I think one of the biggest regrets of my life is knowing that no one taught me that what you think about, you become. It seems so simple now. But this simple concept alluded me for the first four decades of my life.
So simple. So hard.
In business, we measure everything. What you measure, you can manage. What you manage improves. There are leading indicators and lagging indicators. Leading indicators are things you measure that happen before a result. Lagging indicators are the result.
For instance, let’s say that if you make 100 cold calls, you’ll close five deals. The calls are the leading indicator, and the closed deals are the lagging indicator. If we only measure the closed deals we might not understand the correlation between action and result. If we only measure cold calls we might not recognize the fruits of our labor. If we measure both, we can tie together action and results. Then, we can see that our actions drive results.
Consider your financial net worth right now. Your financial net worth is the assets you own minus the amount you owe. What’s left is your financial net worth. Your financial net worth is a lagging indicator. Do you know what the leading indicator of your financial net worth is?
Your thoughts and your thinking are the leading indicators that directly impact your financial net worth. Just as the number of cold calls in our example drives sales, your thinking about money drives your financial net worth.
Change your thinking about money, and you’ll change your financial net worth.
Poor Mind, Poor Life.
I grew up in a lower-middle-class household, and my parents taught me some lessons about money:
- Money doesn’t grow on trees.
- I can’t afford it.
- There’s not enough to go around.
- The rich are greedy.
- I’ve got to work hard for my money.
- Someone else needs to pay for my benefits.
- Work is hard.
- To generate income, I must trade my time for money.
- Mondays suck; Fridays are great. The weekends and vacations are the only times I can enjoy life.
- Retirement is the goal.
- Security is more important than happiness.
- If someone has money, they are crooks and steal from others.
The worst part is that for a long time I believed them, and I unconsciously created a pretty touch life for myself. Can you see the pain and the struggle inside of these beliefs and stories? There’s no way to hold these beliefs and stories and enjoy time and financial freedom. There’s no chance that an individual can see life through life through that lens and be truly happy with their life. They’ll end up giving most of their life away doing things they hate in the hopes of future security.
But these beliefs are prevalent among the bottom 95% in the world. Poor mind, poor life.
Rich Mind, Rich Life.
Meanwhile, there are freeing money beliefs and an abundant perspective:
- There’s plenty for everyone.
- The more value I generate in the world, the more value I generate in my wealth.
- The richer I am, the more I can help those in need.
- Prosperity increases as I solve bigger problems for others.
- The more I help others get what they want, the more I can have what I want.
- Every day can be equally awesome.
- I can go where I want and do what I want to do to have what I want to have.
- The happier I am now, the more secure I’ll be.
- I am responsible for my own well-being and benefits.
- I don’t need to work for anyone else to have what I want. I am my own security.
- I never need to retire because I’ll always do what I love.
- If I always enjoy what I do, I’ll never work again.
- Work can be fun.
- It’s not ‘if’ I can afford it, but ‘how’ can I afford it.
Can you see the freedom in those statements? Can you feel the happiness? Can you see how awesome life can be if you adopt those perspectives and live from that space?
Over the past seven years, I’ve let go of many poor mind thoughts and shifted to rich mind thoughts. That’s why I’ve become wealthier, more successful, and more free each year. I’ve changed my thoughts about money, and my money situation reshaped itself around my new thoughts. Change your thoughts, change your life.
Be Careful What You Think.
I hope this article provided a perspective shift that will help you add more commas and zeros to your bank account. Your thoughts are your leading indicator, while your net worth is the lagging indicator. Most people are trying to change the results without changing the reason for the results. Turn your attention to your thinking, and you’ll understand why you’re where you are, and you’ll also understand how to level up in every aspect of your life.
Poor mind, poor life. Rich mind, rich life.
