Disclaimer: The content displayed in the article is directly copied from boldanddetermined.com (which was closed down) to be available for those who are looking for it. Some parts were edited by the writer of this post to fit a wider audience and convery more benefits.
I tell you what, boy, I used to have a bum mentality to the max.
I didn’t want to spend a dime on anything. I’d waste time agonizing over a decision to buy something and I’d find myself just stressing about buying something little.
I used to eat tuna mixed with oatmeal. I paid for my gym membership fees over a 6 week period instead of paying it all at once.
I drove into a tree stump a week after buying a new truck and I had a huge dent in the bumper, I never fixed it because I didn’t want to pay the insurance deductible.
I’d never eat at a nice restaurant unless it was a big group get-together.
100% of the time I’d split the bill with anyone (girls included). If the food cost two dollars I’d get one dollar from the girl.
I’d pirate songs and movies instead of buying from iTunes or Amazon. I’d spend hours searching for and downloading a movie or song instead of paying a few bucks to get it instantly.
That was my life before money. I was a bum and I didn’t even know it.
The bums always like to say money doesn’t buy happiness, but I sure wouldn’t go back to wasting my time stealing a song when I could buy it for $1 and have it instantly.
Money doesn’t buy happiness, ok, it just buys anything you want. So if you want happiness just buy some.
There are two real great benefits to having money….
- Money takes care of any problem. You might think it doesn’t, but you’d be wrong.
- Money puts a big emotional divide between you and average people (including your friends and family).
Average people are average for a reason and only average people would want to hang out with other average people. Extraordinary people want to spend time with other extraordinary people.
Having that emotional divide keeps you away from the mundane of the average.
Average people lack ambition, they lack courage, they’re petty, they’re jealous, they’re envious, they’re vindictive, they’re broke, they’re gossipy, they don’t want anyone else to succeed if they can’t…
And if you spend time with them you will end up the same way.
Money buys your freedom from these bums and it buys you a better class of people to spend your time with.
Attitude is the one quality that separates a winner from a loser. A guy who’s broke but has the right attitude is better company than a guy who has money but the wrong attitude.
A guy who’s broke but has the right attitude will rectify the situation. Someone with a winning attitude will spend the required time it takes to win.
Losers will say “that’s too long, I want it now” and then they’ll quit. Those are the types of people you want to quarantine yourself from.
How long will it take to build a business, build a body and get rich?
It’s not even a real question, it’s a way for you to say “oh, that’s too long. I’ll just do something else“.
“How long will it take?” is a moronic, unanswerable question so if you ask it you must be a moron, right?
It will take as long as it takes and when you ask that question what you want is an excuse to quit. You can’t have excuses from me.
If you put in the required work with full 100% focus you will reap the rewards.
Escape the 9-5 Jive
The ability to make money for yourself is not just a fun daydream. It is a necessity. Your job could be taken away in an instant. If you do not have the ability to go out and make money for yourself you can find yourself in disastrous circumstances if you are unable to get another job.
The game has changed. The players have changed. Used to be a man could work with the same company his whole life, make a good enough salary to support his family, and he did not have to worry much about his job going to China, or India coming to him and taking his job, or having to work underneath incompetent affirmative action hires, or being discriminated against in favor of equal opportunity hires. Today, you can lose your job at the drop of a hat with no guarantee of getting another any time soon, or with quality pay and benefits.
The good news is that there is an entire world of possibilities available to everyone. Every single person has something they are good at. It is your duty to yourself, as a man, to exploit your qualities and cultivate the ability to make money on your own without an HR representative deciding whether or not you are worthy of employment.
What about my degree? Doesn’t that guarantee me a good job?
Unless you studied medicine, engineering, law, computer science or something similar you probably have a useless degree. Don’t feel too bad, there are millions just like you. Think of it as a very expensive lesson: You can rely on yourself and only on yourself. A degree is a guarantee of nothing.
7 Reasons to Start Your Own Business
1) Your job isn’t safe and in your control unless you are the HMFIC (Head Mother-fucker in charge).
2) Hard work doesn’t pay off unless the results of your hard work and dedication go directly into your pocket. In the corporate world the only thing that pays off is your ability to play the game and woo the psychopaths in charge.
3) Even if you continue to work a job you will have multiple streams of income, one of the most important aspects of wealth building.
4) When you are working for yourself you are freer than working for a company. Take vacation time or sick time whenever you please with no consideration for the amount of sick days or vacation days HR has graciously given to you.
5) Working forty hours a week, 5 days a week (before over-time) in a drab office is overkill. It’s too much. One could work 20 hours per week, 2-3 days per week in the office and produce the same results and enjoy a better quality of life. Working for yourself allows you to pick and choose your hours and modify as necessary.
6) Your job is no guarantee of a future. The economy has no guarantee of recovery. There is no guarantee that 3rd world immigrants are ever going to stop entering your country to work for less than you. There is no guarantee that there will be more jobs created. The only guarantee you have is the skill-set you possess and your determination.
7) Working in a corporate office is soul-killing. It’s dull, drab and boring. There is no better cure for the blues than to stare at a check with your name on it and a whole bunch of zeroes.
The Four Ways to Make Money On Your Own
Selling Goods – Can you make something that will sell? This can include art, furniture, mechanical devices, computer programs or anything you can build.
Selling Services – Not everyone has the ability to make money using their mind. If you are good with your hands and have a skill-set (plumbing, carpentry, auto-mechanic) you will always have the ability to make money because people will always need work done.
Selling Information – This can range from becoming a consultant to selling information via books, seminars or selling information online. In what area do you possess knowledge? That knowledge can be sold.
Be a Middle Man** – Buy from person A at $10 apiece, sell to person B for $11 apiece. This can include importing and exporting goods, buying and selling cars, houses, guns, jewelry or baseball cards. Anything there is a market for can be exploited by a smart and savvy person.
You may have noticed it’s all about SALESMANSHIP. To venture out on your own you are required to sell yourself and to sell yourself well. You must have the confidence of a salesman. You must present yourself as an expert in your field. You will have to ask, or market, for business. You will have to negotiate payment and ask (or demand) payment. If you don’t have the cojones to do this then you will not make it far on your own. More than any skill, it takes gumption to go out on your own. If you can’t make a phonecall to a stranger and speak of your business then you can’t make money on your own.
How to Get Started
The way to get started is to concentrate on making your first bit of money. Putting all your extra time and energy into your side business with the intent of making it BIG. Even if you have no plans of ever leaving your job you will still have the extra income stream and the ability to make money on your own if the time should come.
If it is your goal to leave your 9-5 job forever then another step you must take is reducing your expenses. You will likely have a tough go of it at first and not have much extra money. It is imperative that you have only necessary and not frivolous expenses and bills.
Visualize your success. If you constantly think “this isn’t going to work. I’m never going to make any money” then you are right. You must think You must know it is going to work beyond a shadow of any doubt.
You’ve got to be an actor. Even if you are just starting out in your new venture you must never come across as inept and clueless. You will learn as you go, but at first, depending on what field it is, you must fake it until you are comfortable.
