Nothing to Financially Independent

Start From Nothing & Become Financially Independent by Developing Four Qualities

By Brian Tracy

More than 80% of self-made millionaires in America began with nothing or in many cases, less than nothing. I can certainly relate to that because when I was growing up and right into my early 30s, I never had any extra money with which to start a fortune. It seemed to me that there was always enough, if not more than enough bills, to absorb every penny I earned. I was always in debt.


Be Ready For Your Opportunity

And even if a great business opportunity did come along, I wouldn't have been able to do anything with it. As I began studying financial success and self-made millionaires, I noticed that almost everyone around me was in pretty much the same boat. The idea of becoming really wealthy was a distant dream with very little possibility of coming true. You may be in the same situation, with more bills than money or assets.

Look at the Numbers

The statistics are a little scary. Of 100 people who reach retirement age, according to insurance industry statistics, only one will be wealthy. Four out of the hundred will be financially independent; fifteen will have some savings put aside. And the other 80 will be dependent on pensions, still working or broke - this after a lifetime of well-paid work in the most affluent society in human history. Now why does this happen?




Why People Retire Poor

There are two main reasons why people retire poor. First, they never decide to retire rich. They wish and hope and pray, but they never make a firm, unequivocal decision that they're going to do it. Second, even if they do decide to retire rich, they procrastinate until it's too late. They always have some good reason for putting it off.


Start With Desire and Decision

If you sincerely want to beat the odds, to achieve financial independence and retire wealthy, there are four critical steps that you must take, all starting with the letter D. The first step is Desire. You must want it badly enough to make an unshakable commitment and to be willing to make sacrifices. The second D is Decision. You must make a decision right now to do whatever is necessary, to be willing to pay any price, go any distance, to achieve your goal.


Practice Determination and Discipline

The third D is Determination, which is to keep at it until you succeed in spite of all the problems and obstacles you will experience. And the fourth D is Discipline - the discipline to master yourself to develop the habits necessary for achieving financial independence. Those are the four Ds. Desire, Decision, Determination and Discipline. And you can measure how successful you're going to be in the future by measuring how well you're doing in each of those on a scale of one to ten


Action Exercises

Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action:

First, make a decision, right now, that you are going to be financially independent, no matter what obstacles you face in the short term. Then write it down, make a plan and start to work on it every single day.

Second, resolve in advance that you will persist in the face of every setback or obstacle you face. You will never give up. You will keep on moving forward until you finally achieve your goal.

Fortune Favors the Brave

Boldness is a necessary part of courage but it must be a boldness based on an intelligent assessment of the potential risks and rewards. The wonderful nature of boldness is that, properly directed, it builds the habit of courage in the person who practices it.


Act Boldly in Every Situation

In my experience, any virtue translated into action leads almost invariably to positive results. This applies to integrity, persistence, courtesy, love and courage. I’ve always liked the advice of an old man to his grandson. “Act boldly and unseen forces will come to your aid.”


Take a Leap of Faith

Perhaps the most obviously important part of courage is the courage to step out in the face of uncertainty. Every great venture in the history of man has begun with faith and a giant leap into the unknown.

General Douglas MacArthur said, “There is no security in life, only opportunity.”

The creed of Frederick The Great, one of history’s most successful leaders was, “Audacity, audacity - always audacity.”




Launch With No Guarantees

A 12-year study of successful entrepreneurs conducted by Babson College concluded that the only thing they had in common was the willingness to launch, to step out in faith. Once they had started, they learned the lessons they needed to succeed. Many of them ending up successful in completely different businesses from where they started.


Dare To Go Forward

Dare to go forward. Successful companies are invariably those that continue to research, develop, experiment and introduce new products and services - even during the deepest recessions. Successful executives are those who are continually stretching themselves to move out of the comfort zone, to face the twin fears of failure and rejection and to move forward in spite of them.


Action Exercises

Here are two ways to develop greater boldness in your work and personal life.

First, just do it! Step out in faith! If you think of some action you can take to improve your life, give it a try. You may be surprised.

Second, when in doubt, act with audacity. Audacity may get you into trouble but even more audacity will get you out. Go for it!