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Declare Your Own Independence!

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One of the things that makes the US great is that it promotes the idea of independence, that is, that if you work hard enough for long enough, you can be your own boss. There are thousands, if not millions of people in the world who have realized the goal of being an independent person. And by independent person, I mean someone who has figured out a way to make their own decisions without fear of the consequences. The average person finds themselves enslaved by a job, a system, and a way of thinking that limits them from realizing their fullest potential. They have to go with the status quo because they aren’t saving money, nor continually networking for new opportunities, nor investing in their own vision.

An independent person knows that they have much more to offer than what their current station in life dictates. They also refused to be limited by a job title or perceived social status. They continue to strive to realize their vision and are focused on building assets that their progeny will be able to utilize for 100 years or more. Even if you find yourself working for someone else at the moment or having to participate in a system that isn’t beneficial for your ultimate welfare, you can declare your own independence and fight day after to day to eventually obtain freedom. independence starts with a state of mind and then it translates into reality.

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2018 Starts Now!

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We are now getting to the home stretch of 2017. And we have a powerful decision to make that will position us for a great New Year. We can decide TODAY to begin doing the things that we are telling ourselves (and others) that we will do once the clock strikes midnight and we enter into 2018. While I’m all about celebrating a New Year, I more concerned about you getting into gear so that you truly have something to celebrate above a date change. A new year means nothing if you haven’t begun the HARD WORK of proactively moving toward your goals. There’s a little more than a month left in 2017 and you have the tremendous opportunity to create Compound Momentum. Similar to compound interest, Compound Momentum is a force that will multiply the initial effort you began with.

I’ll give you an example. I am working on my second book and I’ve made a commitment to write everyday. I don’t set a time or word limit, my goal is just to get something new on paper everyday. As I commit to this goal and carry out its execution, I form a habit and I train my mind to be prepared to write. When I first started this process it was hard to hit my daily goal of writing, but now it’s becoming second nature. I don’t have to work as hard to write and this frees up my creativity. I like to think of this free flowing creativity as the interest I earning on my initial investment of consistency!

Think about where in your life you would like to see your effort compounded in 2018. Maybe in your relationships, career, business, or philanthropy. If you make that initial investment of effort now and stick to it, you will see the results you desire in the new year and probably over and above that.

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Ask for Help after You’re Successful

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When I first started doing music, I would get so frustrated because many of the people that I asked for help turned me down. And it wouldn’t always be a hard rejection. I recall instances of producers and other musicians giving me their numbers saying “let’s work”, and when I reached out, they played dumb or didn’t return my calls all-together. I was forced to build my own studio, make my own beats, and record myself. After I released my first album, people begin to see that I was really serious and some of my old phone calls got returned. When I started booking my own shows, a few more calls started coming in. I was still very rough around the edges, but people were attracted to my work ethic and potential. They saw that I was having success on my own.

Years later, I would come to understand that my music career was a start up business. Although I didn’t know it at the time, through my small successes I was demonstrating Proof of Concept to those watching me (who would later become investors in my business). Every start up must go through this phase. Before you reach out to investors, supporters, or ask for any other type of hand up in general, it’s important to establish that your idea works either fiscally or that it can become popular. Once you do this, you won’t have to do as much reaching out for help. Investors will be attracted to what you are doing because they can see that it works.

Waiting until you are successful on your own puts you in a position of power. Success gives you options and you can chose who you want to work with as oppose to being desperate.

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Think Like an Investor, not just a Consumer

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I really used to enjoy spending money, and in some cases I still do. I still spend a lot, the only difference is that now I buy more assets (things that make me money) instead of things that lose their value, wear out, and probably won’t even be worth 10% of what I initially paid for them. I’ve got the investor/owner bug heavy because once I realized that there are things that I can purchase that give me money back, I was hooked to this new way of thinking. I’ve also created a challenge for myself. Since I like very nice (and expensive things), I’ve made it a point to try to buy a piece of the companies that make them BEFORE I buy the luxury item. To take it further, you should look at items that you buy regularly, for example, coffee from Starbucks, or Shell Gas, and buy shares of stock in that company. It’s like putting money back in your pocket every time you buy something from these businesses.

We should all have something to show for our hard work. Many times, material liabilities (clothes, cars, toys, etc) will come and go. But assets that you purchase (stocks, real estate, precious metals, art) can be passed on from generation to generation, and ensure that you don’t have to work for someone else for the rest of your life.

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Find Your Power

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Power respects power. We are in a world where some people and institutions use it in a way that hurts others. There are those that use their power for good, but sometimes that can be hard to find. I tend to lean toward the opinion that it’s important to find our own sources of power instead of waiting for someone in a position of power to help us. If those who already have power decide to lend a helping hand, great. But it is wise not to hold ones breath in expectation. The case is usually that people and institutions with power like to interact with those who have the same characteristic. This presents a dilemma for the average person, small business, or group of people. What I advise is that people discover what makes them unique and harness that power to level the playing field in their favor. Perhaps you have a tremendous amount of charisma and are able to inspire people like none other. Or maybe you have a great network of people that you are surrounded by. There are some people who have an incredible prayer life and connection to the Most High, through that they are able to maintain a higher perspective on life. I suggest that whatever power you have at your disposal, you find a way to maximize it and use it to the utmost of its potential. Then you will begin to gain the respect of others that have tapped into their power.

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No One Builds and Empire Overnight

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If you’re like me, you set very big goals for yourself. I’ve set goals so big that I don’t know how I will be able to accomplish them. When I focus too much on the how of achieving something, I tend to get overwhelmed and stop trying to reach these objectives altogether. When I focus on the why I want to accomplish them, I am more energized and motivated to keep going. And as I keep going, the how I’m looking for seems to magically appear. I think it’s important for many of us to accept that building our empires will take a long time, probably longer than what we expected. It will also cost us more than we initially thought. Even with this fact in mind, the tenacity that we maintain toward achieving our dreams is the investment necessary to purchase the vision we hope for. When people give up, that’s usually a sign that they didn’t have enough faith capital to make the transaction. Faith capital has nothing to do with money and everything to do with your stubborn belief that what you seek after passionately long enough, is yours to obtain.

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Maintaining your Focus and Overcoming Distractions

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Our lives can become easily cluttered as we take on increasing responsibility. If we are not careful, you can find yourself drowning in a sea of good things and lose sight of what is best. We can get caught up in someone else’s life when we scroll through Instagram. Or we can never complete our to do list because we keep doing everything other than what we should be. I’ve personally had to make it a point to put a book next to my phone because I’ve developed a nasty little habit of checking my phone several times a day. In that same amount of time I could probably finish a chapter in a book that’s helping me get to where I want to go.

I’ve learned the importance of keeping my goals in front of me daily. I read them in my journal in the morning and before I go to bed. This habit has created a powerful psychological magnet that helps me attract what will get me closer to my goal. The truth of the matter is, we are not going to get any closer to what we want out of life unless we take consistent actions that are aligned with our overall desire. Also, we have to remind ourselves of who we are daily too. The day can sometimes get the best of us especially when unforeseen challenges arise. When we act out of character, taking a moment to remember who we are, what we stand for, and reciting our values will help us to get back on track.

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How to Ensure Success in Your Life

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Over the last several years, I have been driven by the pursuit of learning how to become successful. In this stage of my life, the aspect of success that I’ve focused on mainly has been financial freedom and wealth creation. The reasons why these are important to me now are 1) not to be and end up broke, 2) leaving an inheritance for my children and their kids, 3) being able to live the lifestyle that I want 4) Being able to be my own boss. The aspect of success that you are pursuing may be different from mine. Success means different things to different people. No matter the case, in all my research, through reading books, listening to podcasts, and watching seminars, I have learned that success all boils down to one thing. Our daily habits. There are certain activities that successful people do on a daily basis over a long period of time and this is the basis for their success. It’s really not a matter of chance. Even though so called luck can play a role in a persons success, your overall outcome is determined by your everyday decisions. And there is hard data to prove this. This knowledge has really excited me. We can choose to be successful in every minute of everyday and that can produce the lifestyle that we want down the road. I’ll share a few habits that successful people employ everyday, although there are literally hundreds of others.

  1. They exercise at least 4 times a week for at least 30 minutes a day.
  2. They spend 20-30 minutes a day learning something new.
  3. They are intentional about who they spend their time with. They try to limit their exposure to negative and unsuccessful people and try to increase their time with positive and successful people.

Utilizing these three habits alone on a daily basis should help you become more successful in your life.