Category Archives: Goals

A Stitch In Time

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It ‘s amazing how a few minutes’ time delay can make a major difference to an entire day. This realisation struck me on a recent bus trip to the country. The driver of the vehicle turned up about 15 minutes late for work, and in his attempt to make up for lost time, he exceeded the speed limit and was stopped by the highway police.

The driver ended up delaying his journey by several more minutes and received a traffic ticket to add to his troubles. When we finally reached our destination he admitted to his team member that every time he was a little late he got caught by the police! As I left the bus, I reflected on the fact that lost time can also multiply problems in our financial lives.

One of the biggest financial misconceptions that many of us entertain is the belief that we have all the time in the world to do the right things with our money. When we spend our money frivolously or procrastinate on taking action on our goals, we usually think that we will be just fine if we save later or start working on our plans at another time. Continue reading A Stitch In Time →

Four Strategies To Achieve Your Goals

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“If a man wants his dream to come true, he must first wake up.” — Author unknown

Last week we looked at five universal laws that govern the process of goal achievement. The path to achieving your financial goals can become a little easier if you know exactly what is required to move from dream to reality. Let’s look at four things that you need to know in order to attain your objectives:

Know what you want

When you get up in the morning, do you have a vivid picture of what you want to accomplish for the day? When you rest your head at night, do you think about the things you want to do tomorrow that will take you one step further in your life’s journey? Or do you merely live each day without a conscious thought about what you are working to achieve?

One of the main reasons many persons never attain any major goals is that they don’t know what they want out of life. Personal achievement guru Brian Tracy confirms that the three keys to accomplishment are ‘clarity, clarity, clarity’. Having a specific intention about what is important to you is the first step in the goal-setting process. Continue reading Four Strategies To Achieve Your Goals →

Going Viral with your Dream

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We have recently been looking at the importance of each person creating a vision for his or her personal growth and financial progress. I believe that Jamaica’s future economic development will be dependent on the ability of all of us to take charge of our own destinies, instead of waiting around for someone else to create change.

An unfolding Internet phenomenon has substantiated my belief that one person with a passionate dream for a better life can influence others to join in the vision. Clifton Brown, resident of Mavis Bank, St Andrew, was interviewed on a local television news programme about the woes caused by the recent inclement weather in his community.

Whenever heavy rains fall, the Yallahs River overflows and becomes a raging current across several roadways, including the Robertsfield main road, leaving the citizens marooned. Brown explained that people had to pay to be carried over by skilled persons, or by trucks or buses which could manage the flow. He appealed for a bridge to be constructed to rectify this perennial problem.

The vision becomes viral

I am sure that Brown had no idea that his impassioned plea captured on the television show would have led to him achieving celebrity status. His enthusiastic speech drew out the creativity of a young university student, Kevin-Sean Hamilton, who used clips of his interview to make an amusing music video that spread quickly on the Internet. Continue reading Going Viral with your Dream →

Going The Distance In Achieving Your Dreams

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“Where there is no vision, the people perish” – Proverbs 29:18

Most Jamaicans ardently want our nation to progress towards peace and prosperity. However, many of us don’t realise that for Jamaica to advance, we can’t simply expect others to make it happen; we must each embark upon our own personal journey of growth and development.

In The Richest Man in Babylon, author George S Clason declares that, “Our prosperity as a nation depends upon the personal financial prosperity of each of us as individuals.” In other words, if we are going to see Jamaica succeed, we have to first commit to working on our personal success.

In over 10 years of coaching persons on their financial goals, I have discovered that there are two main reasons that prevent people from getting ahead in life. Most persons are not clear about exactly what they want to achieve; and even if they have some idea about what they want, they aren’t passionate enough about why they want it to happen. Continue reading Going The Distance In Achieving Your Dreams →

Money Lessons from the Mango Tree

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There’s no time quite as enjoyable for the typical Jamaican as mango season. Every sense is stimulated as the sight, smell, feel and taste of a delicious mango will herald an enjoyable experience. Even hearing the words, ‘Would you like a mango?‘ can bring a heady anticipation of coming delights.

It may not be immediately obvious how eating a juicy mango could lead me to reflect about money. However, because I’m immersed in money issues — coaching people with money problems, reading material from money experts and developing resources to teach others about money — then anything and everything becomes an opportunity to discover something new about money.

I have recently been sharing some of the money lessons that I learned from books and CDs, but there are also everyday occurrences that continue to teach me about basic financial principles. If you have a desire to uncover the secrets to financial success, then even the simple realities of life will supply you with useful insights.

Here are some of the lessons that I learned from observing the mango tree and its fruit. Continue reading Money Lessons from the Mango Tree →

Procrastinate at your peril

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“Procrastination is opportunity’s natural assassin.” – Victor Kiam

The failure to finish important tasks is one of the major challenges that can stop you from achieving your financial goals. Many persons truly desire to improve their finances, but their dreams fade away because they make little effort to carry them out. Talking about your goals is great, but you have to take action in order to achieve them.

Years ago, I realised that my habit of procrastinating was seriously hindering my ability to create the financial lifestyle that I desired. Although I learned the right steps to make with money, many times I put them off for a later time that never arrived. I have regretted instances in the past where opportunities remained unfulfilled just because I didn’t act in time.

I had attempted to conquer my habit of procrastination by reading about ways to become more efficient in my use of time. My attempts to change were largely unsuccessful as I would often put off doing the recommended action items!

However, I knew that if I was going to be successful with money, I would have to learn to slay the dragon of procrastination, once and for all. Continue reading Procrastinate at your peril →

What’s stopping your financial success?

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One observation that has both fascinated and frustrated me is that very few people actually attain the financial success that they dream about, while so many people seem to exist without a sense of direction towards achieving any goals.

I have had many opportunities to examine the attitudes and actions of persons who seek my advice about their money problems. Very often, I would give recommendations to two persons in similar situations, yet only one would follow my counsel and achieve success, while the other would continue along a financially destructive pathway.

Many years ago, as I searched for solutions to improve my own money situation, I realised that I had to understand the forces that could help one person to achieve, and the impediments that could hinder another from getting ahead in life.

I thought that if I could learn and follow the habits of success, and identify and avoid behaviours that led to failure, then I too could join the ranks of the financially successful. Continue reading What’s stopping your financial success? →

Are You Living on the Edge?

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As the recent devastating downpours lashed the island of Jamaica, many people who lived close to rivers and gullies were terrified as the torrents tore away at the land beside their dwelling places. Unfortunately, several ill-fated persons watched helplessly as their homes eventually broke apart and tumbled into the raging flood waters.

Tropical Storm Nicole highlighted the fact that even the most placid streams can become destructive floods when weather conditions deteriorate. However, while those who resided near to these out-of-control waterways were living in danger, other persons whose residences were built on more solid ground were relatively unscathed by the natural disaster.

As I reflected on these tragic occurrences, I realised that many people, just like those who lived beside potentially dangerous water courses, are living on the edge when it comes to their finances.

While circumstances are favourable, they exist with a false sense of security about their money situation; but in reality, their financial foundation is weak and unable to withstand even the smallest of challenges. Continue reading Are You Living on the Edge? →

More Money Lessons from the Animal Kingdom

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A few months ago, I discussed the habits of some ordinary animals, noting that they had many positive lessons to teach us about being smart with money. From the lowly ant to the powerful racehorse, these creatures demonstrate determination and dedication in achieving their goals.

For the most part, the members of the animal kingdom are very disciplined and organised with their instinctual activities. However, I have researched some quirky animal behaviours that could be compared with the destructive habits that many us of have with money.

Here are a few actions that we do not want to emulate in our financial lives:

Don’t stick your head in the sand like an ostrich

It has been said that when frightened, ostriches will hide their heads in the sand to escape harm, but scientific study has debunked this saying as a myth. Although the speedy ostrich will first run away from danger, if it cannot move or defend itself, it will lay its head and neck flat on the ground to evade detection. As its upper body is the same colour as the sand in its natural habitat, it could easily be thought that the animal had stuck its head in the ground. Continue reading More Money Lessons from the Animal Kingdom →

We Will Rise Again in 2010!

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Most of us welcomed in 2010 with sighs of relief; giving thanks that the challenges of the past year were finally behind us. However, despite offering best wishes to friends and family, we may actually doubt that the aspiration “Have a Prosperous New Year” can be realised over the next 12 months.

Even if we managed to ignore the discussions about Jamaica’s economic crisis during the festive season, reality was abruptly thrust upon us on January 1 when the new tax increases were implemented. As I noted the dramatic jump in petrol prices, it became even more obvious to me that we were in for a financially challenging time this year.

The pragmatists and pessimists are warning us about impending job losses, increasing poverty levels and inevitable social upheavals. At the same time, some business and political leaders are declaring that Jamaica is poised to benefit from myriad opportunities that always abound in periods of crisis. Where does our future really lie? Continue reading We Will Rise Again in 2010! →