Have you heard about Alcoholics Anonymous? What about Gamblers Anonymous? These are voluntary organisations of people who abuse alcohol or are addicted to gambling. Participants meet weekly to share stories about their struggles to overcome addictions and in the process they encourage and inspire each other to quit the harmful habits.  

It is my suggestion that we seriously need to start Thinkers Anonymous!

Every now and then, whenever a good business idea comes your way, instead of taking action you say to yourself, "let me think about it." Close friends have tried to introduce you to money saving clubs but too much thinking got in the way and you neither joined nor saved. Libraries and finance magazines abound with financial success strategies but you would rather think than act.

Do not think for a moment that I am against thinking in-toto. I agree It is necessary to weigh and consider matters before arriving at the best course of action. But i also acknowledge that it is not necessary to always get 100% of the facts to make a reasonably good decision.

General Colin Powell said if you are 70% confident about something, you can get into top gear and move ahead. If you insist on seeking 99% confidence, you will realize that 99% of the time you will be overtaken by events.

So today is a good time to examine your reason for inactivity. If you have gotten to the point where you would rather lie on your thinking couch for the duration it takes to do what you are thinking about, PLEASE STOP THINKING AT ONCE and dial the emergency number for Thinkers Anonymous!

Part of my Phd studies in Entrepreneurship will be a study on the effect of large unexpected amounts of cash on middle income families.

How would you react if one routine morning we surprise you with $250,000 free cash with only one simple requirement - that we study your behavior and financial performance thereafter for the next 3 years?

What kind of lifestyle would you have after the three years? How will your bank statement read? Will your health, appearance and manner of dress change? Which social affiliations will you acquire and which ones will you ditch? How will your friends, relatives and former colleagues regard you when you suddenly jump to a different social and economic class?

Most importantly, in case you lose the money, we want to know the major factors that will bring you down the perceived ladder of financial success. If you make more money, it is all yours to keep. Just let us know the best decisions you made. Was it pure luck or focussed strategy?

If this study seems interesting to you, please fill the form below for possible consideration when the proposal is accepted and funded. There are no guarantees whatsoever. Completing the form is just an indication that you wish to be considered whenever the research is funded and approved. A formal application form will be sent to you at that time with more details on the research.

Please title the message as, "Effect of large unexpected amounts of cash on my lifestyle". Good luck.

Effect of Large Amounts of Unexpected Cash on My Lifestyle

Many years ago i read an interesting story in Readers Digest Magazine about a poor man and his family. They lived on a farm and they only had one cow. They could not afford a car and they had never gone on vacation.

One early summer morning, a neighbor heard loud voices of children playing. She peeped through her curtains and was surprised to see the poor man's kids dancing and running around an old used car that had seen better days. It was parked outside the poor man's home.

For the 10 years she had lived next to the poor family she had never seen them appear so happy and excited. Out of curiosity, she decided to enquire what the excitement was all about.

As she stepped  out of her door,  she  saw  the  poor  man' s family crammed inside the old jalopy with the kid's bicycles tied to its roof. She asked the poor man what the excitement was all about.

"We bought a car and we are going on vacation," the man said.

"Where did you get money for the vacation and the car?" she enquired.

"We sold the last cow!" the man answered as he sped off. 

Sometimes do you feel like selling the last cow and treating yourself to luxuries that you cannot afford?
 

Once I read a story about a boy who lived in a ranch. Every now and then he would sneak into his neighbor's farm and steal apples. But one day as he crept under the fence thinking no one knew of his escapades, he felt a tag on his shirt. He turned round and came face to face with his dad.

The story goes on to say that 30 years later, whenever he was about to do something that he knew was wrong, he always felt a tag on his shirt and he stopped at once.

In a similar way, you need to create a physical or mental tag that warns you when you are about to spend money on something that you don't need. For example you could hide your credit card in a small deep pocket in your wallet. Whenever you struggle to reach out for your card to pay, at least you will have 2 seconds to re-think the purchase. Or you could cover your cash with a red stick-on paper with a big "NO" written on it. This will force you to think twice about spending.

Be creative and share with us your mental or physical tag by writing to [email protected]

We are all very eager to know secrets - especially financial secrets. This is because secrets carry with them an aura of mystery. In finance, secrets appeal to our unstoppable get-rich-quick-without-effort mentality. We can even spend thousands to buy a secret. But what are financial secrets made of?

Financial secrets are similar to all other secrets. A secret is only some piece of information that you do not know. It's that simple. There's no magic or mystery about it.

Knowlegde eliminates secrets. If you want to understand the secret about a certain activity, do not pay a psychic. Place your ear on the ground and listen to walls. 

Secrets exist to the extent of your ignorance. The less you know, the more secrets the world seems to have!

QUOTE: Half of knowledge is knowing where to get it.

Please read our personal finance article number 7 to know what went wrong, who is to blame and what your options are. Please click here to read more.

It is interesting to note that in my home state of Massachusetts, the state lottery has made over $900 million and continues to grow at a rate of 8%. As the economy worsens, it seems many people think playing the lottery may be their best chance of landing their first million dollars. What are the chances?

Your chances of winning at least a million dollars in a lottery are 1 in 18 million.
Let us compare that statistic with some other interesting events so as to bring the fact into perspective.

The chance of being hit by lightning is 1 in 2.7 million. That means, it is easier to be hit by lightning 6 times in your lifetime than to win the jackpot.

What are your chances of becoming a president? 1 in 10 million. So you are better off hitting the presidential campaign trail than winning the jackpot.

Now let us compare other ways of making money.

Your chances of writing a New York best seller is 1 in 220. Better still, your chances of dating a millionaire are 1 in 215. That means, it is easier to date 75,000 millionaires than to win the jackpot.

I guess you now understand what am saying. It saves you money and disappointment if you evaluate the chances of succeeding in any venture. Playing the lottery is throwing away your good hard-earned money.

So in future, please use the number 215 as the yard stick. If the chances are worse than 1 in 215, ditch the plan and date a millionaire! 

PSST: Are you afraid that a shark may attack you fatally when swimming on the beach? The chances of being killed by a shark are 1 in 300 million. It is easier to win the jackpot 15 times than to die of a shark bite!

Why are people so inclined to believe in improbability? It is called media-engineered-sensationalization - news items designed to appeal to our highest   sense of greed and fear. That's my opinion - you can have yours. Please leave a comment.

Many readers have wondered how they can make an extra 100 bucks a week to stem the ever increasing loss of purchasing power as prices continue to sky rocket.

In response to this need, i will start highling various ways you can start a small business from the comfort of your home using your computer. I will also try to research how you can start with minimal cash investment of $100 or less.

In the meantime, please read the free ebook that i will send you when you complete the form below.

Please fill in your name and email below and you will receive a free ebook on internet marketing. Privacy Policy - Your details will be kept confidential.

1) Make late payments - beyond 30 days of due date

2) Max out all your credit cards

3) Consolidate all your credit cards into one then cancel the rest

May be you have noticed that in my articles and blogs i keep stressing the importance of investing for retirement - there's a good reason for it.

When people are young, enthusiastic about the future and still holding lofty dreams of 1001 great things they will achieve in life, retirement life rarely crosses their mind.

Young people are not willing to think much about life beyond 70. They think it's too far and it represents the opposite of what they wish to remain - young, good-looking, energetic and healthy. However, science has ganged up to make sure that we will live at least 20 years after 70.

So a time will come, whether you like it or not, when you will be called senior citizens, when wrinkles will shrivel away your youthful beauty, when a walker will be your closest companion and when trips to the pharmacy will be as regular as the trips you took to the dance-halls.

This time is called RETIREMENT. Employers will not be eager to give you a job. If your main source of income was a salary, it will be cut-off. Even your health may not allow you to work as much as you would wish. Many companies do not have pension plans that you can count on. The Social Security Administration in the US is warning that it will be broke very soon. So where will you get money to enjoy your retirement days.

In most instances, if you are hard on cash, you can walk into a bank and get yourself a loan. However, no bank will be willing to lend you money to retire on. You may scrounge some petty cash from family and friends but that will not ensure your comfort - it will erode any dignity you had left and people will desert you. You will end up lonely, broke and miserable.

Today you have a good chance to avoid that grim picture. Just remind yourself that a time will come when you won't be able to borrow and earn as much as you wish. So you must do something about it now.

My 2 suggestions are;

1) Start investing in an Individual Retirement Account without delay.

2) Start a business. A good business requires minimal supervision by the owner.

Both, investment and profitable business, will make you money during retirement and even beyond. 

I wish you an enjoyable retirement. A time to see the world. relax and enjoy the fruits of your working life. Please remember to let the young people know how you got there!