November 25, 2008
All, Radio Show
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On Turtle Time this week I explained the fire that destroyed my neighbors house over the weekend, killing their two foster sons. This is a tragedy that helped me to understand how lucky I am and that whatever problems I have a minimal compared to some. If you want to donate to the Lee family, you can do it by contacting Bank of America under the name of The Mark Lee Family Fund.
On this show we talk about the new $800 Billion bailout that is being proposed to help people get more credit on credit cards and to buy cars. Is this just an end around so that the government won’t have to give money to the car makers and the credit card companies? We also talk about Christmas shopping and why giving gift cards may not be your best bet.
Finally, if you don’t have any money in the bank you will want to listen to a strategy that has helped many people avoid running into trouble.
I hope you like the show.
Howard
November 25, 2008
Turtle Time Segments
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As you know, the way of the turtle is to move forward in a steady manner. If you do this with your money, you are bound to get ahead. The key is to keep moving forward.
Like everyone out there, the effects of the economy are taking an emotional toll on all of us. Whether you are doing well financially or if you are falling a little bit behind, we all must be thankful for what we have.
I got a big wakeup call on this topic this weekend.
You may have heard about the big house fire in Arlington that took the lives of two young boys. That fire was three houses away from mine. We didn’t know them well, but we knew the family.
We heard the fire trucks coming down our dead end road shortly before midnight on Friday. We walked down the road to see the house fully engulfed in flames. This is a big house and the family takes on foster kids, to give these kids a new opportunity in life.
We stood across the street talking with some of the other neighbors. We watched our expert fire department work frantically to try to put the blaze out. Our son is an explorer with the North County Fire Department and we know a lot of the firefighters.
We could tell that they were heartbroken knowing there were people inside and they could not get them out. That still did not slow down their efforts to save the house. They never quit, working as hard as they could even though the house was a total loss and the boys didn’t make it out.
I have never seen anything like it and truthfully, I hope I never see it again.
We walked home quietly, even though there was a tremendous amount of activity around us it seemed quiet. When we got home, my wife and I talked about our own lives and how fortunate we are. Sure we have challenges and things don’t always go exactly the way we want them to. But overall, life is great.
So on this Thanksgiving weekend. Don’t focus on what is lacking in your life. Please take some time to appreciate the steps you have taken to better your life. Give yourself some credit and remember what others may be experiencing this weekend.
The economy may be trying to knock you down. That’s okay, in fact to some degree it is normal. When it happens, just remember to get back up. If you keep getting up, you win.
November 18, 2008
All, Radio Show, The Money Thing Made Easy
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Do you know what the number one investment in America is?
Our guest this week, Chuck Salisbury is here to explain what it is and how you can participate. Chuck spent 22 years on Wall Street and a few months ago warned people that they needed to get all of their money out of the stock market. He has written a concise book on what you should be doing called, The Incredible Investment Book. The #1 Way to Invest in the #1 Investment in America.
On the show he talks about retirement, 401k’s and what people should be doing to make sure they have a chance to be financially comfortable in their retirement. This is information that anyone can use. I hope you will listen.
Chuck also makes a special offer for our listeners. You can learn more about this outspoken expert and his views on how to fix your financial ailments by going to his website at www.tenpercentdown.com
November 18, 2008
Turtle Time Segments
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I am always on the lookout for examples in my everyday life that illustrate the way of the turtle. Our turtle time segment seeks to show you that the slow and steady approach to money is the best way to get ahead. After all, if you want to stop working for money, you have to accumulate enough of it to complete that journey.
This weekend I was working on my Honey-Do list before I could go play. I have this work before play attitude that has served me well over the years so I just go with it. I pick the things on the list that I am going to do that day and when they are done, I can enjoy the play part that much more. It keeps my wife happy too.
My job on Sunday was to mow grass. You may already know that I live in the country and we have a lot of grass to mow. We have a riding lawnmower and the truth is, I actually enjoy driving it around and making the place look good. My front yard is the size of a football field and even on a rider, it takes and hour or so to mow.
While I was carefully mowing the rows, I was thinking about what would happen if I decided to cut corners. You know, skip some of the parts that you can’t see from the house or the street. Or, what if I didn’t pay attention to the way I was mowing each row or if I changed strategies several times in the middle of the job. If I just skipped some of the parts, it would continue to grow and ultimately I would have a much bigger problem to deal with. A mess that would take more time and energy than the time I would originally have saved by not doing the job correctly the first time.
If I didn’t pay attention to making sure the rows were straight, I would miss parts and the whole job would actually take longer to complete and when I was done, it would look haphazard, like I didn’t care enough to do the job right.
I don’t mow the front yard the same way every time. As a matter of fact, I have several different ways that I do it just to change it up. But each time, I choose how I am going to mow it that time and I stay with that strategy until I get it done. It ends up looking better and I get it done quicker so I can go out and goof off.
Your money works the same way. You have to have a plan or a strategy going in. Work that strategy until that particular job is done. You can choose to make alterations along the way but do what you can to stick with your original plan.
Don’t cut corners or you will have a bigger mess to clean up later and make sure that you are following your path as directly as you can.
Mow your rows straight, that is the way of the turtle. You will actually complete your journey faster and will have built something that will serve you well and that you can be proud of.
November 11, 2008
All, Radio Show
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On Turtle Time this week I referenced Sue Storm also known as The Angel Lady. You can reach Sue at her website www.TheAngelLady.net or by calling 1-800-323-1790.
Our guest this week is Robert Biswas-Diener. Robert is known as “The Indiana Jones of positive psychology”. We had an interesting discussion about his research into the subject of Happiness. Among other things, we talk about the balancing act of happiness and money, who are the happiest people and what you can do to increase your happiness without spending a bunch of money.
Robert is the co-author of the book. Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth. His book is available everywhere. You can find out more information about him and his work at www.IntentionalHappiness.com
I encourage you to listen to this show and check out Roberts book too.
November 11, 2008
Turtle Time Segments
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I was listening to the radio while on my way to do a talk with a group of High School Seniors. Of course the topic of the talk I was giving was money and even though I already knew what I was going to say, I had to add this concept in there too. Sue Storm – Known as The Angel Lady was the guest host on the show and she closed the show with an affirmation that at immediately caught my interest. Sue encouraged us to focus on the word “Plenty”.
I was attracted to this idea because I on The Money Thing we understand that the way we think and look at the things and issues on our lives have a direct effect on the outcome we experience. This really works with money. The definition of plenty is, “A full or abundant supply.”
What do you have plenty of in your life? What is it you want more of?
Here are a few examples of affirmations you could use. I have plenty of money. I have plenty of time. I have plenty of people who love me. I have plenty of opportunities. I have plenty of patience.I have plenty of friends.I have plenty of people willing to help me with whatever I need.I have plenty of knowledge.I have plenty of skills.
Most of the people we work with here on The Money Thing and at my mortgage practice, Old West Mortgage in Everett need to focus on the affirmations of I have plenty of money and I have plenty of opportunity. We need to consciously focus on this because most of us grew up being conditioned exactly the opposite way when dealing with money.
Do you remember this one? Money doesn’t grow on trees. Or, did you parents ever say, we can’t afford that. This comes from a thought process of lack.
Lack is something missing or needed. Money may not grow on trees but the wealthy understand that money is a living breathing thing that has to be nurtured and cultivated. When I brought this idea to the teenagers in my talk last week, they told me that thinking that way was actually easier for them. It made them feel better. I am going back next month to see them again and I expect to see some really cool changes in them because of refocusing on a concept they already understood. We are going to have a couple of these wise souls on our December 9th show.
