I will teach you to be rich Part II

Can anyone truly teach you to be rich? What does being "rich" really mean? For me it simply mean financial independence. Monday my daughter called me from school and informed me that her glasses broke in half. Without hesitation, I hung up from her and immediately called in to the Ophthalmologist to set her up an appointment. Well, time is more important to me than money so I scheduled my other two children appointments too. My oldest daughter wears contacts and is begging for colored contacts. My son was whining because he couldn't get glasses and my baby daughter had a pair already picked out (and they were not on sale!).

Sure the insurance covered all except $20 of the visit. Sure, I picked up the glasses yesterday and the total was just $117 after they showed me the total of $300 plus dollars. Good thing I have insurance...right? In the past, I would have stressed out over the visit and the amount to pay. Yet, because I have a budget and a larger salary, the visit was a breeze and neither I nor the children were frustrated.

See financial independence is more than the money. Financial independence is the confidence you carry knowing that you can support yourself, your children, family members, the homeless, those in-between, etc. Ramit Sethi's blog I will teach you to be rich is about more than becoming rich. The information he share is about changing your MINDSET which in turn releases stress and frustration. Financial independence is freedom from debt, freedom from lack, freedom from living a mediocre life and freedom from being tied to a meaningless job.

This millionaire journey we're on is more than you becoming a millionaire. There are plenty of stories about those that achieve millionaire status and lose hundreds of millions a few years thereafter. Did you know that within two years of retirement, 78 percent of NFL players are bankrupt or in severe financial distress? Read Chris Chase's article for more information about Why do so many NFL players go bankrupt?

Come on, this is more than about money. The journey is about MINDSET. What does being rich mean to you? (Tina)

I will Teach You to be Rich Part I

I'm beginning to believe that most people in life just want to be spoon fed. I have been a long time follower of Ramit Sethi's blog I will teach you to be rich and have learned quite a bit from his tips. If you're not following the blog, take a moment to go and sign up. He's been writing since 2003 and sharing his quest to become rich.

Last night, I attended his 6-week Boot Camp pre-launch and paid attention to his marketing techniques. For an entire week, he gave us his best information, videos, emails, etc. and finally had a live meeting and told us more FREE information. Yet, free isn't the point. The point is he places a value on information and finally gave us the price for the 6-week Boot Camp. Personally, I like his no nonsense approach. Not only did he just give the price, he politely said he was not going to hard sell us into buying it.

Ramit said, "Either you want it or you don't. If you don't, continue to follow the blog and do nothing." While I followed the live web chat stream, I realized that Ramit appeared to be living in an apartment, he didn't have the "best" camera, we don't even know if he's rich, yet HE'S TEACHING OTHERS HOW TO BE RICH! What's the point? There is someone somewhere that wants your information because they are too lazy to do it for themselves.

They don't even care if you're rich, skinny, fit, healthy, etc. They just want a quick way to improve their lives. Do you really want to be rich? Do you really want to achieve millionaire status? I do and I have for some time been quite diligent at doing those things that will guarantee that I reach financial independence. Just today I ate breakfast here at work (which I must admit, I rarely do) and the cost for an enormous pancake was a whopping $.74! Yes, and I drank water.

In fact, many of the people that eat breakfast and lunch in our cafeteria have purchases that easily reach $7-$10 daily. Now, I must say that you don't have to skip on lunch or your favorite restaurant. Please do not misunderstand me. I do believe that you must put on constraints. If you can not pay all of your bills on time, have credit card debt, no savings and are struggling financially, you should be eating Ramen Noodles for lunch. As Dave Ramsey would say, "rice and beans, beans and rice."

Yes, I said it! I have a lot more to say too. I'm developing a new approach at finances, business and this mission. We can all be millionaires-I BELIEVE IT-yet there must be a strategy. Mindset is FIRST. So, first things first. This journey should feel exciting and a little uncomfortable too. Each day you must first believe and then think about what you can do to achieve financial independence.

Kill the foxes and get moving! We are on a mission to teach you how to become a millionaire as we achieve the status ourselves. We're researching, interviewing and reading everything we can get our hands on. What can you do TODAY to work towards your financial independence? (Tina)