Five Steps to Creating a Balanced Life

We Want It All

Health, happiness, family, and a financially secure future. We want it all. Achieving "balance" has become a goal of almost mythical proportions. Is it possible? Is it even worthwhile? Today, MaryEllen Tribby, a popular contributor to Early To Rise, shares her counterintuitive steps to building balance in your life.

Craig Ballantyne

"I believe that being successful means having a balance of success stories across the many areas of your life. You can't truly be considered successful in your business life if your home life is in shambles." – Zig Ziglar
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Five Steps to Creating a Balanced Life

It was a simple business call. My colleague – "Larry" – had invited me to speak to his mastermind group on a teleconference later in the week. Nothing out of the ordinary. But my sister-in-law's mouth was hanging wide open.


"I can't believe he called you at 9:00 at night! Don't you think that is totally inappropriate?", Nancy asked.

Larry wanted me to speak to his mastermind group about accelerating their businesses' growth via multi-channel marketing. Given the fact that his attendee list included people like Tony Hsieh, Tony Robbins, and John Carlton – people I personally considered my mentors – I was honored to accept.

When I tried explaining this to my sister-in-law, she just waved her hand and said, "In my day, when you left the office at 5:00, you were done until 9:00 the next morning."

I thought about dropping the subject, but I couldn't resist the challenge.

She opted for early retirement about six years ago – but I asked her if, during her working years, she'd ever left the office to pick up a sick kid from school, go to a dentist appointment, or meet the cable man at her house.

When she begrudgingly nodded her head yes, I knew I had her attention. And I hope I have yours as well. If you think that your work life exists only between 9:00 and 5:00... and that your home and social life exists only between 5:00 and 9:00, you need to make a change.

I recommend that you resolve, right here and now, to make your life better, more rewarding, and more balanced. And I'm going to help you do it.

Who am I to talk about balance? Well, I'm a happily married mother of three who runs a business (with 38 employees), and a foundation, and is heavily involved in her kids school and sporting activities. Over the past few years, I've gotten pretty good at managing all the different aspects of my life in a way that makes me feel happy and proud.

The very first step to creating a happier, healthier lifestyle is to realize that "9:00 to 5:00" no longer applies. By giving yourself the flexibility to do business at all hours of the day or night, you are actually better able to enjoy both your work and your family even more.

This may sound counter-intuitive but by taking the following five simple steps, you will be able to break free of the 9:00 to 5:00 shackles.

Creating Balance Step One: Define what a balanced life means to you.

Many people think that having a balanced life means spending the same number of hours on work as you do on personal activities. This is a big mistake, because most of the time it's not realistic.

To define what will work for you, you need to take into consideration that life is constantly changing. And the right balance for you today may not be the right balance for you tomorrow or next week or next month, because over time your priorities change.

Creating Balance Step Two: Create Boundaries

Some people may agree with my sister-in-law that receiving a business call at 9:00 at night is inappropriate. But the way I look at it is that Larry is someone who is good for my organization and good for my career. Besides, when I met him at a conference earlier this year, he asked me for the best way to reach me. I gave him my e-mail address and my cell number. So why shouldn't he call?

And keep in mind that I made the decision to take his call that night – I created the boundary. It happened to be a good time to talk. However, if he'd made the call 90 minutes earlier – when I was doing homework with the kids – I would have let it go to voice mail and called him back when it was convenient for me.

Later that week, I was the keynote speaker on the mastermind teleconference Larry had invited me to. Many of the attendees learned a great deal. In fact, I got several e-mails from attendees saying they'd purchased Changing the Channel, the book on multi-channel marketing that I co-authored with Michael Masterson. Others called or e-mailed to ask if they could promote the book to their in-house list.

Had I adopted the attitude that I would do business only from 9:00 to 5:00, I may have lost out on a wonderful opportunity that proved to be valuable both to my company and to me personally.

Because I advocate balance, I support the efforts my team members make in striving for balance in their own lives. Some of them work in the evening and/or on the weekends. So I have no problem with it if they need to leave to take care of something personal. I truly believe that your accomplishments aren't dependent on how much time you spend in the office.

Creating Balance Step Three: Learn how to say "No."

No one wants to say no to their boss, their spouse, their employees, their friends, or their kids. But to achieve balance, you are going to have to do it once in a while.

We all have the same 24 hours in a day. And we cannot possibly do everything that we want to do AND everything that everyone else wants us to do. So a big part of leading a more balanced life is to cut down on unnecessary tasks and protect your priorities.

When requests or conflicts are set before you, ask yourself: "Is this going to give me a feeling of accomplishment and a feeling of happiness?"

Years ago, a good friend of mine – "Rita" – wanted my husband and me to meet her new boyfriend. He was "the one" as she put it. So we made dinner plans for the following evening.

But when our two-month-old baby Delanie woke up in the morning, with a fever, I called Rita and apologized, but told her we would have to cancel. I just did not feel right about leaving the baby with a sitter.

Rita was irate. She said I was overreacting, and asked how I could possibly feel that way given that Delanie was our third child.

As I held Delanie though the day and night, I knew I had made the right decision. But I was saddened by Rita's anger – and her anger lasted for weeks.

Then, about five weeks after the infamous missed dinner, Rita called to say that "the one" had dumped her. This time it was her turn to apologize, saying that now she realized I had made the right decision.

Social decisions are one thing, but work decisions can be more difficult. You must learn that sometimes you have to choose your family, your health, or even your social life over work. And you'll also have to make some hard decisions to put work first.

For instance, I take my health seriously. A few months ago, a doctor's appointment conflicted with a last-minute visit from one of the industry's top marketing minds. The only chance I had to see him was during the time I'd reserved for my appointment. Since I wasn't sick and the appointment was for a simple check up, I didn't think twice about rescheduling.

Creating Balance Step Four: Keep a journal.

The only way to make your life better is to understand what you're doing, what's working, and what isn't. And there are far too many things going on in our lives to try to keep it all in our heads.

So keep a journal. Write down what you spend time on – everything from the meetings you attend to how many times you go to the gym.

Keeping a journal will help you see if you are spending your time in the most productive way – and it will make you accountable for your actions. It will help you accomplish your professional and personal goals, and will make you proud of those accomplishments.

Creating Balance Step Five: Understand that you're not a superhero.

Having a balanced life means being realistic. Realistic about the fact that some things are just not going to get done. And you have to be okay with that.

When my husband and I got married 15 year ago, we both had busy careers. But we still enjoyed spending time decorating and upgrading our home with art and new furniture. After a busy day, we loved coming home to our immaculate sanctuary.

Well... once we had kids, things started looking a lot different. Instead of the beautiful vase I picked up in Mexico on the coffee table – there was a stuffed Elmo.

Soon our Tiffany picture frames were replaced by toy trains. And many days, while we're making dinner, the kids have all the pots and pans on the floor.

But instead of spending my time cleaning up and trying to make my house look perfect, I would much rather play with the kids, banging on the pots and pans with them and playing with trains.

There are always things out of place in my house – but that is exactly the way it should be. Because when I come home to my family, I absolutely have a feeling of great accomplishment and happiness!

This goes for work, too. You may have a dozen projects on your plate, and only so much time to complete them. Don't get down on yourself for re-prioritizing one of them so you can spend more time on marketing, or so you can care for your ailing grandmother, or so you can spend an hour at the gym.

Following the other guidelines I've recommended – figuring out what kind of balance is right for you, creating boundaries, picking priorities, and knowing what's working and what isn't – will help you feel confident that your accomplishments are enough... even if you have more goals you want to achieve.

By MaryEllen Tribby

[Ed. Note. MaryEllen Tribby has created the site, www.WorkingMomsOnly.com, as the leading website and newsletter for the empowerment of the working moms. Her mission is to supply the tools that can give EVERY working mom the ability to lead a healthy, wealthy, and more balanced/blended lifestyle. To create a community where millions of working moms from all over the world come together in support and celebration of each other.]

Source : http://www.earlytorise.com/


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7 Investing Mistakes And How To Avoid Them

Making mistakes is part of the learning process. However, it's all too often that plain old common sense separates a successful investor from a poor one. At the same time, nearly all investors, new or experienced, have fallen astray from common sense and made a mistake or two. Being perfect may be impossible, but knowing some of common investing errors can help deter you from going down the well-traveled, yet rocky, path of losses. Here are some of the most common investing mistakes.

Using Too Much Margin

Margin is the use of borrowed money to purchase securities. Margin can help you make more money; however, it can also exaggerate your loses - a definite downside.

The absolute worst thing you can do as a new investor is become carried away with what seems like free money - if you use margin and your investment doesn't go your way, you end up with a large debt obligation for nothing. Ask yourself if you would buy stocks with your credit card. Of course you wouldn't. Using margin excessively is essentially the same thing (albeit likely at a lower interest rate).

Additionally, using margin requires you to monitor your positions much more closely because of the exaggerated gains and losses that accompany small movements in price. If you don't have the time or knowledge to keep a close eye on and make decisions about your positions and the positions drop, your brokerage firm will sell your stock to recover any losses you have accrued.

As a new investor, use margin sparingly, if at all. Use it only if you understand all its aspects and dangers. It can force you to sell all your positions at the bottom, the point at which you should be in the market for the big turnaround.

Buying On Unfounded Tips

We think everyone makes this mistake at one point or another in their investing career. You may hear your relatives or friends talking about a stock that they heard will get bought out, have killer earnings or soon release a groundbreaking new product. Even if these things are true, they do not necessarily mean that the stock truly is "the next big thing" and that you should run to the nearest phone to call your broker.

Other unfounded tips come from investment professionals on TV who often tout a specific stock as though it's a must-buy, but really is nothing more than the flavor of the day. These stock tips often don't pan out and go straight down after you buy them. Remember, buying on media tips is often founded on nothing more than a speculative gamble.

Now this isn't to say that you should balk at every stock tip. If one really grabs your attention, the first thing to do is consider the source. The next thing is to do your own homework. Make sure you "research, research and research" so that you know what you are buying and why. Buying a tech stock with some proprietary technology should be based on whether it's the right investment for you, not solely on what some mutual fund manager said on TV.

Next time you're tempted to buy a hot tip, don't do so until you've got all the facts and are comfortable with the company. Ideally, obtain a second opinion from other investors or unbiased financial advisors.

Day Trading

If you insist on becoming an active trader, think twice before day trading. Day trading is a dangerous game and should be attempted only by the most seasoned investors. In addition to investment savvy, a successful day trader needs access to special equipment that is rarely available to the average trader. Did you know that the average day-trading workstation (with software) can cost in the range of $50,000? You'll also need a similar amount of trading money to maintain an efficient day trading strategy.

The need for speed is the main reason you can't start day trading with simply the extra $5,000 in your bank account: online brokers do not have systems fast enough to service the true day trader, so quite literally the difference of pennies per share can make the difference between a profitable and losing trade. In fact, day trading is deemed such a difficult endeavor that most brokerages who offer day trading accounts require investors to take formal trading courses.

Unless you have the expertise, equipment and access to speedy order execution, think twice before day trading. If you aren't particularly adept at dealing with risk and stress, there are much better options for an investor looking to build wealth.

Buying Stocks that Appear Cheap

This is a very common mistake, and those who commit it do so by comparing the current share price with the 52-week high of the stock. Many people using this gauge assume that a fallen share price represents a good buy. But the fact that a company's share price happened to be 30% higher last year will not help it earn more money this year. That's why it pays to analyze why a stock has fallen.

Deteriorating fundamentals, a CEO resignation and increased competition are all possible reasons for the lower stock price - but they are also provide good reasons to suspect that the stock might not increase anytime soon. A company may be worth less now for fundamental reasons. It is important always to have a critical eye since a low share price might be a false buy signal.

Avoid buying stocks that simply look like a bargain. In many instances, there is a strong fundamental reason for a price decline. Do your homework and analyze a stock's outlook before you invest in it. You want to invest in companies which will experience sustained growth in the future.

Underestimating Your Abilities

Some investors tend to believe they can never excel at investing because stock market success is reserved for sophisticated investors. This perception has no truth at all. While any commission-based mutual fund salesmen will probably tell you otherwise, most professional money managers don't make the grade either - the vast majority underperform the broad market. With a little time devoted to learning and research, investors can become well equipped to control their own portfolio and investing decisions - and be profitable. Remember, much of investing is sticking to common sense and rationality.

Besides having the potential to become sufficiently skillful, individual investors do not face the liquidity challenges and overhead costs large institutional investors do. Any small investor with a sound investment strategy has just as good a chance of beating the market, if not better, than the so-called investment gurus.

Never underestimate your abilities or your own potential. That is, don't assume you are unable to successfully participate in the financial markets simply because you have a day job.

When Buying a Stock, Overlooking the "Big Picture"

For a long-term investor one of the most important - but often overlooked - things to do is qualitative analysis, or "to look at the big picture." Fund manager and author Peter Lynch once stated that he found the best investments by looking at his children's toys and the trends they would take on. Brand name is also very valuable. Think about how almost everyone in the world knows Coke; the financial value of the name alone is therefore measured in the billions of dollars. Whether it's about iPods or Big Macs, no one can argue against real life.

So pouring over financial statements or attempting to identify buy and sell opportunities with complex technical analysis may work a great deal of the time, but if the world is changing against your company, sooner or later you will lose. After all, a typewriter company in the late 1980s could have outperformed any company in its industry, but once personal computers started to become commonplace, an investor in typewriters of that era would have done well to assess the bigger picture.

Assessing a company from a qualitative standpoint is as important as looking at the sales and earnings. Qualitative analysis is a strategy that is one of the easiest and most effective for evaluating a potential investment.

Compounding Your Losses by Averaging Down

Far too often investors fail to accept the simple fact that they are human and prone to making mistakes just as the greatest investors do. Whether you made a stock purchase in haste or one of your long-time big earners has suddenly taken a turn for the worse, the best thing you can do is accept it. The worst thing you can do is let your pride take priority over your pocketbook and hold on to a losing investment, or worse yet, buy more shares of the stock since it is much cheaper now.

Remember, a company's future operating performance has nothing to do with what price you happened to buy its shares at. Anytime there is a sharp decrease in your stock's price, try to determine the reasons for the change and assess whether the company is a good investment for the future. If not, do your pocketbook a favor and move your money into a company with better prospects.

Letting your pride get in the way of sound investment decisions is foolish and it can decimate your portfolio's value in a short amount of time. Remain rational and act appropriately when you are inevitably confronted with a loss on what seemed like a rosy investment.

The Bottom Line

With the stock market's penchant for producing large gains (and losses) there is no shortage of faulty advice and irrational decisions. As an individual investor, the best thing you can do to pad your portfolio for the long term, is to implement a rational investment strategy you are comfortable with and willing to stick to. If you are looking to make a big win by betting your money on your gut feelings, try the casino. Take pride in your investment decisions and in the long run, your portfolio will grow to reflect the soundness of your actions.

Source: http://www.investopedia.com/
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The New Economic Order

With the global economy going to hell in a hand basket (AGAIN), people are scared ...

You see it in the "Occupy Movement" demonstrations taking place in various centers around the world.

You see it in news reports about impending sovereign debt default in Greece, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Italy and other European countries.

And you see it in the ongoing economic malaise in the United States, where despite one and a half TRILLION dollars in economic stimulus thousands of jobs continue to disappear each month.

What does it all mean?

And what should YOU be doing to protect your livelihood and the financial security of your family?

The First Thing To Realize Is That What We're Going Through Is NOT The End Of The World – Far From It...

It's simply the birthing pains of a bold new economic order... and the death spasms of an old way of doing things that's no longer workable.

You see, at one time it made sense for companies to try and dominate and control every aspect of the economic food chain – upstream through ownership of suppliers of raw materials and parts, for production... and downstream through ownership of the companies that distributed and sold their products to the consumer.

A car manufacturer, for example, gained much through the shrewd acquisition of a tire company, a glass company, and a metal company. Control of these entities smoothed away transactional friction.

No need to spend time researching suppliers. No need to negotiate the best deals. No need for manual paperwork and order processing. No intermediary commissions and sales fees. Less communication and travel costs and fewer legal expenses.

Having a financial interest in the dealer networks that sold the cars also reduced downstream friction in much the same ways.

So companies grew ever larger, employing more and more people. Not only did they seek to integrate vertically (both forwards and backwards) but horizontally as well, buying up competitors in a never-ending quest for "economies of scale".

Stock and bond markets grew to meet the insatiable demand for capital to fund endless consolidation. And governments grew in size too, creating massive social structures to support this model, running up astronomical debts in the process.

Educational systems were geared toward churning out the millions of employee drones needed to staff the global empires that were being built. Students were trained from an early age to fit into the predefined roles demanded by industry, commerce and government.

And people became very comfortable with the notion that their employers and governments were there to look after them. Strength in numbers insulated the little guy from the brutal self-responsibility, endless adaptation and uncertainty of entrepreneurship.

But gradually – unnoticed by most – the transactional friction that gave rise to all of this started to disappear ...

Just twenty years ago, if a New Yorker wanted to speak to a potential business partner in London England, a short ten-minute phone call cost $20 to $30.

If the potential partners wanted to meet face-to-face, one of them would have to spend thousand of dollars and several days in lost productivity to make the trip.

And if a deal was to be struck, it took millions of dollars in capital to bring together the necessary employees, buildings, machinery etc. to compete effectively in the marketplace.

Today, you can talk all day long between almost any two points on Earth, for free.

You can see the whites of a person's eyes across the ocean instantaneously and it won't cost you a red cent.

You can send money to somebody, share documents, or update database records on each other's computers in near real time for pennies.

And you can sell your products and services globally with nothing more than a laptop computer and a few inexpensive online tools and services.

There is no longer a need to integrate people, raw materials, information, and capital, under a large centralized command and control structure.

Now, independent individuals from all over the world can collaborate on an as-needed basis to get the same jobs done – for less.

A Lone Wolf Entrepreneur At Home In His or Her Pajamas Can Now Compete With Full-Fledged Corporations On A Level Playing Field In Many Areas Of The Economy...

Large companies MUST adapt to this by downsizing and outsourcing aggressively. Governments too. And this is why jobs continue to disappear.

This is not a nightmare to be afraid of. It's a miracle to rejoice in.

You now have the power to gain total control of how, when and where you do your work.

Your income, your lifestyle, and your focus can be entirely in your own hands.

And you no longer need depend on forces outside of your control for your livelihood.

Isn't It Time You Took Your Professional Skills And Turned Them Into A Thriving Full-Time Business Of Your Own?

It's way past time! And you know it.

So what's stopping you?

Well, if you're still putzing around at a JOB, chances are you're probably struggling with one or more of these three entrepreneurial blocks:

You Don't Like Selling – As an independent entrepreneur striking out on your own, you wear many hats. The most important hat you will ever wear is that of Chief Marketing Officer.

In business, NOTHING happens until something gets sold. So your first order of business is to become comfortable and skilled at selling yourself and your products and services.

Unless you are already in sales, chances are this frightens you, perhaps even repulses you. If you have a negative view of selling, it must be vigorously reframed, or you're setting yourself up for failure. The world WILL NOT beat a path to your door.

You're Easily Dazzled by Bright Shiny Objects – It's wonderful to be able to leverage web-based technology to engage with potential customers all over the world. You can and should be doing this.

But it's all too easy to become distracted and overwhelmed by the endless stream of whiz-bang communications options available, most of which you do not have the time or the resources to make profitable.

You can spend thousands of dollars building a fancy website, and hundreds if not thousands of hours plugging into a dozen different social media platforms. And not gain a single client for your trouble.

Or you can focus on mastering a simple blog platform and an inexpensive broadcast email service and make 7 figures.

You Lack Mental Toughness – This one goes back to the brainwashing you acquired while you were growing up. Part of the game was to make you feel small, inadequate and dependent on those with capital and resources.

Your parents pushed you to go to school, so you could find a safe, secure pigeonhole somewhere in the establishment. Much of the risk and uncertainty were removed from the equation, or so you were told.

And now, you find the self-responsibility and independence of thought necessary for entrepreneurial success terrifying. You fear rejection and failure, and find it hard to maintain the iron willed resolve you need to succeed in the face of inevitable set backs and adversity.

We all face the same challenges on our respective journeys to entrepreneurial independence. Your mission is to begin kicking them to the curb.

By Daniel Levis


[Ed Note: Daniel Levis is a top marketing consultant, direct response copywriter and publisher of the highly acclaimed home study course, How to Quit Your Job And Double Your Income – The Fastest Way to 6 Figures and Beyond, As an In-Demand Coach, Consultant or Freelancing Pro... Click here to register for a free web workshop. No Credit Card Required.]

Source : http://www.earlytorise.com/

Disclaimer...The comments, products and services are owned by the poster. We are not responsible for their contents.

The Triple D Strategy for Success

On any given day, most of us dedicate time to our children, spouses, careers, friends, charities, churches, parents, siblings, clients, household activities, and, oh yeah, if there is a little extra time left in the day, ourselves.


So why is it that only a select few of us can make it look easy... while so many look like they have been run over by a tractor trailer?

The answer is simple.

Most busy people don't evaluate the project or the task at hand before they begin. This holds true whether they are working on their business lives or on their personal/family lives.

Instead of taking a hard look at the task or project, they simply try to get it done. They do whatever it takes.

But unfortunately, the price they pay is very high.

They sacrifice special moments and milestones with their kids. They risk losing the closeness and tenderness of their spouses. They even jeopardize their own health. They take on all these hardships in order to prove that they are "superparents". And to add insult to injury, in the end, they often miss their deadlines, fail to properly complete the project, and neglect their spouses and children.

Why do they do this to themselves?

Because all of our lives we have been told they have to multitask. You have heard the old mantra, "if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself" about a million times. And you don't want to appear inferior.

If this sounds remotely familiar, I need for you to make yourself and me a significant promise.

You need to vow here and now that you are ready to read this issue in its entirety and apply my Triple D Strategy to your life starting today.

This strategy is so powerful that you will have an immediate sense of accomplishment and fulfillment.

When done correctly, it will allow you to have more free time and make more money in your business. Your friends and family will notice immediately that you are not stressed and moody. But most importantly, your "happiness meter" will be heading in the right direction – up.

And here's the really beautiful part – it is so simple!

Allow me to introduce my Triple D Strategy.

Ditch, Delegate, and Duplicate

When you start to evaluate every project or task that you THINK has to be done and done by you every day, you will soon find that the task could fall into three possible categories:

1) Ditch: This is extremely important if you have a hard time with simply saying "no." Most are unable or unwilling to say that a task is not important enough for their time or anyone else's. Look: we all have the same 24 hours in a day – no more, no less. So why is it that we sometimes feel that we should accomplish 28 hours' worth of tasks in a single day?

In order to turn down a task, just ask yourself the following question: "What will the result be if nothing is done about this project?" This makes your decision very easy. And when you are completely honest with yourself, you will find that 20% to 30% of the things you spend time on don't need to be done at all!

2) Delegate: The art of delegating relies on finding the right person whose strengths are YOUR weaknesses. You need to do what you do best. Not spend time and energy on tasks that you are not particularly good at or that don't excite you. Your time and energy should be spent on your natural gifts; things that are innate and that you love doing. You should apply this rule at home and at the office. For example, I'm not particularly good at building websites; this is something I delegate to team members. At home, I don't enjoy cleaning my house. This is a task I delegate to a cleaning woman who comes to my home and – believe it or not – loves to clean.

Because I do not spend my time on tasks like these, I get to devote that time to tasks that play to my strengths. At the office, my strengths are marketing and content creation. At home, one of my strengths is helping my kids with their homework. These are things that I am very good at and I love doing.

3) Duplicate: Have you ever wished you had a clone? I sure used to! Now I have several. Being able to make more money and have more free time comes down to doubling, tripling, and quadrupling your output without YOU doing the actual work.

The reason so many people don't duplicate is because they don't understand the correct way to do so. Most people think, "I will never find anyone as good as I am." Here is the beautiful part – you don't have to.

You see, you must simply find different people who can do specific tasks as well as you can. So perhaps you need to find three or four people. These people need to share some of your qualities. You need to check your ego at the door and strive to find people who have the ability to be as good as and even better than you are.

If you write all of your promotional copy, make all the affiliate deals, and develop all your products, you need to find three duplicates: One person to write the copy better than you do now while maintaining your voice and style. One person to cultivate new affiliate deals. This person should have your vivacious personality and be extremely outgoing (if these are your personality traits). And one person to develop products – someone who has even bigger ideas and the ability to get the products completed faster.

These are three simple things that you can implement TODAY. But they only work if you do them and do them right.

In the name of full disclosure, you should know that while this Triple D Strategy will help you immensely in your quest to balance your work and personal life... It's not the only proven, easy-to-implement technique you can use to create a happier, more productive, more balanced (and richer!) life for yourself.

By Mary Ellen Tribby

[Ed. Note. MaryEllen Tribby has created the site, www.WorkingMomsOnly.com, as the leading website and newsletter for the empowerment of the working moms. Her mission is to supply the tools that can give EVERY working mom the ability to lead a healthy, wealthy, and more balanced/blended lifestyle. To create a community where millions of working moms from all over the world come together in support and celebration of each other.]

Source :  http://www.earlytorise.com

Disclaimer...The comments, products and services are owned by the poster. We are not responsible for their contents.

A Self-Made Millionaire's Guide to Dealing with Debt

I had my first serious run-in with debt when I was 30 years old.

My wife K and I were renting a condominium in Washington, D.C. Our landlady came to us with an exciting opportunity: We could buy the condo for $60,000 with no money down. For just $100 a month more than what we were already paying for rent, we would be paying a mortgage. It sounded like a great deal, so we took it.

What we bought was a negatively amortizing mortgage with a three-year term and an 11% interest rate. That meant, every three years we were paying $19,800 in debt service and another $3,000 in closing costs.

We didn't realize what was going on because our monthly payments were only $550. I was too foolish then to ever ask myself, "What is the cost of this debt?"

I tried to find another bank to take me out of this scam but none would. The mortgage we had signed was not backed by the government (Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae), which meant that no other bank would touch it.

I learned that when banks make it easy to borrow money, it's not because you are a nice, deserving person. I learned that if you can get a loan despite poor credit (as ours was at the time), there is usually a scam involved. It also taught me to always ask the two critical questions about debt, "How much will it cost?" and, "Can I afford it?" It was an expensive lesson.

Many of us view debt as a necessity. We buy homes with it. And cars. And boats, and toys, and vacations. Some use it to buy the basics: clothes, food, and furniture.

Debt is not necessary. It is a luxury. Sometimes debt is useful. Sometimes it is wasteful. But debt is always dangerous.

It is unnecessary because there are always less expensive ways of getting what you want. And it is dangerous because it can sometimes be very expensive.

Let me give you two examples.

Let's say that, like most Americans, you are in the habit of buying things with credit cards. After a while, you notice that you have accumulated $30,000 in total debt. You decide to cut up your cards and repay your debt. You can devote $400 a month to paying it back. How long will it take, and how much will it cost you?

The answer may surprise you. Assuming an interest rate of 10%, it will take you 10 years to pay off the credit card debt. And your total payments will be $47,275. Of that, $17,275 will have been in interest payments.

Or let's take a $150,000 home on which you take a $120,000 loan with a 6.5% interest rate over 20 years. The mortgage payments are $894 a month, which you can afford. But how much will that house really cost you? Including interest payments? You will end up paying $244,725 for that house. Almost 40% of that – $94,725 – will have been to interest payments.

The commercial community (bankers and manufacturers) doesn't want you to be afraid of debt. And neither does the government. These institutions want you to like debt. They want you to use it. They want you to go into debt because it is good for them.

When you take out a mortgage to buy a home, or sign a lease on a car, or use credit cards to pay for your lifestyle expenses, the commercial community profits. The manufacturers make money on products you may or may not need. And the banks make money on your debt.

The mainstream financial media rarely talks about the dangers of debt. That's because they make their profits from the financial institutions and manufacturers whose advertisements support their publications.

And the government actually encourages its citizens to take on debt. This was the recommended strategy for getting us out of the Great Recession that the (second) Bush administration (and the Federal Reserve) advocated and it's the same scheme that Obama's people are advocating today.

Here's what you should know about debt:

As a general rule, you should live without it. You should find less expensive ways to acquire the things you need.

Unless you are wealthy, don't lease your car. Buy it. Buy the car you can afford, not the car you believe will make you happy. Any non-appreciating asset (such as a car) will never make you happy if you have to pay its debt service. I didn't buy my first luxury car until I was a multimillionaire.

Don't buy anything with a credit card. Keep only one credit card for renting cars. Use a debit card to buy clothes and groceries. If you don't have enough money in your bank account to use your debit card on a purchase, don't buy it. If you don't have enough money in the bank to buy something, it means you can't afford it.

If you can't afford the debt on your house, sell it (if you can) and buy something cheaper. In any case, start paying off the principle balance of your house (the amount you owe, not the interest you will owe) as fast as you can. Make it a goal to own your house free and clear as soon as possible.

If you have debt, pay it off as fast as you can, but not before you have filled up your bucket for emergency savings. By emergency savings, I mean money you will need to pay your bills if you lose your job. Six months' income is what some financial advisors recommend. I'd recommend a year. It may take you that long to replace your lost income.

Pay off your debt even if the interest rate is low. In theory, you should put your extra money elsewhere if you can earn more on it than you are paying in interest. If, for example, you can get 4% in municipal bonds and you have a student loan at 2%, it makes more sense to buy municipals bonds and pay your student loan off slowly. But in reality, the extra 2% you are earning on the spread is not worth the risk in carrying the debt.

When I started earning money, the first thing I did was get rid of that terrible loan on the condominium I told you about earlier.

The next thing I did was pay off the mortgage I took on a home. I paid it off in two or three years, even though it was a 30-year mortgage. I loved the idea of owning my home free and clear. So I put every extra dollar I had toward paying down that mortgage. The bank didn't like it, but the day I tore up that mortgage... I felt like I had been emancipated from financial slavery.

Finally, if you are troubled by debt, know this: you can get out of it just as I did.

[Ed. Note. If you're not happy with your financial situation, you're in the perfect position to change it for the better – right now. At The Palm Beach Letter, we can show you how. For the equivalent of a tank of gas or a dinner out ($49)... you are getting a whole year of realistic investment and wealth-building advice. Click here for details.]

By Mark Ford, editor, The Palm Beach Letter

Source : http://www.earlytorise.com/

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5 Steps To A Retirement Plan

Old age financial independence is the ultimate goal of retirement planning. Whether you are a twenty-something year old student or the parent of a young adult, the process of ensuring that you have sufficient funds to maintain a desired standard of living through the "golden years" is worth considering. Naturally, depending on an individual's stage in life, the planning process will be different and contingent on one's unique circumstances. Basic guidelines exist to help assist people in creating their retirement plans. These guidelines will either form the premise of a self-directed retirement investment strategy or can be used to help guide the investment process of an external financial professional.


TUTORIAL: Introduction To Retirement Plans

1. Time Horizon

Current age and expected retirement age create the initial groundwork of planning a retirement strategy. Firstly, the longer the time horizon between today and retirement, the higher the level of risk that one's portfolio can withstand. The negative effects of return volatility are mitigated with a long term time horizon. Secondly, stretched periods of retirement portfolio accumulation must factor in inflation. A 64-year old who is planning on retiring next year does not have the same concerns regarding inflation as a much younger professional who just entered the workforce. Thirdly, although it is typically advised to begin planning for retirement at a younger age, younger individuals are not expected to perform the same type of due diligence regarding retirement alternatives as someone who is in their mid-40s.

Finally, and most importantly, a longer time horizon breaks up the overall retirement plan into multiple components. For example, a parent may wish to retire in two years, pay for their children's education when they turn 18 and then move to Florida. From the perspective of forming a retirement plan, the investment strategy would be broken up into three periods: two years until retirement (contributions are still made into the plan), saving and paying for college, and living in Florida (regular withdrawals to cover living expenses). A multi-stage retirement plan must integrate various time horizons along with the corresponding liquidity needs to determine the optimal allocation strategy. (The future may seem far off, but now is the time to plan for it. Check out 5 Retirement Planning Rules For Recent Graduates.)

2. Spending Requirements

Having realistic expectations about post-retirement spending habits will define the required size of the retirement portfolio. Most people argue that after retirement their annual spending will amount to only 70-80% of what they spent previously. Such an assumption is often proved to be unrealistic, especially if the mortgage has not been paid off. Since, by definition, a retiree is no longer at work for eight or more hours a day, they have more time to travel, go sightseeing, shopping and engage in other expensive activities. Accurate retirement spending goals help in the planning process as more spending in the future requires additional savings today.

Similar to the need to create a breakdown of multiple-time horizons, the time-specific spending needs must be determined as well. For example, a retired couple might determine that they will spend around $50,000 per year on basic life expenses while alive; actuarial life tables are available to estimate the longevity rates of individuals and couples. However, if the couple wants to purchase a home or fund their children's education, those outlays have to be factored into the overall retirement plan. Establishing the regular and miscellaneous spending estimates at the beginning of the process should help in ensuring the suitability of the portfolio allocation.

3. After-Tax Rate of Return

Once the expected time horizons and spending requirements are determined, the after-tax rate of return must be calculated to assess the feasibility of the portfolio producing the needed income. One of the biggest risks an individual can face is having their retirement portfolio be depleted too early. This is referred to as longevity risk, the risk of living too long and thus outliving your investments. A required rate of return in excess of 10% is normally an unrealistic expectation as low-risk retirement portfolios are largely comprised of low-yielding fixed-income securities. If, for example, an individual has a retirement portfolio worth $400,000 and income needs of $50,000, assuming no taxes and the preservation of the portfolio balance, they are relying on an excessive 12.5% return to fund retirement. A primary advantage of planning for retirement at an early age is that the portfolio can be grown to safeguard a realistic rate of return. Under the same assumptions as above, but using a gross retirement investment account of $1,000,000, the expected return would be a much more reasonable 5%.

Depending on the type of retirement account you hold, investment returns are typically taxed. Therefore, the actual rate-of-return must be calculated on an after tax basis. The above discussion omits the impact of tax implications in order to simplify the analysis. However, determining your tax status is a crucial component of the retirement planning process.

4. Portfolio Allocation

Whether it's you or a professional money manager that's in charge of the investment decision, a proper portfolio allocation that balances the concerns of risk aversion and return objectives is arguably the most important step in retirement planning. A somewhat common segregated approach breaks down spending objectives into multiple allocation components. Required fixed expenditures such as college tuition are funded with risk-free treasury bonds. Using the figures from the above example, a mandatory tuition outlay of $100,000 would be segregated from other portfolio assets, thus reducing the actual retirement portfolio to $900,000. This remaining amount would be invested in "normal fashion" to produce returns that match the expected cost of living expenses.

"Normal fashion" has ranging definitions for different people. Although retirement portfolios are generally focused on either domestic blue chips or fixed incomes, depending on one's risk tolerance, international investments and small caps may be included. The proportion between the assets will also vary from person to person, especially when the time horizon until retirement is considered. Stable dividend paying stocks are also popular for retirees as these investments provide a consistent tax-efficient income stream.

5. Estate Planning

Having a proper estate plan and life insurance coverage ensures that your assets are distributed in a manner of your choosing and your loved ones will not experience financial hardship following your death. A carefully outlined will also aids in avoiding an expensive and often lengthy probate process. Despite that estate and retirement planning are separate financial responsibilities, requiring the expertise of experts in different fields, the two procedures must be considered in tandem with one another. In other words, a well-defined estate plan complements a thoroughly structured retirement plan.

A substantial retirement portfolio indicates a decreased demand for life insurance, yet a greater emphasis on vigilant estate planning. Because a large accumulation of financial assets can be passed on to the family of the deceased, the financial impact of funeral costs is mitigated with a hefty inheritance. However, if a parent wishes to leave assets to either their family members or even to a charity, the tax implications of either gifting the benefits or passing them through the estate process must be compared. A common retirement plan investment approach is based on producing returns which meet yearly inflation-adjusted living expenses while preserving the value of the portfolio; the portfolio is then transferred to the beneficiaries of the deceased.

Conclusions

Retirement planning should be focused on the aforementioned five steps: determining time horizons, estimating spending requirements, calculating required after-tax returns, optimizing portfolio allocation and estate planning. These steps provide general guidelines regarding the procedures required to improve your chances of achieving old age financial freedom. The answers to many of these questions will then dictate which type of retirement accounts (defined-benefit plan, defined contribution plan, tax-exempt, tax deferred) are ideal for the chosen retirement strategy

One of the most challenging aspects of creating a comprehensive retirement plan lies in striking a balance between realistic return expectations and a desired standard of living. The best solution for this task would be to focus on creating a flexible portfolio which can be updated regularly to reflect changing market conditions and retirement objectives.

We'll show you how to choose between Roth IRAs, Traditional IRAs and 401(k)s. See Which Retirement Plan Is Best?

by Arthur Pinkasovitch

Arthur Pinkasovitch is an Analyst at Investopedia and is currently a CFA level 3 candidate. His investment focus is centered on energy and commodities as well as applying basic economics principles to everyday investment analysis. Arthur teaches introductory corporate finance at a local college and is part-owner of a Russian Grocery Store. You can follow Arthur on Twitter.

Source:
Read more: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/retirement/11/5-steps-to-retirement-plan.asp?partner=basics111811#ixzz1ePeraRJq

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Top 5 Reasons Why Home Based Business Owners are "Killing It" Even in the Recession!

Ever wonder why or how home based business owners are now making more money than ever in this industry? Even in the economic demise we're living in?

Let's take a look at a few things.

Whenever people have a problem, where do they go for answers? To the internet!! And with SO many people affected by the recession, they turn to someone on the internet to show them a way to make some extra money from home.

Here are the Top 5 reasons:

Reason # 1 With so many people taking their businesses to the internet, they are suddenly becoming the person that has the answer for another one's problem. They can provide that solution for income opportunity seekers to make some money from home and become an entrpreneur.

The home based business industry has also shifted their focus on pitching and selling products to more of an internet marketing approach. As you may have figured out, it's all about the marketing for businesses to be successful!


Reason #2 Another reason why the home based business industry is booming is the implementation of systems that help home business owners to leverage their time.

Systems like this can allow for the "heavy lifting" so that the business owner has more time to do other things. The business can run on autopilot if set up right.

Reason # 3 Getting better quality of training. The internet marketing millionaires are now providing the exact training that they have implemented and are making it available for struggling home business owners. They've made their millions selling their products and services, and now they sell their training courses to make even more money and to leverage their time too.

This training allows new members to duplicate the success of the internet marketing millionaires.

Reason # 4 More and more home businesses are 'system dependent' instead of 'sponsor dependent'. Meaning, if a new member has a question or wants to know where to start with their business, they can plug into their own "back office" to get the answers and receive more training provided by top producers etc. This helps eliminate the "whiners" and allows the sponsor to have less headaches!

Reason # 5 Value driven content and in demand products. We're seeing less and less network marketers selling juices, lotions, and pills. The internet marketing home business owners now market products that are in more high demand and and considered in the high ticket direct sales category.

They market items that may have $300, $1000, or $3,000 commission instead of the tiny checks from selling a juice. This allows the home business owner to make the money they want! Not sell 200 juices a month to make the mortgage payment!

So as you can see, these are some very different reasons why the home business industry is booming! The Direct Sales industry has taken over the MLM industry. Direct sales offers a more high ticket item that produces a higher commission and residual income. Internet Marketing is the BIG reason why home business are now more prosperous than ever! They know how to leverege the internet to bring peope to their business!

And there's NO recession on the internet! Forbes Magazine predicts that 79 million people will have some sort of a home business for themselves! With the economy not getting any better, this number may be higher!

That's alot of people! So it's very important to get yourself in front of these 79 million people, because they may be looking for YOUR business. Now won't that make things easier?

Current home based business owners know this and that's why they produce massive profits from this.

The future is on the internet. The future is owning a home based business.

I appreciate your time, Greg Schmidt

by Greg Schmidt

Posted  2010-09-21

About the Author

Greg Schmidt is an Internet Marketing Entreprenuer who shares the system needed in order to run a profitable home business using the internet marketing strategies to leverage the internet in your favor. Access this information by Logging In at http://www.AtHomeWealthCreation.com/?t=goarttop5

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Mailing List for Affiliate Marketers

If you are an affiliate marketer who wants to make a comfortable living from referring your prospects to other people’s product or service for decent commissions, then you must consider building your own mailing list.

Building your mailing list of hungry prospects can be one of the best investments you will ever make, as it is time and effort worth spending on. When you strike on a Joint Venture and have a new product or service to endorse, you can look no further than your own mailing list.

Granted, that most affiliates, as in more than 90 percent of them, are not making money from affiliate programs, but this often results from the same amount of effort focused on least effective methods.

While having your own mailing list is, by a long mile, not the only effective affiliate marketing method, you can make affiliate sales very quickly even in the next few hours after sending a sales message, provided that your mailing list is huge and responsive.

This is often true, because owning your own mailing list for you to endorse products and services to is one of the fastest-producing results, beating other affiliate marketing methods imaginable.

In a nutshell, the affiliate marketer who gets ahead of the pack is the one who owns a huge and responsive mailing list of prospects.

www.esyideas.com

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