I practically worship Frank Kern.  One day I'll go to the US and buy him something real nice for all the great stuff I've learned from him!

He says he learned this from John Carlton -- a legend copywriter.  It's basically 3 steps to selling more of anything.  3 steps to making a lot more money than you're making now.

The 3 Steps Are:

1.  Here's what I got
2.  Here's what it'll do for you
3.  And here's what I want you to do next

If you do those 3 things WELL enough, you'll make money, provided "what you got" is quality, not crap.

Watch the video here.
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Tags: copywriting, frank kern, make more money

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"Many people are uncomfortable about money and hence they keep themselves poor," says Mathews. He also adds: "If we are too attached to money, it becomes difficult to make it and difficult to hang on to it."

Simpleology Blog: Priceless Tips to Cure Your Money Phobia
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Tags: money, saving, money tips

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I'm one of those idiots who, when everyone said, "Put your money away, get a savings account", smiled broadly and said, "I don't need one, things will always be fine."  Yup, pretty stupid.

Things didn't go well last year and I'm still recovering.  So I decided to get a savings account. 

I wanted the best out there.  And not just to save but to save with the goal of putting enough away to invest.  You see, you won't get rich saving money.  You'll get rich by investing money.  But saving money is a pretty important milestone that comes before investing.  And so began my search for a decent savings account.

I eventually found Capitec.  They're not one of the big four and all the better they aren't!  Their focus seems to be on extremely simplistic banking for the lower-income bracket.  No fancy features and lucratively named accounts -- just a Global One account where you can stick your money and be sure to find it again next month!  Super! :D

They also offer 10% interest (per annum) on amounts under R10k.  That's more than any of the other banks will offer without holding onto your money for 3 months or more.  Sure there are some other options (from Sanlam and others) but the "bank" bit Capitec Bank gave me warm, mushy feelings, so I went with them.

Their setup isn't fancy and anal like the four big banks.  Nope, you basically have 4-5 people opening accounts and 1-2 cashiers, accepting deposits.

The process is so simple too...

1. Pitch up.
2. Have your ID, proof of residence and at least R10 to deposit.
3. Sit down with a consultant for 15 minutes, sign 2 forms and have your picture taken.
4. Collect card.
5. Desposit funds and walk out.

The forms are WAY simpler than most banking forms I've seen and the low deposit amount makes it easy for ANYONE to get one. Oh and the fees are just as attractive!

There's one catch / extra feature

If you want Internet Banking, you have to pay R125 for a special security device.  If you can't afford that / don't want to buy it, you don't get Internet Banking.  That can actually be a good thing as it stops you from messing with money you put away (by transferring it into other accounts).  So, as long as you keep your card in a safe place at home, your money is actually VERY likely (99.999%) to stay where you put it.  GREAT news :)

Pay yourself first

Now, the first rule you'll learn from Robert Kiyosaki, Tony Robbins, Suze Orman and others is that you should PAY YOURSELF FIRST!  This means that you rather let your bills wait and pay something (say 10%) of all the money you make into your savings account LONG before you pay rent, electricity, etc.  The psychology behind it is simple.  If you pay yourself first, you WILL find a way to get the money for your creditors.  If you pay them first, you just may neglect to save, which is pretty stupid.  (ie:  Like old me! :P)

So set up a stop-payment in one of your other accounts and make sure you put some money away each month before paying anyone else.  You'll amass a small fortune and, one day, maybe even have enough to invest as a Forex Trader :D

It's not how much you make...

And remember, it's not how much you MAKE but how much you KEEP and how much you GROW what you KEEP that counts.  I make double to triple of what most people my age make in a month.  I also spend about triple to quadruple what most people my age spend in a month, so it doesn't count ;)
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Tags: saving, investing, capitec, robert kiyosaki, suze orman, tony robbins

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If a job is worth doing, it's worth doing 70% right.You can always come back to do the 20% later.Yes, read it again, and no, the math isn't wrong.

The 70% Principle: Why You Never Get Projects Off The Ground

It's like what Mike Litman says, "You don't have to get it RIGHT, you just have to get it GOING".  And it's so true.  Waiting for everything to be perfect WILL result in missed opportunities.  Take it from me, I've missed a lot by now but I'm quickly learning to push out products at 70% and tweak later.  Now I'm actually making money.  Who woulda thought?<!-- technorati tags begin -->

Tags: psychotactics, mike litman

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Last year was a fantastic year for us.  That is, until around the 20th of December.  By that time, the work dried up and silly me hadn't yet learned the lesson of saving, so we had almost nothing to cushion the blow of an EXCEPTIONALLY dry December-February period.

2 months later (April), we got married.  If you're married, then I don't need to explain to you how expensive and draining THAT can be!  Well worth it, of course, but still a very challenging event indeed!

Fast-forward to the end of April and we're done honeymooning and have more debt than we know what to do with.  Between credit cards, photographers, overdrafts and more, it becomes a careful juggling act.

Now most financial "experts" will tell you all sorts of interesting and logical ways of paying off your debt.  I'm not against that.  I'm actually FOR most of it.  Especially consolidating and paying off the highest-interest debt first.  But here's my take on deciding who to pay first...

Whoever (or whatever company) is the most emotionally taxing on you when they ask for their money -- pay them first.  If it makes you feel terrible hearing from them, if they treat you badly, if they won't stop bugging you every day... GET RID OF THEM!

In instances like this, you're not paying-off debt, you're getting rid of pests.  Pests that are preventing you (with emotional abuse) from thinking clearly and making MORE money.

So if you pay these dudes off first, you'll find yourself feeling a lot lighter and relaxed.  Now, in that state of mind, go ahead and make some extra money to pay everyone else off.  It'll be     easier and faster.
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Tags: debt, debt repayments

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I'm probably the last person to speak to on productivity but, every now and again, I get it absolutely perfect and, strangely enough, that's happening more and more frequently!

Take, for example, today.  I had the most perfect day where I got absolutely everything I wanted to get done, done.  How'd I do it?

Well, first of all, I think it's important to note that the secret to getting things done is knowing when NOT to get things done.  If you're starting to feel sick, or you're hating the work you're doing, STOP!

Sometimes you need to stop for a few minutes, a few hours or even a few days.  Sometimes you need to change what you're doing altogether.  (ie: change jobs, start a new business, etc)

For me, I just needed a few days so, instead of fighting my urge not to work, I put out the daily fires that needed attention and, otherwise, took it easy for the past 3 days.

That gave me time to reflect on my life and think about what I've achieved and what I'd like to achieve.

Then, magically, today I woke up with all sorts of energy so I sat at my desk and, here comes the 2nd secret...

I planned my day.  OK, that's the boring version.  The interesting way of saying the same thing is that you should, "Start your day only when you have it finished."  Literally decide what you want to do and when you want to do it.  Write it down and stick to it.

But, here comes the UBEREST of all secrets...

Make space for breaks.  I started (proper) work today at about 11, had a break at 12, another at 2 and yet another at half-past 4!

The breaks make it easier to get stuff done the rest of the time so eat, shower, exercise, have a chat with a loved one -- do anything that takes your mind totally off your work for a while.  Do it for maximum half an hour, maybe an hour, but not longer and you shouldn't just be "loafing" around.  Actually DO stuff.  Just not work!

That's it, really.  Every time I DO get stuff done, I get it done using the above formula.  It just works that way and it works every time.  I do it without even realising it.  It just happens.<!-- technorati tags begin -->

Tags: productivity, getting stuff done

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So you've watched the secret, you've been visualising but, somehow, you're just not rolling in it yet. How do you actually DO this attraction stuff?

Well, if you're anything like me, you find it difficult to imagine things that just aren't there yet. I'm a born sceptic so it's a little more challenging for me to follow the, "Believing is Seeing" thing but, I know that when I DO manage, it works. So I'm on a mission to find things that make it easier for me to do that.

Enter the 12 Steps to Creating Consciously...

(It's 25 minutes long so go make yourself a cup of tea before sitting down to listen )

 

Listen for free above or download the full thing yourself by signing up for the (free) newsletter at CreatingConsciously.com. Enjoy!<!-- technorati tags begin -->

Tags: thesecret, law of attraction, creating consciously

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A lot of gurus say that you should focus your attention on the 20% of your efforts that bring in 80% of your results.  Essentially, instead of strengthening your weak-points, focus more attention on your strong-points.  Why?  Because it's easier to make R100 out of R30 than it is to make R100 out of R5.

In other words, if you're good at something specific (legato playing) and you focus all your energy on that, you'll soon be GREAT at that specific thing (legato) while others are mediocre at a lot of different things (legato, speed-picking, etc).

How does this apply to wealth-creation?  Simple!  Focus on what brings you in the most money!

My site, freearticles.co.za, brought in $52.67 last month from a single purchase of an affiliate product I'm promoting.  So, today, I'm going to work at getting a LOT of traffic to the specific article that brought that money in. 

I got 100 views on that article last month which means that if I can get 200 views, I should (in theory) make $105.34.  Contrast that with the other articles that only brought in $10 last month and it's clear to see that I'll make more money working on something that ALREADY brings me the most money.

To further simplify:  Doubling R100 may take the same amount of effort as doubling R20 but the former will yield greater profits!

If that makes sense to you, then go ahead and see where you can apply it in YOUR business!<!-- technorati tags begin -->

Tags: pareto, affiliate income,

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Too much currency is being "printed" right now. It's not backed by silver or gold anymore and we potentially have a hyper-inflation ahead of us. True for the US and Europe, maybe true for SA too?

"Every 75 years there's a depression. The last depression was in 1930." - Robert Kiyosaki

And if you watched Carte Blanche tonight, you saw how many of us Saffers are losing our homes and how an economic expert predicted that the very rich won't be affected at all -- they know how to invest in equities. The middle-class will certainly suffer and the poor will feel it the worst.

It's already started with our poorer South Africans having a much harder time buying the bare necessities than they did 6-12 months ago.

Robert and his team predicted these things for the US and Europe in early January this year. It's time we wake up, get rid of debt and invest in something solid, something with real, constant value.

Precious metals and real estate don't gain or lose value -- they just get under- or over-valued!
If you can afford to buy small investment properties now, go around to local auctions and try snap some up. You're bound to find SOME deals where you can actually make a tiny profit on the buy and if you follow Robert's teachings, then you know that you make your money when you buy!

If you're like me, and you can't do that, then focus your energies on getting rid of your debt until you CAN do that. Start educating yourself, read the Rich Dad series of books and start being aware of your financial decisions.

Lastly, if you'd like to be put into contact with someone who can help you buy silver and gold, let me know. I have a contact who runs seminars and advises people on how to invest in Gold, specifically.

PS: I'm no expert but I know when to listen to those that are ;)<!-- technorati tags begin -->

Tags: silver, gold, precious metals, rich dad, kiyosaki

South Africa reminds Kelly of the US in the 1960s and it's easy to see why -- lots of space to build, lots of opportunities, lots of growth. To him, Australia is the hottest spot on the planet, followed closely behind by South Africa.

So here we are, watching people (in the US) who've been through much of what our country has gone through, and they've made good bucks along the way. The question is -- can we learn from them? Can we leverage SA's current situation and make some good money along the way?

With the prices of fuel so high, Kenny (video 1) recommends investing in property next to railways (think: Gautrain). This video, on the other hand, recommend a home-based business to avoid the fuel problems altogether.

I can vouch for that. We haven't had a car for the past 3-4 months and, yet, business goes on and we're doing fine. We haven't really experienced the issues everyone else has had with petrol prices as a result. Worth considering starting a home based business, isn't it?<!-- technorati tags begin -->

Tags: richdad, south africa, home business

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