What About Another Stream of Income?

The jobs cuts and stock market situation have a lot of people thinking about job security, or the lack thereof. The truth is, you work for yourself, whether you're employed full-time or not. If you do have a full-time job, the company who pays you is your client, and you only have one client, perhaps. But, while it's probably a really good one, you might want to diversify your client base.


If you're like most people, you daydream on occasion about doing your own thing. Selling your art, or marketing organic dog treats. The desire to create is an inherent part of being human, and that's a wonderful thing.


Even if you're far too overwhelmed right now to even think about any other activity, it's a good thing to take inventory of your skills, dreams, and ideas. Here's a list of things you can start jotting down, either in your journal, on a Word document, or anywhere. The point is to write it down.


My Creative Genius List:


1. 20 Things I'm good at, at least I used to be good at....



2. 20 Interesting experiences.



3. 20 Things I know about.



4. 20 Things I enjoy.



5. 20 Challenges I've faced.



That should get you started. And that's how incredible projects get done, one step at a time.



For for information about this exercise, click here.

21 Shopping Strategies to Build Wealth

There are four words that are guaranteed to bring you down. Not only you, but your children and significant others. If you want to start a pity party, repeat these words: We can't afford it. Boo hoo hoo. Poor pitiful me.

On the other hand, there is a way out, besides shop-therapy. Not that rewarding yourself is a bad thing, it's just overused. I'll focus this on what to say to your children, but it goes for you, too. these strategies have worked wonders at my house.

When your child, or your inner child, begs you to buy this latest ultra gizmo, these are things you can say, instead of the nasty aforementioned four words.

1. I don't want to spend my money on that.

2. I don't want to spend my money on that right now.

3. This doesn't make my money work for me.

4. Another day.

5. We'll think about that for Christmas (or birthday, or Thanksgiving...)

6. Did you clean under your bed, like I asked you to?

7. This is not building my net worth.

8. I'm saving for a income-producing opportunity.

9. I'd rather invest in myself.

10. What happened to the gizmo I bought you last week?

11. I'll get a better gizmo later.

12. This gizmo is not a good seed; I don't think it will produce for me.

13. I'd rather spend this money to help others.

14. This gizmo doesn't really solve any problems for me.

15. Rich people buy assets, poor people buy liabilities.

16. I'm playing the money game to win.

17. Why don't we go to the library instead?

18. The habit of managing my money is more important that how much I have.

19. Let's think long-term, not short-term.

20. This gizmo doesn't build my business.

21. Let me think about it.

See, spending money, and asking your parents to buy you things are both habits. Mixonian is all for consumer spending, but spend your assets strategically, not as automatic response to a momentary lack of gratitude. Then when you do buy something, it's more fun than usual.

The best way you can spend money right now is investing in yourself!

Now That Your 401K Is in the Toilet....

Some germane reflections on wealth:

1. "Human creativity is the ultimate economic resource. The ability to come up with new ideas and better ways of doing things is ultimately what raises productivity and thus living standards" Richard Florida in The Rise of the Creative Class (xiii).

2. "The daily practice of gratitude is one of the conduits by which your wealth will come to you." Wallace Wattles, in The Science of Getting Rich written in 1910.

3. "Everything that happens in your life if moving you in the direction of your goals." Bob Proctor.

4. "There is no failure, only a delay in results" unknown source.

5. "There are no justified resentments" Wayne Dyer, PhD.

6. "The world is a looking-glass and gives back to every man the reflection of his own face" William Makepeace Thackery.

7. "Everything is raw material. Everything is relevant and usable and feeds into my creativity" Twyla Tharp in The Creative Habit (10).

8. "Money-giving is a good criterion of a person's mental health. Generous people are rarely mentally ill people." Dr. Karl A. Menninger. I found this quote in Joe Vitale's e-book, The Greatest Money-Making Secret.

To summarize, your wealth is far more than your savings: ultimately your wealth is an inner resource. Making it grow does not depend on the stock market. Developing your creativity with the clear intention to create wealth together with a practice of generous giving and appreciation for what you have is what makes a person truly wealthy. Finally, resentments and unforgiveness may keep you from seeing opportunities to create good things in your life.

7 Steps to a Wealth Mentality

Last week my friend, Ruben, shared with me some interesting business materials from the incredible internet marketing mastermind, Joe Vitale. I thought I'd post his 7 Steps to Attracting Wealth with you. Here they are:

1. Give money away. A generous person is a mentally healthy person. The ability to part with money by sharing with an inspiring cause or person reinforces a mentality of abundance in your own mind. I would suggest that you send the money to Mixonian : ), but I'm not set up to receive donations....yet. Seriously, think about helping someone in a way that gets you enthusiastic about it.

2. Get clear about what you want in life and your attitude(s) toward wealth. Reflect to see if you are storing any negatives beliefs about money. Some of these could include the conviction that money is evil, that wealthy people are mean, that wealth is only for certain people and not you.

3. Take inspired action. When you get an idea, act upon it. How many times have you seen someone else successfully implement your idea?

4. Support a cause. This is related to #1. If you see that having money enables you to make a positive impact, this reinforces your own wealth mentality. Helping others wards off greed.

5. Get support. Share your ideas and establish accountability with like-minded people; it doesn't have to be a large group. Even two people in agreement is far more powerful than going solo. Be with people who nurture you and limit your time with negative thinkers.

6. Be grateful for what you do have, which is a lot. If you're reading this blog, you're already ahead in the game. How powerful is an attitude of gratitude!

7. Do what you love. According to Joe Vitale's research, the most successful people always follow their passion. If you're in a work situation that pays well, but you think it's not really you, think about the positive aspects of your job. You can see it as a way to pay the bills and enable you to do other things you love, or you can cut loose. Don't be in a rut.

Taking a close look at people you truly admire and you will probably see evidence of these suggestions in their lives. And, if you aim for the moon and only hit a star, it's not a bad outcome.

You're Richer Than You Think

Despite my redefining myself as a "high-maintenance" person, my checking account balance is --shock-- the same! Doesn't it realize that high-maintenance babes require more $$ precisely for that high maintenance? Not to worry, there's gold around here somewhere, I just need to dig it up.

OK, the best things in life are free, but there are a lot of really wonderful second-best things, like a Kate Spade wallet, that cost money. If you're wanting to upgrade your assets, take a look at the wealth you already own. Consider the following riches:

- You can get almost any book that's ever been printed, for FREE, at the library. If what you want is not there, ask for an inter-library loan. Entertain yourself, educate yourself, or both.

- Want expertise on hydroponic gardening? There's plenty to be had, for FREE, on the Internet. Any subject, it's there in writing, and in audio form. You can educate your self about absolutely anything these days. And that knowledge can change into another form of abundance, the kind that you put in your bank account.

- Not all of you have this option, but I get to use the gym at ECU for about $20/month. That's almost free. Yesterday I swam one mile in their lovely pool. Usually it's heated, but yesterday it wasn't, because of some maintenance going on, so I got to burn extra calories to keep warm, at no extra charge. You can always keep fit by walking, for FREE!

- Want to connect with the world? Set up your own blog for FREE, at google. Express yourself, sell stuff, connect with people, for FREE.

- Want to raise some cash quickly? You can probably convert some of your books, objects d'art (that French for doodads), or picture you no longer care for. You can sell them on ebay, hold a yard sale, or visit a consignment shop. In any case, a tax deduction converts money owed to Uncle Sam into a much more useful resource. All of these options are FREE.

- Want to be extremely intelligent, ultra hip, super creative, and wildly successful? Read Mixonian. For FREE. Lucky you, you're already doing that. ; )

If it's true that the rich get richer, and it certainly seems to be that way to me, then maybe we can start by realizing that we already are rich. It's just a matter of using our unlimited creativity to transform our assets to better suit ourselves.