mijournali

Happy Money – Ken Honda

Everyone wants money. When you randomly ask a person what they want the most, they will often reply, “Money”. They can decide exactly how to use it later. Why do we want money so much? What are the underlying motivations that keeps us constantly feeling in need of money? Once you can put into perspective the emotional reasons for wanting money, you will start to feel more connected to your own needs and less stressed about money. This is how you can be released from money’s control over you. Over the years I’ve observed many reasons why people think they want money. I’ve recognized some some distinct patterns, which I am going to describe as the six reasons why people want money. There is always an emotional drive behind wanting money. But if we become disconnected from the underlying emotions, we can get stuck in a cycle of trying to make money without understanding what we really need. We all need shelter, clothes, and food to eat – and a way to cook it. In the past, people attributed their livelihood to good farmland and forest, but today it is money that delivers us the things we need. When most people are asked why they are working, they will reply, “To put food on the table.” It is important to understand the difference between what we consider to be the bare minimum and what we consider luxury. I’ve met many people who were making good salaries yet constantly felt like they had just enough to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads.

Many people save money because they are afraid of the future. They may get sick or lose their jobs, so they save for a rainy day. That is why people want to save: in case something bad happens. But if you save money out of anxiety or fear, you will just feed more fear and anxiety – more blocks to the flow of money. The side effect is that no matter how much you save, anxiety around money will not disappear. If you are broke, you may think you need to save enough money for a week so you can feel at ease about money. But if you have a week’s worth savings, you will feel like you need money for a month. After that, you may need a year’s worth. It never ends. Even if you could save enough for the rest of your life, you would start worrying about the possibility of losing it all. So your anxiety never disappears. Why? It is not related to money at all. It is anxiety and fear deeply rooted in your psychology. We think our fears are about money, but in reality it is the future and change we’re afraid of. Is there a solution to this madness? If you are going to save money, save it while you imagine the many fun ways to spend it. You might go traveling, eat at a nice restaurant, get a massage, retire in a desired location, spend it on your children and loved ones. See the difference? You’re infusing your thoughts of money with appreciation, love, hope, and positive energy, thus ensuring that more will flow. You realize your money is there to support your joy and fun. If you start imagining all the fun things you can do with the money you are saving, you won’t be able to worry at the same time. The human mind is very simple: it cannot process two emotions at once. Keep your mind focused on the fun, positive, and hopeful things. Your savings account – and your mind – will thank you.

This may sound strange, but it is true. I have interviewed thousands of millionaires all over the world, so i have a lot of data that confirms this. In fact, I did a study with Kodansha, one of the prestigious publishing houses in Japan, called How Ordinary People Became Millionaires, which examined 10,000 millionaires and how they achieved success. I discovered many things, one of which was that they all lost much and experienced failure and loss before accumulating wealth. They lost in various ways: through bad investments, through theft by employees, or through failed businesses. So don’t get discouraged by the first misfortune. Think of it instead as getting one step closer to success. For after losing some, you will start attracting money – if, of course, you maintain a positive attitude and are open to receiving future success. Other findings are that people who love what they do are far more likely to be successful than those who are unfulfilled in their work. People who do what they love have more passion, go the extra mile for their clients, and serve more. They are more appreciated and respected by their clients and customers. In a word, they are likable. If you want to have a higher Money EQ, you need to love people. The more you care for others, the more you will receive. People respond to someone who cares. Money will flow to these people. If more people like you, more money will flow. I often get questions from freelance people about pricing. They often wonder what the right price for them is. They are not asking the question of how. They want to know more about how to price higher and still get clients and customers. They are afraid to raise their prices because they fear they’ll lose potential clients. It is scary to “put a price on yourself.” The same goes when you ask for a raise. What is interesting is that whatever price you set, you will get clients. However, they won’t be the same: different people have different needs and abilities. If you price low, you’ll attract those who can pay those prices, if you price high, you’ll lose power-paying customers but you’ll attract those who are willing to pay higher prices. So the question is: Are you ready for higher prices and attracting different clients and customers?

People often assume that bigger is better. However, people who desperately aim for big money and riches often fail, and with that failure comes a lot of stress. When it comes to body weight, but occasionally you will find someone who feels great in their own skin, just as they are. In terms of money, I have heard many people say they want more but rarely has anyone ever said that they have too much. I’ve met only one man who said he had enough. I have mentioned my mentor Wahei Takeda a couple of times. I wrote about having “enough” in a book called Maro Up!: The Secret of Success Begins with Arigato with Janet Bray Attwood. Before Wahei’s death, I had the privilege and honor to learn from him, and he was by far the happiest person I have ever met. Although most people around the world are unfamiliar with this great man, to put in relative terms, he was like this great man, to put it in relative terms, he was like the Warren Buffett of Japan. He used to run one of the largest candy companies in the country, and what made his candy company so unique was that the factory workers listened to children singing arigato, which means “thank you”, as they made this special and popular candy for babies. Wahei felt that the energy that came from the children singing while the factory workers were making the candy was why his candy was a bestseller. And I believe my success is a direct result of Wahei’s philosophy of saying arigato consistently and applying his “maro up” philosophy to my own life and business. So what is maro? The word is short for magokoro, which means “true or sincere heart” in Japanese. You could say maro is strong in those who have a pure heart and lead an upright life. Even in Japanese, it’s hard to define maro because it’s a spiritual state, but it could be called a state of selflessness, the opposite of ego. It can be thought of as the deeper and of one’s consciousness, closer to the collective consciousness, the level at which all of humanity and the universe are one. As such, maro is the wellspring of our unconditional love for others, and also for ourselves. Achieving a state of maro is the key to success. Wahei said that those who are in touch with maro always create win-win situations for themselves and the people around them. It follows that if you have a pure heart and true sincerity, not only will people treat you better but you’ll begin to feel the whole universe support you as well. When your maro increases, Wahei says you “maro up” and invite many miracles into your life.

When your maro increases, you:

• become more magnetic, both emitting and attracting positive energy. This surrounds you with good people and things you care for deeply, which then creates a cycle of happiness and abundance

• become more passionate and more energized to do the things you care about the most. You become more intuitive, and you can choose the best way to live your life. And since you are doing what you love most, you are constantly opening doors to exciting new opportunities and more abundance

• express more gratitude for life so you find yourself saying “thank you” more than even before. Your gratitude is contagious, and you make those around you full of positive energy. As a result, others start to express gratitude and welcome more abundance into their own lives as well.”

The Power of One More – Ed Mylett

“Here’s a simple example that illustrates the point. When you were a child, the first time you tried to ride a bicycle, you didn’t do so well, did you? You probably started with training wheels, going slow, and with your mom or your dad by your side to steady you. As you climbed on your bike day after day, you got better at learning how to balance, pedal, and go foreword. Eventually, those training wheels came off, and slowly but surely you started to ride away on your own. Not long after that, you were whizzing up and down streets and sidewalks without a care in the world. And your life had changed forever. Until you understand and embrace the fundamental, life-changing power of One More Try, you won’t fully understand why it’s essential to try and make one more call, do one more set in the gym, meet one more person at a conversation, or learn one more skill to put you head and shoulders above everyone else. When you act and do the same things as everyone else, you’ll get the same results as everyone else. When you implement a One More Try mentality, that’s where you’ll find your greatest successes and your most significant personal growth. Doing so also will give you more confidence than your competitors. It’s a secret weapon of sorts. Although they may not see it, you’ll know you’re willing to do more than them. That’s a tremendous advantage in your favor. This isn’t exactly a new idea. Confucius understood the battles that go on in a person’s mind when he wrote, “The man who thinks he can and the man who thinks he can’t are both right.”

Confucius knew that an individual executes to the level of what he or she believes in themselves. Confidence fuels your belief that you’re worthy of making One More Try.

Many people like to think of themselves as overachievers. If you call yourself an overachiever, you’re declaring that your standard practice is to go above and beyond what’s necessary for achievement.

There is another critical component to this. Even though you may be willing to do the things that other people aren’t willing to do, you must be intentional and look for opportunities in everything you do. That mindset must become second nature to you. When you practice this strategy long enough, it becomes a reflex. You don’t think about it. You just do it.

I learned long time ago that we all have the wisdom inside us to create the future we want for ourselves. Most of us simply don’t tap into this rich vein, for whatever reason. We block that part of our identity and accept something less.

Sometimes we accept a lesser life because we weren’t given a good role model to follow, or we’ve suffered through adversity that’s made us mentally fragile. We wither under criticism and refuse to dig deeper to find the mental toughness and grit that even we didn’t know we had. Here’s something that should excite you. When you do break through, the places where One More Try takes place are a lot less crowded than when you run with the pack. Most people give up. They don’t do the work you’re willing to do. So they won’t get the results you’ll get.

Changing you emotional mindset is a challenge, I’m not going to lie. There are mental barriers to overcome when you’ve been pre-conditioned to think a certain way, a way that brings you comfort and goes to great lengths to avoid pain. Often, the actions you take in your life are because you think they’ll give you a particular emotional response. You buy flowers for your wife or girlfriend because you want to show your love for her and feel the love in return. You take a long walk on a beach or a hike alone in a park as a way to clear your mind and find peace. You work your butt off to reach a year-end work goal because you know you’ll enjoy the recognition you receive and the pride you’ll feel. Emotions are stronger and more permanent than feelings. Feelings are emotional reactions. They’re more transitory, and shallow in nature. Emotional responses run deeper and can be measured by physical cues. What’s mother’s heart does not race when her child comes home from a long deployment in the military to surprise her? If you get in a fight with your spouse, at some point, they’ll stop talking to you, but their body language will tell you all you need to know. Studies have even shown that unhealthy anger in its repressed state has been linked to cancer. Unaccompanied by positive emotions, negative emotions can create an endless stream of ruminations. This repeated negative thinking increases the brain’s stress levels, flooding our bodies with the stress hormone cortisol. That can lead to depression, overeating, drug and alcohol abuse, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease.

Although you want to hoard and experience only positive emotions, the fact is that all emotions are entirely normal to experience. That means anger, fear, disgust, sadness, contempt, shame, guilt, and other emotions we perceive as negative are just as normal as surprise, happiness, satisfaction, joy, and relief, to name a few. When you try to repress perceived negative emotions in your favor of only seeking and allowing positive emotions to exist in your mind, you tip a delicate balance that causes problems instead.

People are intentional about their actions, but rarely do we spend enough time thinking about the emotions attached to those actions. And we must be truthful when we do so. Rich Dad, Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki puts it this way: “Emotions are what makes us human. Makes us real. The word emotion stands for energy in motion. Be truthful about your emotions and use your mind and emotions in your favor and not against yourself.”