Fri Jun 11 15:38:18 CST 2004

When I was 15 years old, in the school swimming team, I noticed that there were two types of swimmers: There were the nerdy ones who would always have someone there timing them during training, who would read all the technical books, and have a silly warm-up routine before each race. Then there were the cool ones who would just show up on the day and win the race.

It seemed at the time that, somehow, taking yourself too seriously was just too un-cool. Better to be less self conscious and measured about your success, even if it was at the expense of success altogether. But by the time I was 18, all the cool ones had disappeared from the swimming team to be cool somewhere less competitive.

Similarly, at the age of 25, I noticed there were two types of earners. There were the nerdy ones who would always know how much wealth they were creating, how much they were earning, spending and investing. Then there were the cool ones, who wouldn't want to be seen to take their wealth too seriously. It seemed that somehow, it was better to be cool and broke.

Then, at the age of 35, a strange thing happened. I found that even the majority of people who would like to take their wealth more seriously have a mental block about measuring where they are at every month. It was no more Mr. Cool, but doing the numbers was just too much like hard work.

Better to be thinking how to make $1M tomorrow than to think how to save $100 today.

We have all read the books and been to the seminars that tell us to pay ourselves first, earn more than we spend and save the difference, keep a tight household budget, blah, blah, blah. We all nod and say "tell me something I don't know". Well here's some interesting statistics. Of the wealth creators that I have surveyed (and we are talking the top percentiles here: SWW graduates, Life Members, Coaching Clients : people who are serious about increasing their wealth) less than 20% regularly review their profit and loss and balance sheet accounts every month, and even less review their flight deck every month. Of the general population, the percentage which have a monthly personal profit and loss statement is in the low single digits, and they have no idea they even have a flight deck.

And before you say "tell me something I don't know" again, there is a point coming soon. Few of us would disagree that keeping proper measure of where we are is the first step towards increasing our wealth. None of us would disagree that a company refusing to keep proper accounts would be downright irresponsible : and illegal. But despite many of us wanting to make more money each year than many companies we know, we don't take ourselves seriously enough to do so. For some, we're just too cool. But for most : either it's too much like hard work or it's just too tough to break past habits.

So rather than us nodding over the need to change, and still not changing (and finally here is the point!) there IS a BETTER WAY!

The solution is in the pleasure and pain levers, and in the saying that it isn't money that makes money, it's people that make money. And it's other people that will make your money.

USING PAIN as leverage:

Anyone who runs a public or private limited company with shareholders and a board of directors knows the need to have audited accounts. In most companies you also expect a monthly meeting of the directors. My first experience of this was at the age of 21 when I raised outside investment for my business. I had to agree to a 12-month schedule of meetings in advance. It was my responsibility to present a management report with a full set of management accounts to the directors, two of whom were external, so their only role was to check up on me at this meeting.

Until then, I had been fairly ad-hoc with my measurements. As long as I had the cash for the payroll and main creditors each month, I just soldiered on. My first meeting was a nightmare. I only began to prepare for it the night before, as I had been preoccupied with my day-to-day activities. I sat down at 7pm to write the report. My accountant didn't have the month's numbers together as I had forgotten to brief her. After finding the notes of what I had promised the board we would deliver, reading them, then picking myself off the floor, I spent most of the rest of the night thinking of good reasons why we hadn't achieved what I said we would.

My Board of Directors weren't happy and let me know it. Luckily, I hadn't slept so that served as an anesthetic. But from then on I let the pain of that experience ensure I always measured where I am compared to where I intended to be every month without fail.

So if you find it difficult to be accountable to yourself every month, be accountable to someone else. You may have a corporate vehicle to build your wealth. If not, create one. You may have an accountant. If not, appoint one. Now create your own personal Board of Directors. It might include advisors, close family, close friends, fellow graduates. Ensure that you pre-schedule your monthly meetings, and it is your responsibility at these meetings to report to your Board specifically on your performance last month, and your targets this month.

USING PLEASURE as leverage:

Pain works. But pleasure is now my favoured solution. Once a month I take a day out, go to the beach, and review the month in detail with all the reports, numbers and flight deck for each business and for myself personally. Over time the form and content of this monthly meeting has varied, and I have heard many stories from entrepreneurs of how the different forms their monthly test and measure takes.

But in every case, the key is to treat this day as a celebration that you look forward to regardless of how the month has gone. You can either believe that you need something good to happen before you can feel good, or you can believe that you need to feel good before something good can happen. This is as much about setting yourself up for the next month as it is about measuring and reviewing the last.

Make this a day you look forward to, but also invite others to ensure you show up. This is the intention of your Stealth Wealth Home Team or Wingman. Personalize this meeting to ensure it is something you will still be doing years from now. Make it the best day of your month, every month.

Measure yourself thoroughly: Your monthly balance sheet, PandL, cashflow, and flight deck: How your wealth network and financial fitness have grown; What opportunities you are pursuing and could pursue; What your priorities and goals are for the month and year ahead. Share this commitment with the right team, to ensure it gets done through pain or pleasure.

And before you hear anyone say "Tell me something I don't know", do it now! Pull out your Stealth Wealth Handbook, review your flight deck today. Schedule your next monthly review.

Your goals are what you reach for, but your standards are what you settle for. Don'' settle for anything less than 100% focus.

As they say in motorcycle training: "Turn your head and the bike will follow".

He's told himself and the cashier he's ambitious and won't compromise. He's declared he's going for the highest mountain. But his actions betray him. Who's the man fooling? It's not the cashier. He couldn't care less. It can't be himself, because he's already in on the act.