Countless Income Streams

Now now...you might say...she's waaay too cocky. She's out of her league.

Nope..... increase is indeed unlimited. Abundance is unlimited.

It's all about your imagination...It's all about your positive mindset.

When you are a content creator....know that there will always be new multiple platforms upon which you may place your content. New publishers, both for the self published artist and the more traditional publishing houses. They are all growing and learning how to put more good work out into the cosmos. They are morphing to find more work....just like what you create. Someone right now is looking for you....for what you have just the right now to express and put into words, or inventions, or songs, or artworks.

The world needs you. I don't know any other way to say this. You were born into this generation because you have something that needs expression that this generation requires. You were born for a reason. Make it happen. And don't lose faith.

Just as some social media platforms have their time in the sun....so others will be invented and rise up to take their place. Your content can be boosted onto all these spreading platforms....There are only the limits that you place or "refuse" to place upon your content.

Yes, you can create content for one platform....or for 100 platforms.

And then there are the platforms that will hunt you down and pitch and beg you to be on their platform.

Stay original....observe copy right laws and don't allow discouragement to stop your creativity from flowing. Keep creating. Stay artistic. Use your words. Use your colors, use your music. Stay confident. Adapt....learn how to navigate new software as often as possible, or pay people to do this for you.

Believe in your work! Do you know you have quality content? Do you "make good art" as Neil Gaiman would say? Don't stop now....don't slow down.

Do whatever you need to do to get back on that horse and make some more cool stuff.

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF BECAUSE GOD BELIEVES IN YOU!

Carla.

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Why You Just Might Succeed

You just might succeed because  when your friends...your family and perfect strangers giggled at your goals ......you persevered.You plodded onward.

Even when u ran out of money u didn't back down. The money finally surrendered to your will as you conquered it's mystique. You now have more than you need and plenty to share.

You finally understood that success does not always rest upon the prettiest, the fastest or the affluent. You waited for wisdom to reveal herself to you. You were patient and alert.

You tore through books. You asked questions. You weren't shy to speak your goals aloud and often to yourself. You tweaked your list of goals as often as needed...

but not to please anyone other than yourself. You became the creator of your own destiny.

Sometimed people listened. Sometimes people laughed.

And now....now they who once mocked you are calling you desperately for advice. Folks who criticized you openly are now bragging of those times long ago when they knew you.

You smile gently.

You learned to smile when folks were cruel. You learned to let nothing disuade you from your chosen path.

It is righteous. It is good.

Now you have reached that pleasant plateau...where not only have you reached your own personal goals....but you can help others reach their's too.

It is so well.

It is so good.

Thankyou God.

Peace.

C.

Making You Mad? Just might be the right choice...

When I was a teenager...I couldn't fathom even the most simplistic financial books. It wasn't that I couldn't have understood them with time and focus...it was just that I really couldn't care less about that subject matter. I had  many other fish to fry....and finance, economics or the stock market wasn't on the list. The calmness and patience required to read through a heavy economics hard cover sounded like death by a thousand pages.

Then 2o years or so passed by....marriage, children,  jobs, spirituality and philosophizing. I began to forage my way through simple books about the economy, personal finance and the stock market. I read authors who made me laugh. I also read authors who made me steaming mad. Yes, foot stompin....tear your hair out...pacing the floor kinda mad. It was the authors who made me mad who kept me learning....kept me problem solving until I made sure I understood the point that was being made. I may not have agreed with that writer, but at least I could say that I understand his/her line of thought.
Being understood....is a hugely vital human need. Writers need us to understand what they are trying to say....even if we don't agree with them.

I began to wonder about economic visionaries. I began to see so much untapped potential amongst my beloved Canadian populace. Folks who were highly intelligent, were not requiring anything significant of the blessed brains they had been given. Some folks I know well, with keen quick intellects allowed their minds to....begin to atrophy. When you don't have a challenge to rise up to meet, you begin to step back....to fall back to the lowest common denominator.....which for some....means beer, pizza and worrying about who is wearing what or driving what.
 Boring boring boring.

When you can do more with your life....why not do it? Why not try?

And so, because I at least had the confidence to acknowledge that God had given me a mind that deserved further development, I began to select books that pissed me off. I began to select books written on levels and layers way beyond my ken. I stopped beating myself up for dropping out of university. I began to watch online classes from M.I.T via Online courseware, just to see if my mind could swim in their leagues. I may have been doing the doggy paddle in those oceans of higher learning, but at least I was in the same body of water. I was a student again...with no tuition fees and no visits to a fussy registrars office. I became a happy clam again.

I write often about reading and it's importance in my life and in my self led educational journey. I like to post lists of my fave authors. I like to toot the horns of bloggers that I have come to trust over the years.

But rarely do I talk about how I pick the those authors. Sometimes I choose authors that make me so very frustrated....that seem to talk above and beyond me in such a tantalizing way that I simply must rise to the occasion and at least try for a good few weeks to figure  out  what all their fussing is about.  As Seth Godin would say....I try to get the joke.

Then, after a season of bad hair days , coffee spilled on overdue library books  and one too many coffee cups gathered around my computer...I rest. I am content. I actually got the joke. I rock.

How you craft your self led learning journey is one thousand percent up to you. It is not for me to tell any body else what they should be learning. That would defeat the point of calling it
SELF led learning.

SELF led learning....means to it's very essence, that you alone must choose. You will hunt and gather those epic books. You will scrape the dusty corners of the net for some forgotten genius who frustrates and inspires you, that you just can't get out of your mind. You will find that novel idea that was inspired by God to propel you forward....to your next step....to your destiny.

Don't give up on the journey because you don't hear anyone telling you what your next step should be...... The silence is indeed golden....  It is your empty room. Your blank page.
No need to be hasty. But do push forward. Push ahead.

Peace,
Carla.



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How Do You Look At Equities?

Just curious....how do you look at investing in equities?

Folks say all kinds of interesting comments when you bring up the subject of investing or saving.....Here are a few unique comments...perhaps you have heard some of them?

"Oh Vey! the Stock market is like gambling....too risky....btw...where is the nearest convenience store because I forgot to buy my lottery tickets ..."

"I prefer to invest in funds that carry a large diversified basket of equities so that I can sleep at night knowing that I am not betting all my eggs on one chicken"

"Investing is for men....so I'll just leave that stuff for the hubby to take care of...."

"Equities only represent perceived value....so I'd rather put my money into solid things that I can hold in my hands.....like gold bullion or real estate."

"I don't understand the tax system, so I'd rather not use banks, and just hide my money in my sock drawer.....the same way Uncle Buck did back in his day..."

"Reading about investing is boring....I don't want to read anything nonfiction....because it just reminds me of school."

"I don't invest in anything because I feel like the world is going to hell, so I might as well just spend everything that I earn and enjoy every day as if it is my last"

"I might be dead by the time I reach retirement age, so I don't think I will save anything for retirement".

"Those investment professionals that handle my retirement account surely know what they are doing....at least they seem to...based on their fancy logo, luxurious office building and those glossy pamphlets they send to me once in a while. Surely they won't squander my wealth with they? Btw...what does -8% mean in average return?"

"I cancelled my life insurance policy because I believe that Jesus is coming back very soon, so I know that my family and I won't need those funds in the near future..."


Ok, enough sample comments for now. But perhaps you have heard or spoken some similar sentiments at one point in your life. Money brings out the crucial issues of life and many folks just prefer  a polite silence when it comes to all things financial. Being too excessively secretive inhibits frank discussion and squelches learning. Remember that bible verse about "iron sharpens iron" ? We sharpen each other's ideas when we are ready and willing to speak and listen to one another. We speak together, we listen together, we learn together....and finally yes, we grow together.
Yes, be careful who you speak to and who you listen to....but don't give up on the positive influence of good healthy discussion and frank conversation.

Public and college libraries and book stores are well supplied with many volumes of books that can help us all boost our financial acumen, not to mention the over abundance of learning tools available in the cloud.

I hope you find that the abundance of available information isn't overwhelming. Feel empowered.

Be curious. Find your answers....


Peace,
Carla.




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Don't Ever Underestimate What You Bring to the Table

My intention is to encourage you, my precious readers. It has come to my attention once again, thatthe "world" is full of folks who are full of.......themselves. This condition of pride and arrogance causes so much harm and is a quite serious threat to the self esteem and goal setting of many many really good people all across our beautiful globe.

All it takes is for someone to roll their eyes at something you do or something you have just created and bam, your self esteem and goal setting process are at risk. Sometimes it doesn't take more than one negative comment from a nosy neighbor to throw someone off their stated plan of achievement.

That is why it is soooooo very extremely important to be your own best cheerleader. It is vital that you protect that motivation that keeps you rolling steadily towards accomplishing your own set of written goals.

In case you are a new reader of my blog, permit me just to explain that I am a HUGE fan of empowering people to succeed by insisting that ALL of us WRITE down our own short list of life goals. It has been proven time and time again, that written goals are much much much more likely to reach achievement than those that simply remain in our imagination. So..... please do write down at least one of your most important goals and keep that goal in a place that you will remember. .....perhaps in your wallet, in your email
files, or written on your mirror in lip liner....whatever works. Just don't hide your list of goals in some obscure file in a forgotten drawer. You need to be able to find and read it out loud regularly. There are always going to arrive times in our lives when we need to remind ourselves what our goals are.                                   Keep your written goals handy for regular reminders.

Your determination to DO that which you have written on your list is a precious process. It is so precious that one actually has to protect that "goal setting " process. The reason for this, is that there are going to be many humans who won't align themselves into agreeing with your written goals. You need to avoid those humans like the plague.

FOCUS FOCUS FOCUS on your written goals. As stated in a previous post..... .............................FOCUS is the PERFECT HEDGE. ...................................................................Permitting yourself to stay focused on your written goals is going to be one of the absolute BEST gifts that you can give to yourself. Focus takes time and energy. It takes support.

It is my prayer that you will find the support that you need in order to accomplish the goals that please God on your list of written goals. And by saying "the goals that please God" I am not in any way suggesting that these goals need to be religious in nature. I am simply saying that if you want God's blessing on your goals, you are going to want to choose goals that are in alignment with the basic "good will towards mankind"(Luke 2:14b kjv) as the bible describes.

So as you carry on and perform the duties required to set your goals and plans into place, may the love of Jesus keep you calm and serene. Ignore the naysayers and negative thinkers. Walk slowly and confidently into the perfect will of God for your life.

Peacefully productive,
Carla

When You Make a Change....Give yourself Time to Acclimate

I hope you're havin' a good day. If you're one of the folks who stumbled upon my blog looking for some empowerment and motivation ....then I just might have a wee thought for ya today.

Perhaps you've been reading lots of blogs and books and have started putting some plans of action into place to make a change in your life. It takes a lot of gumption to wake up one day and decide that you don't like where your life is heading and have the courage to steer that boat into a new direction.

So maybe it has been a few months and you now know that it's not easy, but you know that it was the right choice to set your hands to a new plan of action. You've crafted your written list of life goals and now you've actually started to take action on at least one of those written goals.

But now, like many of us mere mortals, you're starting to feel uneasy. You hope that  you are making progress and feel like you're on the right track, but it all feels just soooooo new and strange. The newness and strangeness of it all, is enough to make you run back to your old comforting haunts and back to the ruts you once lived in. I want to encourage you to not give up now. The discomfort you might be feeling is simply your heart and body's way of telling you that it needs time to ACCLIMATE to the new and better direction of your life.

When any human being make s new life choice and starts heading into a more positive direction, it can literally takes years of feeling out of sorts before you start to feel comfortably like yourself again. New things ALWAYS bring a sense of strangeness and discomfort. We aren't used to the new pathways yet and our inner "curmudgeon" might just be griping about all the extreme changes.

But I just want to encourage you today.....just because you're feeling out of sorts doesn't mean that you have made a wrong choice. Take some time to get accustomed to your new way of setting and accomplishing your written goals. It is a very different lifestyle compared to just living from the hip.

Give your mind, will and emotions the rest that they require in order to start to begin to feel at home with your new goal centered life. It may not feel like the real "you" just yet. Give yourself time to get used to the massive changes you have undertaken. Don't doubt yourself and PLEASE don't give up.

If you are writing down goals and taking steps to accomplish them, you are on the right path. May God bless you with wisdom as you adapt to this new lifestyle filled with promise and adventure.

Peaceful productivity,
Carla


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Let's Discuss Tony Robbins New Book "Money- Master the Game"

Ok, I'm still chugging through the book, both in paper form and via the audio version of it.

At this point, I am not quite as thrilled with it as I first was, simply because I feel like I am being sold mutual funds and financial advisors. Is this book an ad for STronghold financial, High Tower, and Vanguard Index Funds???

I hope I am simply jumping to conclusions and maybe I've missed some of the better chapters, but please Tony don't tell me you're just going to sell me this stuff. I want to learn facts, accurate information, and strategies.

That's kinda why I still appreciate Robert Kiyosaki's books, because although his tone is somewhat snide and aggressive at times, at least you feel like you are getting an honest analogy of the modern economy and investment horizon. I'd rather be told the truth from a "mean man" than be coddled into compromise by someone who is nicey nice.

Anyway, as I said before, I hope I am wrong and I've simply not read the best parts of Tony's book yet.
Have you read or listened to any of it yet? What were your impressions?

Peaceful productivity.
Carla


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Your Brain is an Organ ....he said.

So here I am quoting Tim Ferriss  yet again.
But the truth is that I search high and low for information that empowers me and my journey.
I pay a premium in life energy sifting through heap loads of lack luster mediocre non inspiring data, just crying for a mere morsel of wisdom. Therefore I don't care how far I have to run and dig and sift in order to find a fabulous diamond of use-able treasure to pass on to you precious souls, my readers.

Sometimes that treasure comes in just one simple sentence, not a whole book, not a video series, and not a three box set of high priced CD.s

So there I was listening to an older download of one of Tim Ferriss's blog's podcasts, and he
said this simple statement in such a way that I began to have a better understanding of what makes me tick.

He said "Your brain is an organ". and then he described in an answer to someone who had emailed him a question to answer on his podcast in which they asked
 "How do you get yourself out of a stagnant funk/poor low energetic unfocused state of being" ?  (paraphrased by me )

 Tim Ferriss responded by stating that because our brains are also organs, we need to consider that they will also function more energetically when responding to exercise. So his answer to his listener's question was ..."To get myself out of a funk or poor mental state, I simply do a short burst of physical activity, even as short as 10 minutes on a stationary bike or 500 meters on a rowing machine. Even just one short burst of exercise jump starts his brain and he gets his mojo back to allow him to  begin working on one of his stated goals in a better frame of mind.

His point was well taken. We far too often disenfranchise our minds from our body, as if our brains are not even organic. But our brains are certainly quite "human" and earthy and respond to exercise just the same as our leg muscles do. The response is powerful and it is most encouraging to realize that the impact can be felt in as short a time span as only 10 minutes.

Hopefully you get the impact of this revelation as I did. I tried it just today. Just 10 minutes on a stationary bike today and I'm typing up a storm today. Emotions are fleeting. AS Tony Robbins taught us....that YES we CAN change our state. We don't have to stay stuck. We can change our lot in life. We can change how we feel by what we do and by what we think and by what we say to ourselves.

So thank you once again, Dear Tim Ferriss for yet another nugget of good advice. God bless.

Peaceful productivity,
Carla


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Choosing a Pacesetter as Napoleon Hill taught

Napoleon Hill's teachings don't really have an expiry date. Most, if not all successful men and women in business today have at some point in their lives become students under Napoleon Hill's teaching. Some have just learned indirectly from him, because they are/were under the tutelage of a leader who had already absorbed his teachings.

Have you?

Napoleon Hill wrote that epic little book called "Think and Grow Rich". His advice comes across as both humble, astute, kind and progressive. His work was a precursor to the work of motivational "scientists" such as the Tony Robbins of our day.

So today I wanted to talk about Mr. Hill's recommendation that we each find a "pacesetter".
Maybe you're not familiar with the term. A "pacesetter" in Mr. Hill's lingo, is simply someone that is successful in a similar niche as to what you aspire to, whom you can use as a marker maker, so that you can use his/her success to gauge and pace your own progress toward your goal.

Let' say for example, that your goal is to have a passive income stream from real estate equalling no less than $2000 net profit per month by the time you are 55 years old. Would you look for a pacesetter who hates real estate but loves the stock market? Nope. You want to choose a pacesetter who is in the same zone as you are mentally and in terms of their goals and lifestyle. You would want to find someone who has already gathered a bit of steam in real estate and who you can access some of their expertise, either personally or through their written or video work. Ideally you want a pacesetter whose work you can monitor either through the net or through their published works. If you don't know what your pacesetter is up to, you won't know if you are keeping pace with him/her and the motivating factor will be lost.

The internet has expanded our opportunities in terms of how we access mentors. We don't necessarily have to know our mentors personally in order for them to have a powerful impact on our lives.

For example, Kenneth Copeland has a powerful christian ministry across the globe. The last I heard, his U.S. branch collected close to 150 million dollars in revenue in one year's time. (don't quote me on that, as I haven't double checked the numbers) The reason I mention this, is that most of his "partners" or supporters have not met Kenneth Copeland personally but yet they have given him a place in their lives as a relevant mentor. They read his books, his newsletters, his websites, his twitter feed, and listen to his teachings via CD or podcasts etc. Kenneth is mentoring millions of people without even having to leave his studio. Yes, he does travel a lot as well, but it is worth mentioning that the majority of the mentoring happens remotely via mass media outlets. These outlets are not accessible to "only" his  ministry "partners" as anyone can
buy or read his books or listen to his teachings on Youtube.

I want to encourage you, if perhaps you have felt that mentors are so very hard to find. I have felt that way very often, especially because there seems to be so few female mentors that I really admire enough to want to pick their brain. There is some legit value to a lil' bit o' healthy competition, even if it is only comparable in the virtual world. But I take comfort in knowing that I am living in a day and time in which I can have
unlimited access to a plethora of brilliant minds just because I happen to have an internet connection. If God blesses my journey to the point that I will eventually have a personal networking opportunity with any of my virtual mentors, then that will be another day of joy.. But a personal relationship with a mentor is no longer absolutely necessary.

 You need a pacesetter, so you have some friendly competition to motivate you and inspire you. You need a pacesetter so that you have someone with whom you can assess your own progress. For example, if Tom and Jane have acquired 50 new sales leads in one month, why do you only have 3? Pacesetters inspire action and confidence because they show you what is possible, what is do-able and what you can hope for. Choosing a good pacesetter will help you focus on whatever it is you really want.

Choose a pacesetter who matches your set of values. Make sure it is someone of high moral fiber.
Wishing your blessings and inspiration this afternoon. Peace.

C.


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Changing State

Trying to get yourself motivated and just can't?
Try one of Tony Robbin's fave coins of advice, which he calls "changing your state".

It isn't something complicated. For me, I can change my state with
my own personalized prescription of 41 minutes of walking on the electric treadmill.
Why 41 minutes? Just 'cause over the years, I've realize that that's all that it takes for
me to change my frame of mind, my perspective and my physiology.

Sometimes, we just get stuck in proverbial inertia...
Wikipedia describes inertia in these words:

1. Inertia is the resistance of any physical object to any change in its state of motion, including changes to its speed and direction. It is the tendency of objects to keep moving in a straight line at constant velocity.

That's a pretty accurate description of "stuck humans". We resist any change in speed or direction because we are comfortable with what path we have been on for any length of time.
We instinctively resist change, because it is new and unfamiliar. 

Even when we know that we are really ready for something new to come about in our lives, we still have that natural draw to cling to what is our personal "comfort zone".

So, one of the ways that Tony Robbins helps empower his "students" is by teaching them how to "change their state". When we change state, we have a new emotional condition and a new set of physical circumstances. We mentally prepare ourselves for good new things.

So, before you hedge your bets on some enormous New Year's Resolution, consider
allowing yourself a change in state first, to prepare yourself mentally and emotionally for whatever new idea that you have in store for this coming year.

Blessings, empowerment and peace.

Carla









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Name That Blog

Years back when I first started this ole Blogger blog, I was on a thought bender.
My bent was towards empowerment and I felt so totally empowered to realize that everything I ever wanted or wished to know was certainly within my grasp. My months in college and university had filled me with a fresh zeal for the power of "access". Knowing the right professors, experts and connections gives you access to folks who can answer some of your most pressing questions. Then when you get your first question answered to your own satisfaction, you are able to move on to another brilliant inquiry. As the scriptures say "Line by Line, precept upon precept".(isaiah 28:13)

I fell in love with the notion that not only was I powerful because I valued my own questions and the process of inquiry, but I realized that I was powerful because I discovered I had learned how to
find out anything I wanted to know.

It wasn't just a spiritual process, although that remains a vitally important part of my personal learning process. Prayer is part and parcel of the learning and inquiry process. I ask God to help me continue to grow and to lead me into the knowledge and fields of inquiry that He wants me to pursue. I ask God to help me to retain the knowledge that I glean. I ask God for access to more teachers and mentors as the time is right.

I have found that women in particular don't necessarily take their own quest for knowledge very seriously, especially if they are mothers. The needs of their children and their spouse often cloud their inquiries or dull them into apathetic science. But, after reading this post, you won't fall for that mistake will you ?

But I have found that a woman who comprehends and respects her own capacity to learn and gain knowledge is a better and happier mom. Don't lose sight of your curiosity. Let it lead you into more data...more factual information. Women who gain mastery of a subject became capable of accomplishing anything they set their minds to. ( for more on this idea, read the book called "The Confidence Code by Katty Kay and Claire Shipman)

So, permit me to wrap up this post....merely by repeating what I came to believe when I started this humble blog. Ladies and gentlemen, elders and students, rich and poor and everybody inbetween....let me roar and empower you today....because it is still true... YOU really CAN Know ANYTHING. May 2015 show you that the access to knowledge you long for is right there waiting for you to chase down and make it your own!


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What I Appreciate About Timothy Ferriss

today I'm just gonna write a short blurb about the famed author and lifestyle "hacker" named
Timothy Ferriss. If his name doesn't ring a bell, you may recognize his work more so by his book entitled
"The Four Hour Work Week".

I suppose there are just some things that I can really relate to when it comes to appreciating Timothy's
attitude towards life. First of all, he really wants to live life on his own terms. He's not afraid to be labeled eccentric or unusual, as he is probably proud of those kind of labels. If being labeled unusual or eccentric is the price I have to pay for creating my own best life, then I will happily pay it")

I recently watched an episode of Morgan Spurlock's show "A Day in the Life of Tim Ferriss"
here's the link on Vimeo
http://vimeo.com/47614661

The episode showed just what the title entails, just precisely what Tim does in a typical day. It isn't that I'm spell bound by watching other people's lives, it's more that I am always on the lookout for people that I can relate to.
So, in my own wonderfully quirky way, I saw a few more similarities.

Tim has an incredibly short attention span, and has figured out his own self labelled "OCD" by making sure his projects generally don't last for more than 3 months. He simply gets bored out of his mind if his projects last longer than this. Therefore his consulting gigs are a perfect match, because he likes to work in short and intense bursts of energy, rather than long arduous hauls.  He also demonstrated how he sets himself up to write on this blogs and websites, with a movie running on his laptop on mute, music playing in his ears via earphones and him typing away on his sites. When I found myself reading two or three books or magazines at the same time, I realized that I might also have this propensity, to have to have a lot of things going at the same time in order to prevent boredom and still remain in control and stay productive.

Tim also has a unique interest in managing his own health.....just like me. He recently signed up with a private blood testing company that is doing an in depth analysis of Tim's blood in order to diagnose any areas for potential concern, so that Tim can start now to make the lifestyle or dietary changes now before any diseases develop. I too, aim to be ahead of the game in prevention of disease and illness by tweaking how I live and by what I eat/drink.

Thirdly I just appreciate the "bootstrappiness" of Tim Ferriss. He actually used that beautiful word "bootstrapping" in the video. He just isn't afraid to work hard and make changes on his own terms. He's not looking for everyone's approval. He is looking for his own approval by creating a lifestyle that satisfies his own priorities and prescription for a great life. I think that's just simply raw courageous genius.

Have you read any of his books? Looking forward to reading your thoughts in the comment section below.
Peace and wellness.

Check out Tim's website: http://fourhourworkweek.com

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