boys sold – and better – because I was smaller, lower to the ground and closer to the
customer’s ear. Because of my low overhead I was almost always able to provide
services at cheaper prices than the major carriers. I understood that customers loved a
one-stop shop. If you could provide customers with everything they need and they knew
you were price competitive and were competent to get the job done, the customers would
want you to do everything for them.
Using my Lifemoney lessons I found success with GBS and turned it into so much
more than I’d ever dreamed.
Heat Wave Tanning, Inc.

Sometimes you go searching for new opportunities and other times opportunities
find you. When you’re always on the lookout for something new, it’s harder to tell which
came first, you or the opportunity.
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Lifemoney
I was amazed one day when going with my girlfriend to an indoor tanning salon. I
saw a line outside of the place and was wondering what they were giving away. It turns
out that people just were going in there to catch a tan. I researched the business and found
out that it was a very low maintenance business and pretty profitable. Better yet the
business seemed as if it could run itself, which was a huge plus for me. After more
research (and imagining that operating that type of business would be fun), I decided to
open my own tanning salon.
It was exciting, building the place from scratch. This was a different venture from
my previous forays in the world of small business. A telecom business like GBS was
more “virtual” than brick and mortar. I could manage most of it via remote control,
through phone calls and faxes and emails and downloads and uploads and the occasional
face to face. The tanning business though was more hands-on. But I felt I was ready for
that.
The tanning business was a big change for me. Change is good, I told myself: it
stretches us, grows us, and prepares us for the future. That is true, and Heat Wave
Tanning was really a great business and a great opportunity in my life. But I was
discovering that retail businesses require a lot of time and attention, and I decided that I
didn’t want that kind of responsibility. It was like having a puppy at home: you never
felt comfortable being far away for very long. Besides, managing ten employees,
maintaining equipment, and managing customer issues just didn’t do it for me. So I kept
the business for two years, made my money and then I sold it. It is definitely a great
business that I would highly recommend, and might one day do again.
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My Lifemoney
Self Made Records, Inc. / MyMusicSite.com

Sometimes success comes full circle. You’ll recall from earlier in this lesson that I
was once a junior high kid trying to get my big “break” in entertainment. Later I was a
college graduate looking to intern for a major hip-hop record label. Now I was a
successful entrepreneur, looking to blend business with pleasure.
And that’s exactly what I did! Remember what I said about following your
passions? When you finally make some money you can blend passion with profitability
and not have to stress that much about bottom lines. Self Made Records, Inc. and My
Music Site.com are both my hobby and business. But I can afford to do this because I
love it. And what’s best is that I can afford to be patient.
For Self Made Records, Inc. I signed some artists to my label and I am currently
marketing and promoting them. I am involved in everything from the production of the
songs to pressing up the albums to getting the music played on the radio. I am now in the
process of coding and developing mymusicsite.com, set to launch in the fourth quarter,
2007. I will be selling and promoting online music downloads and cell phone ringtones
for independent artists. I will make independent artist’s music easily available to their
fans, friends and family while providing a marketing platform for them to make their
dreams come true. I am doing what I love, but on my terms, with little to no risk and
helping others all at the same time. That makes me happier than I can possibly describe to
you.
I am sometimes surprised by all that I have accomplished in such a short time. It
was a lot of work but it has been gratifying beyond words. In 2007, although I brag about
being retired, in reality I’m busier than ever. I have been launching companies left and
right. And I love it! Why? Because I’m sailing my own ship with no boss, no limits and
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Lifemoney
more freedom and money than I could ever have imagined way back when I was 15 years
old, break dancing on street corners and hustling for business opportunities. I just
launched TellBrad.com (www.tellbrad.com). This is a free website that gives the
consumer a voice and enables them to be heard (rant/rave/leave video complaints) to both
other consumers and the companies they speak of. In addition, it allows people who are
looking to purchase or get feedback on a product or service to get an unbiased opinion
and rating.
I am also in development on another site called MyMusicSite.com
(www.mymusicsite.com). I will be selling and promoting online music downloads and
cell phone ringtones for independent artists. We will make independent artist’s music
easily available to their fans, friends and family. I am also providing a marketing
platform for these artists who want to make their dreams come true. In addition to that
business, I also came up with a business idea that I am looking to launch (or sell the
patent) in the near future. The business is called Meeting ExpressO
(www.meetingexpresso.com) and is a retail conference location /coffee shop. Meeting
ExpressO will provide full access to conference rooms which include
internet, satellite television, phone, and business services. These services will be
available to groups as well as individuals that need a place to work between meetings or
just to kill some time. Meeting ExpressO will also provide walk in customers with a
unique and innovative environment for enjoying great coffee, specialty beverages, and
snack items. Lastly, I have just signed a deal with Kingfish Productions to develop a
television show that I created titled “Street Battle”. In addition to being its creator, I will
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My Lifemoney
also receive co executive credit and be involved with development of the project. Stayed
tuned and look for my name in the credits!
…You Can Do It, Too!

I began this lesson by declaring “If I can do it…” without finishing the statement.
Now, I’ll tell you how you can do it too! While my story is different from yours and from
that of other people, I have found the common denominator for success. That’s why I’ve
written this book. I will show you how to understand and learn a unique set of attributes
you need to become successful. Lifemoney provides you with the tools you’ll need to
reach your own unique potential. Instead of sitting around thinking about what you want,
adapt the principles described in each of the upcoming lessons. Work on the activities.
Keep score of your successes and failures. Learn who you are and what you want. And go
for it!
No excuses.
Lifemoney Currency
“When life hands you lemons… make lemonade, sell it on the
corner, invest your profits and, when they mature, go by some oranges!
(Orange juice outsells lemonade by 10 to 1.)”
-Brad Turk
You can do it too!
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Lifemoney
Lifemoney Lesson # 1: Defining Success
“You have to arrive at your own definition of success if you ever

hope to enjoy success on your own terms”
-Brad Turk
Overview
It’s not possible to attain success without first defining it. In this lesson I
want to show you the importance of deciding for yourself what success means to
you. Success is never a game of chance and begins with clearly deciding what
you are going to make happen.
Want to Succeed? Sleep Late!

I want to begin by sharing two success stories with you; two very different types
of success stories. These are the stories of two friends of mine – John and Steve - and
though totally different from one another they illustrate what I mean by defining your
own success, pure and simple.
My first friend, John, has never cracked the seven figure mark and, as far as I
know, is in no danger of cracking it anytime soon. Still, some might consider him rich
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Defining Success
beyond compare because he knows himself and, just as important, knows what success
means to him. John, who is over 30 years old, lives with his parents. All of my other
friends make fun of him. They think that he is not responsible, has no ambition and is
going nowhere.
I have to confess that I kind of agreed with them. Then one day we were talking
and John really opened my mind to something. What he revealed was so far from who I
am as a person but showed me that there are a lot of different ways to define success –
and the important Lifemoney key is to define it for yourself.
While talking about the future, John told me that he was really happy with his
life. It didn’t bother him what everyone was saying about him, he just took it as a
joke. He told me he was still living with his parents because he liked living with them; he
helped them out a lot and felt that his support was needed around the house.
John’s parents also enjoyed him being there. From a professional perspective, he
also said he was happy with his job. Most days he didn’t have to go into work early and
he got to sleep late. He made enough money to live on his own if he wanted to. He told
me that every night that he goes to bed, he has a big smile on his face. And how many of
us can say that?
I realized after talking to John that everyone’s idea of success is different. You
can’t - and shouldn’t - push your idea of success on anyone. To me, he is successful. He
is truly happy with how his life turned out. He did it his way; he found his own success
and it works for him. He needs nothing else to fulfill his dreams.
I have another friend, Steve, who on the surface would probably look extremely
successful to outsiders looking in. He has a beautiful boat, several sports cars and a very
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Lifemoney
nice house. I remember one weekend he invited me to go to the track with him to “play”
with his cars. Before the weekend came, he canceled the invite because he was actually
selling one of the cars.
Being that I know this friend well, I also know more details about his life than
someone seeing him jet by on the track or some of his “not as close friends” spending a
weekend with him on his boat. The truth is that Steve lives way beyond his means. He is
always making maneuvers to try and maintain his possessions. He is actually so far in
debt that he does not really own anything he has. Most everything is owned by the bank
and it seems every time I talk to him, he is in a world of hurt. He is always stressed and
always in fear of losing something. He also has to work harder than anyone I know, just
so he can try to keep up with payments so that he does not default on anything. The
weekend that he canceled our trip to the track was because he had to sell one of his cars
to make his mortgage payment.
Does this sound like success to you? It might. Some people thrive in that kind of
stressful environment. Steve thrives on the adrenaline of living on the edge. This is
success for him. It wouldn’t work for me either – just like John’s life – but both of these
men are happy with their lives.
These men are both successes. Why? Because they both hit their mark. My
definition of success comes from within, not from without. Once you define what you
want and know what will make you happy, you have completed Lifemoney Lesson # 1.
Have you decided what your mark is?
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Defining Success
Success on Your Terms

The first step in applying the Lifemoney lessons to your life is defining what
success means to you. Success means different things to different people. Like
fingerprints, our definition of success will be individual and unique. What works for
some doesn’t work for others and what works for me might not work for you. There’s
simply no future in succeeding for anyone other than you.
With the exception of my friend John who I just mentioned, most people are still
on their quest for success. For the most part, we all want more out of life. No matter
your net worth or social standing we want to do more, get more and be more. But
becoming – and staying – successful can be tricky. Although some people get lucky in
attaining success, most successful people (whether consciously or not) have a system,
strategy or plan they stick to in order to reach their ultimate goals.
When you define success for yourself, you own it. It becomes yours. If we don’t
define success for ourselves, we are on a journey without a map. We have no control over
our path and our lives can become haphazard. Success takes personal planning and some
work. In order to chase success on your terms you need to define what success means to
you and be clear about what will make you happy. When you define success and what it
really means to YOU, you’ve taken the first step to taking your life back.
I think this is important because I see so many people who spend their lives
wandering. They go from idea to idea, trend to trend, fad to fad not really knowing what
they want and drifting with the flow. They start up home improvement projects and don’t
finish. They buy gym memberships and never use it. They subscribe to magazines they
never read. Why do they do this? They bounce around because they’re not prepared to
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Lifemoney
take full action. They live undefined lives. And when we live undefined lives we miss
opportunities to reach our definition of success more quickly and more easily.
By starting your journey with a firm grasp of your meaning for success, you will
be fully able to reap all the benefits that await you. You’ll be able to move in the right
direction quickly and simply because you know where you are headed before you
approach the starting line.
As Robert Collier, author of Riches Within Your Reach: The Law of the Higher
Potential once wrote, “The first principle of success is desire – knowing what you want.
Desire is the planting of your seed.” Plant your own personal seed for success and watch
it grow. See beyond money and its trappings; look past that next job promotion or future
company you plan to build. What is it you really want? What, for you, says “success”
with a capital S? Let’s explore this question and help you find the answer – and get you
on your way.
Lifemoney Currency
“One of the things my parents have taught me is never listen to other
people’s expectations. You should live your own life and live up to your
own expectations, and those are the only things I really care about it.”
- Tiger Woods
Find the “U” in “SUCCESS”

Forget about goals and spreadsheets and interest rates and performance appraisals
for now. Take a moment and answer this question: What does success mean to you?
Would the following definition of success work for you?
28
Defining Success
“All I want is to have people around who love me.”
It works for the second richest man in the world, billionaire Warren Buffet. With
all of Buffet’s billions he has always led a simple life. He has lived in the same house that
he purchased for $31,500 over 48 years ago. He drives himself to work every day (no
chauffer) in his 2006 Cadillac DTS. He does not really have any extravagant items like a
fancy race car, yacht or even a boat. He was so content with his definition of success
that he gave practically all of his money to charity (over $30 billion dollars). This is a
man who could do anything and have anything and is content to sit home and watch a
ball game.
Would I live the way Warren lives if I had his billions? No chance! Should he
step up his lifestyle and start spending his billions mainly on himself? Absolutely not! He
is enjoying his billions and more importantly his life. He is doing what makes him happy.
What would make you happy?
We all define success differently, but successful people have taken the time to
really think about their definition of success. Let’s take, for example, a 22-year-old
student who has just received her acceptance letter into the medical school of her choice.
She has spent her whole life making sure her grades were in order to some day get into a
good medical school. She sacrificed many nights of going out with her friends and having
fun in order to spend more time studying. She now understands what all of her sacrifices
were about and feels like she is on the road to fulfilling all of her dreams.
She’s successful!
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Lifemoney
A 39-year-old business executive runs his first marathon. Months of preparation
and training pay off for this guy’s single-minded determination. While his finishing time
does not win any medals, his self-esteem and confidence increase beyond measure. That
man is a happier husband, father, and employee – or future CEO – because of this
personal accomplishment.
He’s been a total success.
The 54-year-old millionaire spends his day choosing consulting projects and
filling his schedule based on preference rather than need. Twenty-five years of sacrifice
spent on investing income from a second job have finally paid off. Although he and his
wife share a modest home, they have not missed out on anything they’ve wanted. While
avoiding expenses like costly entertainment or expensive vacations, they have been able
to stash enough away to enjoy an early retirement and see the world.
Sounds like success to me.
Then there is the couple that, upon marrying, agreed the wife should give up her
job when the children came along to provide a stable home life for all. Living off just the
husband’s income has not been easy, but the wife’s role as a homeroom mother at school
and Girl Scout leader in the community, along with nutritional meals and emotional
support, have resulted in two stable children with above-average grades and well-adjusted
social skills.
I call that success on their terms.
Each of these people has achieved success. And so now I’ll ask you: Are you
ready and willing to take a little bit of time and plan to live your life on your terms?
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Defining Success
WHOSE Dream Is It, Anyway?

You can’t get motivated unless you’re clear about what you’re shooting at. That’s
why it is important to understand your priorities clearly. While it’s a good idea to talk to
your family and others who may be impacted (say, if you’re planning on using the family
garage to mass-produce your new video game or DVD) the success of your vision
ultimately depends on one person and one person only – YOU.
If your parents are pushing you to become a lawyer, but you don’t really want to,
you could succeed in meeting their goals for your life and still end up unhappy and
unfulfilled because you never quite met yours. Over time, you might become bitter or
resentful. That’s why, in Lifemoney Lesson #2, you’ll be finding out why it is so
important to Know Yourself. As you see in this example, it is possible to be a successful
lawyer without feeling like a successful person.
I believe the common denominator in true success is happiness. Identify the goals
you wish to achieve or the life you want to live and work diligently toward that vision.
Even though everyone usually has a different idea of what success means to them, what
they all really want is personal happiness. It really isn’t what you have or who you are
that makes you happy or unhappy. It is how you view your situation that makes all the
difference. So once you have an understanding of what will truly make you happy, you
can begin to set goals on the road to success. So let’s figure out how you define success.
Lifemoney Currency
“Do what you love, love what you do, leave the world a better place.”
- Jeff Mallett
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Lifemoney
Goal Achievement Exercise A

You will need to create a place to take notes and do the A-Z achievement
exercises while you are going through this book. You can use a three-ring binder, open a
document on your computer, or download a copy of the Workbook with all the exercises
from my website – www.bradturk.com. I am going to ask you to open this document on
a regular basis throughout this book, so make it handy and easy to access. Once you have
this in place, set a timer for five minutes. Then start writing about your views on success,
asking yourself questions like these, but more importantly, just letting your thoughts and
feelings flow:
• Describe a successful person who inspires or motivates you.
• Explain, in your opinion, the hallmarks of success—money, time, skills, etc.
• What would it take for you to feel successful?
• How will you know when you have become successful?
When the timer goes off, read over your ideas, and edit if necessary to make them
readable and clear. What themes emerge from the answers to the different questions? Did
security come up over and over again or did freedom? Did a need to be your own boss
emerge or would you like a little less responsibility in life and not have to be the boss?
This activity will help you get a better idea of what you want from life and what you
expect of yourself. It will also start you on the long road to developing your organization
skills by keeping track of your plans and progress.
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Defining Success
Win Life’s Lotto (Real Wealth is Measured by Achievement,

Not Cash)
Congratulations! You’ve taken a huge step. Most people just never make the
move to define what they want and where they’re going. But you just did. Welcome
aboard a new life.
Completing this exercise brings up a point I think worth exploring. Money in
itself does not equal success. Having come from a “no money” background, I know many
people with little or no money. We all do. It’s amazing how some people perceive
money as the answer to all their problems. “If I only had money, I’d be so happy” or
“Everything in my life could be fixed with some cash.” These beliefs about money are
all wrong. If you were handed everything you wanted without working for it, you might
find you are still unhappy. Ask the following people; they’ll tell you:
• Evelyn Adams, something of a statistical freak, won the New Jersey
lottery twice, in 1985 and 1986. Her total take was $5.4 million. What
does she have to show for it now? Zippo. She lives in a trailer and
recounts that, “Everybody wanted my money. Everybody had their hand
out.” Her hand was out, too, at gambling venues.
• In 1988, William “Bud” Post won $16.2 million in the Pennsylvania
lottery. Says the man who, after declaring bankruptcy, now lives on Social
Security and food stamps: “I wish it never happened. It was totally a
nightmare.”
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Lifemoney
• Janite Lee was unlucky enough to win an $18 million jackpot in 1993. She
shared her wealth with many charitable organizations, but before a decade
had passed, she had filed for bankruptcy and had just $700 in the bank.
I know you’re probably saying “Yeaaa, that wouldn’t happen to me!”
Are you sure?
People who get their wishes granted too easily, and without effort are not actually
participating in the creation of their own personal happiness. To enjoy success you need
to earn it. It seems to be a rule of life that if you have good things handed to you - the
fruits of someone else’s labors - you miss the excitement, the challenge, and the ultimate
triumph of accomplishing a mission. And accomplishing your dreams – your success -
on your own is very important.
Understand that a lot of the enjoyment of meeting your goals is in the feeling of
accomplishment and satisfaction that comes with hard work and success. Goals are not
just about achievement; they’re about satisfaction. That’s why Lifemoney is an internal
feeling; not a financial figure. There is no amount of money in the world that can recreate
that feeling of accomplishment. And satisfaction is more than being content; it’s that
amazing feeling you get after finishing a job well done. That is true success – at least by
my definition. Do you need more external recognition of your accomplishment? Make
sure you keep that mind as you plan your own future.
You Are in Control

Success belongs to those who are clear about what it means to them. Here are
several keys to keep in mind:
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Defining Success
1. Success is not a game of chance. Don’t put your trust in success just showing
up. Publisher’s Clearing House might stop by your house with that big check
and, sure, that would be incredible. But why wait for the miniscule chance that
this could happen to you when you have the power to wake up your dreams and
put them to work for you – RIGHT NOW!
2. Stop looking outside yourself or to others to explain your failures. The power to
change is your own; it resides in you. Others have influence over you and affect
you, but they do not own your ideas or lay claim to your dreams. When you lay
blame or make excuses, you willingly give your power away.
3. Chart a course for paradise, even if the voyage looks choppy. Most likely it will
be bumpy. And remember that it’s important to enjoy this journey so keep an
eye on the finish line, but don’t forget to enjoy the sites along the way.
Anything worth doing is worth doing well; it’s also worth doing despite the odds
of failure and cost of success. You are here – we are here, together – because you made a
conscious choice to pick up a book called Lifemoney. You’ve already taken the first step,
and that might not have been easy. Now all you have to do is take another step, and
another, until the value of moving is higher than the cost of those inevitable obstacles.
It may take months, or it could take decades, but your dreams are out there,
waiting for you to come and claim them. How will you get there if you don’t take that
first step? Take it now! Take that first step toward real happiness. Create a legacy of a life
well lived that will justify your existence and leave loved ones with affectionate
memories of your success.
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Why be satisfied with a simple living when you can build a great life?
Defining Success Summary

Of all the Lifemoney Lessons I’ve lived – and learned – this was the first: you
have to arrive at your own definition of success if you ever hope to enjoy success on your
own terms. If you let others define success for you, you’ll always regret not doing it for
yourself. If you do it for the money, there will always be a nagging feeling that something
is missing. If you do it out of ego or pride or greed, trust me; something WILL be
missing. Success must happen YOUR way, on YOUR terms for YOU to be truly happy.
Whoever you’re trying to keep up with – the Joneses, your old friends from school, your
neighbors – forget it; success must mean something to you if you are ever to truly achieve
it.
All right, Lifemoney Lesson # 1 is done! It was designed to help you define
success on your own terms. Don’t feel bad at all if you’re still a little unclear about what
success should mean for you. That’s totally normal. It will become clearer the more you
focus and keep your mind open. Let’s go there right now, Lifemoney Lesson #2.
Lifemoney Currency
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”
-Steve Jobs
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Defining Success
Millionaire’s Checklist:
Check all the items below that you agree with, and then tally your score, giving
yourself 10 points for each checkmark and 0 points for any left blank:
_____ 1. I will define success for myself.
_____ 2. I will always seek to lead my own life.
_____ 3. I am seeking my own personal growth and happiness.
_____ 4. I spend time learning what it will take to be successful in what I love.
_____ 5. I will decide for myself what occupation excites me.
_____ 6. My life is mine and I’m excited to develop it on my terms.
_____ 7. I will look beyond money to find happiness.
_____ 8. I am in control.
_____ 9. The expectations that matter most are mine.
_____ 10. I am winning life’s lottery.
Lifemoney Currency
“If you live for someone else, I hope they enjoy it because you probably
won’t.”
-Brad Turk
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Lifemoney
Lifemoney Lesson # 2: Knowing Yourself
“I expect great things out of myself. I expect to make great plays, great
moves. In my mind, I can never be good enough…It just comes with the
territory of knowing yourself and making the most of what God has given
you.”
-Reggie Bush
Overview
Knowing yourself is a huge part of attaining personal success. It’s a
journey that may veer off in a thousand different directions before finally
coming to fruition, but it always starts with YOU. In Lifemoney Lesson # 2,
you will build on the first lesson of this book, “Defining Success,” by
exploring who you were to determine who you are and clarify who you
want to become.
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Knowing Yourself
Sometimes It’s Better to Strike Out

Did you know that Babe Ruth, one of baseball’s legendary home run hitters, was
once a pitcher? At one point he made the deliberate decision to stop pitching so he could
focus on batting. He took a lot of heat for his decision because he was a GOOD pitcher.
He stuck with the decision, because he knew he had the ability to be a GREAT batter.
Just think how sports history might have been rewritten if the he had stuck to what
he did well instead of focusing on where he could really excel. How many of us hover
around the comfort zone of what we’re good at, unsure or even unwilling to concentrate
on what we might be great at?
Often the difference between being good and being great is making adjustments
that allow you to spend more of your time developing your greatest strengths. This is
valuable advice for many of us, but not without a period of introspection first. Before you
know where you’re going, you need to know who you are.
Who are you?

Who are you? That probably depends on who you ask, right? You might be a wife
or husband, a company executive, a student, someone’s parent, a son or daughter, a
computer whiz, a basketball pro, or a musical genius. Maybe you’re carrying around a
little extra baggage as a high school dropout, unemployed worker, or two-time divorcee.
But all of these titles – husband, son, father, lawyer, banker – merely describe you; they
don’t define you.
So often we rely on our titles – or the opinions of others about those titles – to tell
us who we really are. But life success is a self-test, not a popularity contest. At the end of
the day we must look in the mirror and face up to who we really are if we ever hope to
become the person we know we can be – the person we want to be.
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It seems like such a simple question: Who are you? But try to answer it and you’ll
find the answer is not so easy. When was the last time you asked yourself this question?
What was your answer back then? Has it changed?
Many of us live such fast-paced lives that we seldom take time to reflect on the
distance we’ve traveled from the starting point many years ago. Remember those high
school dreams of becoming a pro sports player? Maybe you planned to write a bestselling
novel. Or maybe you were hoping to get married, have kids, and live happily ever after.
But now, looking back, you find that those dreams never materialized. Instead, you got
sidetracked into making a living and getting by, day to day, instead of building the future
you always wanted and, more importantly, knew you were capable of attaining.
Life has a way of sidetracking us from our goals to deal with day to day living.
Then, when you take a moment to catch your breath and see where you are, the goals
appear too distant to reach anymore, and maybe not even worth the effort after all.
Whatever happened to that determined person with all that ambition inside?
If this scenario sounds just a little too familiar, let me help you rediscover that
person again. Maybe he or she is a little older, and hopefully a little wiser, but ready to
gear up for the adventure that lies ahead. The best part of Lifemoney is you can start
accumulating it at any stage of your own personal transformation. Whoever you are,
whatever you’ve done, wherever you’ve been, you can still find the path to your personal
success if you’re willing to look for it. If you are just starting off on your voyage to
success and don’t know where to begin, start here.
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Knowing Yourself
Don’t Be a Stranger (To Yourself)

The “know who you are” focus of this lesson might seem like a speed bump on
your journey to success, or maybe just busy work. It is not. What is success if you don’t
know who you are inside, and what you truly want? I once knew a man who was famous
for keeping up with the Joneses. He was a very successful physician with five private
sports clinics. His patients and his workers loved him and he was loaded, but he was
slowly driving himself insane; literally.
One day while sitting at a stoplight on the way from one clinic to another a crazy
driver cut him off. This nice, successful, normally peaceful man now felt like hunting the
driver down and ripping his head off!
Then it hit him: keeping up with the Joneses was killing him. (Either that, or
someone else was going to wind up dead!) He drove straight to his accountant’s office,
restructured his organization, and over the next year phased out four of his five clinics.
Twelve months later he was happier than ever. Why? Because he was finally keeping up
with himself, not the Joneses.
In his case, less really was more.
The story of my doctor friend reinforces my belief that true success can never
really be achieved unless you first know yourself. If you don’t know what will make you
happy, how can you ever hope to achieve.
Lifemoney Currency
“I’m starting to judge success by the time I have for myself, the time I spend
with family and friends. My priorities aren’t amending; they’re shifting.”
-Brendan Fraser
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Goal Achievement Exercise B

Now it’s time to take out the Workbook you started in Goal Achievement Exercise
A.
In looking back on your past, reflect on the things that worked in your favor. Make
a list of your top four or five achievements; these might include honors, certificates,
recognition, or personal achievements. Under each, list your personality or character
strengths, and/or specific steps you took while completing these accomplishments. Even if
you didn’t consciously use these qualities back then, now you can see how you managed
to win that particular prize.
For example, define a recent accomplishment by personal attributes:
1. “I earned a college degree.” This took:
• Patience
• Commitment
• Hard work
• Self-discipline
• Organization
And/or define it by specific steps:
2. “I made a wise career move by getting a better job.” In order to
achieve this accomplishment you:
• Made a thorough search of opportunities
• Researched the companies I wanted to work with
• Matched my skills to company needs
• Prepared for the interview
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3. “I found an amazing partner and have a stable marriage.” In this case
you:
• Dated selectively
• Looked in the right places
• Studied my partner’s character before getting serious
• Worked on my weaknesses
• Got pre-marital counseling
As you look over your list what characteristics come up over and over? Those are
your strengths. Look for patterns forming. Let’s say for instance that when comparing the
events above words like “organization,” “thorough,” and “selective” came up in one form
or another with each of the three achievements. What might that say about you? Using
this exercise to get a sense of your approach to important life goals will help you
understand where your strengths lie and what makes you happy.
You may even recognize the type of goals that attract you; some may be more
physically oriented, like sports competitions, while others could relate more to mental
functions, like academic work. Some people excel at social endeavors like arranging
parties or special events, and so on. You gain a better sense of your gifts and talents so
you can better apply them to reaching success in the future. As you think about the things
you’ve done that you have enjoyed and made you feel good, you will get a better idea of
who you really are down deep. You’ll begin to see how that person might emerge in the
next stage of life.
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The world is full of born-again success stories, not in a religious way, but in the
renewal of spirit, enthusiasm, passion and effort. Maybe you’ve had a desk job so long
you’ve forgotten how much you love being outdoors. And maybe your list reveals a part
of you that loves physical activities and accomplishments, which shows up in words like
“endurance” and “commitment” and “perseverance.”
Maybe you’ll get back that desire you once had to open a gym or start a summer
camp or start taking at-risk youth groups on cross-country hikes. So take this time to
remember or remind yourself of what you want out of life.
If you do, you are on your way to getting there.
Goal Achievement Exercise C

You might be wondering if I’m going to ask you to take your Workbook out every
two pages. The answer is no! As we get our Lifemoney Lessons underway it’s very
important that we start on the right foot. That means laying the mental framework now for
the physical action you will be taking later. Aiming your thinking correctly requires more
Workbook exercises at the start. Within a couple of lessons we’ll get into a rhythm where
we do fewer and fewer of these exercises.
You’ve just done an assessment of the qualities you see in yourself and that you
find positive. I would like you to make a list of the qualities others have noticed in you.
Maybe your mom has always said you are hard working. Or you may be the employee that
handles confidential matters at your company because the boss trusts you most. You could
be someone who inspires others when they go through hard times. Write down the
characteristics that you’ve often heard people mention to or about you.
Your list could look something like this:
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• Honest
• Funny
• Direct
• Loyal
• Thoughtful
• Thorough
• Crazy
As you compare this list with the first, you will be able to confirm the qualities you
see in yourself with those others have witnessed in you. Now you have an even better idea
of how to play to your strengths as you set up goals for the future. Since most of us do a
better job with activities we enjoy, you’ll probably find that you are drawn to things you
think are fun. This makes it that much easier to achieve your goals. Things that are fun for
us are those that match with the ability to use these character traits. You need to keep this
in mind as you plan your goals and how you will reach them.
Lifemoney Currency
“You gotta have fun. Regardless of how you look at it, we’re playing a
game. It’s business. It’s our job, but I don’t think you can do well unless
you’re having fun.”
-Derek Jeter
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What Are Your Limitations?

Let’s be honest. Everyone has weaknesses, right? I do. You do. It’s part of being
human. But if you don’t admit to those limitations, you can get into some real trouble. As
long as you keep fooling yourself, you will never be able to deal with the issues that are
holding you back from success. I have a saying: denial does not change reality.
Maybe you have a lazy streak (sometimes I do). You put things off, and then do a
half-hearted job when you get around to them. But all the while, you’re making excuses
why you can’t get things done right or on time:
• I don’t feel good.
• I got the materials (or information) late.
• I didn’t know what I was supposed to do.
• The machinery isn’t working right.
• My mom’s cat died and I had to bury it.
As soon as you say, “I don’t have any major flaws,” you’re finished. Everyone has
flaws! But successful people understand the value of admitting to a weakness, working
around it or improving it, and moving on. Be honest with yourself here and remember that
knowing your weaknesses is a sure way to finding your strengths.
Lifemoney Currency
“Denial does not change reality”
-Brad Turk
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Knowing Yourself
Goal Achievement Exercise D

Take out your Workbook.
Now write down a few of your weak areas. These could include personality
drawbacks, like shyness or arrogance. You also can add things about your character that
could benefit from improvement, like being able to say “no” when you don’t want to do
something, or not taking shortcuts on a project. Here is an example of what this list might
look like:
• Overbearing
• Critical
• Too eager to please
• Sloppy
• Late
After each character trait, write a brief description of an incident where this
particular quality had a negative impact:
• Overbearing—offended a good friend of mine
• Sloppy—embarrassed my girlfriend at her company picnic
• Late—arrived late for an interview and didn’t get the job
As you begin to link certain behaviors to unwanted outcomes, you will have a
better idea of how “expensive” these traits can be in the way they keep you from meeting
goals. For instance, you can have the best intentions in the world when interviewing for a
new job, telling yourself how it will be as a stepping stone to reaching your ultimate career
goals, even deciding how to invest the extra money you’ll be making. But if you’re late to
the interview, what good is all that positive self-talk?
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Successful people don’t write off damaging personal traits as “oh well, that’s just
me being me.” Instead, they:
1. Take stock of their weaknesses and work hard to improve them
2. Always assume personal accountability; for their inactions, for their actions,
for their triumphs, for their failures, for their weaknesses, for their strengths
3. Don’t blame the weather for being late, they blame themselves
4. Don’t blame the product for being inferior, they blame themselves
5. Don’t blame the economy for low profits, they blame themselves
In other words, the minute you start passing the buck, the bucks start passing you
by
Get Rid of It!

If procrastination and chronic lateness are a symptom that both you and others
recognize in yourself, don’t write it off as a cute character flaw; get rid of it. Set your
clock ten minutes fast or set the alarm 30 minutes earlier than you think you need. Eat
breakfast on the way and tie your tie in the parking lot. There are so many things you can
do, so take action.
Knowledge, especially self knowledge, is useless if you don’t act upon it. And
action means work. You may want to start working on these weaknesses one at a time
until you start seeing better results. Of course, it’s easy to throw in yet another excuse
about finding the time to make these changes. But remember that people like Donald
Trump, Bill Gates, Derek Jeter, and Russell Simmons didn’t earn their millions by making
excuses. They did what it took to climb the mountain of their success, and their efforts
paid off.
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Knowing Yourself
If you’re serious about becoming the person you want and need to be and getting
the success you deserve, then do the work it takes to eliminate weaknesses and build on
your strengths. If you’re good with numbers, then choose something that includes some
type of numbers work like accounting or investments. On the other hand, if you like words
and books choose a different road to your success such as writing or communications.
Maybe you’ve already tried success “your way,” but it didn’t work. Or it didn’t
last. Many people have failed at that. Does it mean you’re a failure for life? Of course not!
It just means that you can learn from past mistakes to create a successful future.
Using mistakes as useful information is the way many large companies are
innovating. They treat everything they try as an experiment. For example, Google created
an early version of Google toolbar with all kinds of great features. But within weeks they
discovered that their great inventions were totally useless. So rather than dubbing the
whole project a failure, they viewed the results as useful information. They decided to
view “failures” as information sources for building new things. Another example was a
short lived photo search engine called Riya. Though it was a full blown failure, the
lessons learned provided the originators with priceless information which allowed them to
create Like.com, one of the most successful photo search engines on the web.
Whatever your interests and skills, you can find a path—or blaze a trail—that will
lead to your personal happiness. Maybe you’ll take a route that no one in your family or
neighborhood has tried before. Or then again you might end up on the exact same path
your grandfather took a century ago. What matters is that you freely explore any path you
wish until you find the one you are destined to travel. Then be fearless about taking it.
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Lifemoney Currency
“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300
games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the game’s winning shot
and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is
why I succeed.”
-Michael Jordan
Buy Stock in Yourself

Do you think successful people are born knowing themselves? Or maybe they had
money to make money? Neither one is true. Many successes start right where you are: not
knowing themselves very well and beyond broke. But they know enough about
themselves to know what makes them passionate and hungry, and they don’t let lack of
money or support stop them.
Consider one the top 50 business influencers of the 20th century, Walter Elias
Disney. Disney was to fantasy what J.P. Morgan was to finance. Starting with a little
mouse, Disney founded a $20-billion media conglomerate that includes a TV network, a
film studio, a publishing house, an Internet operation, and a worldwide store chain. Theme
parks with the Disney name are located in the U.S., France, and Japan. Walt Disney also is
credited with inventing the feature-length animated film genre when he released Snow
White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937.
Walt Disney’s rags-to-riches story is one of America’s preeminent success stories.
As Walt himself recalls, “It all started with a mouse.” Just think of that for a second;
forget the theme parks and cartoons and famous rides and Captain Jack Sparrow. It’s easy
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Knowing Yourself
to imagine success when it’s already been done before, but what if it’s never been done
before? That’s the dilemma Walt faced. He knew himself thoroughly and he understood
that his entire empire was based on a simple cartoon mouse that he was passionate about.
Through rejection and derision, failure and distraction along the way, Walt Disney held
firm to what he knew. He stuck to his singular vision of himself and is now revered as
nothing short of a genius.
So let me ask you again, who are you? What is your driving passion? What is the
secret obsession that defines you? Whether it is a mouse or music style or menu item or
men’s fashion, never let the world tell you that you can’t do something just because it’s
never been done before. But more importantly, never tell yourself that you can’t do
something because it’s never been done before. Stay centered on who you are and the
goals you want to achieve. Remind yourself of the unique skills you bring to the process,
as well as any new talents you may choose to develop along the way.
Goal Achievement Exercise E

Now, review your thoughts on success (Exercise A) and begin thinking about
things you would like to accomplish, such as getting in great physical shape, landing your
dream job, finding a life partner, or building financial security. Under each thought you
write, list the qualities that you think you would need to achieve them.
The reason for this exercise is to begin the process matching your abilities to some
of the things you want. This is done for two reasons. One, if you discover you are lacking
skills or abilities in a certain area you may need to develop them to attain success. Two, it
will help you understand if you are looking for success in the wrong places by objectively
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highlighting what’s required for success, and comparing those qualities with what you
deeply desire to develop within yourself.
Know yourself and double check your motivations for success. For example, if you
want to make a million dollars, you must understand why you feel a million dollars will
equate to happiness. You might find out there are other ways to achieve your goals that are
more realistic and rewarding for you.
Make Less - Find More

As you learned in Lifemoney Lesson #1, making a million dollars doesn’t
necessarily mean you will be happy. Understand that fortune and fame doesn’t equate to
success; knowing yourself and being true to yourself makes you successful. In other
words, be careful what you wish for, because when you get it, it might not be what you
expected.
As an example, wouldn’t you almost kill for a chance to be a big Hollywood
success? And what are the chances that you’d walk away from your success at the very
pinnacle? That’s what happened to former TV heartthrob and star of the hit TV series
“90210” James Walters, who made a conscious decision to leave Hollywood behind and
become a firefighter in Los Angeles.
Here was a guy who seemingly had it all – loads of money, screaming fans,
adoring women, the Hollywood Dream – and he left it all behind to risk his life and fight
fires, because he knew he couldn’t be happy doing anything else. Why? Turns out he had
Lifemoney Lesson # 2, Knowing Yourself, down cold.
Lifemoney is about knowing yourself well enough to create inner success first and
external wealth second. What remains important is that you feel successful at every step of
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Knowing Yourself
the process. So many of us set conditions for our happiness, like “I’ll be happy when I
make my first million, or “I’ll be happy when I get that recording contract” or book deal
or acting job or new promotion or partnership. See how that works?
If you say “I’ll be happy when….” you’re in the conditional happiness trap. Ask
yourself this: What happens until then? Truly successful people make peace with, and
enjoy, where they are right now; today. They recognize that success is a journey, not a
destination, and that to skip the rest stops, detours, obstacles and roadside attractions along
the way is taking away from true success. Although success is a worthwhile goal, progress
at any price should be more than most of us are willing to pay.
A Fish Story
Here’s a story to illustrate the point: A very wealthy business executive was on
vacation with his wife in Hawaii. While there, he asked the locals if there was a fishing
boat that went out daily. The man loved to fish and wanted to spend a relaxing day boating
on the crystal clear water.
The others pointed to a middle-aged man who had his own little boat and had a
great reputation as a fishing guide. The rich executive approached “Fisherman Joe” and
asked if he could go out with him for the day – offering to pay for the privilege..
Fisherman Joe told the executive that it would be a pleasure, but that he only went out to
fish a few hours each day, and that most of his day was spent with his wife and children.
The businessman had no problem going out for just a few hours while his own
wife visited the spa. The next day, the two men took the boat out on the seas. While
waiting for the fish to bite, the executive was impressed with Fisherman Joe’s skill and
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ability to find the best spots to reel in a terrific catch for the day, for the man seemed
unusually humble; as though he was unaware of the value of his skills.
“How do you get so many in so short a time?” the businessman asked, truly
amazed.
Joe shrugged. “After so many years, I know their habits.”
“What do you do with them all?” the business man asked.
“I sell most of ‘em,” Joe replied, “and take home what’s leftover for dinner. Just a
couple of hours a day supplies all my needs.”
The shrewd executive knew a good thing when he saw it. “How would you like to
go into business with me, teaching other guys how to fish?” He went on to explain that he
would put all the capital up front to get the business going if Fisherman Joe would add his
expertise. After a slight hesitation, Joe agreed.
Soon business was booming. Fisherman Joe went from working full-time on his
boat to getting three boats, and then working a fleet. The two men moved the business
headquarters to Los Angeles. Although Joe was reluctant to leave his comfortable home
and family while working in L.A. and remove himself from the enjoyable part of his
business—fishing—he did it anyway. Joe knew that being in L.A. would aid his partner’s
goal of taking their company public.
After five grueling years, they finally went public. But Joe was now worn out, and
did not really enjoy what he was doing. The business life was not satisfying. Working day
and night was more than he had expected. Finally, Joe decided he could not take this life
anymore. He spoke to his partner, asking if he could cash out his shares and return to
Hawaii. The prosperous businessman, who had reached his goals, had no problem and
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wished Fisherman Joe well. Before Joe left, a popular magazine interviewed him. The
interviewer was amazed by Joe’s journey and the story behind his success.
“From fishing a few hours a day to a multi millionaire, that’s quite a journey,” the
interviewer commented.
“Yes, it is,” Joe replied thoughtfully.
The final question asked about Joe’s future plans was: “Now that you will be
giving up the good life in L.A., what are you going to do?”
Joe replied that, “I’ll get a small fishing boat, so I can fish a few hours a day, and
then I am going to spend the rest of my time with my family.”
The moral of the story isn’t that we should not try hard or set high goals. It’s that
you should know what you want out of life. Fisherman Joe had all he wanted before
embarking on a new journey that was piloted by another man’s dreams. This journey was
quite productive, and many might have found it fulfilling. But Joe found it a waste of five
good years of his life. In the end, his journey brought him right back to square one. He
started by taking a small fishing boat out for a few hours a day before returning to spend
the rest of his time with his family, and he ended up doing exactly the same thing. He
already knew what success looked like to him, but he ventured away from it for more
money.
While the rich executive who had become his partner considered their pricey
fishing fleet and LA expansion success, the entire experience had been a detour from Joe’s
own sense of success. Two very different men viewed the exact same experience in two
very different ways. Both of them found success in completely opposite directions!
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Can You Dunk?

Part of knowing yourself is knowing what you’re good at. No one knows better
than you where you feel confident versus where you feel unsure of yourself. If you are
5’8” tall and you know you want to be a pro basketball player and believe it’s possible,
just understand the obstacles that you are going to face. Is that a realistic goal for you? It
was for Spud Webb, who not only played professionally, but won many dunking contests –
despite being nearly a foot shorter than most of his competitors.
But he is the exception to the rule. Sometimes it will take that much more work,
time, and effort to reach something that is much harder to attain. Do you have that drive?
If so, go for it.
If you don’t know where your talents lie or still don’t know what you feel you
would be good at, take an aptitude test. Aptitude tests can provide some insight into your
talents and abilities. They can measure your characteristics and ability to acquire
additional skills. Assessment testing can also help find your natural strengths. The work
you are most likely to enjoy and be successful in is work that best matches your aptitudes.
Certain occupations will be a better fit for you than others, and if you work in a field that
doesn’t match your natural abilities, you may find your work unrewarding, unchallenging
and even difficult. These assessments are available all over the internet or by looking in
the Yellow Pages. A local community college may also offer these assessments free of
charge.
Lifemoney Currency
Understand that fortune and fame don’t equate to success; being true to
yourself and finding your happiness makes you successful.
-Brad Turk
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Knowing Yourself Summary

We focused this lesson on discovering who you are and who you want to become.
Answering these questions lays the groundwork for success. If the groundwork isn’t solid,
the whole house will crumble. Remember that anything you set your mind to, you can
achieve. The only limitations you have to achieving your goals are the ones you set for
yourself. Use your understanding of your strengths and weaknesses to achieve your goals
and you will achieve excellence. The best part is that when you know who you are, you’ll
achieve it on your own terms.
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Lifemoney Currency
“There is no discrimination against excellence.”
-Oprah Winfrey
_____ 1. I will discover what truly makes me happy.
_____ 2. I have given serious thought to the roles I’ve played throughout life so far.
_____ 3. I can remember specific goals for my life when I was young and idealistic.
_____ 4. I have reclaimed those goals or revised them to fit my future plans.
_____ 5. I have thought about the skills that others see in me.
_____ 6. I have matched up my goals with my abilities.
_____ 7. I have reflected on past achievements as a way of planning future success.
_____ 8. I have identified specific weaknesses or flaws that need to be addressed.
_____ 9. I am ready to take responsibility for my weaknesses and start changing.
_____ 10. I will not let life’s distractions sidetrack me from reaching my goals.
Lifemoney Currency
“View mistakes as missed takes - take mistakes and learn their relevance.”
-Brad Turk
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Overcoming Obstacles
Lifemoney Lesson # 3: Goal-Setting and Overcoming

Obstacles
“You should set goals beyond your reach so you always have something to
live for.”
-Ted Turner
Overview
Every journey needs a beginning. Planning, road maps, and packing are what
prepare us for the trip that lies ahead. Although you are probably excited to hit the gas
pedal and get rolling, overlooking these planning stages could set you on the wrong
course. This Lifemoney Lesson prepares your navigation system of goals, action steps,
and timelines and will give you the knowledge to handle the inevitable obstacles that will
come your way.
A Quick Review
Let’s quickly review. In Lifemoney Lesson # 1: Defining Success you took the
first step in your quest for success by understanding what success means to you and
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forming an idea of the type of accomplishments that will make you happy. Lifemoney
Lesson # 2: Know Yourself helped you learn more about your true wants and needs, and
made you aware of what personality traits you will need to get you there.
Now, in Lifemoney Lesson # 3, you’re ready for the next step on the path to self-
fulfillment: Goal-setting. This lesson will guide you through the process of creating some
goals, developing an action plan behind your goals and deciding what you need to do in
order to achieve your dreams in a timely manner.
Let me start with a great story that illustrates two people with goals. One person
has a goal with a plan and the other person is totally unscripted.
Step Up
Six-time Grammy award winning rap star Kanye West knows a little about setting
goals and overcoming challenges. Kanye wanted to be a successful rapper, but was
known in the industry as a producer. His label, Roc-A-Fella Records was initially
reluctant to support West as a rapper, because they saw him as a producer first and
foremost. Nobody thought he had much star power. Companies felt he was not as
marketable as rappers that portray the ‘street image’ that is prominent in hip-hop. But
even with the Roc-A-Fella record deal Kanye West was not going to wait for anyone to
take notice of his rhyming talents. If Kanye had not believed in himself, stepped up and
remained persistent in reaching his goal – his definition of success - he might just be
another producer on the Roca-A-Fella roster.
But Kanye West had a goal, and it wasn’t to be a producer. So on his own
initiative he planned, paid for, and filmed his first video for “Through the Wire,” which
catapulted him into superstardom. It appeared that if Kanye had not done this on his own
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accord he might never have been released and become the Rap Mega Giant that he has
become.
Now let me tell you about another hip-hop artist you’ll probably never hear about.
That’s because he had more daydreams than plans. He was/is an up and coming
“superstar” in the music business who missed a huge meeting I’d arranged because he
could not get himself into Manhattan from Queens (a quick 20 minute trip). For two full
days this artist could not come up with the resources for even a $2 token to get there. His
life was so unplanned that he failed to step up and missed his opportunity of a lifetime
because of $2 token. Kanye West vs. Mr. Nobody.
Every successful person I know has clear goals they’re reaching for. Once they
decide on that goal, obstacles became simply inconveniences to be overcome. And they
don’t allow $2 tokens - or the opinions of others - to side track their journey.
Start by Writing a Goal

Goals form the cornerstone of any new beginning and are the first of several steps
you’ll need to get where you’re going. It is the first step of turning the thought of doing
something into the reality of achieving something. It’s time to write some goals right
now.
Goal Achievement Exercise F

For this exercise, make a list of your top 3 goals that, when accomplished, would
make you a happier person. Under each goal list at least 3 objectives (mini goals) that
you will need to do to bring you closer to your goal. For instance:
• Goal: Starting up a home-based travel agency
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o Objective: Get travel agent license
o Objective: Build out basement to accommodate office
o Objective: Save up enough money for expenses and a salary
cushion
• Goal: Opening your own bakery
o Objective: Find 2 bakers
o Objective: Find a location
o Objective: Do a business plan
• Goal: Starting a vintage car website
o Objective: Find a website developer
o Objective: Research cars that could be placed on website
o Objective: Legally incorporate your company
At this point it’s common for people to feel a little insecure or anxious about
finally seeing their life goals and objectives written out. Relax; that’s natural. The
problem with dreams is that we’ve dreamt them for so long; it’s often hard to see them as
real.
Dreams are real and they do come true if you follow this path. They happen
every day. Just watch television, listen to the radio, or read a book and you’ll see
hundreds - even thousands of people who have applied action and planning to make their
dreams real. Those people are not smarter, stronger, or better than you; they simply
learned these lessons a little sooner and applied them a little earlier.
Now is your time; get started!
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Establishing Action Steps

After you set goals and objectives you need to establish action steps. We all
know that goals just don’t happen. It’s what lies in the gap between setting goals and
achieving goals that separate Kanye West and the no-name rapper I talked about earlier.
What bridges that gap? Action steps. An action plan is just a series of steps you plan out
ahead of time to take systematic action. Let’s set up an action plan for your goals right
now.
Goal Achievement Exercise G

Take out your Workbook. Select one goal listed in Exercise F and create action
steps for each of the objectives listed under that goal. Below each, break the list down
into three or four action steps you would need to take in order to reach that objective. It
could look something like this:
Goal: Open a home based travel agency:
Top three objectives and possible action steps:
• Get travel agent license
i. Research classes that offer test preparation for agent exam
ii. Understand the testing process (where given, timeframes, etc.)
iii. Prepare for exam
iv. Schedule exam
• Build out basement to accommodate office
i. Find out construction costs for renovation
ii. Start looking into office furniture and equipment
iii. Order a separate phone line from the telephone company
iv. Clear space for new furniture
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• Raise and save enough money for expenses and salary cushion
i. Figure out a budget of what the business will cost
ii. Figure out what amounts of money will be needed to live off of while
building the business
iii. Start putting away money weekly toward travel agency
iv. Find out about bank loans
Lifemoney Currency
“Actions make things happen that words just slow down”
-Brad Turk
Timelines
Timelines fuel goals, objectives and action steps. Now you’ve written goals and
some action steps that lead to the goals. Successful people know that there are few assets
as valuable as time. So not only do they spend a lot of time managing their time, but they
also add urgency to their goals by making themselves accountable to deadlines. Sure,
deadlines slip sometimes and you have to readjust your schedule, but without a schedule
to start with you’ll never know if you’re slipping.
Establishing a timeline for meeting a goal also helps you realize if it’s reasonable.
Let’s say you want to own your house debt free within ten years. When you sit down to
make your plan and you see that both of your children will enter college within the next
ten years and your spouse is going to need significant surgery in the next year you may
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realize that this goal does not have a reasonable timeline. The goal is still reasonable, but
the timeline isn’t given the circumstances. You’ll need to adjust.
Successful people set goals and objectives, they identify action steps, and then
they set times and dates when things will be completed. This is an easy step to take, but
it’s also easy not to take. As a result, many wannabe successes miss the chance to
advance to their goals because they simply fail to put a timeline on their progress. You
must schedule your goals, objectives and action steps. Unfortunately, many people leave
this step out and things just never get done. Let’s actually do it now.
Goal Achievement Exercise H

Go back to the list of goals, objectives, and action steps. Beside each of the
objectives and action steps, jot down a date for reaching them. Schedule changes or
circumstances may require adjusting a date now and then, but for the most part, you
should set reasonable deadlines and do everything you can to meet them.
For instance if you want to start your own bakery, be VERY realistic about your
timeline. Timelines do not mean deadlines; they are guides, not written in stone. With a
large goal like opening a new business, rushing into it is more dangerous than not starting
it at all.
If you need a year, and that gets your heart rate back within normal ranges and
allows you to actually sleep at night, give yourself a year. If you’ve been slowly
researching local opportunities and putting together resource lists for longer than that,
give yourself six months.
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If you keep on falling behind and have to reset your dates, you might have to
adjust your action steps or your due-dates to make them more reasonable. Don’t forget to
write the date for meeting each objective on your calendar as a reminder to continue
working on it.
Write It Down
Words are priceless. The written word is a tremendous way to remind yourself to
keep your goals and action items moving along your timeline. Written words are also
great for organization and focus. Never underestimate the influence of actually seeing
your goals written out and in front of you every day.
I actually had a business partner who is one of the smartest, most talented and
gifted people I know. I learned early on a major flaw that he had that amazed me. He
probably had the one of the worst memories I have ever seen. Like most successful
people, he knew how to compensate for his flaw and it practically never affected his work
or his success. His solution was to write everything down. Anything of importance that
needed to be followed up on was immediately put in his Palm Pilot (that was/is his
tracking and “things to do” vehicle).
I remember one day we were going over items that needed to be taken care of and
we were dividing them up between us. After he said he was going to take care of one of
the items that I did not want to do, I stopped and paused. About 30 seconds of silence
went by and he asked me why I became quiet. I told him, “I’m waiting for you to write
that last item down.”
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Lifemoney Currrency
“You must see your goals clearly and specifically before you can set out
for them.”
-Les Brown
Goal Achievement Exercise I

Make a daily written, “To do” list which you will reference daily. Keep it in the
notebook you have been using or in a calendar program that you can keep handy. Set
aside some time each morning to review your list and begin working on the listed tasks.
Every day you should be aware of all your goals and the steps needed to attain them.
Depending on how organized you are, you may need to break down the week by
hours to make sure you are managing your time properly at first. For goal setting you will
need to prioritize tasks, reserve a block of time to do what needs to get done, set
deadlines, and plan specific, measurable, realistic, committed, and visualized steps. You
may not get everything you had planned done in a given day, but you will make progress
and, over time, you may be able to do more things in a day, moving you closer to
achieving your goal.
Here are a few tips for using your daily “To Do” list:
1. Do the important, even if unpleasant, tasks first. You should get the
boring, annoying, and anxiety producing things out of the way when
you have more time. You will be less likely to postpone the things you
like to do than those you consciously or unconsciously avoid.
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2. Learn how to use technology. Computer programs and electronic
organizers can save you a lot of time over manual lists. With computer
programs and organizers you can adjust lists quickly and neatly.
3. Carry a pocket-sized list with you at all times. I do this. I have a main
list at home and a daily list that I take with me.
4. Although I suggest technology, do what works for you. For tasks that
don’t warrant being on my “things to do” list I leave items around my
house as reminders. Obviously, I don’t recommend this method, even I
know it is kind of strange – but it works for me. For example, I want to
start playing more basketball, but it is not really a priority that I want
highlighted on my daily to do list. It’s just something I want to get
around to doing more often. I will do things like leaving a basketball by
my front door. It is not in the way, but it is visible and reminds me daily
to get out and play. I also send myself emails from my blackberry to
remind me of things or to keep track of ideas as they come up. I know I
could come up with a more efficient method, but it works, and I am
happy with it. So if you need post its, your PDA or phone alarm as a
reminder, use them!
Lifemoney Currency
It’s true – if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. We need to take luck out of
the equation.
-Brad Turk
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Nothing Can Stop Me Now…

…except obstacles. Whatever obstacles have been preventing you from starting
your journey, now is the time to knock them down forever. Adversity and obstacles will
come up along the way whenever you start setting goals, and you must be mentally
prepared to deal with them. The difference between starters and finishers often comes
down to how prepared they are to just keep going when trouble begins. Mental and
physical preparation is essential to finishing any journey.
The gap between Lifemoney and real money is how you choose to perceive the
obstacles you’ll face. Successful people use their Lifemoney skills to look at obstacles as
opportunities, not stumbling blocks in their path. They step up and success is their
reward.
When I started my career with MCI Telecommunications I had to learn my very
first year how to overcome obstacles. I found that MCI was one of the highest-priced
long distance service providers on the market at that time. There were a lot of smaller
companies, with fewer expenses, taking market share away from MCI and AT&T.
These companies were offering rates that were about half the price of what we
sold. But MCI was not concerned with this, because it mostly affected the smaller
customers. Most of their larger customers simply wouldn’t take a chance with a smaller,
newer provider. My problem was that I was the one handling those smaller customers.
The MCI philosophy was “we’re selling on value, not price.” Unfortunately, it is
extremely difficult to sell value at two times the cost for the same product.
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I quickly scrambled to find a solution. I had to overcome this obstacle so that I
would not be in jeopardy of losing my job. I started looking for other products to sell
even though long distance was supposed to be our main focus. I tried looking for things
that other sales reps overlooked that would provide me a new selling opportunity. The
turnover rate for my position that year was 95%. That meant that for every 100 reps
starting at MCI, 95 left or got fired. Luckily, I was fortunate enough to look where others
were not and I weathered the storm by linking to a product that was starting to turn hot:
prepaid phone cards. This was the beginning of a booming market, but one I might have
overlooked if I hadn’t learned to overcome obstacles quickly.
Lifemoney Currency
“If you don’t like what’s on TV, get up and change the channel!”
-Drew Carey
Goal Achievement Exercise J

With firm goals and objectives in mind from Exercise F, let’s adjust your action
plan (from Exercise G) to take into account any obstacle you might expect to face.
Describe one of your main goals in a sentence or two. Below that, list possible or proven
obstacles or fears that may be keeping you from reaching your goal. Then come up with
the solution/objective and an action plan. Be honest and write every obstacle and fear you
can think of. Trying to make your goal appear easier to reach by writing fewer obstacles
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could end up delaying your hope of fulfilling your dreams. It’s like your teachers used to
say in school: “You’re only cheating yourself”.
The idea is not to overwhelm yourself or get stressed out with a long list but to
break down your objectives into steps that conquer all possible obstacles. These obstacles
come in all sizes, shapes, and colors for different people, so you will need to spend some
time figuring out the possible or probable barriers to your goals.
Here’s an example of what your obstacle list and action plan could look like:
Goal: To pilot my own airplane
Obstacles:
• I don’t know how to fly.
Objective: Take Flying Lessons
Action Plan: Research Classes, save money for classes, etc.
• I don’t have a plane.
Objective: Research planes and prices
Action Plan: Go online and research planes, find an online interest group, etc.
• I can’t afford a plane.
Objective: Find out about buying a used plane
Action plan: Find out about bank loans, start a savings account with regular
deposits, etc.
So is flying an airplane impossible? Of course not! People fly planes every day.
People just like you and I. So how do they do it? They are not superhuman, but they are
action heroes; they add action to their goals and steps and turn dreams into reality. Each
part of this process should be specific, focused, clear, and manageable, so that you will
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end up where you want to be. All of these steps we have completed so far help you get
focused, stay clear, and manage your way to achieving your goals.
As with this goal of flying, your real goal at first may seem almost impossible to
reach. But when you break the “impossibility” down by analyzing the real (versus
imagined) obstacles, the goal suddenly seems reachable. All you need to do is create a
plan of options to overcome the challenges and follow specific action steps. It becomes
easier to see that you can achieve your goal with a little bit of will power and motivation.
They say if everything’s going your way, you’re probably going the wrong way.
That’s because life is supposed to be a challenge. When we face challenges and
overcome them, or even when we face them with not-so-successful results, we learn from
our success and failures to meet the next obstacle with even greater results.
Lifemoney Currency
“They say if everything’s going your way, you’re probably going the wrong
way.”
-Brad Turk
Three Huge Obstacles

In my life as a successful businessman, I’ve run into 3 very specific obstacles that
seem to affect a lot of people: 1. procrastination, 2. allowing failure to be an option, and
3. making excuses. Let’s examine each of these and ways you can beat them every time.
Number 1: Procrastination
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There is one obstacle that rises above the rest: procrastination. By procrastinating
I mean putting off or delaying an action or task to a later time or date. To me,
procrastination is one of the worst enemies of success, and some of us are experts at it.
All the time that is wasted procrastinating is not putting us closer to reaching our goals.
(Time management is so important I’ve devoted an entire section to it in Lifemoney
Lesson #4).
Remember how in school some kids put more effort into making excuses for not
doing homework than in completing assignments (I know because I was one of them)?
That’s what happens after graduation, too. Many of us put off and find reasons to avoid
creating a plan that leads to valuable accomplishments, or avoid taking action steps once
the plan is made. We say things like:
“I’m too busy.”
“I’m too tired.”
“My wife’s nagging won’t let me think.”
“My husband says it won’t work.”
“The kids need me right now.”
“I’m over-committed already.”
“I can’t find a minute to myself.”
“I don’t know where to start.”
“I don’t have the help I need.”
“It costs too much.”
The list goes on and on. It’s easy to put off making a plan for starting the journey
to your goals.
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Lifemoney Currency
“The world is full of willing people; some willing to work, the rest willing
to let them.” T
-Robert Frost h
nk about that quote. Which one do you want to be? Isn’t it time you stop playing victim
and start working on your plan for personal success? I have listed some effective ways to
overcome procrastination (and an example for each using the goal of getting in shape):
• Just start! Don’t let any thoughts enter your mind and don’t think about the
task. Just do it! Example: When it’s time to go to the gym, go. Don’t think to
reschedule it for a better time. Or don’t think about not feeling that well at the
moment. Just get up and go. You’ll feel better after you do.
• Do a part of the task. Maybe a part that interests you most. Don’t think about
the whole thing. Example: If you’re not feeling well and you are supposed to
do cardio and weight training, do “a part” of the task. Instead of doing the
dreaded cardio, just go and focus on doing the weight training. Even pick one
of your favorite exercises to start. Maybe after that is done and your body is in
motion, you might be feeling up to doing the cardio.
• Avoid people or things that will take you away from what needs to be
done. We all know time-suckers, be they people (your lazy cousin Eddie),
places (the mall), or things (Xbox/housework/chores). Example: You are on
the way to the gym and your buddy calls you to go out somewhere. You tell
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him you can’t but he is persistent. You need to be firm and stick to your plans
and continue on to go to the gym. If he’s a real friend, he’ll be waiting for you
when you’re done.
• Focus on the results, not the task. Many successful people consciously
visualize a result before beginning a task. For instance, I’ve seen people
literally write down “make a million dollars this year” on an index card, fold it
up in their wallet, and spend every waking minute realizing their goal. While
this may be extreme, visualize the result you’re after, not the steps it takes to
get there. Example: If you don’t feel motivated to go to the gym and you dread
having to go, don’t think of the exercises that you need to do, think of how you
are going to look at the beach.
• Find a partner. Sometimes we just need a little outside perspective from a
family member, colleague or friend. Example: If you need outside motivation,
find a workout partner. You can hire a trainer, get a friend involved or find
someone at the gym who keeps the same workout schedule.
• Write down why you’re avoiding the task. Then work on the task and write
down how you feel now that you’ve done some or all of it – enjoy that sense
of accomplishment.
Number 2: Allowing Failure to be an Option
Goals and challenges should not be lightly undertaken. Yet most of us grab onto
great ideas for self-improvement without much thought, which explains why a significant
number will fail or relapse when the going gets tough. If failure is always an option then
success may never be within reach for you. All successful people meet their obstacles
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head-on because they anticipate them and are prepared to do whatever it takes to
overcome them.
Not allowing failure to be an option reminds me of the recent resurrection of the
Rocky franchise in a sixth movie. Sylvester Stallone went through huge trials and
tribulations as a writer, star and creator to see his project come to life. The word on the
street is that Sylvester Stallone got several offers on his script for the original Rocky
movie, but lost out on several of them because he believed he was the only actor who
could pull off the lead role to his demanding specifications. Even when some degree of
success was in his reach – he was offered thousands of dollars to buy the script at a time
when he and his wife really needed it – he saw a half-deal as a failed deal.
Much like the boxer in his now famous movie, Stallone refused to fail. He
persevered until, at last, he found a movie studio willing to buy both his script and his
portrayal of the main character.
How far are you willing to go for success? If you concede failure before you even
begin, you may never know. If you’re ready to begin taking the action steps that will lead
you to accomplish the objectives you’ve listed, then ask yourself questions like these
right now to avoid making failure an option:
• What type of lifestyle changes do you plan to make?
• Do you need to move to a new place?
• Should you change jobs?
• Do you need a different eating plan?
• Do you need to make time to get more exercise?
• Which skills will you need to develop to improve your capabilities?
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• Do you need technological expertise?
• Should you take a class?
• Should you attend a marriage seminar or see a marriage counselor?
• Should you seek help from a professional consultant?
• Who do you know that could be a possible business partner or help you
connect with the right business partner?
• Do you need to network with others in your field to enlarge your knowledge
boundaries?
• Will your current job or career environment support these needed changes?
• Does your company recognize and reward growth?
• Can you make more money or advance more rapidly at another company?
• Does your company pay for tuition reimbursement?
Answering these questions might require some habit changes. For example, if
you’re trying to stop smoking but go bowling every Thursday night with team members
who smoke, you may be tempted to light up with your buddies at the bowling alley. This
becomes a lifestyle challenge that you must address. Changes could include switching to
another hobby or wearing a nicotine patch on your bowling nights.
Emotionally speaking you may be thinking it’s too late for you to change. You
might feel too old to reach your goals or that it is too late to realize your dreams. But it is
never too late to achieve your desires. At the age of forty, my sister enrolled in medical
school. Being a doctor has been her desire since she was a child. Life circumstances and
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daily distractions could have kept her dream from becoming a reality but she did not –
she would not – let them.
Number 3: Making Excuses
Excuses are very powerful; they allow you to justify an action or inaction so you
don’t have to feel guilty or justify what you can’t do. But guess what? Excuses are
worthless! There is never a need to make an excuse. Excuses are probably one of the
biggest obstacles that keep you from achieving your goals. Your elaborate reasons will
not impress anyone. The bottom line is, when you make an excuse for not doing
something, the thing you were suppose to do did not get done. This is just not acceptable.
Rather than making excuses, be definite and defined about the action you will
take and when you will take it. Utilizing the Goal Achievement Exercise I you will have
a different plan and deadlines set to meet your objectives. Start with one goal at a time,
maybe even a small one, like earning more money by asking for a promotion. Your
action steps might include dressing the part of the higher position, working overtime to
prove your usefulness, and approaching your supervisor at just the right time to maximize
your chances for success.
Lifemoney Currency
If failure is always an option for you then success may never be.
-Brad Turk
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Goal-Setting and Overcoming Obstacles Summary

Good things don’t just happen by themselves. We need to do everything in our
power to make them happen. That means creating a written plan for reaching a specific
goal. The plan should list the goal, objectives, action steps, timelines and an idea of some
of the obstacles you’ll face. Let me repeat: NEVER FORGET to anticipate that obstacles
will come up. Being prepared to face them is a huge factor in overcoming them when
you meet them. Whatever you do, remember that when this process is complete you are
ready to step on the gas and head on toward your destiny.
Lifemoney Currency:
Good things don’t just happen by themselves. We need to do everything in
our power to make them happen.
-Brad Turk
_____ 1. I am ready to create goals.
_____ 2. I have a good idea of my action steps to reach each goal.
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___ 3. I have created a timeline for my action steps that appears to be reasonable.
_____ 4. I have thought about some of the obstacles I may face.
______5. I have plans to fully and completely address all roadblocks to
my success.
_____ 6. I plan to tackle the more difficult things on my “To do” list first.
_____ 7. I am looking to see how technology can make my life easier.
_____ 8. I am ready to stay committed to my written plan and see it through with
daily reminders.
_____ 9. I am ready to adopt the mindset of someone who will be successful.
_____ 10. No excuses: I will not let myself off the hook.
Lifemoney Currency
“Excuses will get you everywhere. Just not where you want to go.”
-Brad Turk
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Tools for Success
Lifemoney Lesson # 4: Gathering the Tools for Success
“If I said to most of the people who auditioned, 'Good job, awesome, well
done,' it would have made me actually look and feel ridiculous. It's quite
obvious most of the people who turned up for this audition didn’t have the
tools and were hopeless."
Overview
Success requires the right tools. This lesson outlines the five critical tools you’ll
need to succeed in reaching your goals. The five tools are focus, time management,
efficiency, priorities and commitment. Learn to use these five with skill and you’ll
achieve whatever you can dream.
A Successful Person’s Tool Belt

I love the Geico Insurance commercials that make fun of cavemen. My favorite is
the one where a television anchorman says to the caveman, “Face facts: historically you
guys have struggled to adapt” to which the Caveman replies “Yeah, like walking upright,
discovering fire, inventing the wheel, and laying the foundation for all mankind. Yeah,
you’re right; good point.”
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We’ve been innovating and making tools since we lived in caves. Humans seem
to have this built in tendency to create easier ways to do hard things with tools that we
make. If you stop to think about it, nearly everything in our world is a tool. Just look
around you: for the most part we can run our whole lives by pushing buttons that activate
machinery to do stuff for us. Whatever the task requires - stoves, cars or computers - our
tools surround us.
We create mental tools to help us achieve greatness as well. Now that you’ve
made up your mind to go after your dreams, you need to select and develop the tools that
will help you achieve your goals. Though different tools may suit different people best,
successful people use many of the same mental tools – and use them well. Here are some
of the strategic tools that will help you succeed in achieving whatever you dream:
• Tool # 1: Focus
• Tool # 2: Time Management
• Tool # 3: Efficiency
• Tool # 4: Priorities
• Tool # 5: Commitment
Lifemoney Currency
“There was a time when nails were high-tech. There was a time when people
had to be told how to use a telephone. Technology is just a tool. People use
tools to improve their lives.”
-Tom Clancy
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Tool #1: Focus

Bruce Lee, the martial arts expert and movie star, once said, “The successful
warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.” Focus is something we don’t usually
hear about but trust me: it is on the minds of every single successful person.
Focus is exactly what the name implies; a narrowing of the lens until we get bulls-
eye aim on our ultimate desire. We live in a world full of distractions. There are more TV
channels than we can ever hope to watch, an entire industry devoted to creating
computer/video games, four new movies to choose from each week, nearly 200,000 new
books that get published each year and nearly that many new CDs. When you add in
blogs to read, email to keep up with, instant messaging, cell phone calls, and all of the
other daily distractions we deal with, it’s a miracle we get anything done at all!
It is extremely important to stay focused on your goals. Don’t be distracted by
external things. Distractions and challenges will come daily, if not hourly. These could
involve the things mentioned above, people in your life, your job, your hobbies, or just
about anything else that comes your way. Look past your obstacles and stay focused on
where you’re going. This is how you handle obstacles effectively and keep yourself
zeroed in on success. Notice I didn’t say you don’t have to deal with the obstacles – you
just simply have to return your focus to your goal as soon as you deal with the obstacle.
As you begin to recognize some of the common factors that have been sidetracking you
and possibly bankrupting your motivation to accomplish goals, you will develop a clearer
mindset on how to avoid distractions in the future so you can steadily pursue your
personal vision of success.
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Lifemoney Currency
“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.”
-Bruce Lee
Goal Achievement Exercise K

List the typical distractions you face in a given week. From unwanted phone calls
to sorting email, write down everything that takes time away from more important
matters. Here are some possibilities:
• Yard work
• House chores
• Chatty neighbors or co-workers
• Last-minute errands
• Television, computer, or video games
Beside each distraction, write one or two ways of seeing through the distraction,
as shown in the following examples:
1. Yard work—get the kids to help more; hire someone to do it; schedule
certain days for it.
2. Unplanned errands—do what you have to; postpone non-essentials.
When you identify your most frequent distractions, you can stay more focused by
spotting them early and seeing past them. The key to laser focus is recognizing what
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throws you off focus and planning what you will do about it ahead of time. There is no
substitute for knowing exactly what drags your focus off point.
Lifemoney Currency
“A major part of successful living lies in the ability to put first things first.
Indeed the reason most major goals are not achieved is that we spend our
time doing second things first.”
-Robert J. McKain
Tool #2: Time Management

Imagine there is a bank that credits your account each morning with $86,000. It
carries over no balance from day to day. Every evening the bank deletes whatever part of
the balance you failed to use during the day.
What would you do?
Draw out ALL OF IT, of course!
Each of us has a bank like this. It’s called TIME. Every morning, it credits you
with 86,400 seconds. Every night it writes off as lost whatever amount of that precious,
precious time you failed to invest to good purpose. It carries no balance. It allows no
overdraft. Each day it opens a new account for you. Each night it burns the remains of the
day. If you fail to use the day’s deposits, the loss is yours. There is no going back. There
is no drawing against “tomorrow.” You must live in the present on today’s deposits.
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Invest it so you get from it the utmost in health, happiness, and success. The clock
is running. Make the most of today. Consider the following list which has circulated on
email listservs many times.
To realize the value of ONE YEAR, ask a student who failed a grade.
To realize the value of ONE MONTH, ask a mother who gave birth to a
premature baby.
To realize the value of ONE WEEK, ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.
To realize the value of ONE HOUR, ask the lovers waiting to meet.
To realize the value of ONE MINUTE, ask a person who missed a train.
To realize the value of ONE SECOND, ask a person who just avoided an
accident.
To realize the value of ONE MILLI SECOND, ask the person who won silver in
the Olympics.
Time is far more valuable than money, personal resources, and sometimes even
health. Why? Because it is the one thing you can never get back. Once a moment passes,
it is gone forever. You have lost the chance to make good with it. All you will have is a
memory. If you are wise you put your time to good use – just like you invest money in
the bank. But if you are careless then time will be wasted, leaving no significant
memories and giving you no investment for future use.
Time is the ultimate variable between success and failure. It is extremely rare to
find a successful person who doesn’t manage his or her time effectively. Find ways to
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manage time well and you become a master of extra hours, minutes, days, weeks, months
and even years.
Extra snippets of time come in the most unlikely places. In his latest book,
Trump: Think Like a Billionaire, Donald Trump suggests sleeping only 4 or 5 hours a
night. Rachel Ray, busy with multiple high-profile projects including a daytime talk show
and cookbook empire, insists that she, too, only sleeps 4 or 5 hours a night. While this
may be extreme for you, think of the extra hours you could find just by adjusting to one
less hour of sleep per night, let alone two or three.
Take it a step further and think of how much time we waste every single day. If
you wasted just 30 minutes a day on surfing channels, driving to the store, talking over
the fence to your neighbor, or browsing the classifieds or eBay for things you don’t need,
after 50 years you would have spent more than a year of your life “wasting time.” Can
you imagine being 74 years old and wishing you had another year to spend with family or
making a contribution to society? Use your time wisely by preparing a balanced schedule
that allows you to spend time doing all the things that mean something to you, like
building a career, enjoying your family, contributing to the community, or reaching that
goal you think you just don’t have time to reach. The next time you’re tempted to spend
time where it won’t count for much, ignore the invitation and do something constructive,
interesting, or useful for others or yourself.
To manage your time better I would suggest four things. First, be very clear
about what you’re trying to accomplish each day. If you’re unclear about your objective
you’ll be unclear about the time you’re spending. Second, finish whatever you start. Just
pride yourself on finishing projects and never allowing them to linger unfinished. Third,
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spend time at the end of each day reviewing what you accomplished and make 3 or 4
solid objectives for the next day. Fourth, don’t give into time wasters. Remember that
your time is your time. You are the only one who can guard your time – no one else will
do that for you.
Lifemoney Currency
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you're the pilot.”
- Michael Altshuler
Tool #3: Efficiency

Efficiency means finding ways to do things so they take less of your resources –
whether that is time, money, energy, or any other resource you have available. Someone
who knows a little something about being efficient is Stephen King, the author of some of
the world’s most popular novels. While many consider him the “King of Horror,” the
author is also the mind behind movies like Stand by Me, The Green Mile and Hearts in
Atlantis. Since publishing his first novel, Carrie, back in 1974, King has consistently
published three or four novels per year, all of them bestsellers and featuring such
instantly recognizable titles as Cujo, The Shining, Salem’s Lot, and Misery.
How does one author manage such a staggering number of pages? The answer is
efficiency. King has long said he writes at least four hours a day, every single day of the
year, except for three: his birthday, the Fourth of July and Christmas. So even though he
is not working 10 hours a day on his books, he is efficient with his time and committed to
writing practically everyday. It’s a good lesson for all of us: you might surprise yourself
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how much more you could produce in your own life with four highly concentrated and
efficient hours per day of real work. Not pushing paper or daydreaming, but efficient
work. My guess is that you will get more done in four focused hours than eight
unfocused ones.
Let’s do an efficiency exercise.
Goal Achievement Exercise L

I would like you to list five things you are doing today that could be done more
efficiently – and at least one step to boost your efficiency. For instance:
Current Activity: Not getting enough time in at the gym
Efficiency Booster: Join a gym closer to home so less time is spent on the road to
and from your workout
Current Activity: Never finishing all the chores on my “to do” list
Efficiency Booster: Make a rule that you won’t watch TV at night until you
finish just one more item on your list
Another way to become more efficient is to make choices that will lead you closer
to your goals rather than away from them. From now on, when you get the chance to
make decisions, weigh each one with a view to your goals. Ask yourself, “how will this
clear the way to fulfilling my goal?” If you don’t have a ready answer, you may need to
reconsider that decision.
You also should get in the habit of counting the “efficiency cost” of each decision
you make. Everything in life has a price tag, from time spent with friends to starting a
home-based business. In other words, some activities are more efficient in getting you
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toward your goals than others. Some things are worth their cost but others can end up
draining your resources and bankrupting your investment. That’s why you need to think
long and hard about any long-term decision that may impact other areas of your life,
especially future goals. In order to focus and spend your time more efficiently, get in the
habit of asking questions like these before making major, or even minor, decisions:
• How much will this cost in terms of money, time, and effort?
• What must I give up in order to make this work?
• How will this choice bring me closer to my long-term goal?
• Will this decision prove worthwhile in the future?
Lifemoney Currency
“A particular shot or way of moving the ball can be a player's personal
signature, but efficiency of performance is what wins the game for the team.”
-Pat Riley
Ten Ways Time Really IS On Your Side

We’ve just finished discussing Tool #2 – Time Management and Tool #3 -
Efficiency. Using time efficiently is a huge obstacle for many people who are would be
success stories. For that reason, I want you to realize a few things about time and think
about ways you can use your time more efficiently. To better manage your time and
utilize your time more efficiently, consider making changes like these to enjoy life now
while working toward a better one for the future:
1. Ride your bike to work to relax and get some exercise. We often work so hard to
“fit in” exercise that we either can’t do it or hate doing it because it took so much effort
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to accomplish in the first place. Eliminate the hassle by making something you have to do
anyway, like getting to work or going to the store, exercise.
2. Watch less TV and do something more productive. When viewed wisely, with
planning and forethought, television can be a valuable tool. Many programs offer
everything from stock tips to weight loss programs to informational documentaries; most
don’t. What would you do with 7 extra hours per week? Watch one less hour of TV per
night and you’ll soon find out!
3. Set aside “unwind time” after work or school. We are not computers; we can’t
perform task after task without stretching our bodies, minds, or both. When we schedule
a block of time, which can be as little as fifteen to thirty minutes, between important
tasks, we tend to perform those tasks more efficiently.
4. Monitor how you’re spending your time, and make any needed adjustment.
Don’t rush through every day without examining where you’re going and how long it’s
taking you to get there. Setting aside one hour at the end of every week to analyze how
well, or poorly, you managed your time that week can save you hours the following week
by learning from your mistakes.
5. Get a Spam filter for your e-mail. This helps to assure only important emails get
through so that you don’t waste anymore of your precious time on email that literally
doesn’t matter.
6. Don’t overfill your “To Do” list. Things do not always go like clockwork; kids get
sick, spouses need our help, cars break down and bosses demand overtime when you least
expect it. When our “To Do” lists are too full, they often remain unfulfilled. Unfulfilled
lists lead to depression and disappointment, neither of which fosters success.
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7. Only focus on things you can control; don’t worry about the rest. Mason Cooley
once said, “Worry is not thought; complaining is not action.” If we could save all the time
we spend on worrying and complaining about things we can’t control and apply it to
things we can, there would be so much less to worry about.
8. Appreciate unexpected delays. If you’re stuck in traffic, open the window and enjoy
the air. Think of the day you were sick in bed, wishing you could be outside. Take a
break to relax and listen to music. Use waiting periods wisely. I usually use car time to
catch up on calls that I need to make.
9. Bring a book to all your “doctors visits.” Never waste an opportunity to learn, even
when it’s spent waiting for things; especially when it’s spent in waiting rooms, lobby
lines, waiting for appointments, in restaurants, etc. When we learn to use our time – all of
our time – wisely, we gain not just precious moments but momentum.
10. Always carry something to capture your ideas. Entrepreneurs, creative people,
and even the average Joe have their best ideas at the worst possible times – those times
when they have nothing to capture that idea. Consider carrying a small notepad and pen
with you at all times – or even just a couple of index cards tucked in a pocket or purse
with a pen so that when you get a great idea while standing in line you have somewhere
to safely store it until you can turn that idea into reality.
Tool #4: Priorities

What are the priorities in your life? For many, the day begins with the priority of
going to work and chasing a paycheck. You get up, get dressed, and get going to a job so
you can take home a paycheck every few weeks. Without those paychecks, you would
not have a roof over your head, food to eat, or a car to drive.
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Another priority for many people is their relationship with family members and
friends. You come home to people that mean a lot to you, and take time to spend with the
ones you love.
How should you start the process of prioritizing all the important people and
events in your life? Start by asking yourself “Do I know how to give 100 percent?”
Chances are the answer will be “no.” That is why you need to prioritize your goals and
make them part of everyday reality: if you don’t, something or someone important is
going to get short changed. Then commit to giving your best to your life and to your
goals daily.
Second, complete all the important things at the beginning of each day. Don’t do
busy work. If your goal is to write a letter to someone, focus on writing and not the
collateral activities that might make writing that letter easier. In other words, don’t spend
three hours cleaning your desk so you can get started. The need for a clean desk before
you can begin is less a necessity and more of an obstacle. Grab a pen and pad (or your
laptop computer) and go to the kitchen table or to the park and just start writing – now.
Finish what you start when you start something. There will only be one of two reasons
you don’t finish: either you found a better way to do the project or you feel that the task
is not going to be worthwhile and thoughtfully bail out.
The third suggestion for prioritizing, Focus on one step at a time. Don’t multi-task
and try to accomplish too many things at once. You can easily become distracted doing
this and usually nothing gets done right. Do whatever you’re doing all the way. Choose a
priority and be a finisher. I have found this to be the only way I’ve been able to maintain
my various business enterprises successfully.
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Fourth, give up the little things that scatter your time and energy. I never answer
my phone unless it is a call I’m expecting. There’s no point wasting valuable minutes
listening to a telemarketer selling me some new phone service I don’t want or need. That
will only take me away from my priorities. Get a caller ID or another screening device
for your phone to avoid sales calls or conversations with people who do not respect your
personal time.
Fifth, create a sense of urgency for important activities that are going to be
meaningful in your life. Pay less attention to things that come up but have no relevance to
your goal. One example from my life is that I pay to have my laundry done. Sure, I could
do it myself. But why spend hours handling that task when my time can be put to better
use?
Last, don’t be afraid to say “no.” Delegate worthwhile projects that can be
handled by someone else. Your time belongs to you. Take on only what you want to do
and say no to the rest. Sometimes you might want to consider sharing profits or payoffs
in order to get needed help. I would often share sales opportunities and business deals so
that I would have less work to do. Even though I had to share the profits, it was worth it
to me. Together, my partners and I had a synergy allowing us to accomplish more in less
time, and freed up some of my time to work on other priorities.
Lifemoney Currency
“Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of
hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother
Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.”
-H. Jackson Brown

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Tool #5: Do or Die Trying Commitment

Most people are very good at keeping “commitments” to others. For example,
when someone buys a house, they make a commitment to the bank; we call it a mortgage.
Most people take that commitment very seriously and will make all types of sacrifices to
meet this obligation. When we make an appointment to see the doctor, we feel obligated
to keep that date. However, few of us make that type of do or die trying level of
commitment to ourselves and our own goals or even to the commitments we make to
others that may help them reach their goals.
I have a friend who has been bodybuilding (or body sculpting, as he calls it) for
over ten years. When I was talking to him about his workout plan, he told me that he hit
the gym five times a week, consistently. In the last ten years, besides his normal two
week break, he had not missed a single week of working out.
I was amazed at his dedication and commitment. My response to him at that time
was that I would love to make that commitment but that I was too busy for that type of
schedule. Then the real embarrassment came: after going over his working arrangement,
I learned that through most of those ten years he had worked 10-14 hour days between his
job as a paramedic and a bartender!
I asked him how he found the time and energy for working out at this pace. His
response was that working out was one of his daily events; it was like brushing his teeth,
eating, or sleeping. It was something he had to do. In the same way, you need to make
your goals – things to do – daily activities; a key part of your lifestyle. You wouldn’t go a
whole day without eating, would you?
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Another great example of commitment would be Sean “Diddy” Combs running
the New York City marathon. He wanted to run in order to raise money for health-care
and education initiatives benefiting the Children's Hope Foundation, Daddy's House
Social Programs and the public schools of New York City. He went from hanging out and
drinking at clubs (I know, I saw him) to a few months later running 26.2 miles. Now
that’s commitment! Especially for someone as busy as he is with a priority list longer
than you can imagine. He set a goal and did not stop until he reached it.
Follow through, give 100%. Go big or go home. You have no choice really,
because a 99.9% effort will not get you where you want to go. Here’s a breakdown of
how things might look if only 99.9% effort were given, this was based on a study done in
the 1990’s that circulated in email:
• Two million documents will be lost by the IRS this year.
• 22,000 checks will be deducted from wrong bank accounts in the next 60 minutes.
• 1,314 phone calls will be misplaced by telecommunication services every minute
• 12 babies will be given to the wrong parents each day
• 268,500 defective personal computers will be shipped this year
• 2,200 gallons of coffee assumed to be caffeinated will turn out to be decaf but
consumed nonetheless in just one tax firm during the 1991 tax season
• 103,260 income tax returns will be processed incorrectly this year
• 2,488,200 books will be shipped in the next 12 months with the wrong cover
• 5,517,200 cases of soft drinks produced in the next 12 months will be flatter than a
bad tire
• Two plane landings daily at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago will be unsafe
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• 3,056 copies of tomorrow’s Wall Street Journal will be missing one of the three
sections
• 18,322 pieces of mail will be mishandled in the next hour
• 291 pacemaker operations will be performed incorrectly this year
• 880,000 credit cards in circulation will turn out to have incorrect cardholder
information on their magnetic strips
• $9,690 will be spent today, tomorrow, next Thursday and every day in the future on
defective, often unsafe, sporting equipment
• 55 malfunctioning ATMs will be installed in the next 12 months
• 20,000 incorrect drug prescriptions will be written in the next 12 months
• 114,500 mismatched pairs of shoes will be shipped this year
• $761,900 will be spent in the next 12 months on tapes and CD’s that won’t play
• 107 incorrect medical procedures will be performed by the end of the day today
• 315 entries in Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language
(unabridged) will turn out to be misspelled.
Do You Have the Pit Bull Mentality?

I think another illustration of how successful people stay committed to what they
want is when the actor/comedian Jamie Foxx auditioned for the role of Willie Beamen in
the classic movie about pro football, Any Given Sunday. The director, Oliver Stone,
wanted nothing to do with Jamie. He even went so far as to tell Jamie that he “would not
waste one inch of film on him.”
He did not believe Jamie could pull off the part. Jamie could have easily walked
away, saying Oliver Stone didn’t know what he was talking about. Jamie was already a
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successful comedian/actor. He had his own TV show, The Jamie Foxx Show, and he had
already done many TV shows like In Living Color, Roc, Moesha and Hanging with Mr.
Cooper. He had also starred in several movies by this point. I think it is fair to say that
although it turned out to be a great part for him, at that point in his career he did not need
the role.
But that’s not how Jamie viewed and approached it. Jamie took it upon himself
(on his own time and with his own resources) to make an audition tape for Oliver Stone
to show the director why Jamie was the perfect actor for the part. I heard that after Oliver
saw the audition tape, he said that he couldn’t make the movie without Jamie. So that’s
how successful people handle getting something that they want. They are humble enough
not to think they are too good to put in the extra effort, they are confident in their abilities
and they stay committed until the task is accomplished.
Lifemoney Currency
Never, never, never give up.
-Winston Churchill
Gathering the Tools for Success Summary

The Five Tools of Success we learned about in this Lifemoney Lesson are all about
developing your mental tools to get the job done of reaching your goals. First, remember
to get and stay focused on success. Second, practice wise time management to avoid
wasting valuable time – the one resource you can never get more of because once a
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second, minute, or hour passes it is gone. Third, make efficient use of your time, talents,
and resources. Fourth, work hard to eliminate the “white noise” of your daily activities
and learn to pay attention to the things that are truly meaningful – your priorities. Last,
make a commitment to embrace your goals and make them part of your life.
Lifemoney Currency
”Success doesn’t come to you, you go to it.”
-My Mother
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Check all the items below that you agree with, and then tally your score, giving yourself 10
points for each checkmark and 0 points for any left blank:
_____ 1. I have made a list of the major distractions in my life.
_____ 2. I am taking steps to avoid or redirect or see beyond these distractions.
_____ 3. I have identified my focus and am ready to pursue it wholeheartedly.
_____ 4. I have evaluated my schedule and am eliminating the time-wasters.
_____ 5. I am taking specific steps to make better use of my time.
_____ 6. I am learning to make choices that will lead me toward my dreams.
_____ 7. I have begun sorting high priorities from non-essentials.
_____ 8. I am willing to delegate some tasks to others.
_____ 9. I am determined to include my goals in daily lifestyle activities.
_____ 10. I am “do or die” committed to doing what it takes to reach my goals.
Lifemoney Currency
”What you can’t fix, change or impact – You can’t worry about”
-Brad Turk
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Evaluating Progress
Lifemoney Lesson # 5: Evaluating Your Progress
“Baby steps count, as long as you are going forward. You add them all
up, and one day you look back and you’ll be surprised at where you might
get to.”
-Christopher Gardner
Overview
Finally, your plans for reaching your goals are in play. You may not feel like
you’re making much progress yet, but just starting down the road to success is one small
step for you, one giant leap for your life. Now it’s time to capitalize on this momentum
and utilize Lifemoney Lesson #5: Evaluating Your Progress.
Progress Report
When Will Smith played the lead character in The Pursuit of Happyness, he took
on the role of a complicated, compassionate and ultimately successful man named
Christopher Gardner. At one pivotal point in the movie, Gardner believes he has over
$600 in the bank, only to find out later that the IRS has seized the bulk of the account, to
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the tune of $600, and literally withdrawn it from the account. The resulting loss sent
Chris and his young son onto the street, where they remained homeless until Gardner
could complete a grueling internship program for Dean Witter.
While the event seems tragic, in retrospect even Chris Gardner can admit that if
he’d paid his taxes before hand, filled out paperwork for an extension, or simply
withdrawn the money – in other words evaluated his position and adjusted – the
nightmare period in his life might not have occurred. Luckily Chris’s other Lifemoney
skills compensated and he was able to build a bright future.
What do I mean by “evaluate his position and adjust?” Hopefully you have
already fallen into a schedule of activities that are moving you forward. But this motion is
not complete unless you are taking active steps to measure your progress and know where
you are on your journey at all times.
Why is this so important? Most of our goals take longer than a few hours or even
just a few days it reach. Instead, it will most likely take months, if not years, to do
everything that you want or need for your dreams to become reality. When things take
time, it’s easy to wander and not finish the essential steps that lead to your goal. Busy
work doesn’t get it; you need your plan clearly laid out and a means to track how you’re
doing. But don’t worry: patience and paying attention brings progress toward your goal.
For example, let’s say you plan to launch your own line of T-shirts with clever
sayings printed on them. It will cost about $5,000 for everything you need to get started,
including printing, shipping and delivery of the first 2,500 shirts to local retailers.
You’ve decided that you’re going to launch your t-shirt line six months from now.
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Evaluating Progress
Now let’s say you have been saving for a year and have six more months to go as
you continue putting the rest of the puzzle-pieces – printing, shipping and delivery – into
place. It’s been a year since you made the decision to launch, so you decide it’s time to
check your savings growth to be sure you will have enough money when the time comes
to launch your line.
But when you check you notice that there is only $4,040 in your money market
fund, and you recall spending $300 to get a new bicycle. This means that you will need to
save $960 in the next six months, or about $160 monthly. This messes you up because
initially you only needed to deposit $110 in the account each month. What happened?
Well, you simply failed to keep track of your progress. What might have
happened if you didn’t take notice that you took out all that money? You would have
failed to achieve your goal. Was the goal bad? No. Was it out of reach? No. Were you
on track? Yes. What happened? Most likely – you made a bad assumption.
We often just assume things are going to work out once we have our plan in
place. In this example, if we hadn’t checked our progress we’d have found ourselves a
few hundred dollars short when the time came to launch. A few hundred dollars doesn’t
seem like much but sometimes it is the difference between success and failure.
Don’t forget the map!

The solution to this common problem is either a chart of your own making, a
daytimer, electronic calendar or some other external system. The simple reality is you
need one single visual reminder of what you want, where you’re going and how you’re
doing. Keep it simple, but by all means use something. I prefer a big calendar, but a big
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piece of paper would do. Your reminder system should have several key components.
Let’s find out what they are.
As you can probably tell, I’m addicted to simplicity, so I’ve broken down my own
personal system into five easy to monitor factors. I monitor them on a grid which I will
introduce shortly (these pieces of information can be derived largely from the work
we’ve done in the previous goal achievement exercises). As always, feel free to use your
own system or means of tracking or modify the one you’ll find in the next exercise if you
have something that works for you.
Here are my basic elements:
1. List a Goal: This is where I simply write out my goal – one goal per sheet. It’s
important to monitor each goal separately so use a separate sheet/planner for each goal.
Also, make this sheet physically easy to see as you go through your day. Written goals
are powerful, and putting them in a place where they can be reviewed regularly is a huge
part of making them a reality. I would suggest that you go back to Lesson #3 and
review/use the goals you set for yourself in Exercise F.
2. Objective: It is here that I write the specific objectives I’m trying to
accomplish that are critical in reaching my goal. Remember from Lesson #3 these are
like “mini” goals that help you reach the larger goal or break the larger goal down into
easier pieces. They are items that need to be accomplished to get me further toward my
goal. I found that writing them down not only keeps them fresh in my mind but leads me
toward acting upon them. I make sure I regularly review my objectives.
3. Action Steps: This is where I keep track of the simple steps I will need to do
to accomplish my objectives. I write these action steps in clear and direct language using
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action oriented words. You can find lists of action verbs by doing a quick Google search
for lists of action verbs. If I do all my action steps, I reach my objectives. If I reach my
objectives, I will reach my goal.
4. Outcome: This is a clear statement of exactly what I expect to happen as a
result of setting my goal, creating objectives and action steps. I have found that the more
specifically this is worded, the more accurately I can tell if I’ve reached what I originally
envisioned.
5. Completion: I always mark the date when I’ve achieved each objective.
Closure on my objective always makes me feel good, and is a great marker of progress
toward my goal.
Goal Achievement Exercise M

Now it’s your turn. Charting your journey in writing helps to make the whole
process seem more real, and keeps you in touch with the realities needed to make your
goals happen. Create a grid that lists basic steps for reaching your goals. Take it out for
review often to make sure you are headed in the right direction.
You may need to change the grid occasionally to reflect new stages of your plan’s
evolution, as well as your response to them. How you arrange your grid is up to you, but
below is a model that provides an idea of how yours might look. We’ll start with January,
a popular time of year for making new resolutions or resetting ongoing goals. I am going
to use an example of setting a goal of becoming a better golfer in a year.
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Goal: Become a Scratch Golfer In Two Years
Date Objective Action Step Outcome Date

Completed
January I will maintain a I will take 2 hours I will enjoy my golf
complete plan for during the first week game more and feel a
Week #1 attaining my goal of of this month to write sense of
becoming a scratch out my plan. accomplishment.
player.
January I will surf Internet I will make the time to I will get expert help
for local golf pros. sign up for lessons and and assessment.
Week #2 commit an hour a
week to practice.
January Practice indoors Check yellow pages Year-round practice
during bad weather for indoor putting will improve my
Week #3 for an hour per green. skills.
week.
January Call for subscription Read one golf Learn terms, pros, and
to Golf Digest. magazine article per equipment of golf.
Week #4 week to learn more. Enjoy the thrill of
getting better.
You can see how easy it is to fill in each week with activities related to your
personal quest. Some weeks, by the way, will be spent revisiting an earlier action step.
For instance, after telephoning the toll-free number during the 4th week of January to
request your subscription to the golf magazine, you may spend another week in January
(or whenever the first issue comes) reading articles from the publication as your action
steps for those weeks.
Even if you don’t fill every moment with related tasks, keeping a grid like this
one will show at a glance what you are doing, and how often, to work toward your goal.
When you go back and check your grid periodically, you can quickly and objectively
measure your devotion and success in chasing your dream.
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If you decide to change your goal for whatever reason, remember to adjust the
steps to getting there. For example, if your goal was to lower your blood pressure through
a diet adjustment that reduced your daily intake of salt, and you found little change in the
numbers after a few months, you could switch to a physical activity approach in
conjunction with, or instead of, the diet routine. Find something that works, even if that
means rotating new activities through the process until you find one that works best for
you.
Maintaining Your Course

So what can you do to make sure you’re headed in the right direction? Here are a
few tips for realigning your journey with the original goals that motivated your action
plan.
Ask good questions

Most people want to know what they did right. To find out if you’re off track I
suggest you find out what you did wrong. Ask for outside input from people you trust to
be honest. Make it easier for them to evaluate you by asking the right questions. If, for
example, you ask a trusted person “What do you think I did wrong?” I can almost
promise you the answer will be, “You did nothing wrong. I liked it all.” To get better
information ask, “Please tell me the three things you liked least about what I did.” This
makes them think; it also forces them to be specific. Fortunately and unfortunately, you
are now going to get a few things that they were not that excited about. This is good.
Evaluate the input. If you get the same input from different sources, chances are it is
correct.
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Welcome criticism
Some of the comments you receive might include criticism. Criticism is good – it
lets us see a different side of ourselves. It also lets us know how others see us. Before you
open yourself up to criticism, however, practice what I call the 4-BE System:
• BE objective
• BE open-minded
• BE sure to listen and see if it is accurate
• BE honest with yourself; don’t reject impressions just because they are
negative.
Don’t be afraid to be off track—or even outright wrong. I’ve been wrong on
many occasions, and thanks to a few good friends and trusted experts was able to refocus
on the things that were most important to me. When someone tells you point-blank that
you’re going about something all wrong, just listen carefully and ask how you can do it
better. If you argue or make excuses, people will stop telling you what they really think
and say only what you want to hear, which is totally worthless. You don’t have to take
every piece of advice that’s offered. Analyze the critiques and use them as you see fit.
Keep in mind that not all opinions you get will be accurate. You’re allowed to
discard opinions if you have a strong impulse that they are wrong. Read some of these
famous examples of very wrong opinions:
• Paul Orfalea who founded Kinkos and eventually sold it to FedEx for $2.4
billion was thrown out of 2nd grade. In 3rd grade he was sent to a school for
mentally challenged children. He was told that his best hopes for a career
would be as a carpet layer.
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• Thomas Edison was told he was not teachable. Before being home-schooled
he was kicked out of three schools. His last headmaster said he'd never make
it, that he was a screw-up. Yet, he never gave up. With his creative mind he
patented over ten thousand inventions, including the light bulb, the
phonograph, and film.
• Albert Einstein struggled in high school math. He wasn't a linear thinker and
couldn't go from point A to point B the way his teachers wanted. Good thing
he didn't, or we wouldn't have his incredible, far-reaching, and creative theory
of relativity that has shaped modern physics.
• Walt Disney was once fired for a lack of "good ideas.”
• There was once a twenty-one year old who wasn’t allowed to talk to the
customers. His bosses thought he lacked the common sense. His name was
F.W. Woolworth, founder of Woolworth’s and modern department stores.
Seek the input of experts

Ask experts who know more about the subject than you do for their opinions
about your progress to date. For example, if your goal is to retire at age 45 meet with a
financial planner, your banker, or an investment agent to discuss planning strategies that
can make this possible. Get enough information to provide a clear picture of where you
are currently, where you want to be, and how to get there in the most efficient way. You
might even want to get several opinions and weigh several options before making a final
decision. Registering for a financial planning seminar, taking a personal finance class, or
attending a money management workshop are additional ways of becoming more
knowledgeable. These also help to make sure you have a realistic goal set and that your
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plan for reaching your goal will allow you enough time to meet the goal. If not, you still
have time to adjust your plan to maximize your chances for success.
Watch your goal progress closely

Check your daily activities. Are they moving you toward your goals? Review
your “To Do” list to see what percentage of tasks get completed each day. Are some
carried over for long periods of time? Are you making substitutions for temporary
pleasures that eat up your time and resources without bringing you closer to lasting
fulfillment? Remember that it is the small, daily steps that carry us the furthest distance.
Four hours on Saturday working toward your goal is still less than an hour daily for six
days a week. Either is fine, as long as you continue to make steady progress. If after
checking yourself you find that you are falling behind in daily activities that move you
toward your goal, this is the time to reevaluate your goal, your plan, and your progress to
see if adjustments are needed for a better chance at a successful outcome.
Above all remember, keep track of your progress. KEEP IT SIMPLE by using the
graph I’ve described or some other simple system of your own. Some people even use
something as simple as notes. Notes to yourself, carefully used can allow you to see at a
glance whether you are maintaining the pace you have set for yourself. I just can’t stress
how important note keeping has been to me to evaluate my progress on a regular basis.
Your best skill is your ability to write things down and track yourself.
O.K….What If You’re Way Off Track?

Things happen in life that cause us to get way off track – a vehicle accident, the
loss of a job, a death in the family, a great new job offer that comes unexpectedly, or
meeting someone and falling in love. As you try to achieve your goals, you may get off
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track too. Don’t beat yourself up for being normal. There are some very good action
steps you can take to get yourself going again, properly aligned and refocused. And
don’t forget that sometimes you get off track due to internal factors rather than external
ones. You stop exercising or you start watching a new television series that leads to
another new show to another and to another. The faster you uncover the weakness within
you and address it, the faster you can get on your way.
Goal Achievement Exercise N

We’re going to address some of the internal areas that may get you off track to
achieving your goals. List the five most common criticisms you hear about yourself, and
then outline action steps you can take to address these.
Here are some examples to get you started.
• “You have trouble following through to get things done.”
• “You’re always late.”
• “You’re stubborn and won’t do as you’re asked.”
• “You’re attitude is bad.”
• “You work slowly.”
• “I have to constantly watch you because you waste so much time.
• “You always complain and never offer solutions.”
Rather than being upset or offended, take this information and use it to your
advantage. Your response might include action steps like these:
• Track several small tasks to be sure you finish them correctly and on time.
Then move on to do the same with larger tasks.
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• Make it a point of pride to be at work 15 minutes early
• Go overboard to do exactly as you’re asked without backtalk
• Work on being an encourager to others
• Step up your pace at work. Set a timer and trying to beat it on a certain task –
just be sure you do the task correctly.
• Finish the task at hand and ask for something to do next.
• The next time you have a problem you aren’t sure of the solution for offer one
or two alternatives for solving the problem. Better yet, come up with a clever
solution to some problem the boss is having.
Fortunately, there are many things you can do to address problem areas and turn
them around to make negatives into positives. Keep these keys in mind:
1. Admit your weaknesses quickly: Every single successful person I’ve ever known
understands the power and advantage of pure, gut-level honesty. Especially honesty
with yourself about your own weak spots. Be honest in soliciting opinions from
others and acknowledging your weak areas. Then be proactive in making changes to
benefit yourself and others. Being honest with yourself is a powerful tool.
2. Break big tasks into smaller ones: If you are failing to achieve each of your
outcomes, break the goals up into smaller, daily pieces that when completed will
gradually accumulate and lead to success. I strongly suggest that if you break your
tasks down into smaller, more doable chunks that you make note of it in your planner.
If you don’t make notes of how you’ve broken down your duties, you will lose track
and wander in pursuit of your goals. Write down the smaller, more specific steps you
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intend to take. Here are examples of small activities that can be conducted daily,
weekly, or monthly and recorded in your planner as tangible evidence of your
ongoing efforts:
a. Make one sales call daily at least five days per week.
b. Save at least $10 per day for an average of $300 per month or $3600 per year.
c. Check out at least one set of blueprints for your dream home each month.
d. Contact at least one new potential employer each week.
e. Have a weekly date with your spouse or child to improve family relations.
f. Review your written goals more regularly (hourly, daily, etc.)
g. Read a self-help book related to your goal.
h. Meet with your mentor every other week for feedback.
i. Work on replacing a bad habit with a good one each month.
j. Learn something new related to your goal every month.
3. Seek out successful people for advice: Free advice is all around you. Seek it out
and you’ll find more encouragement than you’ll be able to handle. (I speak much
more about this in Lifemoney Lesson #6, Resourcefulness).
4. Stop and reflect on your life more often: When you stop and reflect on your life
every month or two, you will be amazed to see how much you’ve actually
accomplished, as well as find inspiration to help you continue to achieve your goals.
Whatever you do, take personal responsibility for the difficulties encountered in your
quest, and be willing to make the necessary changes that will help to ensure success.
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Lifemoney Currency
“The price of greatness is responsibility.”
-Winston Churchill
Evaluating Your Progress Summary

Successful people don’t just spring out of nowhere. Every success story is written
with dozens of action plans that were brought to fruition through focus and commitment.
To tell the complete story, evaluate your progress thoroughly, realistically – and often.
After taking action steps toward your objectives and ultimately the goal, plan to
re-assess your progress. Do this assessment frequently. Make a visual reminder – like the
grid I use - to determine what you are able to complete on time, as well as anything that
remains unfinished. If anything has changed since you began the quest, factor it into the
equation.
You may have to revise your daily or weekly goals from time to time, but that’s
fine as long as you don’t abandon the journey. If you feel that you are unable to follow
the timeline or stay with the quest, take a short break to renew your mind. Come back to
your journey when your batteries are recharged, and then give it all you’ve got!
Lifemoney Currency
“Dreams are real, living, breathing things and you can see them every
day – when you chart their progress in a way that is real and authentic to
you.”
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Evaluating Progress
_____ 1. I am going to regularly check my progress toward reaching my goals.
_____ 2. I have the names of several people I trust to give me good personal feedback.
_____ 3. I will invite and accept criticism that is given with a view to helping me.
_____ 4. I will make efforts to change or eliminate bad habits.
_____ 5. I will create a grid for recording action steps that lead to my objectives.
_____ 6. I will be quick to admit my weaknesses
_____ 7. I will check the grid periodically and make any needed changes.
_____ 8. I will reevaluate my goal, along with my progress at regular intervals.
_____ 9. I will solicit feedback from experts.
_____ 10. In gathering feedback I will ask good questions.
Lifemoney Currency
“Be consistently consistent.”
-Brad Turk
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Lifemoney Lesson # 6: Resourcefulness
“We are all capable of infinitely more than we believe. We are stronger
and more resourceful than we know, and we can endure much more than
we think we can.”
Overview
Everyone struggles to meet their goals; everyone encounters resistance along the
way. It’s how you handle the resistance that leads you to success. When things don’t go
as planned, you need to look for other routes or means of help. This Lifemoney Lesson is
about focusing all the resources at your disposal on overcoming challenges and making
your dreams a reality.
Can’t Get a Job? Buy the Company!

Platinum selling rapper Jay Z (Sean Carter), whose net worth is estimated to be
$320 million, had to create his own destiny. Sean, who was brought up in the Marcy
projects in Brooklyn, knows firsthand what it means to be resourceful.
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When he first started out, Sean was unable to get a record deal. No one seemed to
be interested in his music or recognizing his understanding of the music business. Being a
talent was not good enough to attain his success; he needed to be a businessman as well.
“I was forced to be an artist and a CEO from the beginning. I was forced to be like a
businessman because when I was trying to get a record deal…it was either give up or
create my own company.”
And that’s what he did! He co-founded Roc-A-Fella Records, which launched not
only his career, but the careers of many other superstars, including Kanye West. Jay-Z
became one of the most respected rappers in the music industry, with 18 Grammy
nominations and 5 Grammy wins.
In addition to becoming the President of Def Jam Recordings, he also expanded
the Roc-A-Fella empire, which includes Roc-A-Fella Films and Rocawear - a very
successful clothing line. Other ventures of his are Armadale vodka, the 40/40 Club in
New York City, part ownership of the NBA New Jersey Nets and the S. Carter line of
Reebok sneakers, which was the fastest selling Reebok shoe in history and made him the
first non-athlete to have a signature line of sneakers. So much for the opinion that he had
no talent!
Where did this empire come from? Simple: it stems from Jay Z’s resourcefulness.
He has a willingness to find any way to achieve his goals. When faced with resistance he
responded by finding solutions to his problems, which eventually shaped his destiny.
How resourceful are you? Could you overcome adversity by thinking not just
“outside the box,” but over it, under it, around it or, in some cases, right smack through
it? As you begin your journey to reaching your goals, you might be filled with
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confidence. You may be thinking, “I’ve never felt better! I have a sense of purpose, and I
know exactly what I have to do to reach my goals. What do I need to be resourceful for?”
Do yourself a favor: go into your bathroom, turn on the light, run some cold water over
your hands, then slap yourself in the face. You’re going to need to be resourceful no
matter how much you have going for you.
The resources you’ll need to tap into can come from inside yourself or from
around you. They might come from your creative imagination or perhaps from the lives
of other people. Either way, no matter who you are or where you’re headed you need to
focus on using these resources to get through the challenges you are going to face.
This lesson points out some useful resources and answers for the troubles you will
encounter on your journey. With a little bit of effort and some common sense, you can
find resources that will make all the difference in your search. Successful people never
hesitate to look for resources that can mean the difference between success and failure, or
mediocrity and brilliance.
Lifemoney Currency
"I've found from past experiences that the tighter your plan, the more likely
you are to run into something unpredictable."
-MacGyver
MacGyver It!
Remember that great series on television called MacGyver? It was about a
resourceful guy that could build radios with coconuts, do surgery with a pocket knife and
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make a computer out of duct tape. He was never played out; he could always find a fix to
any obstacle he faced using just what he had around him. He was the picture of
resourcefulness, and when it comes to succeeding in your life, you must be the same way.
I want to make four suggestions for being more resourceful. These are four ways
of thinking that have made me a better businessman and human being. Though you may
not end up being MacGyver, these four insights are a great place to begin thinking about
your own resources and how you utilize them:
1. Take stock of the situation to see what you can do. Did you ever consult
someone about a problem you were having, only to be told something you already knew?
Often, if we take the time to fully analyze a problem there’s a very good chance we can
figure out a solution on our own just using what we know. Relax and think: don’t let the
complexity of a problem paralyze you. You can always do something, even if you’re
unsure of the outcome. Take the time to take stock of the situation and think on your
own.
2. Be an open-minded, big thinker. Clever, resourceful problem solvers are some
of the most open-minded thinkers I know. The trick is to keep your mind focused on
what you want, and realize that often the reason you’re stuck is because you’re not
thinking big enough. Take time to jot down problems for which you’re seeking solutions,
and then brainstorm big, expensive, wild and fun solutions. You’ll have to learn to let
your mind go in this fashion, but the natural resourcefulness of your mind will reward
you with many great and doable ideas. Never discount crazy thoughts and always try to
open your imagination to bigger and more daring ideas.
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Let me give you personal example of an idea that was pure Lifemoney
resourcefulness. As you can see on the cover of this book, I have a baby face. I look a lot
younger than my real age. At twenty-five, I looked nineteen. I was trying to launch my
business and wanted professionals and industry experts to take me seriously. This was a
problem, and in a moment of wide-open, big thinking I created a great solution. When
attending a high-power meeting I’d take along a good friend, George, who was middle-
aged and looked more of the part I needed to play.
As a team, George and I appeared to meet expectations for maturity and
sophistication. Once the perception piece of the introductions was achieved, I was able to
pitch my products and services to an open ear. Instead of focusing on what I could not
change—my appearance—I worked on another aspect I could change by taking along a
friend who helped to balance my looks. It was a big thinking, out-of-the-box resource
idea and it worked.
And when you come up with all those big thinking ideas – capture them. As an
entrepreneur or creative thinker or just someone who develops their Lifemoney skills
you’ll find that you have so many new ideas that you don’t have time to act on them.
Make sure you capture those ideas somehow – in paper, over a microphone to your
computer, however works best for you – and then review them every once in a while to
see if there is one you can implement.
3. Don’t be afraid to ask questions from people who know. That’s how you learn.
Become four years old again. Don’t look at life with the jaded self-knowledge of an
adult, but walk with eyes – and ears – wide open. Be a pest; ask over and over again,
“Why? Why? Why?” And never be afraid to ask what you think is a dumb question.
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You don’t know everything; you can’t know everything. And in my experience, some of
the best solutions I’ve ever come up with have been very simple ideas from an area I
knew little about. Risk asking a lot of seemingly dumb questions and you’ll be paid back
millions in Lifemoney.
4. Look for solutions in the most unlikely spots. How many times have heard of a
solution to a problem coming from a totally unexpected place? Resourceful people are
always making themselves look for answers in places nobody else is looking. You need
to build confidence that you’ll find answers hidden in out of the way places then make
yourself search there. Here’s a thoughtful letter written to a child from her grandfather. It
was taken from the web site http://members.shaw.ca/athomas125/hanna.htm. Notice how
the man reflects on the child’s actions which are a surprising and amazing source of new
thinking for him.
My dear granddaughter Hannah,
You are only two, and yet you have already mastered attitudes that have eluded
me for half a century…
You see opportunities everywhere; I see problems. You want to climb the attic
stairs. You see steps; I see danger. You want to paint. I see mess; you see colors.
You love to learn. With wild abandon you tackle new words, new skills. You find
laughter in mistakes; I find embarrassment. You want to know everything. Book is
your favorite word. Questions are your favorite tools. I struggle to learn, hoping
to master the computer in one easy lesson or not at all. I've forgotten how to
laugh at blunders…
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You are courageous. You walk right up to a stranger and smile. At lunch you
boldly bite into broccoli, and though you dislike it, tomorrow you will tackle
cauliflower with the same exuberance; I stick with the familiar favorites.
I love you for who you are!
Grandpa Dan
Dear Lord, if it's not too late, help me to grow up and become just like Hannah.
Look around for success “MacGyvers” hiding in plain sight all around you.
These could be friends, neighbors, and relatives who may have an idea or solution to your
problem. You may be surprised to find someone right at your doorstep who can offer a
positive example of courage and creativity. Talk to people from teens to retirees, asking
questions about their perspectives and ideas.
Keep Looking - You’ll Find It

Finding the right information can be like looking for hidden treasure without a map.
Sometimes you may not know where to begin the quest. After talking to one resource
person or another, you might be given all sorts of misleading ideas, or information you
can’t really use. But that comes with the territory. You have to take the good with the bad
in your search for answers and put all your resources into continuing the search. Just keep
going until you find the information you really want. And learn to ask better questions
and be a better listener. Ask questions that seek out detail rather than just yes and no.
When you’re listening to an answer, take notes and then summarize back what you heard
so that you’re sure you captured both the words and the spirit of the message.
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You probably won’t find everything you need in your back yard. But you can go
anywhere you want and talk to whoever you like, often at the press of a button. That’s the
beauty of the modern world. Even as there are more and more of us, spread far and wide,
technology is bringing us closer together. Don’t be afraid to use all of the resources
available to you to gather more resources. Instead of sitting in front of the television or
playing video games, spend your time searching for buried answers. Here are four
incredible resources.
Number 1: Google it
The internet is one of the quickest and easiest tools you can use to research and
learn about any topic. All you need to do is pick a search engine (I use Google, because it
is the most widely used and brings up the most comprehensive information) and type in
the name or topic you want to research. You can even use full sentences to pinpoint the
closest data to your topic search. If you don’t find an exact match, try different variations
of the same words until you find what you are looking for.
Number 2: Buy a book or magazine

You can find dozens of books and magazines in your goal area or where you want
to learn new things. In a larger bookstore chain, find a seat at the café, buy a cup of
coffee, and read a recent biography of someone you admire or a book on a topic related to
your goal. Whatever your needs or interests, you should be able to find worthwhile
reading. If not, ask a store associate to order materials for you. You don’t even have to
buy the books; you can just read while you’re there. Look at the jackets and back covers
for ideas about whether a book will be helpful. There’s no better or quicker way to
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educate yourself than by spending some time at the bookstore and seeing what’s
available.
Number 3: Check it out at the library:

If you don’t have money to buy publications or want to keep them for a closer
reading at home, borrow books for free at the library. You can also get audio books,
language CD’s or DVD’s (if your goal involves traveling abroad), magazines, and videos.
If your library doesn’t carry a book you want see if they can get it for you from another
library. Most libraries offer this type of service for free.
Number 4: Take a seminar

There are a lot of seminars given and places to go that you can learn directly from
experts in your desired field. In New York, San Diego, San Francisco, Toronto,
Minneapolis, and Los Angeles you have the Learning Annex (learningannex.com) where
they constantly have well known speakers, movie producers and music moguls at your
disposal. Check your local area for something similar. Don’t forget to check out online
seminars – sometimes called webinars – that may pertain to the topic you are interested in
learning as well. Many companies offer free webinars with noted experts in a particular
field as a way to sell their products. You don’t have to buy the product, but you may
learn a few things from the expert while you participate in the webinar.
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Lifemoney Currency
“No matter where your interest lies in making incredible amounts of
money, you will be able to learn from the experts in that field. They will
teach you how to become financially secure and independent. One life
changing piece of advice can make you thousands if not millions.”
-The Learning Annex Promise
There’s No Need To Grow Up

Remember that excited feeling you had as a kid when you started school? Remember that
wonderful anticipation of what you were about to learn or do? You were probably thrilled
at the thought of becoming smarter and impressing Mom and Dad with good grades, or
showing off your playground skills to other kids.
That thrill of learning still exists inside you today. It is idling in you right now,
waiting for the chance to drive you toward solving your challenges and meeting your
goals. How do you accelerate it when you need it? Approach each of your challenges
with the intensity and curiosity of a kid. For example if you’ve challenged yourself to get
a great job in New York City, find out all you can about life in New York and the
companies or groups associated with this new job in New York. Ask the people around
you what they know about New York. Read books and look for television programs. Be
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excited about moving to New York! Don’t stop in your quest for knowledge but develop
a hunger for it.
Here are some other ideas that will ignite that inborn excitement about learning:
• Develop friendships with like minded people. Often we outgrow our
friends. Over time our interests drift and friendships change because your
interests no longer match. Rather than ditch your old friends, work on
building friendships with new, like minded people that share your intensity in
life. Those friendships can form quickly and be lasting, and provide you all
kinds of problem solving resources.
• Join a special interest group. To run for civic office in a few years, volunteer
at a local official’s office and see how it works. If you’re planning to write a
novel, find a writer’s group or a reader’s club. Listen first, then ask lots of
questions.
• Take a non-credit class. Most colleges – especially community colleges -
offer informal, specialized courses that often cost under $100 and run over a
day or several weekly classes. Check with a local community college or
university branch campus for information about these classes. If they don’t
have one you want, suggest that it be taught in the future.
• Online Special Interest Groups. No matter what your interest, the internet
provides an opportunity to meet many like minded people. You can meet
experts in your field of interest and learn things about your pursuit you never
knew existed. Learning new things is virtually guaranteed. Consider joining
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an online community, reading blogs about topics that interest you, or
subscribing to a mailing list of like minded folks.
Lifemoney Currency
“In the decade ahead I can predict that we will provide over twice the connectivity
that we provided in the '90s.”
-Bill Gates
Goal Achievement Exercise O

List three places where you can go to find some information that will further your
ability to be resourceful, such as:
1. Consult a community resource center
2. Join an online chat room
3. Visit a local learning annex
Once you have these three written down, assign timelines in which you will visit
these places, such as:
1. Community resource center – attend evening sessions from 8 to 9 Monday,
Wednesday and Friday.
2. Online chat room--- this week I will seek out one interest group related to my
goal
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3. Visit a local learning annex---I will call or stop for a brochure or information
on upcoming free public lectures and interest group meetings.
Lifemoney Currency
“If you are going to be thinking anyway, you might as well think big.”
-Donald Trump
Find An Expert
Everyone can benefit from having a mentor. This is someone who will work with you
to set goals and help you make plans for reaching them. Before he became known as
Diddy, Sean “Puffy” Combs worked in thankless jobs like the rest of us. But Combs was
an avid listener, learner and observer, and found resources anywhere – and everywhere –
he could.
According to Answers.com, “Already a shrewd businessman through his two
paper routes, Combs applied to Howard University in Washington, D.C., and while
attending, convinced childhood friend Heavy D to sign him up as an intern at the label for
which he recorded, Uptown Records.” There he swept floors and kept his ear to the
ground, learning the industry from the ground up. It was there that Diddy met his mentor
Andre Harell and Uptown Records proved to be his launching pad.
Like Diddy, look for experts in your field, those who have already accomplished
what you want to do. You’ll be amazed at how often folks who have already reached a
goal want to help you do the same thing they did. If you’re planning to write a best
selling novel, contact authors whose writing style you like and ask them for tips on
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getting published. You could contact publishers, too, and look for readers that can tell
you what they look for in this type of book. Don’t rely on your own expertise. Go straight
to those who know the ropes and can share a bit of wisdom. Make sure that you research
these people and their companies, if applicable, before you speak to them. Always be
prepared and don’t waste anyone’s time. And, don’t be surprised if some don’t return
your calls. Try other people or be persistent with the ones you really think are important
for you to meet or talk with. If speaking directly with an expert isn’t likely, get some
books about famous people who have already made it in the area where you want to go.
Look up biographies, interviews, and other information that might hold clues to the
reasons for a person’s success.
You also may want to consult the local Small Business Administration or a retired
executive. Or look up a local leader that you might be able to interview or job shadow.
When learning from the experts, find out what not to do, too. Ask questions like, “What
is one thing you would do differently?” Study those who are where you want to be, and
find out what keeps them going strong as well as the things that hold them back. Avoid
their mistakes.
Books, videos, libraries and the Internet are valuable, but people are the ultimate
resource. Look for people who can provide guidance, and who won’t turn their backs
when you need help. If you’re a student, take a job as an intern like Diddy. There are
actually some fields like the music industry where the only path to a real job is to intern.
Don’t fight the system if you don’t have to. Learn it first then conquer it.
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Lifemoney Currency
“If I have seen farther than others, it is because I was standing on the
shoulders of giants.”
-Isaac Newton
Goal Achievement Exercise P

List three people that you will contact for assistance. Using the people skills that you will
learn in Lifemoney Lesson #8, intrigue these people to help you in whatever way
possible.
While making your list, think of key resource people you already know from your
past and your present. You’d be amazed how many talented people you already know
that could help you along your journey.
Never forget to take advantage of your network of connections. No matter what
sorts of challenges you face right now, there is probably someone in your network of
connections that has faced the same problem at some point and would be happy to serve
as a resource to you.
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Lifemoney Currency
“Remember you will not always win. Some days, the most resourceful
individual will taste defeat. But there is, in this case, always tomorrow -
after you have done your best to achieve success today.”
-Maxwell Maltz
Resourcefulness Summary
This lesson is about understanding how being resourceful can help you on the
road to success. Very few people succeed entirely on their own. Stephen Spielberg, might
be the director, but stick around for the credits after his next movie. Try to count how
many names are listed at the end of the film; every one of those people was a resource in
creating his latest masterpiece.
It’s important to utilize every opportunity, small and large, that can put you closer
to reaching your ultimate goals. Don’t limit your dreams by limiting your scope; reach
out as often, and as far as necessary, to get the information, services and know-how you
need to create Lifemoney.
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Lifemoney Currency
“Learning is the beginning of wealth. Learning is the beginning of health.
Learning is the beginning of spirituality. Searching and learning is where the
miracle process all begins.”
-Jim Rohn
points for each checkmark and 0 points for any left blank.
_____ 1. I am consciously seeking new sources for new answers
_____ 2. I keep a notebook where I jot down thoughts, ideas, and observations.
_____ 3. I plan to visit a library, school or online special interest group.
_____ 4. I will read new material that relates to the pursuit of my goals.
_____ 5. I will take a class or seminar related to one or more of my goals.
_____ 6. I plan to read an autobiography of a famous leader who inspires me.
_____ 7. I will keep my eyes open for a mentor.
_____ 8. I will enthusiastically seek information like a kid.
_____ 9. I will network with people I know to find expertise beyond my circle.
_____ 10. I believe learning is the beginning of wealth.
Lifemoney Currency
“Some people say it’s not what you know, but who you know. I say, find
the people you need to know and introduce yourself.”
132 - Brad Turk

Creativity
Lifemoney Lesson # 7: Creativity
“Rules? Hell there are no rules!
We’re trying to create something here!”
-Thomas Edison
Overview
I have built this book around the idea that your personal qualities are like money
to you. They are your real wealth; your Lifemoney. Now I want to talk to you about the
one Lifemoney skill that might be the most important to anyone wishing success in life:
creativity. I’ve distilled five major skills to having more of the kind of creativity that
motivates you and serves you. These include visualization, objectifying your goal,
looking at things from a different perspective, asking big and avoiding the herd mentality.
A Lesson From Trump

One of Donald Trump’s first properties in New York City was the former
Commodore Hotel, directly across the street from Grand Central Station. He bought the
property in 1977 when that part of New York City was in terrible shape. Trump had no
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other major properties at the time and was told that this was not only “out of his league”
but would prove to be “a terrible investment.”
Even though he was only 26, Trump’s imagination was endless and he saw
something nobody else saw in that property. He was sure the city would eventually
revitalize the area and that building would be a goldmine. But Trump did not have the
wherewithal to do this deal on his own. For most people, the dream would have died
there: no money, no deal. Not for Trump. Donald could clearly imagine a major hotelier
working with him on the property, and convinced Hyatt to manage the property. It
became the Grand Hyatt, with Trump and Hyatt owning the hotel on a 50/50 basis.
But that wasn’t even the best part of the deal. In addition, Trump got Hyatt to
agree that it would never manage another hotel in New York City. Trump was so
immersed in his creative ideas for real estate that he would ask for outrageous things
without thinking anything of it. These weren’t outrageous requests to him, just obvious
ones. This boldness was born of creativity. It was a mindset that drove him to propose
many more innovative projects.
It is this type of can-do, creative thinking that, if adopted, will give you an edge in
reaching your goals faster. As Trump shows us, imagination, creativity, brainstorming
and audacity are some of the mental currencies of success.
Lifemoney Currency
“Man’s mind stretched to a new idea never goes back to its original
dimensions.”
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Goal Achievement Exercise Q

Get out your Workbook.
Pick two goals that you have listed in Exercise F, and come up with a different
and creative way that you can bring yourself closer to that goal. Do not use any ideas that
you have had in the past or seem conventional. Really stretch your mind and look at
achieving the goal in a new way. Read over your ideas, ignore the thoughts that these are
impossible. Can you use your resources differently to make one of these impossible steps
a reality?
Lifemoney Currency
“Don’t play what’s there; play what’s not there.”
-Miles Davis
Dream It, See It, Do It!

Let’s use a creative approach that many successful people have used to expand
their thinking. This may seem strange if you’ve never done it, but it’s called
visualization. It involves creating pictures and movies in your head of things you want.
For example, picture a snapshot of yourself on a cruiser yacht in the Caribbean, or taking
part in a board meeting of a prestigious company – maybe even your own company. See
that smile on your face? You’ve made it—you are living the dream in your mind. In this
way the practice of visual creativity helps you own the feeling of success and generates
more energy within you.
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Walt Disney was famous for saying “If you can dream it, you can do it.” Nobody
knows that better than Arnold Schwarzenegger, famous bodybuilder, actor and politician.
Arnold always understood the power of dreaming and reaching for what you want. He
grew up in Austria and he dreamed of leaving his homeland to pursue the goal of
becoming a world-class bodybuilder. Years later after he reached that goal, Arnold
visualized becoming an American film actor. Dreaming big once again it didn’t take long
for him to meet that goal, too. His next dream was to hold public office in a country
where he had not been born.
Arnold continued building on his natural skills by visualizing many things.
Today, Arnold Schwarzenegger is Governor of the State of California. He dreamed big,
developed needed skills, watched for opportunities and followed his heart to become
everything he wanted. In fact I saw him interviewed on television recently and he was
sharing the fact that he’s not yet done dreaming. He has more, and when the governor’s
gig is up he’ll be moving on. If you want to see a ‘dream it and do it” guy, watch Arnold.
In your mind’s eye, walk through a typical day exactly as you want it to be. Who
do you talk to? What do you do? Enjoy the mental image of your success by capturing
each detail as a memory to motivate you when the going gets tough. Be patient and build
that mental motion picture carefully.
Rather than becoming overwhelmed by going from 0 to 60, use your creativity to
visualize your daily activities, the house you plan to live in, where you go to work, what
your days consist of, how it feels to go home; when you spend time with a spouse, kids,
boyfriend/girlfriend, or family; where you go on vacation, what car you drive… Does
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creating success in your mind make you excited, impatient, and eager to get started? This
is the power of creativity to motivate you and form your life.
Lifemoney Currency
“If you can dream it, you can do it.”
-Walt Disney
Goal Achievement Exercise R

Rewrite two of your goals from Exercise F and actually see yourself achieving
them. Make your visualizations into a mental movie where you’re seeing what you’ll see,
feeling what you’ll feel and hearing what you’ll hear. You might have to get yourself
into a quiet place to get all these senses activated, but do your best. When you’ve spent
several minutes experiencing the visualization “movie” of your success, write a sentence
or two in your Workbook about how the experience expanded and changed your thinking.
Five Creativity Factors
Let’s take all that we’ve been discussing over the last several pages and
summarize it into some basic principles. When you are creative you:
1. Use Visualization to see your goal and watch yourself accomplishing it.
2. Objectify your goal to build a pathway to success.
3. Learn to look at things from a new perspective.
4. Ask big.
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5. Avoid the herd mentality.
Now, let’s look at each of these factors in depth to see how you can learn to apply
them to your goals.
Creativity Factor #1: Maintain your Visualization

They say a picture’s worth a thousand words. What’s it worth to you? When
you’re ready to give up on your dream, or when it becomes increasingly difficult to see
yourself in the winner’s circle, it’s time to shift gears and visualize it. Visualization is
when you mentally create an image of yourself accomplishing the desired objective. If
you want to operate your own business instead of working for someone else, imagine
yourself doing it. Picture your home office with all the things you would use in a public
office—computer, copier, fax, and telephone. Can’t you just see yourself taking phone
orders and printing invoices on your computer? As you envision the thrill of success, it
becomes more tangible. You’ll work out the bugs of a process that will move you closer
to your goal, step by step. Your body will do what your brain focuses on, so keep your
thoughts positive and stay focused.
For example, if you want to get into real estate, what does that mean for you? Do
you want to sell houses? Do you want to manage rentals? Do you want to sell commercial
property? Do you want to invest in real estate? Specifically describe your goal and
envision yourself doing it. Don’t settle for vague pictures! Clearly see the kinds of
properties you want to handle. See yourself inspecting the houses, noticing colors of
paint and the condition of the neighborhood. Notice even small things like the shoes on
your feet and the color of your clothes. This isn’t fantasy or play-acting; this proven
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process will make your goal more meaningful mentally prepare you to undertake the
challenges involved.
There is no substitute for keeping the proper image in your mind at all times.
Why? Because you will create whatever you’re visualizing, good or bad. All success
starts in your mind. Those that fail to reach their dreams are often letting their positive
visualizations vanish. Acquiring anything starts with imagining it constantly. That is a
conscious choice, an action you take. Take responsibility to hold those images in your
mind.
Lifemoney Currency
“Visualization is daydreaming with a purpose.”
-Bo Bennett
Creativity Factor #2: Objectify Your Goal

I used to dream about driving a Mercedes SL500 or a CL500. I kept miniature
models of these cars in my room as a way to make my goal “real” and be an incentive of
what I was working for. To date, I have had both of these cars, and I still have the toy
versions to help me remember to make my dreams real.
Sometimes having that physical object can help make an abstract idea seem more
real. Seeing your goal in your mind and describing it with your hands are two different
ways to imprint your dreams in your memory, but our brains respond better to the real
thing. Do what you can to make a real “object” out of your goal.
Look at your workspace, whether at home or at the office. Do you keep a special
object to remind you of your roots, your accomplishments and your dreams? Some
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people have desks covered with trophies and some have desks covered with bills. Who
do you think is more positively driven?
Around her neck, Queen Latifah wears a key on a chain. The key belonged to her
late brother’s motorcycle, the one he died on, and she keeps it near her heart as a
reminder of how much she misses him. It also keeps her motivated and helps as a
reminder of how precious life is, and how important it is to enjoy every minute. Real
objects have power.
Chances are you have a framed photo, an award or commemorative gift, or
another small, seemingly insignificant object that reminds you of something very
important, whether past, present or future. If you don’t, start collecting those things and
placing them around you.
This is especially important in creating objects that represent your personal goals.
The object for your personal goal might be something that brings to mind your dream. A
drawing of a sailboat on the sea may help you hold on to your goal of taking a cruise or
buying a sailboat. A miniature horse that fits in your palm could be the symbol of your
future breeding farm. Dieters sometimes buy clothing in the size they want to be rather
than what they are now. They go to the closet and look at the outfit that they hope to wear
a few months from now to remind them of their goal. Whatever you choose, it should be
something that reminds you of and keeps you motivated to achieve your dreams.
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Lifemoney Currency
“I wrote myself a check for ten million dollars for acting services rendered
and dated it Thanksgiving 1995. I put it in my wallet and it deteriorated. And
then, just before Thanksgiving 1995, I found out I was going to make ten
million dollars for Dumb & Dumber. I put that check in the casket with my
father because it was our dream together.”
-Jim Carrey
Creativity Factor #3: Look at things from a different perspective

I have a friend David who is very successful in real estate. He buys a lot of
properties, manages some and sells the others. His success is attributed to seeing what’s
not there and being open minded about what can happen. I remember him helping me out
once when I was looking for a small rental property. When we went into the place I was
very disappointed. Although I loved the building and the area, the actual apartment was
terrible. It looked like a hurricane had come through and no one bothered to clean up
after. I thought I knew something about real estate and I asked the agent how long the
place had been on the market. After bothering the agent, it seemed I got the truth out of
him, and he informed me they had been trying to sell it for over a year. Well, that was it
for me. I looked at my friend as if to say, “We’re out of here.”
But David wasn’t quite ready to leave.
What I saw as a negative, my friend saw as a positive. He asked more questions,
crunched some numbers and while we were sitting down for coffee afterwards, he
explained to me that this was a great deal. From his perspective it was good that the place
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was a wreck and was on the market for so long. Most people who walked in there did not
see the value of the place and could not picture what the place could look like.
The fact that it was on the market so long would enable this desperate seller to
reevaluate the sales price. After David did the math with me, it appeared that I would be
buying a $200,000 co-op for $175,000. How? We were able to get the price from
$165,000 down to $150,000 and after spending $25,000 on fix-up we would be able to
sell the co-op for what the market value was at the time: $200,000. By shifting
perspective, David helped me to see the real value of that deal.
You can do this in your own life. Anybody can see what’s obvious but only a few
can see potential. So try! It is a valuable lifemoney skill that can translate into big cash
money. Keep your mind wide open and make yourself look for solutions and ideas that
aren’t necessarily out in the open.
Creativity Factor #4: Ask big

There is huge power in learning to ask big. You know why? Asking for big and
bold things always generates creative new ideas and usually uncovers a solution to your
problem that you might not have thought of. My girlfriend, Liz, does medical billing and
is the office manager for a doctor’s office. She is good at her job and has been with the
same company for over 10 years. Although Liz was happy with the money she made and
her success in what she did, she really wanted a more flexible schedule. She wanted the
ability to occasionally pick up her son from school and also did not want to be tied down
to the typical 9-5 work week. She envied my work schedule and the fact that I could
arrange my days as I saw fit.
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When I encouraged her to suggest something new to her boss, like a more flexible
schedule, she was positive he wouldn’t go for it. But rather than just forgetting about the
idea, we sat down and actually listed some very big possibilities she could take to her
boss. Specifically we asked ourselves “What might her boss go for?” We made
ourselves think outside the box. This thought process alone allowed us to quickly figure
out a few adjustments she could make to maintain job duties and still free up some time
in her weekly schedule. Then one day at work Liz asked her boss something big.
“I’ve figured out a way to work even more efficiently,” she began.
“Oh, yeah?” her boss asked. “What’s that, Liz?”
“If I work a day a week at home where it’s quiet, I can get more billing work done
without the distraction of answering phones or coworkers’ questions. I’m sure I can work
faster, which will save the company time and money. Can I do it?”
Now do you think that was easy for Liz to ask her boss? No way. But she boldly
asked a new and surprising question. And guess what? Liz’s boss agreed to give it a try,
and now she has more flexibility in her schedule. She has a day each week for personal
errands and her son and on that day she works the hours that she sees fit.
Even when it seems like the odds are against you, asking bigger and bolder
questions can be a huge source of inspiration and possibility for you. When I worked at
MCI, through hard work and utilizing the Lifemoney lessons in this book, I became the
number one salesman in the country. My problem was that I knew I preferred working
from home without a boss breathing down my neck. But my boss really wanted me to
work out of the office in the more standard corporate way. Rather than just giving in to
this expectation, I asked myself a bigger, better and bolder question: what would the boss
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go for? I decided that I would go to him and candidly explain my vision, how I worked
best and how we could make this work for both of us.
I set up an appointment with my boss and I explained how much more productive
I was from home and that I had two more hours in my work day by eliminating the
commute it took to get back and forth to the office. All I had to do was point to my sales
results, and my “work from home” sales pitch spoke for itself. I showed that I was able to
do my job the way that made sense to me and worked with my personal schedule. I
wound up only going into the office a few times a month. I took a standard practice of
almost all corporations of working the typical 9-5 office job and turned it into something
that worked for me. An enormously big opportunity for me began by asking a big
question: “What’s possible here?”
Asking big is not only a creative way to think, but when you take the short step of
sharing your creativity publicly; profound things will start to materialize. Get in the habit
of asking big. Even if it doesn’t work, you’ll be a step closer to finding the solution that
will work.
Creativity Factor #5: Avoid The Herd Mentality

There is an old saying that “if everyone is doing it, it’s probably wrong.” We are
herd animals, and often where the herd is going is not original or creative in any way.
Successful people are more often those who are willing to dream about going another
way.
It is always best to have some foresight and try to do what has not or is not being
done. That’s not too say that you can’t make millions or find happiness doing things that
have been successfully done in the past, but the pioneers will usually capitalize the most.
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In addition, you also have to be careful not to jump into a fad or in something that has
already reached its peak.
The perfect example would be all of the late comers who tried to break into the
real estate market – well after the bubble was set to burst. Read what Robert Kiyosaki,
author of Rich Dad Poor Dad says about the stampede that took off after the real estate
boom. “In 2003, every fool was getting into real estate. The checkout girl at my local
supermarket handed me her newly printed real estate agent business card. The housing
market became the hot topic of discussion at parties. ‘Flipping’ became the buzz word at
PTA meetings. Homes became ATM machines as credit-card debtors took long-term
loans to pay off short term debt.” And now the papers are filled with stories of people
who followed the herd and ran off a financial cliff.
Once everyone is doing what you are looking to do, it often makes your goal that
much harder to attain. Again, this does not mean that it can’t be done. It just means you
will have to work that much harder and smarter to get your results.
You don’t always have to do things the traditional (Herd) way to get it done. If
you want $5,000 to buy a speedboat, do you have to start with a basic savings account?
Are there other ways you could raise that money? You could:
• Sell used items you no longer use -furniture/tools on Ebay.
• Downsize to a smaller house or less expensive car.
• Create shares of the boat and bring in partners
• Get a second, part-time job.
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While all, some, or none of these options may work for you, the point is to try to go
in the opposite direction of the herd when the herd has been going in the same direction
for a while.
Back to my main man Donald Trump: many people thought he was born into his
millions, or that he came by his wealth easily. The opposite is true. Donald’s father, Fred
Trump, had to help support his family and started a construction business in Brooklyn,
New York. Donald spent a few years working out of the same office as his dad. When he
eventually decided to get involved in real estate, he did so with a limited budget. Though
he had very little money, the first thing he did was to become a member of an exclusive
New York club. He used his membership as a way to make contacts.
That’s pretty unusual and not what a herd thinker would do. Who ever thought of
starting a business by joining a club? Most of us would wait until the company was
established – probably even well established - before developing business relationships.
Trump took an unusual route to success, and it paid off.
Lifemoney Currency
“You see things; and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were;
and I say, ‘Why not?’ ”
-George Bernard Shaw
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Creativity Summary
Why wait for your dreams to happen when you have more time? You will
probably never get more time to chase them than you have right now. Make the time, and
invest the energy in some creative thinking about going after the things you want.
Engage your creativity now by taking stock of your situation. Is there some way
to save time or money at your job? Can you trim the household budget? How about trying
out a new skill? Most people have a lot of potential that goes untapped. Don’t let yours
go to waste. Set aside some time to consider new approaches to your problems and the
barriers that stand in the way of getting what you want. Take the time to evaluate your
situation and try a creative approach. Remember that one of the most important aspects of
creativity isn’t seeing what’s there, but seeing what’s not there.
Lifemoney Currency
“A problem is a chance for you to do your best thinking.”
-Duke Ellington
Check all the items below that you agree with, and then figure your score, giving yourself 10
_____ 1. I can visualize my success through a variety of mental pictures.
_____ 2. I believe that if I can dream it I can do it
_____ 3. I will try using visualization to move towards my goals.
_____ 4. I have objects around me that symbolize the success I seek.
_____ 5. I seek out new perspectives to old problems.
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_____ 6. I make detailed mental images of what I want.
_____ 7. I keep asking bigger questions to spur my creativity.
_____ 8. I know when I ask boldly, great possibilities are created.
_____ 9. I avoid the herd mentality at all costs.
_____ 10. I will use creativity to help me attain my goals.
Lifemoney Currency
“Just because something isn’t being done, hasn’t been done or looks like it
can’t be done, doesn’t mean you can’t do it.”
-Brad Turk
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People
Lifemoney Lesson # 8: 12 Steps for Power with People
“Motivation aside, if people get better at these people skills, everyone
benefits”
-Daniel Goleman
Overview
I am going to introduce you to my very simple and powerful twelve-steps to becoming a
more persuasive and accomplished people person. For almost any goal you may have,
getting others involved will be a major key to your success.
Sharpen Your People Skills

Almost all barriers to your success are barriers that can be easily overcome with
the help of others. So learning to interface with other people is vital to realizing your
goals. Using people skills in a competent, professional and powerful way will not only
aid you in achieving your objectives, but it should make your life experience more
rewarding as well. Understanding how others work and the mechanics of how they think
will be crucial in gaining the support you need to get what you want out of life.
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While I was at MCI, I worked as a manager for a short period of time. During that
time, I quickly realized that to deal with people effectively you really need to understand
what motivates them. I was managing a staff of 8 sales people who all had extremely
different personalities. They were men and women of different races and backgrounds. I
saw from past managers that I have had, that one of the biggest problems in how they
managed was that they had a uniform way of doing things. Their “House Rules” were
specific to how they thought a salesperson should be. I knew first hand, from being a
salesperson, that we are all different and had different needs.
Using my Lifemoney Lesson # 8, I found huge success as a sales manager by
managing each of my sales representatives by what they needed in a manager. I provided
them the resources to work in an environment where they could thrive. As an example, I
had one rep who was just like I was as a salesperson. She was self motivated, hard
working and considered her sales position as her own small business that she was
managing. I did for her what I wanted my sales manger to do for me – I stayed out of her
way. I gave her freedom to do whatever she wanted (I didn’t even care if she showed up
to work or not). I knew she was a hard worker, that she would get the sales in, and that I
could not work her harder than she would work herself.
On the other hand, I had a salesperson who was one of the most charismatic
people you could meet, was amazing at building relationships and closing deals but was
also one of the laziest people I have ever met. He was always late, out sick, or had an
excuse for something going wrong. He had so many excuses that he was losing track of
them. He once told me about his only uncle, who he missed that had passed away about a
year before. Amazingly, that same uncle died again, and he needed a couple of days to
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grieve. Anyway, I treated him how he needed to be treated; I micromanaged him, and at
least once every day gave him a swift kick in the ass. He later thanked me for helping
him, and told me that he needed that treatment to get him where he wanted to go.
So to get the most out of people and to win them over to your cause, you need to
know what their needs are. Not only was this experience a financial success for me, but it
allowed me to really connect to my reps and form lasting friendships; some I still have to
this day.
Lifemoney Currency
“Shared joy is a double joy;
Shared sorrow is half a sorrow.”
-Swedish Proverb
Goal Achievement Exercise S

Are you a people person? Few of us respond to every situation in perfect form,
especially when it comes to dealing with people. Think of a past problem you had with a
specific person. Be as specific as you can. Reflect on why that might not have gone
exactly as you’d hoped and ask yourself the following questions:
• What were my preconceived notions about this person?
• How did they affect how I dealt with him/her?
• What could I have done differently?
• How could I respond better next time?
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Use these questions as a guide when you have to deal with this person – and other
people – in the future. Get into the habit, or rhythm, of preparing yourself to deal with
people rather than doing so on instinct or history. Success doesn’t happen by accident;
everything, even dealing with people – especially dealing with people – requires proper
planning.
Lifemoney Currency
“Every one of us gets through the tough times because somebody is there,
standing in the gap to close it for us.”
-Oprah Winfrey
Turk’s 12-Step Plan for Bridge Building
You can think of this section as the 12-Step plan for building relationship bridges
on your road to success. For relationships to be mutually valuable you must build a
bridge that goes two-ways; there are lanes for incoming and offloading traffic. How do
you start building these bridges? Here are my 12 basic relationship-building strategies
that can help you get started.
Step # 1: Be a Good Listener

People want to be heard and understood. The primary way we communicate with
others is through conversation. Conversation involves someone speaking and someone
listening. When it is your turn to listen, do not speak. Listen.
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To demonstrate how much people want and need to express themselves and feel
understood, I will tell you a funny story about a job interview I once had. At the
beginning of the interview, I asked the interviewer a few key questions about himself and
what had made him successful in his career. He was so excited to talk about himself and
his experiences that at the end of an hour, it seemed as if we did not even speak about me.
Although I knew my resume would be suitable for the position, we did not get to
discuss my history. Yet, at the end of our meeting, this guy not only offered me the job,
but he also remarked about how interesting a person I was and how I would be a perfect
fit for the position. Keep in mind he found me so interesting and I barely said a word.
Again, people like people who like them. Because I took an interest in him, he took an
interest in me.
It turned out to be a win/win for us both.
Step # 2: Take an Interest in People

When you listen, listen with a reason. When you talk to others, find out about
them. Be enthusiastic about what they are talking about and who they are. Smile. Ask
questions. Everyone’s favorite topic of discussion is themselves. If you want to win them
over, let them talk about their skills, their needs and their accomplishments.
Don’t be like so many opportunistic listeners who use what others say as an
opportunity to talk about themselves. Let the other person speak – while you LISTEN.
Watch for opportunities to offer empathy, advice or assistance, not just another segue to a
story about yourself. Try and put yourself in their shoes. If you really take an interest in
what they are saying you might learn something. You can’t learn from them if you’re
talking.
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Let’s say that you are a very good racquetball player, and someone you are
talking to tells you about a game of racquetball they played. Even though you can relate
to the story because of your expertise, you don’t have to interject your knowledge or
skills. Let the person tell the story, brag or whatever they wish. They’re getting
enjoyment out of reliving an experience or sharing an insight. Don’t take that away by
changing the subject to you, and telling your stories. Let the other person feel important
and appreciated. The gift you are giving is worth far more than anything you might hope
to gain from turning the focus of the conversation to you.
If this sounds fairly one-sided, it might be, at first. But the funny thing about
building these bridges is they work both ways. The more you listen to others, the more
they’ll learn by example and start paying you back– by listening to YOU. Have faith and
patience that the longer these relationships last, the more two-way they’ll become.
Step # 3: Don’t Undermine – Understand

It’s easy to criticize, but it’s much harder – not to mention more important – to try
and understand why people make the mistakes they make or take the actions they take.
Some people are just genuinely grumpy or mean – but these people are not the majority.
Most people react in a negative way due to circumstances. Did they have a bad day? Was
there a problem at home?
The best way to turn a person with a bad attitude around is to be nice. Try it and
see how it works. But you need to be genuinely nice. Don’t fake it! Did someone cut you
off on the road? Maybe she was going to see her husband who has been injured in a car
accident. In building up conflict instead of offering genuine kindness, you only aggravate
yourself.
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Think back to a bad day you had recently. Maybe you got up on the wrong side of
the bed. Maybe you weren’t feeling well. On the way to work you get stuck in traffic due
to road construction. Then the boss yells at you for being late, even though you typically
arrive on time. Wouldn’t it have made all the difference if your boss had expressed some
understanding with a comment about how your usual reliability made him suspect a
problem?
Step # 4: Give And You Will Receive

Get people believing in their dreams and help them along the way. You’ll benefit
in surprising ways including helping you better understand how to realize your own
dreams. Crazy things happen when you reach out to people and pay some kindnesses
forward. The following is a very interesting and true story of paying it forward that was
taken from the Winston Churchill web site at
http://www.winstonchurchill.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=102.
His name was Fleming, and he was a poor Scottish farmer. One day, while trying
to make a living for his family, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog.
He dropped his tools and ran to the bog.
There, mired to his waist in black muck, was a terrified boy, screaming and
struggling to free himself. Farmer Fleming saved the lad from what could have
been a slow and terrifying death.
The next day, a fancy carriage pulled up to the Scotsman’s sparse surroundings.
An elegantly dressed nobleman stepped out and introduced himself as the father
of the boy Farmer Fleming had saved.
“I want to repay you,” said the nobleman. “You saved my son’s life.”
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“No, I can’t accept payment for what I did,” the Scottish farmer replied waving
off the offer. At that moment, the farmer’s own son came to the door of the family
hovel.
“Is that your son?” The nobleman asked.
“Yes,” the farmer replied proudly.
“I’ll make you a deal. Let me provide him with the level of education my own son
will enjoy. If the lad is anything like his father, he’ll no doubt grow to be a man
we both will be proud of.” And that he did.
Farmer Fleming’s son attended the very best schools and, in time, graduated from
St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School in London, and went on to become known
throughout the world as the noted Sir Alexander Fleming, the discoverer of
penicillin.
Years afterward, the same nobleman’s son who was saved from the bog was
stricken with pneumonia.
What saved his life this time? Penicillin.
The name of the nobleman? Lord Randolph Churchill.
His son’s name? Sir Winston Churchill.
Step # 5: Remember People and They’ll Remember You

Over my life I’ve had the hardest time remembering people’s names. I know it is
because I never really made a true attempt to focus on remembering them. I can
remember so many times when I had just been introduced to someone and two seconds
later I had already forgotten their name. This not only looks bad, but I think people can
tell when you don’t remember their names, and it’s a little bit insulting.
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I would suggest you develop a system that helps you put greater effort into this
huge priority. One idea is to repeat the person’s name out loud a few times during the
introduction. For instance, “Nice to meet you, Brian. Where do you work? Is that right?
Sounds interesting. Let’s talk about that sometime, Brian. Again, nice meeting you.”
Another popular technique is to associate their name with something visually unusual. If
their name is “Brad” and they look like Brad Pitt, it’s easy. But if they look like they’re
very tired and sad, you might think “sad Brad” or if they look happy, “glad Brad.” You
get the idea. These little tricks work amazingly well and are well worth the time it takes
to practice them.
Step # 6: Get People to Sign Off on Helping You

How can you make people want to assist you, not have to assist? If you can sell
others something genuinely interesting or provide information to help them obtain
something they are looking for, they will be interested in helping you in exchange. How
do you do that? Ever hear the term WIIFM? It’s “What’s In It For Me!” Most likely your
best bet in getting help from someone is to show them what they are going to get in
return!
I think about this all the time when I’m trying to influence people to help me.
Let’s say for example that I need help with financing a business deal that’s important to
me. When I approach a potential investor I’m not thinking “how much can I get?” but
rather “what does this person want and how can I give it to them?” During the course of
the conversation I will ask for money, but I will stress what’s in it for them: a great rate
of return, the value of the proposed deal, the intangible benefits of having their name
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associated with the project, the fun we can have together as a team, …you get the idea.
I’m always thinking “what do they want, and how can I give it to them?”
I am not saying you can’t get help any other way, but the level of intensity – time,
energy and commitment – will be that much greater if you provide people with something
they want. Ever had friends volunteer to help you on a project but they delayed it because
they were busy? Then, when they did help, they were less than enthusiastic? I bet if they
were going to get something out of the arrangement, whether a free meal, a case of beer
or concert tickets, they would have behaved differently.
Remember that getting the support you want depends in part on providing others
with what they need, too. If a friend is remodeling a kitchen, offer to help. Those few
hours spent pounding nails or carrying lumber might turn out to be the best investment
you ever make if your friend has some useful tips or suggestions for helping you reach
your goals more quickly.
Step # 7: Don’t Argue

Don’t ever argue and think you’re going to win points. That only happens in
courts in front of judges. The winner of an argument in real life is often the loser in the
relationship. All you will do is make the other person feel bad, inferior, stupid and
embarrassed. For what? To win your point? Is it worth it? Will you really feel better? Do
you think you can change the other person’s view?
Think about a recent argument you had with a spouse, a coworker or a friend.
Who won? What were the stakes? What were the consequences? Would the outcome
have been different if you had not let the situation escalate? If hard feelings resulted, how
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long will they last? I have seen long term friendships totally dissolve over meaningless
arguments.
I make a big distinction between arguing and disagreeing. Arguments, particularly
defensive and mean ones, do nothing but harm. Often, people argue because they are
hurt, upset or just want to communicate with someone they care about, even if it’s
negative communication. Disagreements on the other hand can be powerful sources of
new information and a chance to grow. Always try to look inward to the core issue, and
make every attempt to stay calm for a rational disagreement/discussion rather than an
argument or even all-out fight. Disagreeing is good – IF it’s mutually understood that the
goal is a positive outcome for everyone.
Step # 8: Think Before You Speak

In any discussion, be it personal or professional, be self-controlled. Don’t act
rashly or lash out. Speak from a calm center. Relax. Think your words through. Don’t
speak out of anger. Don’t give advice unless it is requested, and even then be careful.
Show, don’t tell. Don’t brag; no one is impressed. Let others mention your
accomplishments before you do. Keep in mind that everyone is born equal and deserves
to be treated that way.
Think about someone in your past that pushed unwanted advice on you. Didn’t
you just hate to hear that person’s voice on the phone or see her face at the door? Don’t
become one of those pushy, aggressive individuals that think they know it all. Wait for
your opinion to be asked before shoving it at someone.
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Step # 9: Manners Matter

Always say “thank you” when given a compliment or receiving assistance. This
may seem like a small thing, but it’s extremely important. Can you look back on a time
when you did something nice and the person didn’t even mention it? Maybe you mailed a
gift to a relative, but he never called or wrote to say thanks. Or you might have helped a
coworker with a difficult project, but received no sense of appreciation, even after
working hours of unpaid overtime. A few sincere words written in a card or spoken with
a smile can go a long way toward making someone feel that his or her efforts are valued.
Take courtesy even further. Shake hands firmly and introduce yourself when
around new people. Look people in the eye and give them respect when you speak to
them. Always say please when asking for something. You would be surprised how far
all of this will take you in building relationships. It makes a deep and lasting impression
that money can’t buy. Courtesy and manners are Lifemoney lessons that make you really
standout in a crowd.
Step # 10: No Whining Allowed

No one likes a whiner. It’s not that your problems are unimportant, but we all
have problems. What make yours so special that you should complain loudly? Don’t tell
your problems to people unless they are directly involved with the solution. And if you
do find yourself whining and complaining just remember that it’s not getting you any
closer to a solution. To get along in this world without becoming an irritating whiner,
lower your expectations of others and increase them for yourself. Everyone makes
mistakes and will disappoint you at some point. Some of those mistakes will be at your
expense. From time to time you may even take the blame for something that isn’t your
fault. Don’t cry or whine over any of this. Just remain calm and don’t shoot your mouth
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off and burn bridges. You never know when you might have to go back the way you
came and deal with that person again under better circumstances. The winner is always
the person who refuses to complain and instead focuses on finding solutions without
finding fault.
Step # 11: Your Word is Your Bond

Do what you say you are going to do. Even if it is just to arrive to a meeting at a
certain time. Your word means everything, especially in business. If you can’t be trusted
on one issue, chances are your credibility will be shot for all that you do. Also, being late
is a sign of disrespect for someone else’s time. As I mentioned, to a successful person,
time is their most valuable asset. Would you want someone to take your most valuable
asset away from you?
I learned this the hard way when I was first starting out in sales. I had an
appointment with someone and I showed up 15 minutes late. The person that I was
meeting came out and told me that he would not meet with me and would not do business
with me because I was late. I know this is extreme and there are times when being late
can’t be avoided, but this true story illustrates how sensitive some people are to lateness.
When people know you are dependable, more opportunities will be sent your way.
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Lifemoney Currency
“Be more concerned with the value of your word than your reputation, because
your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what
others think you are.”
-John Wooden
Step #12: Find Great People

Finding great people begins by learning who you should avoid. You probably
already know who some of these “avoidable” people are. They might be an older brother
who sets a bad example with his drug use or gang activity. Maybe it’s a girlfriend who
demands more and more of your time – and gives half as much in return. It could be a
friend who is always cooking up a crazy idea that never gets out of the starting gate, or
that costs you plenty when it does get a running start.
Problem people often hide in plain sight. They may be hardheaded bosses who
refuse to think out of the box. They can be so-called “pals” who don’t believe in you, or
who tell you to give up because you have more important things to do, like fishing or
playing cards. It’s not that you can never enjoy recreational time, but you have to put first
things first if you ever plan to reach your goals.
To get rid of the people who will hold you back, put you down or turn you off,
politely let them that you will get in touch when you have time. If it’s someone who is
really just negative and brings you down, don’t be afraid to cut ties totally.
My uncle once told me that life is like a bus: you get on the bus with thoughts of
going somewhere but you always have the opportunity of getting off. If you don’t like
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where the bus is going or you changed your mind in the direction you want to take – get
off. It’s not quitting if you’re the one doing the choosing; it’s simply a move in a new
direction. Find a new bus or another means to get there. Either way, make sure that
you’re always riding the right bus for you.
Just as you must get rid of the people who will drag you down, you must also
make room in your life for the motivators. They’re a little harder to find. If they’re
nearby, cling to them; if they’re far away, seek them out. In fact, for every troublemaker
you tell to hit the road – or get off your bus – make sure to pick up a motivator or two as
a replacement.
A motivator can be anyone who trusts you to follow your dreams. It might be a
business partner who provides scheduling flexibility or budgetary allowances that are in
line with helping you meet your goals. It might be a mentor who leads by example or,
quite literally, the motivational speaker who invites you to his seminar and makes time
before or after to consult with you privately. They might be a good friend who listens
while you describe the goal you want to reach, as well as your plan for getting there, or
they may be a total stranger. Either way you’ll know these motivators because you’ll feel
an instant attraction to them. And the more you hunt for them the more they will be
attracted to you. Be relentless in seeking out good people and you will do yourself and
your dreams a HUGE favor.
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Lifemoney Currency
“Get around the right people. Associate with positive, goal-oriented people who
encourage and inspire you.”
-Brian Tracy
12 Steps for Power with People Summary

I’ve packed some of my best people skills into this lesson. I try and use each one
of these on a daily basis and have come to rely on my people skills to make many good
things happen. What’s the best way to learn them? Choose any one of these and use it
today. In fact, keep using it until you don’t think about using it anymore because it’s so
natural. Don’t move off to try another one until you’ve seen results with the first one.
This is the best way I know of to master this list. Then magic happens.
Lifemoney Currency
“One skill you act on is better than 12 that you don’t.”
-Brad Turk
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_____ 1. I am learning to be a good listener.
_____ 2. I am taking an active interest in people
_____ 3. A huge part of receiving is giving, and I often make efforts to give without
expectation of receiving anything
_____ 4. I understand the value of tolerance when dealing with difficult people.
_____ 5. I try to stay calm and avoid arguments, although I can politely disagree.
_____ 6. I make efforts to express appreciation and good manners to others.
_____ 7. I don’t whine.
_____ 8. I keep to my word.
_____ 9. I have a good sense of which people to pursue and which to avoid.
_____ 10. I always remember the “what’s in it for me” rule.
Lifemoney Currency
“Find people to make up for your lack of know-how and, eventually, you
WILL know-how.”
-Brad Turk
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Lifemoney Lesson # 9: Positively Thinking
“Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start
having positive results.”
-Willie Nelson
Overview
Someone once said, whether you believe you will or you won’t – you’re probably
right. What you believe you’re going to get in life is pretty much what you’re going to
get. That’s why it’s so important to guard your thinking and make sure you keep yourself
thinking in a positive direction. This talks about some of the things I’ve found useful in
creating a positive mind, a well maintained attitude and a “no excuses” outlook.
Where’s Your Head At?

Which of these statements sounds most like something you’d say to yourself:
I am going to reach my goals and fulfill my dreams!
or
I am going to try to reach my goals but it’s going to be hard because…
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Do you believe you can reach your goals, or do you think that it probably won’t
happen for you? This question is like a fork in the road, and whichever direction you take
in your mind will probably dictate your destiny. As a general statement positive thinking
plays a powerful role in helping us achieve what we set out to do. If you focus on the
negative, you create road blocks that stop you from achieving your goals. On the
contrary, if you focus on the positive, you’ll find ways around all the road blocks that
inevitably occur to everyone as they work to achieve their dreams. You just have to know
that you’re heading in the right direction, believe that it can happen and know that you
have what it takes to make it happen.
The Multi-Millionaire Blues

A good example of how attitude, happiness and success are created by your mind
and not your circumstances is shown by an acquaintance I knew from college. This drop-
dead gorgeous young lady was the daughter of an established and widely recognized
Hollywood producer. Her father had been an executive producer of some very well
known films. He was both successful in his field and wealthy. I don’t know if it was her
beauty, her money, or the fame of her dad but everyone in school wanted to be near her.
From the outside looking in, it appeared she had everything that a person could want.
When I finally had the chance to meet her personally, I was amazed to see how
miserable she was. I could not imagine with all of the advantages she had been born with
that she would not appreciate and enjoy each day of her existence. I figured she would
have far fewer worries than other people! In getting to know her, I saw her complaining
everyday about what I thought were very trivial things. It appeared that everything
annoyed her and she was never happy.
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I stayed away from her negativity and did not associate too much with her. I heard
a few years later that she had attempted suicide. It’s a sad and unfortunate example of
how your view of things can make a big difference in how you feel, what you attract into
your life and your ultimate success. It’s not what you have but how you perceive things
that really counts.
Maybe you come from a family with many losers and too few winners. You might
feel as though you are destined to continue the long line of defeat. But you may also have
skills and opportunities for turning the game around and coming out a champ if you will
only take the time to believe in who you are and who you will become if you reach your
goals. Maybe you will be the one family member who can show the others that success is
possible? That would be a wonderful Lifemoney gift to give them. You can take
advantage of many opportunities to maximize your chances for success while
downplaying the risk of failure. But it all begins with your outlook and your willingness
to do what it takes to get out of the rut and mentally move in the direction of the finish
line.
Some people seem to enjoy being miserable and refuse to take responsibility for
their own happiness. They complain about all the ways in which other people or
circumstances are standing in their way. “He’s the reason I can’t get ahead” or “If that
hadn’t happened I would be rich by now” are just excuses for not taking responsibility for
their own lives. Though you have no control over the actions of others, you do have
complete control over what you choose to think, do, and say. So don’t worry about what
you can’t do, focus on what you can do.
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Practice turning negatives into positives. If you catch yourself repeating the
complaints above, turn them into positive statements like “He could never stop me from
getting ahead” or “Even with that first set back, I was able to become wealthy.” Your
mind is yours, so use it positively.
Lifemoney Currency
“Just can’t live that negative way…make way for the positive day.”
-Bob Marley
Change the Mental Channel

If you don’t think you’ll ever be a success, you better change your mental
channel. Though it might be hard to picture yourself in a three-piece suit presiding over a
six-figure bank account, I want you to understand that you’re holding the remote in your
hand to switch to that channel. Change the channel and play the role starting now.
How do you work this “mental” remote? If you act like you are already successful
the achievements you want and deserve become a near certainty. What makes you
different from any other human being? Nothing! You should be able to attain all the
things you want in life including your dreams. It starts in your head with your mental
remote and plays out in reality.
If you feel yourself beginning to argue with me, STOP! Forget the excuses! If
you grew up poor – good. You have even more desire to do better than others may have.
If you grew up wealthy – good. You have the resources others don’t have. In America,
there is nothing stopping you from becoming all that you dream of becoming. You dream
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it, you work hard to get it, you have a smart plan, you implement your plan, and guess
what? It’s yours.
Arnold Schwarzenegger went into every competition thinking he was the winner.
He visualized it, took it on as his personal goal, and owned the feeling of a champion.
This attitude and confidence spread and led everyone else to believe the same. He
attributed a lot of his success in bodybuilding to his mental attitude and how he won
judges over with how he presented himself. Obviously, that had to be coupled with hard
work and long hours in the gym, but he said that all the intense effort and workouts did
not give him the extra edge that he needed. It was the mental focus on all that he did that
made him the best in his field.
The mind rules over every part of the body. Get your mind on the right channel
and the body will do its part to follow the plan.
Goal Achievement Exercise T

Failing does not make you a failure if you let it teach you lessons. Failure can be a
very positive experience if you dig through it to find a good lesson. List five failures that
caused setbacks in your life, and explain how you will avoid one of those failures in the
future. Also, write down a lesson you learned from this failure.
This is the way you turn negative experiences into a positive ones. Do it and
watch how your outlook brightens.
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Lifemoney Currency
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they
were to success when they gave up”.
-Thomas Edison
Don’t Complain - Fix It

So you’re not exactly an Arnold Schwarzenegger in the gym, a Donald Trump in
real estate or a Jay-Z in the studio. Don’t use that as an excuse to sit back and complain
about everyone else getting the breaks while the parade passes you by. If you want a
piece of the action, go after it with all the skills and abilities you have!
It’s easy to blame others for our own lack of success. But the truth is that to a
large extent we make our own successes and failures based upon our positive or negative
thinking. Negative people complain about things and positive people fix things. Which
have you been? Be honest with yourself. Looking back have you been a complainer or a
fixer? If you had it to do over, would you handle things differently? If so, how can you
use that knowledge to help you in the future?
People don’t just fall into piles of money or get yanked into auditoriums to
receive awards. Rather they give years of their lives charting a positive course and
expecting greatness. They have a mental certainty that what they’re doing will lead them
right to where they want to be. It usually doesn’t happen overnight, but it does happen.
Understand that a positive mindset happens first. Can you look back and judge
whether or not your mindset was positive or negative before you started your last
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venture? Did you miss opportunities or not take advantage of something because you
were thinking negatively right from the start? For example, did a previous employer offer
to pay the tuition for you to return to school, but you didn’t go? Perhaps you thought “I’m
too old” or “I don’t have the time right now”? Maybe you failed to follow up on a
special talent or skill, like drawing, that a former teacher encouraged because you
secretly had no confidence in your ability. Make a mental note not to miss these kinds of
opportunities again, especially if it was a thought that stopped you. Begin positive, stay
open and be ready to jump into action.
Is stress holding you back? Stress is often closely linked with a negative mental
attitude. Why? Negative thinkers typically think that they’re stuck and will be miserable
forever, and get frustrated. Positive thinkers are always focusing on ways to positively
impact their world, and never feel played out. The same is true about anxiety. These are
all signs of a distressed and negative mindset. The solution is to stop complaining and fix
your attitude.
How do you do that? You’ve heard me say that we cannot always control the
events in our lives, but we can control our responses to them and the actions we take as a
result. Begin using positive thinking to search for new ways to impact your life. Instead
of whining about what you don’t have, start looking for what you can get. If you want
people’s attention, get it in positive ways by becoming an encourager, an inspiration, and
a role model. People are much more likely to admire and support you if you adopt this
mindset in your everyday life.
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Lifemoney Currency
“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start
from now and make a brand new ending.”
-Anonymous
Goal Achievement Exercise U

Make a list of opportunities from the past that were missed due to negative
thinking. These could include lost academic, employment, or relationship opportunities.
This list is very important in your Lifemoney process because it points out potential areas
of negative thinking you’ve engaged in and will need to steer clear of in the future. When
you’ve completed this list, make a new list of potential opportunities for the future.
Include options like going back to school, developing new skills, overcoming a bad habit,
cultivating new relationships (or restoring old ones). Make the list with a new sense of
optimism and hopefulness. That’s a great first step in positive thinking.
Lifemoney Currency
“Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.”
-Winston Churchill
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The Key to Success? Live Out Of Your Car

Positively thinking is about believing in yourself enough to do anything! What do
the following tremendously successful people have in common: Hilary Swank, Jim Carey
and Jim Cramer (of Mad Money)? All of these people lived out of their cars for a short
period of their lives. Often when we look at successful people we only see the end result
without understanding what they had to go through to get where they are today.
Thousands of famous people in the world have hit unbelievable roadblocks but
stayed positive and changed the world, or at least their little piece of it. Some famous
examples include Beethoven, whose deafness did not stop him from composing classic
musical compositions; Helen Keller, who minus sight and hearing became a model of
inspiration to others; and even a modern example like Hilary Swank who after getting
fired from Beverly Hills 90210 for being a bad actress went on to win 2 Academy awards.
Successful people have a positive way of looking at things and an understanding
of obstacles being a temporary and inconvenient part of life. Positive thinking sets them
on a course for achievement.
Lifemoney Currency
“Adversity is another way to measure the greatness of individuals. I never had a crisis
that didn’t make me stronger.”
-Lou Holtz, football coach, broadcaster
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Worst Case - Best Case

Try this experiment to create more positive thinking. Think about something that
you are afraid to do because you think you might fail. What’s the worst thing that could
happen if you failed? Is that really that bad? Would you get over it if not immediately
than eventually? Let’s say for example that you were afraid to give a speech in front of a
group of people. What’s the worst case scenario? The worst case scenario would be that
you totally ruined the speech and bored everyone. So what’s the worst thing that could
happen? People laughing and throwing things? I doubt it. And if they did laugh, so what?
Who cares? Besides, who is going to think twice about your errors after they arrive home
that night? It would never happen. Most people don’t remember what even great
speakers say! Besides, most people in your audience would rather die than speak, so
you’re already way ahead of them.
You can “worst case/best case” think your way through any troublesome or
negative situation you encounter. Don’t be intimidated by life situations like this. Instead
think in terms of best case/worst case. Then take on life without apology or
embarrassment.
Lifemoney Currency
“The only disability in life is a bad attitude”
-Scott Hamilton
Keep It Moving
Unlike a great speech where you get immediate feedback, many of our efforts
don’t bring immediate results. You may submit a proposal and wait months before
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getting a reply. Or you could spend time helping a widowed neighbor with her lawn work
and never receive a word of gratitude. Unless you’re prepared to wait, lack of feedback
can lead to negative thinking. Stay positive by remembering that lesser, unrewarded
accomplishments often lay the foundation for building to higher levels of achievement.
Without those first small steps there could be no end result worth noting.
Teach yourself to stay positive even if nothing great appears to be happening and
keep it moving anyway if it is helping you reach your goals. Had I let negative thoughts
overtake me during times when it felt like I was not getting anywhere I wouldn’t be
where I am today: a self-made millionaire still young enough to physically and mentally
enjoy my success. Everyone faces down times. The way to get over them is to keep it
moving until something positive does happen. Think of it this way: you’re going to have
to spend the day in some way, why not be positive, productive and get something done?
Eliminate Negative Self-Talk

A huge part of controlling a positive thought process is by eliminating ongoing
negative self-talk. Do you ever catch yourself saying negative things in your head? It’s
human nature to soak up some of the negative energy surrounding us; those less than
positive vibes we hear a hundred times of day and can’t help but absorb along the way.
For example you’re working through a relationship problem and just start kicking around
words like these:
• Maybe I should break up with her.
• This relationship is going nowhere.
• It’s time for a change.
• She’s probably like all the others.
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Statements like these feed uncertainties in your mind and motivate negative
actions. They rob you of positive energy and momentum. Really look carefully at these
statements for a moment. Are they entirely accurate – or just knee-jerk reactions to
momentary troubles? It might simply be that the relationship is too new for either person
to know where it’s headed. Or maybe the girl has a habit that reminds you of someone
you used to date.
The key is to quickly counter the negative talk the instant you recognize it. Here
are some examples of transforming negative self talk into positive self-talk statements:
• Maybe I should give it another month or so.
• I’m going to call her and plan something exciting.
• We ought to try a little longer in case this turns out to be something good.
The idea is to simply stop thinking negatively and to find something good to say
“yes” to. The faster you find positive directions to turn to when you’re in the midst of a
negative talk meltdown, the faster your mind will change into a direction that goes
forward.
Create a Repeatable Success Thought

When you set your sights on a distant goal, it may seem unreachable at first. For
example, going back to college at 40, trying to get into graduate school, or climbing to
the top of your profession may seem unachievable at first, especially if others are telling
you it won’t happen. But that is the time to push the envelope to reach your dream.
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People who take a can-do attitude often repeat key phrases over and over in their
minds. I call these “success thoughts.” They’re like a subliminal message you play in
your mind whenever you’re beginning to lose confidence. They are phrases such as:
• I am not going to buy another pack of cigarettes.
• I do not need second helpings.
• Nothing can block my success.
• I will speak up at today’s meeting.
• I will take my wife to Hawaii next year.
Make your success thought as specific as possible, and repeat it often. The more you
say it, the sooner you will believe it.
Goal Achievement Exercise V

To avoid negative self-talk and track negative thoughts, write down positively
phrased replacement terms you can use as success thoughts. Be specific and limited.
Don’t write long sentences or anything that is too short or vague. For instance:
Negative thought: “I’ll never get my finances in order”
Don’t write these thoughts:
1. “I plan to stop spending too much money and will close all my extra credit
card accounts and only carry cash when I go shopping.” (Too long and
detailed)
2. “I’ll stop spending.” (Too short and vague)
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These thoughts are both non-specific and vague – You’ll stop spending for how
long? Forever? Neither of these statements will be particularly helpful in the real world.
Instead, use an expression that is easy to say and remember:
Write and repeat these success thoughts:
1. “I’ll use just one credit card.” (Positive, specific and helpful)
2. “I won’t charge more than $50 weekly.” (Positive, detailed and valuable)
Use your imagination to come up with more positive statements like these. After a
few weeks, update the success thought for a related goal, such as, “I’ll pay my balance
each month.” In no time you’ll be tuning in to your own thoughts for an easy-to-reach,
pre-recorded message that reminds you to stay on track.
Lifemoney Currency
“Anything is possible. You can be told that you have a 90-percent chance
or a 50-percent chance or a 1-percent chance, but you have to think
positive, and you have to fight.”
-Lance Armstrong
Positively Thinking Summary

Thinking in positive ways and using your mind for positive action lays the
foundation for future success. Everyone makes mistakes; it’s how you view them and
what you do about them that matters. When you fall down, do you lie there indefinitely or
do you get up and keep moving? You may have to try a different direction, but the
important thing is to think positive.
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Don’t let past failures hold you back. Keep focused on what you want. Don’t let
anything keep you from getting it. Although others may have held you back at one time
or another or you may have to seek help to reach your goal, remember that you are
responsible for how your life turns out. You can neither blame anyone exclusively for
your losses nor congratulate them solely for your gains. Think about the things that are
positive in your life. Give thanks and be happy!
Lifemoney Currency
“He who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by
changing anything but his own disposition will waste his life in fruitless
efforts.”
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_____ 1. I refuse to hold on to negativity and past misbehaviors.
_____ 2. I will continue viewing myself as a winner, not a loser.
_____ 3. I will not let others’ pessimism interfere with my plans to reach my goals.
_____ 4. I will act as if I’m in the role I want to play.
_____ 5. I am learning to manage personal and job-related stress by positive,
proactive thinking.
_____ 6. I am making consistent efforts not to complain, but rather, to fix my
situation.
_____ 7. I am watching for opportunities to say yes to.
_____ 8. I keep moving ahead even though I’m not getting immediately rewarded.
_____ 9. I repeat success thoughts to myself as often as possible.
_____ 10. I can see how past accomplishments have prepared me for the future.
Lifemoney Currency
“Some view the glass as half empty, some view the glass as half full. I view
the glass as half full, with the waiter on his way over to fill it up.”
-Brad Turk
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Lifemoney Lesson # 10: Sacrifice
“There are a lot of myths about my injuries. They say I have broken every
bone in my body. Not true. But I have broken 35 bones. I had surgery 14
times to pin and plate. I shattered my pelvis. I forget all of the things that
have broke.”
-Evel Knievel
Overview
Few of us do well with sacrifice; it just doesn’t come naturally. We want it all. We
want it now. If we could find a way we’d have it yesterday. Successful people know that
dreams don’t come pre-packaged overnight. They realize that to achieve their goals they
often have to sacrifice something in the present for what they want in the future. When
you recognize that sacrifice is frequently a part of success, it turns denying yourself into
investing in yourself.
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Borrow, Go into Debt and Max Out Your Credit Cards

Are you willing to max out your credit cards and assume massive debt to get
where you want to go? Before I go any further, I will tell you right off the bat that I
wouldn’t be. It’s a real risky strategy but sometimes when you believe in something
strongly enough, you have to make those kinds of sacrifices. Ask filmmaker Spike Lee.
In 1986, to get his first film project, She’s Gotta Have It, off the ground he did just that.
Was the sacrifice worth it? You’d need to ask him, but I can tell you that Spike would
probably say yes. It cost him $175,000 to make the movie and it grossed $7,100,000 in
domestic box office sales. Since then Spike Lee has produced at least 22 other films that
have made over $433,000,000 in sales. This much I can tell you; Spike Lee knows that
sacrifice can pay off - big time!
Big or small, sacrifice is often a part of any success story. Many immigrants come
to this country with nothing but the shirt on their backs. Within a generation, some
become millionaires. Why? Because they work hard, grateful for the opportunity to have
all the work they can handle. Some work two and three shifts for years at a time, sleeping
just a few hours a day, saving every penny to open a restaurant, store or business. Their
children attend the best colleges and inherit these successful companies started by the
hard-working immigrants. They lay everything they have on the line.
Yet, there are people who were born in this country who complain about the lack
of jobs. They are simply unwilling to sacrifice anything to get where they want to go.
Now I understand that not everyone is willing to sacrifice their ego or their prestige by
taking a low-paying, rigorous job to get where they want to go. But if that was the only
way, would you?
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Only you can decide what you are willing to sacrifice to reach your goals. Ask
yourself the following questions:
• What’s it worth for you to become truly successful?
• Will you work more hours at one or more jobs?
• Will you give up some free time to plan your future?
• Are you ready and able to do what it takes, at almost any cost, to reach out
and grab your future?
• Just how far are you willing to go?
It’s vital to answer these questions and know these things about yourself.
These answers are all good preparation for those moments when the amount of
your personal sacrifice is tested.
Lifemoney Currency
“Judge your success by what you had to give up to get it.”
-Dali Lama
Sacrificing for Success

Mike Luckovich, Pulitzer Prize winning political cartoonist, took a job as an
insurance salesperson straight out of college. Yet he worked up to eight hours a day after
his day job drawing editorial cartoons because that’s where his heart was. He had to
sacrifice his nights and his only free time in order to get where he wanted to go. There
were no shortcuts to success.
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Martin Luther King, Jr., spent months in prison rather than surrender his belief in
equal rights for all people. He could have taken the easy route to avoid jail time, or he
might have gotten discouraged and given up. But he stuck with it, improving the lives of
millions of people.
Ideals are not cheap. They are costly and precious. You have to be willing to do
whatever it takes to claim them. What do you have in your life now that is expendable,
which you would be willing to exchange for something even more valuable? Is it time?
Money? Resources? Possessions? Relationships? Only you have the answer to that
question., and you will have to be ready to give it when the time comes.
Goal Achievement Exercise W

List the tradeoffs you are willing to make to reach one of your goals. Choose one
of your goals and write it out. Below the goal you just wrote, list three things you now
do, have, and/or enjoy that you are willing to part with in exchange for your goal. For
example, if becoming more physically fit is one of your goals, your sacrifices could
include six hours of your time each week for daily workouts, $100 per month for a gym
membership, and giving up your weekly poker game to play tennis, etc.
Often the difference between attaining your goal and just dreaming about it are is
the things you are willing to sacrifice. Are you “all in” as they say in Texas Hold ‘em?
Are you fully committed and in “do or die” mode, or is your goal just a casual want?
Only you know, and I can’t make up your mind for you. However, I am committed to
helping you get where you want to go. So let me offer you four guidelines for learning to
sacrifice just a little so you can gain a whole lot more in return.
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Lifemoney Currency
“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and
looks like work.”
-Thomas Edison
Number 1: Count the cost

I would love to tell you that success is free and painless. But as we’ve seen that’s
not always the case. Success has value because you have to work for it – you earn it.
Have you ever planned to buy a special gift for someone? You may set aside
every extra penny you can get your hands on in anticipation of buying that present.
Whether it costs $20 or $200, you eagerly add a few dollars here and there to save up the
needed amount. When you get enough, you proudly go out and purchase the gift,
presenting it to your friend or loved one with a sense of tremendous accomplishment.
You can view your goals in the same way. If you could just reach out and get
them today, there would be no effort or cost attached—and they would mean very little.
But after years of careful thought and unwavering perseverance, when you do reach your
goals, they will mean the world to you because of what it cost to reach them.
Imagine a scenario of two young women. One is given everything by rich parents
who buy her everything she needs and most things she wants. The second is raised in a
poor family and is never given anything but a kick out the door when she turns sixteen.
They’re both chasing the same dream: business success. Ten years later they both have
good jobs – the first in her own company funded by her parents and the second in her
own company that she scraped together every penny to start. Which one do you think
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appreciates the success more? You know the answer. Why does she appreciate it more?
It’s common sense that when you pour out your own blood, sweat and tears for
something you’ll own it in a way that nobody else can appreciate. That cost is part of the
joy of success. Period.
In planning for your future, you have already begun to outline some of the goals
you hope to reach and have created a plan to get there. But no plan is complete without
counting the cost of reaching your objectives. Are you ready to figure out what it will
cost in time, money, and sacrifice to reach this goal? Here are some of the possible
“costs”:
• Give up an hour or more of sleep to work on my plan (get fit, write a book,
etc.).
• Set aside weekly reflection time to check my progress and adjust my plan.
• Invest a certain amount of income toward reaching my goal(s).
• Develop a needed skill through a second job, volunteering, or taking a class.
• Get feedback from those who already have accomplished similar goals.
• Seek help when I get stumped, have a question, or run into problems.
• Put less important things on hold, at least temporarily.
• Find the non-essential time-eaters in my life and eliminate them.
You’ve probably heard the saying, “anything worth having is worth working for.” Do
you feel that way about your road to success, or do you have more of a take-it-or-leave-it
attitude? The importance you attach to your quest will determine the amount of energy
you will spend to reach it.
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Lifemoney Currency
“One half of knowing what you want is knowing what you must give up before you get
it.”
-Sidney Howard
Number 2: Delay gratification

Sociology experts tell us that one of the differences between the lower class and
the upper class is the ability to delay gratification. Those who struggle with poverty are
often willing to trade the shirt on their backs for a one-time meal. They fail to realize that
keeping the shirt allows them to work outdoors in bad weather to provide many meals.
Underachievers live for the day and overachievers live for the future. If you spend all you
have, there will be nothing left. But if you save and invest it, you will have enough for
today and tomorrow, too. It’s a simple fact of life.
What percentage of your daily schedule do you devote to working toward goals?
Are you so preoccupied with getting by today that you haven’t given much thought to the
days that will follow? You really must plan on setting aside between three and six
months’ of income in case of a job loss or disability, but less than twenty percent of the
population do so. The wealthy will have enough from current savings and investment
plans, but those with mid-level or sporadic income typically focus more on the here and
now than on a plan for tomorrow. Delaying gratification is one way to begin building
stores of resources for the unseen challenges that will come.
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Delaying gratification is something you get used to. When you think about it,
many areas of our lives undergo postponement. In other words we’re doing it anyway.
For example most of us don’t get paid for our work at the end of each day. Instead, we
collect paychecks every week, every other week, or at the end of the month. Often we
don’t find out about a medical test result for several weeks. All of these things take
patience, which in the end brings it own kind of reward. When you have successfully
conquered the need for instant gratification, almost any achievement in the world will
become immediately more achievable.
Goal Achievement Exercise X

Let’s build your ability to delay gratification. List two or three fun things you
want to do today. It might be go for a walk, play tennis, eat some ice cream, go
shopping, watch your favorite television program, etc. Make sure that those things on
your list are things you really want to do. Then underneath each item you expect to give
yourself today, list something you will get done before you have your fun. List one or
two tasks you will have to complete before you get your reward. If you are consistent in
doing the task before you get your reward your tolerance for delayed gratification will
grow. This might challenge you and be a little difficult. We are all tempted to skip the
difficult stuff of our lives and go straight to the fun. Do this exercise well and discover
how much more you get done and how much better you feel.
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Lifemoney Currency
“I’ve always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don’t
do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-
hearted results.”
-Michael Jordan
Number 3: Pull the trigger NOW!

What I’m talking about here is taking the leap, pulling the trigger and going for it.
Many goals that seem hard at first become easier once you get momentum established.
But you won’t know that until you pull the trigger and get moving. Most of us lead busy
lives. We barely have enough time to get through a typical day with the demands of
work, family, and social activities. Finding time to work on long-range goals may seem
impractical. But actually, setting aside time for future rewards is like making deposits in a
savings account. You may be reluctant to open a bank account, and it may seem difficult
at first to find enough extra income to make regular deposits. But with a little effort, you
can arrange for a direct deposit straight from your paycheck, so you will never miss the
amount of each savings account deposit, especially if you begin with a reasonable
amount, say $25 per month. So do it. Just do it.
The same is true for working toward your future goals. Start small. Devote fifteen
to thirty minutes several days a week to your goals. Depending on what you hope to
achieve someday, this could involve reading, making community contacts, doing
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volunteer service, or a thousand other things that will move you closer to your goals –
remember that grid from Achievement Exercise M. None of those tasks took a long time
– but each one was a step toward realizing a goal. Naturally, this means you’ll have to
give up something in exchange for this valuable daily time. Should it be a television
program? An after dinner nap? You will have to decide what you are willing to give up in
exchange for the time you need to work on your goals. Whatever it is you must give up,
do it. Pull the trigger already.
And keep pulling the trigger at each “next” level of achievement you’re taking.
Whatever your goal, keep in mind that you may have to work through several levels of
effort to reach them. For example, if you want to get involved in local government, you
may need to first attend some political rallies, visit with your representative, or volunteer
as an aide to learn the ropes. Remember that one of the keys to success is to learn
everything about the role you want to play, from the inside out. Everyone has to pay their
dues as they work, so pull the trigger now and get your show rolling. It isn’t reasonable to
expect that you will suddenly become the next mayor of your town just by wishing for it
to happen. But if you keep pulling the action and sacrifice trigger, you will be rewarded.
The following is a great thought on the payoff of sacrifice quoted from the book
The Rules of Life by Richard Templar. This is the perfect summary of the frustration we
all face when we finally act and begin the process of making sacrifices to reach goals:
“Someone once said that ‘half of the money spent on advertising was wasted,’ but
he didn’t know which half. His point was, of course, that if you can’t tell which
half, then you have to keep on doing the whole lot, fully aware that not all of it
will produce rewards. Life is a bit like that. Sometimes it seems unfair. You put in
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loads of effort and get nothing back. You’re polite to people and everyone seems
rude back. You work up a sweat, and others cruise it. Well, you have to keep
doing the 100% because you don’t know which bits will pay off. I know it isn’t
fair, but then life isn’t. Your efforts will be rewarded eventually, but you’ll
probably never know which efforts are being rewarded -- or for what -- and which
aren’t.”
This quote summarizes a great lesson I’ve learned throughout my successes. The
lesson is that you must continually give 100% effort in the direction of your dreams.
Why? Because success has many moving parts and you can never be totally sure what
will work and what won’t work. The only certainty you can expect is that if you give a
continued effort something will pay off that will make it all worthwhile. It’s a simple
lesson that has never failed to produce great results for me.
Lifemoney Currency
“I wasn’t going to be one of those people who died wondering what if? I
would keep putting my dreams to the test—even though it meant living with
uncertainty and fear of failure. This is the shadowland of hope, and anyone
with a dream must learn to live there.”
-Alex Haley
Number 4: Be Prepared
In an inner city high school auditorium is a quote from a well-known figure,
engraved there to inspire the youth of that school. It reads:
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“I will study and get ready, and someday my chance may come.”
The emphasis is on the preparation. Good things don’t just happen to us. Maybe
they should, but they rarely do. Instead, we have to figure out which ones we want most,
and then force ourselves to work hard for them.
Sacrifice is sort of the dirty word of success. Nobody wants to hear about effort
and work and sweat. But show me someone who has achieved their dream without it.
Those people just don’t exist. The good news is that if you’re in love with your dreams
and want them so badly you can taste them, the work doesn’t seem like work. In
addition, if you build your Lifemoney, the whole process of success becomes easier.
Preparing yourself is simply about getting yourself mentally prepared to do whatever is
required to go after your dreams. It’s not nearly as bad as you might think, and if you
love where you’re going you can know ahead of time that you have a lot of pleasure
ahead waiting on you.
One of my favorite movies is The Untouchables. It’s the story of how FBI agent
Elliot Ness took down the infamous gangster Al Capone in the mid-thirties. In the
movie, one of Ness’s fellow agents, an Irish cop played by Sean Connery, asks the scared
and unsure Ness “What are you prepared to do?” It was a question of challenge in the
face of great fear and intimidation. Are you prepared to follow this through, no matter
what the cost? That question hangs in the air several times during the movie as all the
men do a gut check as to their willingness to take down the feared Capone. At the climax
of the movie, having been mortally shot, Connery for the last time looks into Elliot
Ness’s eyes and asks “What are you prepared to do?”, then he dies.
What are you prepared to do?
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Sacrifice Summary
Sacrifice isn’t the fun part of success. No one likes to sit around wondering what
he or she has to give up as an investment in a dream. But don’t dwell on the negative
aspects of “what do I have to give up?” Instead, focus on “what am I going to get in
return?” Investments of time or money are long-term deals. Most do not pay off
immediately, and some require harder work than others. But if you keep putting in the
effort, the payoff will eventually be seen.
Only you can decide what you are willing to give up in reaching your goals.
What’s it worth for you to become truly successful? Will you work more hours at one or
more jobs? Will you give up some free time to plan your future? Are you ready and able
to do what it takes, at almost any cost, to reach out and grab your future?
Don’t spend the rest of your life wondering what might have been. Keep your eye
on the prize and focus on what you’re going to get in return. Be prepared to give up more
of what you have to get more of what you want. In the end, sacrifice pays off.
Lifemoney Currency
“One hundred percent of the shots you don’t take don’t go in.”
-Wayne Gretzky
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_____ 1. I have identified several things in my life that I must sacrifice for success.
_____ 2. I am willing to pay the cost that is required for me to meet my goals.
_____ 3. I am prepared for life.
_____ 4. I have calculated my goals’ financial costs and scheduling adjustments.
_____ 5. Some of my goals will require that I hang tough.
_____ 6. I am willing to set aside less important activities to focus on my goal.
_____ 7. I will put forth 100% effort at all times.
_____ 8. I am learning to delay my gratification for both the present and the future.
_____ 9. I am pulling the trigger on my talent today.
____ 10. I believe that planning for the future is as important as getting by today.
Lifemoney Currency
“Don’t sacrifice what you want most for what you want now”
-Brad Turk
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Lifemoney Lesson # 11: Be Patient and Enjoy the

Journey
“The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the
same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.”
-Don Williams.
J
Overview
Having patience is a key ingredient to successful living. By patience, I mean the
ability to sit back and relax while waiting for an outcome; without experiencing anxiety,
tension or frustration. It is the ability to let go of the need for immediate gratification. It
is the ability to settle down and relax and maintain a stress-free focus on where you’re
going. Develop patience and the ability to enjoy your journey and your life will become
better than you would have ever imagined.
Doing Time
Do any of these sound like you?
1) I get frustrated when I can’t get instant results.
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2) I will never get to all the things I have to do.
3) I can’t stop for even a second until I reach my goal.
4) I hate having to do or say something more than once.
5) If something doesn’t work immediately, I’m going to move on to something

else.
6) I just don’t know where to start - this task has two many steps.
If you recognize yourself in any of these then you need to pay close attention to
what I’m about to say. There are many negative consequences on health, relationships
and personal growth when you lack patience. It’s as if patience is a simple building
block of satisfaction, without which you are going to suffer. Once you have done your
best to plan your success and have pulled the trigger and put your full effort forward, you
need to be patient and wait for your results. Accept that you don’t need to rush things
ahead of their time and keep the belief that your day to day efforts will pay off in the long
run.
When you force efforts, the results just won’t last long. Gradual change and
growth give you the greatest chances for success. When you stress yourself to create
results too quickly, you run the risk of anxiety, unhappiness and sometimes even anger.
This can further result in losing important things like business relationships, jobs and
friendships.
I have to be honest with you: I happen to be a very impatient person. This is one
of my personal flaws that I am working on. But I am careful to differentiate urgency,
which is a powerful force that gets things done, from impatience, which can be very
destructive. How do I differentiate the two? A sense of urgency is a good and powerful
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tool. It’s a quality that helps me act quickly and get an enormous amount done. But when
urgency is applied to things I can’t change, urgency turns damaging and can lead to
senseless and sometimes destructive impatience. This is a struggle for me as it might be
for you.
Let me describe this in another way: I like to complete things quickly and I don’t
like waiting for my rewards. If I’m not careful this can create impatience in me. For
example when I take on tasks that are really time consuming (this book for example), I
have an unrealistic expectation of speed. There is no way a sense of urgency can create
the satisfaction of writing a best seller (let’s hope this will be) instantly because of the
timeframes involved in the task. I can’t control those timeframes. It’s the impatience
that comes along after this frustrated sense of urgency which can be destructive to me.
And this is probably true for you too.
How do you and I remain urgent without dying from impatience and anxiety?
The big lesson I’ve learned is to focus on controlling what I can control, and don’t let the
things I can’t control stress me out. If I can’t change or alter a situation, I need to clear it
from my mind.
Mañana
I learned the true meaning of controlling what you can control when I was
working on a deal in Mexico City, Mexico. I’d been working on this deal for a while and
doing all of my communications with Mexico via the telephone. It seemed as if I had
finally worked out all of the points (including the pricing) and that all that was to go to
Mexico and sign contracts. Based on where I was in the process and the faith that I had in
my contacts in Mexico, I’d brought on an investor to put up the money for the deal. I told
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the investor where I was in the deal (just going to finalize and sign paperwork) and had
given him the price points that were worked out. Based on the trust that I had built with
the investor on past dealings, he decided to partner with me and put up the $1,600,000
that was needed to get this project going.
I flew down to Mexico for my big meeting and to sign paperwork. When I sat
down in my meeting and went over the paperwork that they had prepared, I noticed that
they had changed all of the terms of the deal. When reviewing the numbers in this new
version of the proposal it was obvious to me that we would lose money if we signed that
deal.
Outraged by what transpired, I picked up my things and told the company I was
meeting with that I would look over their new terms, and then I left the meeting.
So there I stood in Mexico, $1.6 million already invested in the equipment needed
for this project, a partner who trusted me enough to put up that $1.6 million dollars, me
not speaking a word of Spanish (or only enough to order dinner and maybe get directed to
a bathroom) and no deal on the table. There was so much I had no control over.
It took all the Lifemoney lessons I talk about in this book to get me through this
situation, and patience was number one. I wanted this deal done. What was I going to do
now? Go home with no deal and give up? How could I tell my investor what happened?
Was I going to start from scratch after all this work in putting together this deal?
What I did was relax, regroup and come up with a game plan. I immediately
extended my trip from 2 days to a full week. I hired a translator to come to meetings with
me in case the parties I would call on did not speak English fluently. I spent the next day
gathering information on contact names for all of the competitors of the company that I
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had met with. I started making calls and finding out key contacts and setting up
appointments. I met with 8 competitors of the company that I had my initial meeting with
and I signed 2 contracts before I left Mexico.
I wound up getting an even better deal than I would have initially. Why? Because
I was patient and focused on controlling what I could control. If I did not have the
patience to stick this out, I would have never completed this deal that wound up being a
very successful project for me.
So what should you do to be more patient?
Make an effort to keep track of the following things:
• Break large goals into pieces and focus on one piece at a time.
• Focus on the results and not the task.
• Look at the things you have accomplished to date.
• If your goals don’t seem to be on track, reevaluate your objectives and make
your goals more realistic for your needs.
• Remind yourself that you are human and that all great minds have been
through what you are going through to achieve what you desire.
• Stay busy. Get preoccupied with another task until you have results from the
first.
• Reward yourself for completing something difficult. Do something fun and
celebrate your incremental success.
If you understand that success is a journey you will begin to enjoy each moment
and will realize that being impatient is counterproductive and takes away from the joy of
life.
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Enjoy the Journey

The purpose of life is not to work hard for 40 years and be miserable so that you
can retire at age 65 and enjoy the last years of your life. You need to start enjoying a little
everyday. Who said life has to be hard? It is only tough if you make it tough. You need to
live today like it was your last day and plan for tomorrow as if you were living forever.
Don’t take time for granted and let your life pass you by. If you do, before you know it,
you will wake up and have missed out on what life really has to offer.
Think of all the fun and excitement you will miss if you don’t savor every
moment. Remember when you were a kid and you wished you were older? How many of
you wish you were younger again? We always wish for what we don’t have and don’t
appreciate what is right in front of us. We need to count our blessings and enjoy what we
do have and make the most of every day.
Here’s a very personal technique I rely on to help me enjoy the daily journey.
When I am having a bad day, I find something to make me realize that it’s not as bad as I
think it is. For example, I’ll think back to a time that I was sick in bed just wishing to be
healthy to be able to be outside and enjoy a beautiful day. I’ll realize today is beautiful
and I should appreciate my health. I open the window or take a walk outside and enjoy it.
The 5 Year Test

Another very effective technique I use is the 5 Year Test. Are your problems
really as serious as you think they are? I think about my problem and imagine how it will
affect me 5 years from now. In 5 years looking back at the issue, will I even remember it?
How will it affect my life? Try it! Either take a problem that you are going through now
or remember one from 5 years ago and see what came of it. Chances are you will look
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back and think “I can’t believe I spent time worrying about that” or “I can’t believe that
even bothered me.”
Do you remember your first break up? No matter how sad you were at the time, it
probably has no bearing on your life now at all. A death in the family is terrible and
needs grieving. You will remember that in 5 years. Getting fired from a job? That may
be a blessing in disguise. In 5 years it may turn out to be the biggest break of your whole
life!
Goal Achievement Exercise Y

List 2 problems that you have had in the past, that when you look back on, they
seem unimportant. Now, list 2 problems that you are presently facing and put them
through the 5 year test. Decide if these problems are really that important to your life that
you should be wasting precious time and energy worrying about them.
Seek Happiness in Simplicity

Never let life’s disappointments keep you from having a good time. Everyday is
filled with something good or exciting that can be easily overlooked when we are
preoccupied. A good meal, a joke, spending time with friends or family, or listening to
good music should be enough to keep us going and to get us over daily disappointments.
Don’t get so involved in the little negatives that you don’t appreciate life’s big positives.
Time moves faster than we all want to believe, so we need to make the most out of our
time. Don’t let one day pass you by without appreciating something that you may never
have or see again.
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In the best-selling book, Tuesdays With Morrie, author Mitch Albom visited a
former professor, Morrie, each Tuesday after the older man was diagnosed with Lou
Gehrig’s disease. In a chapter entitled We Talk About The Perfect Day, Albom asked
Morrie a question:
"What if you had one day perfectly healthy ...What would you do?" Morrie
talked of ordinary things like a breakfast of sweet rolls and tea, a swim,
friends over for lunch, talking with people, a walk in the midst of nature,
going out to a restaurant for supper, dancing. And going home and having a
wonderful sleep. "That’s it," he is asked. "That’s it," Morrie replies. "It was
so simple. So average. I was actually a little disappointed. I figured he’d fly
to Italy or have lunch with the President or romp on the seashore or try
every exotic thing he could think of. After all these months, lying there,
unable to move a leg or a foot - how could he find perfection in such an
average day?"
Then I realized this was the whole point" (p.175)
This illustration drives home the point that while we spend a good part of our
lives in pursuit of lofty goals, at the end of the day what is truly important may be the
simple, unnoticed things we do all the time. Don’t overlook the obvious in your quest for
the brilliant.
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Lifemoney Currency
“There is no one thing that is more important than everything else.”
-Brad Turk
Appreciate what you have and don’t complain and make excuses; there is always
someone with less doing more than you. Some people complain about going to work
when they work in beautiful air conditioned offices. Think about the person who is
working outside in the heat, better yet, the person who is unemployed and is worried they
might be evicted if they don’t get a job soon. Think about a handicapped person who was
born with a disability yet despite their struggles are making three times more money than
you are because they are working smarter and harder. The people who succeed find
reasons why they can do something, the people who fail find excuses for why they can’t.
Don’t make excuses find solutions and make it happen. In the process appreciate what
you have and enjoy it.
GOAL (Go Out And Live)

If you do what you enjoy doing and have a passion for it, it won’t feel like work.
It is easier to “enjoy the journey” if you pick things in life that excite you and keep you
stimulated. In other words, it is best to have a fire in your gut for what you’re doing! I
don’t necessarily agree with a lot of successful people who say that if you don’t have a
passion for something you can’t be successful. I know successful people who are making
it big in things they don’t care about. But I do agree that passion helps. I think people are
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a lot more motivated to satisfy a deep passion than they are to merely satisfy the
requirements of a “job.” At least that’s the way I am.
But what if your job is the last thing you feel passion for? What if you are one of
those people who has to put up with an aggravating boss, long unwanted hours or
working in a field that’s paying the bills even if you don’t enjoy the work? What are you
supposed to do?
I’ve never been a person that thinks you need “passion” for your job to get what
you want out of life. In fact, I’ve worked in situations that I didn’t have the least amount
of passion only because I knew that if I stuck with it I’d get something that I wanted out
of it. My suggestion is that if you have a good job for which you don’t feel a lot of
passion, see your job as your vehicle to get you someplace else. Sometimes the ends do
justify the means. Use Lifemoney Lessons to set a course for what you really want while
you do your very best where you are. Try to create an external world outside of your
business that enables you to have fun, be stimulated and enjoy life….and create some
financial success that can free you.
You can do that. If you can’t stand doing what you’re doing, then look hard to
find something you’re passionate about and consider a career change now. But whatever
you do, make sure you “Go out and live!” and don’t miss the beautiful things in life today
because you’re so down about your situation.
There is a story about a young man who wanted to become a famous writer. Day
after day, he locked himself into his attic office and plugged away, writing one
manuscript after another and firing them off to the publishers in hopes of being accepted.
He hardly noticed the leaves turning colors outside his small window. Then one day he
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waited for his small daughter to bring up the mail, hoping as usual for a long-awaited
letter of acceptance from a publisher he mailed out to. As he got angry when she did not
bring the mail at exactly 2 p.m., the man went downstairs and was amazed by the quiet
that filled his whole house. Walking through one room after another, they were all empty
of his family and furniture. On the kitchen counter was a note:
“We couldn’t take the sadness of missing you at dinner and the kids’ softball
games, and have moved out. Better luck with your novel.”
Ironically, in checking the mail, the man, now middle-aged, found a publisher’s
letter saying that his book would be published. But it had cost him far more than he had
ever imagined. The moral of this story is that success by any means doesn’t always
“mean” success. That’s why you’re reading a book called Lifemoney and not Mega-
Millions-Billions-Never-Enough-money. Make sure you’re enjoying the journey as you
go or you will have to face some very serious regrets.
Goal Achievement Exercise Z

List 5 things that you are going to do to ensure that you are enjoying your journey
through life.
Renew your energy. Sometimes you need to walk away from things and get a new
perspective and sometimes you just need a break. It could be a ten minute break to get a
cup of coffee and stretch or it could even be a week off to take your mind off things and
have some fun. Don’t stop yourself from relaxing and recouping. Again, the object is to
make your life enjoyable. If you are stiff and focused on a goal and have such blinders on
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that you are letting life pass you by, you are missing out. You need to have a balance. My
motto is work hard, play hard. I don’t want to miss out on life to get my reward someday
in the future. I want my rewards as I go along.
Patience and Enjoying the Journey Summary
Life is funny. It goes by both very fast and very slow. As life is moving by at
warp speed we ask ourselves over and over again: How can I have the best life possible?
It’s not an easy question to answer, and sometimes the answers you generate for yourself
are wrong. This much I know: success without enjoying your journey through your days
is pretty worthless. Take the time to smell the roses, because when you’re finally done
and outta here, the small everyday things are the things you’re going to miss the most. If
you’ve figured out what you’ll miss the most when you leave, you’ve gone a long way to
deciding where to spend your free time, and how to really enjoy the ride.
Lifemoney Currency
“Enjoy life. There’s plenty of time to be dead.”
-Anonymous
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_____ 1. I will have urgency in my work and patience waiting for my results.
_____ 2. I believe my day to day efforts will have an effect in the long run.
_____ 3. I will practice the 5 Year Test
_____ 4. I will not stress over things I can’t control.
_____ 5. I will break goals into pieces and patiently work on one piece at a time.
_____ 6. I will not wait until it is too late to enjoy my life.
_____ 7. I will find something positive out of everyday.
_____ 8. I will take time to stop and smell the roses.
_____ 9. I will not take for granted what I already have.
_____ 10. I will take a break from time to time to rejuvenate and enjoy my life.
Lifemoney Currency
“Live today like it was your last day, and plan for tomorrow as if you were
living forever.”
-Brad Turk
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101 Affirmations
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Lifemoney

the Life You WANT

By Self-made Millionaire Brad Turk

success and develop wealth and personal satisfaction

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in

a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or any other means electronic,

mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written

permission of the publisher.

and will not be sidetracked....

Introduction: Millionaire by 30, Retired by 35: What Lifemoney Means

Life comes first, not money.

but can be adopted at any age.

daily basis or brings you closer to your goals.

Lifemoney begs the universal question: What do I really want? Is it money?

You don’t have to be a celebrity – or even a millionaire – to feel successful and

My definition of success is simple: Accomplishing what you set out to do.

using those traits effectively.

pieces for easy understanding and implementation.

In this book, you’ll find ways of:

• Understanding what success means to YOU

• Matching what you want with your abilities

• Learning to go after goals by setting specific tasks with timelines

• Learning how to focus, prioritize and manage time

• Learning the value of determination and commitment in attaining

• Learning how to evaluate progress and welcome criticism

• Learning how to be resourceful when overcoming obstacles

• Learning how to deal with people effectively

• Learning how to use creativity to get more out of life

• Using the power of positive thinking

• Being patient and enjoying the journey

you’ve always been looking for.

download on my website at www.bradturk.com. These proven tools are specifically

Repeat these affirmations to yourself when you need a quick boost.

can’t live in this world without money. What’s the answer?

“It’s never too early…to make your first million.”

yourself. Through experiences as diverse as being a break dancer, actor, salesman,

various ventures in the telecommunications industry, entertainment field and having a

just a short time I can show you how.

won’t be insulted. You can always come back to me later).

ethic, and she was a tremendous teacher.

auditions to try breaking into the business.

To follow my dream I had to overcome several obstacles. For starters, I was a

Persistence Pays Off

query letters with photos and resumes.

get one response either time.

relationships versus burning bridges.

signed with Schuller for representation.

success I was seeking.

Looking for Motivation

Someone in my homeroom class during senior year suggested a college she

my acting resume, I got accepted.

path for him – it wasn’t for me.

music, a lawsuit can result.

rap, let alone were successful at it.

value of this attribute and stored it away for later.

Learning About Business

industry, you need to work in it, even for free.

could have never learned anywhere else.

find it’s not what you expected it to be.

label, picked me up and got me signed to BMG for distribution.

showed up as bullet number 42 on the Maxi-Singles sales sheet. Eventually it went to

conveniences. Money provides those things.

providing advice on retirement!