My job sucks and I make no money, so I can't afford health. How will things ever change?

After 10 years, I worked my way to the position of department head - Director of Information Technology - in a small company that was doing very well.

Through it all, I had those concerns about paying pills and providing for family. I met my wife the first week I moved to Atlanta, and we fell in love immediately. Our marriage made me an instant father to our then 9-year old son and our daughter came a few years later. So now I had the steady, high-paying job, the family, etc.

But was it really stable?

No, it wasn't. Even in the position I was in, we were not happy. My daughter and son were frustrated because I was working all of the time. I was stressed from work. We had the money to pay the bills, but what were we really doing? We were living the typical illusion that you work hard, save up, and then create a legacy for your children and retire. That is so popular and common that most people don't question it ...

... even though the statistics are available to prove that the 40/40/40 plan doesn't work (40 years, 40 hours a week, $40k a year). The majority ... not a small portion, not an average statistic, no, the majority of people retire at or near the poverty level.

So, knowing this, and wanting so badly to spend the time with my family I felt they deserved, I started looking into becoming an entrepeneur. Now, I was in the same boat as everyone else - very analytical, cyncical, cautious, had to plot out my course and make sure the factors aligned appropriately before committing to anything, etc. So when I looked at the failure rate for businesses and entrepeneurs, I said, nope, not for me.

But, fortunately, I had learned that to be successful, we must have teachers. So I found teachers. I found people whose lives were the ones I wanted to live - people like Ian King, John Di Lemme, Mike Litman, and Jeffrey Combs. Millionaires but, more importantly, not the money they possessed - but the time freedom they had. See, I could care less if I made $1 if I could make sure I had a safe home to put my family in and spend the time with my children.

So I followed these mentors, and listened to successful businessmen like Robert Kiyosaki, Jim Rohn, Brian Tracy, Steven Covey, John Milton-Fogg, Dr. Joe "Mr. Fire" Vitale, etc. And I really listened.
And here's what I found.

It's not about being analytical. 99% of the world is that way, and 99% of the world is not getting what they want. The 1% who are there get out of their head and into their heart. They tap into a passion greater than the fear of "what if."

It's not about having your eggs in one basket. Multiple streams of income really is a strategy that is amazing. One of my streams of income paid me weekly during my move, when I did nothing business related except launch my e-Book for 2 weeks, and it has paid me other months when I haven't even touched that business. Even $100 in a week is like having an interest payout on thousands in the bank.

It's not about trading time for money. Every successful person I have met has learned to leverage their knowledge and work with others. Examples of leverage include writing a book - you put the effort in initially, but then it is leveraged as it makes sales. See, I don't have to write that book 1,000 times when I make 1,000 sales - I only write it once. Multilevel marketing is another example of leverage. There are dozens of millions in this legitimate business model world wide, but the majority of people will only listen to the negative myths they hear floating around and don't take a serious look ... which is fine, because the few who do are rewarded by finding out how incredible it can be.

It's really a lot to do with the word, "courage." I left my corporate job before I was making the same amount of money on my own. See, most people are so ultra-conservative, if they are making $100,000 per year, they refuse to do anything else unless they can generate that part time. Yes, I know, bills are a reality, etc. Here is the real reality – every person has an inner brilliance that provides value in some way. I left my job because I knew the time freedom would be something that I could create value with. I've received more value in those 8 months after leaving the corporat world than I had in the prior 10 years working there because I'm with my family - I wake up, I fix breakfast for my daughter, work on puzzles with her, do crafts, take her places, and that is priceless.

I've learned that prosperity is less about money and more about what you do with your time - and, yes, money can help you do more with your time but understand money is a presentation of value and sometimes the value can come in ways other than the money.

I mention this because many of my business coaching clients are still waiting to leave their jobs. They want to know how i did it. I say, “Simple, a mentor of mine - a successul man who earns multiple seven figures - said when you are passionate about something, sometimes you jump before figuring out if the parachute is packed because you make a leap of faith.”

I'm finding more and more successful entrepeneurs take that leap of faith. But it's not luck. That is what the majority who retire at the poverty level blame things on - luck. Successful people call luck the intersection of persistance with opportunity. Jim Rohn shares that the same wind blows on us all - it's how we set the sail that determines where we are going in life. Everyone has excuses - can't do this, poor economy, no skills, etc. That's fine.

The successful people don't use their excuses - they stuff them away and go out and do it, find the economy or create it, and develop the skills instead of worrying about what they dont have. I love how Robert Kiyosaki shares that while 8 out of 10 businesses fail, there is a key that successful business owners know. It is that most people will try a business, fail, and then give up and say it's not for them. Entrepeneurs, on the other hand, fail, and go - YES! This is terrific, only 7 more to go ...

I am very passionate about being an entrepeneur because I have witnessed how many lives have truly changed. For me, it hasn't been about the money - as I mentioned, I was earning more in I.T. than when I started in free enterprise - but now I connect with people directly and I'm responsible for me. I want a raise? I go out and give myself one. I want vacation? I take it. And that leads to the importance of leverage because simply starting a business isn't the final solution ... because I know many business owners who lament how they can't go on vacation because they'll lose money and so on. When you have something leveraged, and that is different based on your passions and the field you are in, etc, but when you do - then you truly can create time to focus your energy on living abundantly.

There are a ton of free resources that I feel everyone deserves to read. Yes, it asks for an e-mail - no, I am not going to use that to spam or prospect you into my business - I truly want you to benefit from these.

I don't think anyone should contemplate a career change or striking out until they've at least read Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, Mach II with your Hair on Fire by Richard Brooke, and Spiritual Marketing by Joe Vitale. These books can really demonstrate how powerful it is to move from “analytical/what if/oh my gosh/what can I do” into a position of ... “I am human, I am creative, I am brilliant, and I deserve to be successful doing what I am passionate about.”
Live a life of abundance!