Make Money at Home

It was 7:30 on a Saturday morning, and I was setting
up to do the opening keynote for the conference. For some
reason–I have no idea why–the sound man thought his ten
year old daughter would enjoy my presentation. He’d brought
her with him to work.

Watching her father wiring this and plugging in that,
the girl was soon as bored as only a ten year old can be.
Eventually, she sauntered over to me.

“So who are you?” she demanded.

“I’m Barry Maher.”

Overwhelmingly unimpressed, she asked, “And who the
heck is Barry Maher?”

“I’m the speaker.”

“Is that a big deal?”

I laughed. “Not apparently to you.”

“Not if all you do is speak. Everyone speaks. Even
my little brother speaks, and he’s an idiot.” Sighing
dismissively, she spun and walked away, in search of
something–anything–more interesting.

“And who are you?” I don’t want to get particularly
philosophical here, but obviously that’s the most basic
question we all face.

So who are you? Aside from being CEO of Amalgamated
Amalgates, that is. If your self worth is dependent upon
your work, I would suspect you might be heading for a fall,
sooner or–at the very least–later, when retirement comes.
There’s more to you than what you do for a living. Or at
least there should be.

I’m not my job and neither are you. No matter how
successful or how unsuccessful we might be at those jobs.
We all know some big career successes who are very
unsuccessful people. And some who are very unhappy. None
of us should be surprised that there are some very
successful and very happy people–great friends, loving
spouses, wonderful role models for their children–who
have never cashed a big paycheck.

“His picture hangs on every wall,” one self-
described peon said of the company’s chairman of the board.
“His name is invoked in reverential tones. But aside from
making himself very rich, what does he really do for the
world? Besides making it safe for one more set of
unnecessary, environmentally devastating, energy wasting
products.”

“He’s helping to perpetuate a lot of jobs,” I
answered. “Yours included.”

“He is. But judging by the happiness the people
around here seem to be getting from those jobs, they may
not be eulogizing him at his funeral for that.”

Tip: If you’re not impressed by your own career
thus far, you might still be better off than you would be
if you were successful by the standard definition of
success. Especially if that’s not really your definition.

A friend of mine once said of his business partner,
“He’s given up his life in the single-minded pursuit of
wealth. And now, wealth is all he has. So he obsesses about
losing it. Since he never had a life, he has no idea of
what to do with his money, even if he had time to enjoy it,
which he doesn’t because he’s so accustomed to the treadmill
he can’t even imagine getting off. Of course, the beautiful
thing about the pursuit of money is that you’ve never got
enough. So he keeps on chasing it, simply because he as no
idea of what else to do with his life.”

I like money is much as anyone, more than many. And
a big title impresses. (It especially impresses small minds,
those we’re least interested in impressing). But we should
never forget, this is business: quid pro quo. We always
have to measure the value of what we’re getting against
the value of what we’re giving up.

Who are you? And who do you really want to be?

© Copyright 2005, Barry Maher, Barry Maher & Associates,
Las Vegas, Nevada

VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT www.barrymaher.com

Barry Maher writes, speaks and consults on management, communication, motivation, leadership and sales. His books range from “Filling the Glass,” (”[One of] The Seven Essential Popular Business Books” according to Today’s Librarian magazine) to the cult classic fantasy novel, “Legend.” His client list ranges from ABC to the National Lottery of Ireland to Verizon.

For conventions, conferences and meetings, Maher is an “expert keynote speaker, an inspirational motivational speaker and a worldclass trainer.” Sign up for his free newsletter at http://www.barrymaher.com or simply send a blank email to barrymaher-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.

And when it comes to sales motivation and sales training, as Selling Power magazine says, “To his powerful and famous clients, Barry Maher is simply the best sales trainer in the business.”

Tags: change, communication, leadership, management, motivation, sales, speakers, Success, trainerschange, communication, leadership, management, motivation, sales, speakers, Success, trainers

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Listed below are the top 7 financial mistakes most couples make. Read through this list with your partner and identify one mistake that you’d both be willing to change. After you’ve made that change, identify another mistake you could change. Continue until you’ve transformed all your mistakes into financial successes!

1. Acquiring debt

It’s easy to acquire debt as a couple. There’s home improvements, remodeling, new cars, etc. If you’re carrying credit card debt make a commitment to stop using your credit cards. Pay off your debt as soon as you can by determining your monthly payment (make certain it exceeds the minimum monthly payment established by your credit card company). Do an on-line search for “credit card payment calculators”. For each payment amount entered, these calculators will determine how much you will pay in interest and the length of time it will take you to pay off your credit card debt in full (assuming you don’t accumulate any additional debt). Make your credit card payment automatic (by calling your credit card company and requesting an application, or using a bill pay service through your bank).

2. Poor timing

Many couples discuss money issues immediately before bed, just before getting together with friends, in a public area or while under stress. Before you bring up a money issue Ask yourself if this is the best time to have this discussion? Challenge yourself to be with your uncomfortable feelings until there a more appropriate time to talk.

3. Not telling the “financial truth”

Many couples are afraid to be honest with each other, fearing judgment from their partners. Make a commitment first to be honest with yourself about your financial situation. Be willing to look at your spending behaviors, personal beliefs around money and your debt total. After you have been honest with yourself, challenge yourself to share this information with your partner.

4. Merging finances

Many couples assume they should merge their bank accounts. Take some time to consider what you want to do. You might have your own preferences about how you want to handle your money. You might want a “yours, mine and ours account” Or you may want to combine your finances. Discuss your preferences with your partner. You can always experiment with both approaches.

5. Maintaining the status quo

As individuals and couples we tend to do the same thing we’ve always done and complain when we get the same results. Dan Kennedy, direct marketing guru and consultant to millionaires says the following about predicting personal income. “One year from today’s date, 90% of us will have the exact same amount in our bank account.” Do more than just maintain your current financial situation. Take financial action now!

6. Spending beyond your means

Create a plan to reduce spending and start increasing income. Think of one thing you can do each month to increase your income. Maybe it’s selling something on e-bay, having a garage sale, or cutting back on your expenses.

7. Not having a rainy day account

It’s important to have 3-6 months of savings set aside to cover your expenses in the event that you or your partner are unable to work due to illness or injury. Sit down with your partner and calculate your necessary monthly expenses. The key word here is necessary expenses - these are expenses you must cover each month; mortgage, utilities, car payment. An unnecessary expense would be $200 on dining out. If you were unable to work you would trim any unnecessary expenses from your spending. Start putting a predetermined amount of money aside each month into a money market savings account until you’ve reached your emergency savings goals.

Leslie Cunningham, CTACC, “The Financial DatingTM Expert,” Is dedicated to helping couples build wealthy relationships and turn their money & lifestyle stress into inspired action. Leslie has over 17 years experience as a service professional, leading workshops, and helping individuals achieve success. Sign up for free money and relationship tips like these by visiting her site at http://www.springwindcoaching.com

Tags: communication, finance for couples, finances for women, marriage and finances, relationship & moneycommunication, finance for couples, finances for women, marriage and finances, relationship & money

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Did you know that 43% of all married couples argue over money issues, making it the major reason couples fight? If you and your spouse handle money differently, now is the time to talk, establish expectations, and draw up a financial plan.

Money is a very big part of a marriage. Having enough to spend, and to do the things each wants to do, is important to both parties. When couples are not able to do that, then other issues pop up in the relationship. When husband and wife are not on the same page as far as family finances go, other difficulties inevitably arise.

Effective communication often emerges as the most difficult obstacle to establishing goals and expectations, and developing a financial plan. Many of us have been taught during childhood that discussing money is somehow inappropriate. Couples must understand that it is not only appropriate but absolutely necessary to managing finances in a marriage. Just as finances must be planned in a business, they must also be planned in a marriage. You must communicate in spite of any difficulty.

For example, how do you get your spouse to understand that he or she will need to curb their spending habits so that you both can begin putting money away?

There s got to be a viable agreement, because most couples discover that a lack of money, a lack of spending control, or a lack of fall-back savings eventually causes other problems in a marriage. Little things grow into much bigger things. However, as emphasized by Daniel Smith a noted financial expert cited in The Marriage Medics, future arguments over finances can be avoided by simply communicating, creating an understanding of expectations, setting objectives and agreeing on a financial roadmap.

The Marriage Medics outlines the following financial plan of attack for couples of any age:

1. Stop living beyond your means.

2. Treat the household like a business.

3. Create an income-and-expense statement.

4. Create a balance sheet.

5. Create a budget.

6. Figure out how to pay down your debt. Agree on a plan of action in which you both share equally in cutbacks.

7. Find ways to cut expenses.

8. Go on a debt diet starting with the little stuff.

9. Have only one credit card for your entire family.

10. Celebrate when you pay off a debt.

There are many resources for help in creating family budgets and living within them. For instance, Jim Miller, a Registered Investment Advisor, author of Retire Dollar Smart, and the host of a financial advice radio show is an excellent source. Visit his web site at: www.retiredollarsmart.com. In sum, married couples have an important opportunity to plant the seeds for a healthy marriage by simply talking with each other, being realistic about expectations, and making that financial plan. Money matters!

Copyright 2005 Cynthia Cooper

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Cynthia Cooper, Ph.D., is a clinical psychotherapist and co-author of The Marriage Medics which you can obtain via http://www.themarriagemedics.org

Tags: communication, debt, expense, finance, financial plan, marriage, money, relationships, spendingcommunication, debt, expense, finance, financial plan, marriage, money, relationships, spending

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