I didn’t go to business school, so much of what I know and feel about money, I learned out there on the streets (and yes, I’m still learning everyday!). I’ve made small and big mistakes and they cost me money, but I regard every one of those stumbles as a learning opportunity. As they say, you know you’re a true entrepreneur once you have failed…and failed…and failed in business.
Learning to Invest
Fresh out of college, I was invited to sell insurance and I got certified as an Investment Solicitor. I remember sitting in a lecture wide-eyed at the thought of mutual funds and how renting a home instead of buying one can actually be a good business move. Selling Mutual Funds didn’t bring home the bacon, but it planted a critical habit in me: investing in income-earning assets.
Fast-forward to 2010 when I was hungry for a community of financially-conscious people I could relate to (i.e. non-corporate), and I came across Bro. Bo Sanchez. He was a poor missionary who had a financial awakening that aligned with his spiritual vocation. His main mantra that I carry with me to this day: We want you to get rich because we want money in the hands of good people. I attended Wealth Circles with Bro. Bo and first learned of the concept of Masterminding, or hanging out with people you admire and who could be your mentors. To this day, I am part of the Truly Rich Club, which sends monthly updates on which stocks to buy and when to sell them. Monthly investment is less than Php500, truly a steal for the info he shares! If you want to learn more, here’s the invite page to the Truly Rich Club.
Changing my Money Mindset
In 2014, I made one significantly bad business decision, and over the course of two years it would wipe out my life savings. I was back to square one financially, and I started thinking that I was really not built for business, even if deep down I didn’t believe it was true. I convinced myself that I’m an artist and teacher at heart, and I’m happy to give and share what I can for free.
It was Harv Eker’s book, Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth, that got me to rethink about how I think about money.
I picked it up in April 2017 and devoured it in a day, only to reread it the next day. It came at the right time. It still sits on my desk, reminding me of the importance of stretching and re-stretching ourselves financially. Our financial situation is ultimately a manifestation of who we really are on the inside.
As Harv asked, I did the Wealth Declarations at the end of each chapter in the book, and started to do positive brainwashing on myself.
I visited his website to download the Net Worth Tracking Sheet, which is a table that you fill up every month to monitor changes in your assets vs. liabilities (ideally for the next three months). It was the first time I computed my current Net Worth, and I converted it from Pesos to Dollars–a tactic I’ve adopted to start thinking in global terms.
I also found Harv on facebook and came across the Zero to Multimillionaire class, a 75-minute free webinar where he reveals 6 proven principles that make the difference between getting rich and staying middle class or broke.
It’s one thing to read his words off the page, and it’s another to watch moving, talking pictures of him showing his home, his family. You get a clearer sense of who this man is, who built his wealth from the ground up.
Make no mistake about it, Harv is a go getter. He insists that business is a learnable skill. Wealth Creation is a learnable skill. He is non-academic and shares his streetsmarts in a straightforward language.
I guess when I “met” Harv, I wasn’t just ready to learn, I was hungry for someone to teach me how to do things.
At the end of the free webinar, he pitched the Million Dollar Business Secrets course, a self-paced online program where he shares his streetsmart tactics in building his businesses (he calls them Guerilla Wealth Tactics), his secrets in Negotiations and Marketing, and the ways of thinking that let him come up with Million Dollar Ideas in a snap.
The course wasn’t cheap, but I wanted in on it, so yes, I signed up.
What did I learn over the next four weeks? A lot. I saved his modules on my phone for me to read and listen to when I need a wealthy vibes boost. Here are some of my major takeaways:
- I really need to let go of my old ways of thinking. There are still remnants of doubt, poverty mindset, hesitation. No teacher can do that for me. That’s all me and it’s up to me to let go.
- Every business is a marketing business.
- Build products of higher value. The work is the same, might as well get paid more for your effort.
Should you sign up for his course? If you are hungry for tried-and-tested tactics in the business arena and want to kaboom your bottomline to new heights, YES, YES, YES. Learn from Harv. The program isn’t cheap but it won’t break the bank either. Learning is always an investment in yourself, and learning about business is a smart investment in your business. Find out more about his Million Dollar Business Secrets and see for yourself.
Read Part 2 of this series: Finding my Mentor and Community.
Note: Some of the links above will give me an affiliate commission if you choose to buy in, thank you!