| "I don't have your attitude," Jeff said to me. "I just don't have the mindset of someone who can make a lot of money." "Do you want to make a lot of money?" I asked him. "That's the sad thing," he said, smiling wryly. "I do." "Well then," I said, "why don't you forget about your attitude and focus on your behavior?" "What do you mean?" "Why don't you stop thinking about why you can't make a lot of money and do something to make it happen?" "Such as?" I handed him a piece of paper. "Start by writing down how much you'd like to be worth in 20 years." He did it. "Now," I said, "let's talk about how you can build up to that number, year by year." By the end of an hour, he had net worth goals for 20 years running. His target for the current year was very achievable. He was motivated. "This is great!" he said. "How do you feel about it?" "I think I can do it." Attitude can change behavior, but it is much more common for behavior to change attitude. To put it another way: Getting wealthy doesn't depend as much on whether you are a positive person or a negative one as it does on the specific actions you take, or fail to take. There is so much misinformation about this subject in the self-help industry. The wannabes out there want to believe there is a mental switch inside them that, if they could find it, would instantly transform them from couch potatoes to human money machines. "The switch is somewhere in your brain," they argue. "Find it, trip it, and the rest is easy." Yes, it is easy to become wealthy... if you follow the practical, action-oriented wealth-building advice we give you in ETR. But if the only thing you are willing to do is think about getting richer, you are going to be disappointed. You may not like what I'm saying, but you need to hear it. Please trust me on that. I am not saying that I don't believe in positive thinking. I absolutely believe that it helps in many ways. When I brush my teeth every morning, I smile at myself in the mirror at least a dozen times to give me energy and put me in a productive mood. And when I'm going to give a speech, participate in a wrestling match, or make a presentation, I use visualization to mentally prepare myself to do well. But those things are not going to turn me into a money magnet. To develop the power to create wealth, you need to take certain very specific wealth-building actions. And each time you complete one of those actions, you will feel a deep change inside you. That's what you really need -- a change in your wealth-building habits and behaviors. Keep reading ETR and you'll find out what those habits and behaviors are. ---------------------------------------------- Highly Recommended ---------------------------------------------------- How Would You Like to Pull the Handle on a $942,300 Jackpot? - Investing expert Russell McDougal has developed a strategy to take an ordinary rise in two common resources… And turn it into an extraordinary fortune. (He turned $6,300 into a $167,460 windfall!) Now he wants you to see what kinds of gains are possible for YOU. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "It's good to take a longer view and think, 'What would I really like to do if I had no limitations whatsoever?'" Laurie Anderson The starting point of great success has always been the same. It is to dream big dreams. There is nothing more important than to begin by fantasizing about what you can become, have, and do. But there are obstacles along the way to achieving those dreams. Business management expert Elihu Goldratt explains this with what he calls the "Theory of Constraints." In accomplishing any goal, he says, there is a bottleneck that serves as a constraint on the process. This constraint sets the speed at which you achieve the goal. But he has found that if you concentrate on eliminating that limitation, you can speed up the process. Let me give you an example. Let's say you want to double your income. What is the limiting factor that's holding you back and slowing you down? Well, you know that your income is a direct reward for the quality and quantity of the services you render to the world. This tells you that if you want to double your income, you have to double the quality and quantity of what you do for that income. Or you have to make a change so that your time is worth twice as much. The 80/20 Rule in Action A friend of mine is one of the highest-paid commission-based professionals in the United States. One of his goals was to double his income in three to five years. By applying the 80/20 rule, he found that 20 percent of his clients contributed 80 percent of his profits. He also found that the amount of time he spent on a high-profit client was pretty much the same as the amount of time he spent on a low-profit client. So he very carefully, politely, and strategically handed off the 80 percent of his clients who represented only 20 percent of his income to other professionals in his industry. He then put together a profile of his top clients and began looking exclusively for new clients who fit that profile. And by taking on only clients who could become major contributors to his profits, instead of doubling his income in three to five years, he doubled it the first year! What Are Your Constraints? So what is holding you back? Is it your level of education or skill? Is it your current occupation or job? Is it your environment or health? What is setting the speed for achieving your goals? Remember, whatever you have learned, you can unlearn. Whatever situation you have gotten yourself into, you can probably get yourself out of. Three Keys to Living Without Limits To live without limiting what you can achieve, you must recognize your constraints and then act to expunge them. To do that, you need clarity, competence, and concentration. #1. Clarity Clarity means that you are absolutely clear about who you are, what you want, and where you're going. You write down your goals and make plans to accomplish them. You set priorities and do something every day to move yourself forward. The more progress you make toward accomplishing what's important to you, the more self-confidence you have and the more convinced you become that you have no limits. # 2. Competence Competence means that you begin to become very good in your chosen field. You apply the 80/20 rule to everything you do and you focus on becoming outstanding at the 20 percent of tasks that contribute 80 percent of your results. You dedicate yourself to continuous learning. You never stop growing. You realize that excellence is a moving target. And you make a commitment to do something every day that enables you to become better and better. # 3. Concentration Concentration means having the discipline to focus on one thing, the most important thing, and stay with it until it's complete. It's knowing exactly what you want to be, have, and do. It's persevering, without diversion or distraction, in a straight line toward the things that can make a real difference in your life. When you allow yourself to dream big dreams, abandon the activities that are taking up too much of your time, and focus your energies on alleviating your constraints, you start to feel an incredible sense of power. As you focus on doing what you love to do and becoming excellent in a few areas, you begin to think in terms of possibilities rather than impossibilities. And you move ever closer to the realization of your full potential. [Ed. Note: Do you have the feeling that you could be doing better? Why is it some people are wildly successful while you seem to be struggling? It's no secret -- they are clear about what they want. Brian Tracy's "The Power of Clarity" will show you how to zero in on your goals and simplify your life so you can achieve your goals faster than you ever could have imagined. (Learn more here.)] ----------------------------------------------Highly Recommended --------------------------------------------------- MaryEllen Just Met the Man of Your Dreams - He's got dark hair and piercing eyes. And he brings in sales of $5 million per month. He's gone "beyond Google." And 99.9% of Internet marketers have never even seen his strategy for powerhouse marketing. You can meet him... but only at ETR's Info-Marketing Bootcamp in just a few weeks. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thinking of Moving Back Into Stocks? Be Careful
By Michael Masterson
At the beginning of the year, The New York Times profiled several investors. Their stories were similar. As a result of the market plunge in 2008, Cindy and Eric Canup had to put off their dream of "buying land in Northern California or Oregon." Joe Mancini had to put off his retirement. Robert Paynter, a retired Wachovia executive, said the past year made him feel as if he were witnessing his own death. Recently, The Times went back to find out how these folks are feeling now. The answer: "A whole lot better" about things. That's typical. When market values were scraping bottom, they were afraid to invest. Now, after a 55 percent run-up, they are ready to roll. They all want to recoup their losses. And how did they say they would they do that? By taking more risk. But, as Bob Irish has pointed out in Investor's Daily Edge, that is likely to get them deeper in the hole. Especially, he says, after such a strong rally. There is a place for intelligent speculation. But if you need to rebuild your portfolio, fight the urge to add more risk. Instead, you should take a more conservative approach -- one that makes sense in today's market. Steve McDonald recommends select corporate bonds. Andrew Gordon likes high-quality, well-managed, and diversified companies that pay you cold hard cash in the form of dividends. Pick your time frame -- short-term, medium-term, or long-term. It doesn't matter. These are your safest investments. And over the long run, they have also proven to be the most profitable, by far. Investing aggressively in stocks now is nothing more than gambling. And gambling with your retirement portfolio is just plain dumb. ----------------------------------------------Highly Recommended --------------------------------------------------- When was the last time you slept for 8 straight hours? Dr. Jim LaValle (known as the "Doctor's Doctor" because of his packed educational lectures to fellow physicians) has just released a report with the secrets to getting you back to sleeping straight through the night... without drugs... in just 14 days. In it, you'll discover: - How to eliminate the #1 reason why you toss and turn for hours (Your spouse will thank you, too!)
- Tested psychological "tricks" that are guaranteed to knock you out cold!
- How to "burn off" the hormones that are keeping you wide awake at night (and half asleep during the day)
If you're ready to sleep like a baby all night... and wake up bursting with energy... click here for your report. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Foolproof Way to Avoid Sending Embarrassing E-Mails
By Michael Masterson
Whenever you write an e-mail on a sensitive topic, leave the "To:" line blank until you're absolutely sure you're ready to send it. That way, you'll never have to worry about accidentally transmitting a message before you have everything phrased "just so." And, of course, never send an e-mail when you're angry, when it's late at night, or if you've had a drink or two. Once it's out there, you can't take it back. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Latest News -
ETR's Info-Marketing Bootcamp is less than three weeks away. If you've signed up, have you made your hotel reservations and booked your flight? If you haven't signed up, there's still time. Don't lose this chance to learn from (and meet) the best of the best: Clayton Makepeace, Rich Schefren, Joe Polish, and more. Find out all about who will be there and what they can do for your online business here. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I write to express my appreciation for the first article in today's issue. I vow to use the suggestions of others to help me handle new ideas, regardless of their source." Patricia Bancroft ---------------------------------------------- Highly Recommended--------------------------------------------------- Don't Have Any "Start-Up" Funding? - It's a myth that you need venture capital or loads of your own money to start a business online. Thousands of today's most successful Internet businesses began as very small operations with just a few hundred dollars and a great game plan. We have that game plan for you. It will give you fast growth. And you'll never have to worry about getting deep in debt. Read on... --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Words That Work: Expunge To expunge (ik-SPUNJ) -- from the Latin for "to blot out" -- is to wipe out or obliterate. Example (as used by Brian Tracy today): "To live without limiting what you can achieve, you must recognize your constraints and then act to expunge them." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We want your feedback! Let us know your thoughts on today's issue. Email us at: AskETR@ETRFeedback.com | 
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