Secrets of the Millionaire Mind Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth Chapter One Your Money Blueprint We live in a world of duality: up and down, light and dark, hot and cold, in and out, fast and slow, right and left. These are but a few examples of the thousands of opposite poles. For one pole to exist, the other pole must also exist. Is it possible to have a right side without a left side? Not a chance. Consequently, just as there are "outer" laws of money, there must be "inner" laws. The outer laws include things like business knowledge, money management, and investment strategies. These are essential. But the inner game is just as important. An analogy would be a carpenter and his tools. Having top-of-the-line tools is imperative, but being the top-notch carpenter who masterfully uses those tools is even more critical. I have a saying: "It's not enough to be in the right place at the right time. You have to be the right person in the right place at the right time." So who are you? How do you think? What are your beliefs? What are your habits and traits? How do you really feel about yourself ? How confident are you in yourself ? How well do you relate to others? How much do you trust others? Do you truly feel that you deserve wealth? What is your ability to act in spite of fear, in spite of worry, in spite of inconvenience, in spite of discomfort? Can you act when you're not in the mood? The fact is that your character, your thinking, and your beliefs are a critical part of what determines the level of your success. One of my favorite authors, Stuart Wilde, puts it this way: "The key to success is to raise your own energy; when you do, people will naturally be attracted to you. And when they show up, bill 'em!" Wealth Principle: Your income can grow only to the extent you do! Why Is Your Money Blueprint Important? Have you heard of people who have "blown up" financially? Have you noticed how some people have a lot of money and then lose it, or have excellent opportunities start well but then go sour on them? Now you know the real cause. On the outside it looks like bad luck, a downturn in the economy, a lousy partner, whatever. On the inside, however, it's another matter. That's why, if you come into big money when you're not ready for it on the inside, the chances are your wealth will be short-lived and you will lose it. The vast majority of people simply do not have the internal capacity to create and hold on to large amounts of money and the increased challenges that go with more money and success. That, my friends, is the primary reason they don't have much money. A perfect example is lottery winners. Research has shown again and again that regardless of the size of their winnings, most lottery winners eventually return to their original financial state, the amount they can comfortably handle. On the other hand, the opposite occurs for self-made millionaires. Notice that when self-made millionaires lose their money, they usually have it back within a relatively short time. Donald Trump is a good example. Trump was worth billions, lost everything, and then a couple of years later, got it all back again and more. Why does this phenomenon occur? Because even though some self-made millionaires may lose their money, they never lose the most important ingredient to their success: their millionaire mind. Of course in "The Donald"'s case, it's his "billionaire" mind. Do you realize Donald Trump could never be just a millionaire? If Donald Trump had a net worth of only 1 million dollars, how do you think he'd feel about his financial success? Most people would agree that he'd probably feel broke, like a financial failure! That's because Donald Trump's financial "thermostat" is set for billions, not millions. Most people's financial thermostats are set for generating thousands, not millions of dollars; some people's financial thermostats are set for generating hundreds, not even thousands; and some people's financial thermostats are set for below zero. They're frickin' freezing and they don't have a clue as to why! The reality is that most people do not reach their full potential. Most people are not successful. Research shows that 80 percent of individuals will never be financially free in the way they'd like to be, and 80 percent will never claim to be truly happy. The reason is simple. Most people are unconscious. They are a little asleep at the wheel. They work and think on a superficial level of life-based only on what they can see. They live strictly in the visible world. The Roots Create the Fruits Imagine a tree. Let's suppose this tree represents the tree of life. On this tree there are fruits. In life, our fruits are called our results. So we look at the fruits (our results) and we don't like them; there aren't enough of them, they're too small, or they don't taste good. So what do we tend to do? Most of us put even more attention and focus on the fruits, our results. But what is it that actually creates those particular fruits? It's the seeds and the roots that create those fruits. It's what's under the ground that creates what's above the ground. It's what's invisible that creates what's visible. So what does that mean? It means that if you want to change the fruits, you will first have to change the roots. If you want to change the visible, you must first change the invisible. Wealth Principle: If you want to change the fruits, you will first have to change the roots. If you want to change the visible, you must first change the invisible. Secrets of the Millionaire Mind Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth . Copyright © by T. Harv Eker. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold. Excerpted from Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth by T. Harv Eker All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
