Of course, nothing is really free. I’ve read that somewhere around 40 million dollars were spent just sending out those notification statements. Of course, they could’ve just notified us at the time we received the check but that would’ve been far too efficient.

And who knows how much interest we’ll all have to pay on this “stimulus package” over time. Oh yes, we’ll have to pay interest on our debt and it will eventually come in the form of higher taxes. Our government has financed it’s activities through the creation of debt ever since Nixon took us off the gold standard back in 1971. That debt will continue to drag down the value of the dollar. The lower the value of the dollar becomes the higher the relative cost of imports (like oil). This introduces inflation into our economy and eventually higher taxes will be levied in order to pare down debt and restore value to the currency. Either that or someday it’ll take a wheelbarrow full of cash to buy a loaf of bead.

What does this mean for you?

While it’s fun to think about buying toys and TVs with that nice juicy check, perhaps a better plan would be gird yourself against a further economic downturn by playing defense.

Think about it, we’re borrowing the money to finance the “stimulus package” from overseas lenders so we can spend it on imported goods that will primarily stimulate economies other than our own. Is that going to lift us out of a recession? Turn around the housing market? Create jobs or reeducate our workforce for the changing demands of this new world economy? Didn’t think so.

Here are four ways to reinvest your tax rebate in your own household and help insure that your personal financial picture doesn’t reflect that of our nation as a whole.

Idea Number One: Pay Down Credit Card Debt

If you carry credit card debt, pay that down first. The interest you pay on revolving credit card debt is typically not tax deductible and it is not an asset that appreciates over time, therefore it is what is known as “bad debt”. Get rid of it. Our government can’t at this point but you can. You are not truly free when you live in debt.

Idea Number Two: Start An Emergency Fund

Do you have one? If not this is an easy way to fund it. Stash something aside for a rainy day. People used to have savings accounts but those days have long passed. This is the next best thing. 2005 marked the first time since the Great Depression that American’s had a negative rate of savings (more debt than assets). You can turn that trend around in your own household by using this check to start an account that you can build up until it’ll cover six months worth of bills.

Idea Number Three: Pre-Pay Your Taxes

Simply put that check toward the prepayment of your estimated tax bill. That way, as the cost of living continues to rise and the value of the dollar continues to go down, at least you’ll have a bit of a buffer against it. You know that big bill is coming anyway, this will take some of the sting out of it without cutting into your monthly budget.

Idea Number Four: Invest In Yourself

The more you educate and improve yourself, the better positioned you are to deal with whatever life throws at you. It’s always more productive to take responsibility for improving our own lives than it is to blame or complain. Pick an area of your life that you would like to improve and invest that money in educating yourself.

History Repeats: Different Times, Different Places, Same Stories

Remember your history. More money can be made in down markets than up and many fortunes have been made in the troughs of economic downturns, but only if you play smart until those opportunities present themselves.

This isn’t government largess you’re getting, it’s a pacifier stuck in your mouth so you won’t ask too many questions about why gas is $4 a gallon.

I wonder what they’ll give us when it’s at $5?

NOTE: Comments are now closed. Here is what was posted…

Natalie

great advice… i thought of travelling with that check, but now i will pay off the credit card. too bad things are changing fast to worse. Barbara

Excellent advice. Extremely well written. The “gift” of money can be intoxicating. And no one can make a wise decision when intoxicated. Thanks for the sobering guidance!

Don’t know? Then how will you achieve it? If you don’t target a specific goal then how will you ever be able to hit it?

Take a minute right now and figure it out. What do you want to earn this year? And here’s a little secret… that number is almost entirely based on your self-esteem. It’s not the economy. It’s not the industry you’re in. It’s you. The higher your self-esteem the more you’ll think you deserve to make and the higher goals you’ll set. As soon as you decide to accept total and complete responsibility for everything in your life you will be well on your way to success.

Whenever you define a goal and write it down you program it into your subconscious mind. You start a process that will set you on your way to the acquisition of that goal. As soon as you stop making excuses for not having, being, or doing everything you want in this life you will break right out of the prevailing zeitgeist of self-limiting beliefs and low expectations and you will create all the success you want. All that you feel you deserve.

Write Down Your Goal

The first step is to write down a number, a realistic income goal that you believe you can hit this year. There’s no point in writing down “a million dollars” if you don’t really believe that you can make that much this year. Write down a realistic income goal right now.

Do The Math

Good. Now divide that number by 12 and write that down underneath the larger number. That’s what you’ll need to make each and every month in order to hit your yearly income goal.

Now take that first, larger number and divide it by 50. Put that number last on your list. That’s what you’ll need to earn each and every week this year in order to make your stated income goal. So if you put down $100,000 and divided it by 50 you ended up with just $2,000 staring you in the face.

Kick It Up A Notch

Seem realistic? Doable right now? Good. Then add 10% to that number. Just 10%. Now write it down.

See a lot of people set themselves up for failure by trying to hit goals that their mind hasn’t grown into yet. They look around for that million dollar idea that will double or triple their income and end up chasing one pipe dream after another. This is a real shame when there are much easier ways to boost your income incrementally which will result in the same objective.

Imagine This…

What if, instead of seeking to double or triple your income this year you just resolved to increase your closing ratio by 10%. Just sold 10% more of the people you came into contact with. And what if you sold them 10% more of what they intended to buy? That’s just one more small step that’s actually pretty easy once you understand a few psychological techniques that will help you do that consistently.

Oh, and what if the total value of each sale rose by just 10% and you started asking for and getting just 10% more referrals than you do right now? Are you starting to see how all these small improvements act as multipliers that can easily result in doubling or tripling your income without seeming unrealistic or overwhelming?

Now, take a look at your income goal that you wrote down a few moments ago. Would you like to increase it? Then cross it out. Just draw a big, bold like right through that number and write down your new accelerated income goal for the year. Circle it with a flourish and take it in.

Project Yourself Into The Future

Now take a moment and imagine that it’s now the end of the year and see yourself having hit that goal with confidence and ease. How does it feel? What does that scene look like in your mind? WHo to you tell and how do they respond to your good news?

Guess what…

You’ve already done far more than most people with their vague, unspecified resolutions to “make more money this year”. You’ve identified a realistic goal and visualized multiple ways of actually achieving it. You’ve written it down, emotionally committed to it, and made it real. Now go one step further and post your new elevated income goal somewhere you can see it each and every morning so you can keep your eye on the prize as you progress toward achieving it.

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Comments

7 Responses to “How To Make More Money This Year”

Some of the emails I’ve been getting recently accuse me of making people feel worse by pointing out that we’re in an economic recession instead of doing what all the motivational gurus are espousing, which is just to “not participate in the recession”.

Give me a break. It’s real. It affects us. Deal with it.

It need not affect us negatively though:

• Many fortunes are made in recessions.

• Many families are brought together during tough times.

• Many faiths are renewed.

The recession is real. How you respond to it is up to you.

Many people are responding by becoming reactive instead of proactive and letting negative emotions limit their thinking and rule their behaviors. All I have to do is look through my email to see that happening. I’ve been receiving a lot of negative emails this past week or so. I just opened one that started with “Joshua you pompous ass!”

The woman who wrote it took me to task because I mentioned in one of my weekly tip of the week emails that I’d just came back from a cruise in Italy. I even had the

First of all, stop watching the news so much. There is nothing you can do to change the times we now live in. They are here. We will be in a recession for the next few years. The news of the day is irrelevant. The more you watch the news the worse you will feel. The worse you feel the less likely you will be to take proactive steps to secure your own future.

So the first thing you must do is turn off the TV. Stop filling your mind with doom and gloom. I’m not saying to ignore what is happening. I’m say that you already know we’re in a recession and you don’t need the nightly news to tell you so.

The first and last 20 minutes of your day are called “your golden 20 minutes” because that is when you are most receptive to suggestion. You are in a naturally hypnotic state during those periods. If you spend that time dwelling on bad news then you will influence your day and your dreams negatively.

This is so very important that I will say it again – stop dwelling on all the bad news. You’re just disempowering yourself.

OK. Now that that is out of the way, let me give you some ways that you can empower yourself to deal with the present economic crisis as it pertains to your own finances and family.

Five Steps To Prosper In Hard Economic Times

1. Take excellent care of yourself.

In psychology there is a theory called Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. It states that people need 6 things in order to survive.

• Breathing
• Drinking
• Eating
• Excretion
• Sleep
• Shelter

These are the basic human needs required for your survival. Do not cut back in any of these areas. When these needs go unmet all of your energy will turn toward finding a way to acquire them. Attend to these needs daily in order to nurture your own well being and provide a strong base from which to grow and prosper.

Breathe slowly and deeply for at least 20 minutes a day. If you have any of my self hypnosis CDs that is an excellent way