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For a few, life has improved amongst the terrorist threats and subsequent roller coaster of an economy. Some have bought second or even third homes, while others have elected for collection quality, top of the line automobiles. Others still have traveled the world, experiencing realism at a level the vast majority will never know. Why yes, luxury today is known well in certain circles and is in fact lavished with immoderations.

The question begging to be asked is, “What now?” How many yachts can one water-ski behind? Do you really want to go to the moon? When it is all said and done and you cannot find satisfaction with all the material things at your disposal:

Give of Yourself
People of affluence unaccustomed to a life dedicated to the service of those less fortunate will always have a void to fill. It is the scarcity mentality that says, “I must get all the money I can before I die.” It is the abundance mentality that counters, “I must pass on my knowledge and experience to give others an opportunity to obtain things far greater than my own accomplishments.”

Behave Consistent with How You Want Others to Remember You
Those who want to be remembered as having made a difference need to lead lives full of actions powerful enough to not only be cherished in their life, but also after they have passed on. Traditionally, these are service oriented acts. Become a mentor to today’s youth. Help as many others achieve their goals as you can.

Write Your Memoirs
When you have it all, tell it all. The story of your life should be recorded. This way, you only have to say it once and you will maximize the affect your experiences can have on all the people that read your book. Book writing is always a great project for those needing a new experience in their lives, especially for those willing to undertake its arduous course.

Challenge Yourself
More like, refine yourself. Take up Jiu-Jitsu. Learn yoga. Do something you have never done before. Study a new language. Study two. Fly a helicopter. Feed thousands of starving people.

Make a List of Long-Term Goals and Complete One Each Year
Aim for the horizon on this one. If you have ever thought of owning a sailing team, here is where that desire is to be recorded. It is far more difficult to achieve your innermost desires without writing them down. The human brain understands that you are serious when you take the time to write your goals down and review them on a daily basis. Let it all hang out.

Studies have shown that 90% of this great nation’s wealth is controlled by 10% of its population. Many find that statistic shocking, while others have come to accept its validity. Some of this 10% are wholly fulfilled by their life’s experiences, but there are those who yearn for a bit more. The upper crust possess within it a class of its own, a faction unsatisfied by the trappings their money affords them. Rather, they go through with their day-to-day affairs and wonder if they could get even more out of life. The answer is a resounding yes.

Vicky Therese Davis, William R. Patterson, and D. Marques Patton are co-authors of the acclaimed business and personal finance National Bestseller, The Baron Son: Vade Mecum 7. Vicky Davis is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Indulgence Jewelry Corp. William Patterson is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Warcoffer Capital Group, LLC. D. Marques Patton is President and Chief Operating Officer of The Warcoffer Capital group, LLC. To receive their breakthrough book and over $3,631 in FREE bonus gifts, visit: http://www.baronseries.com

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It happens every year, doesn’t it? You think up some ‘resolutions‘, maybe set a personal goal or two, but by the time Thanksgiving or Christmas rolls around again, you realize with a big sigh you haven’t accomplished what you had hoped. So you ‘resolve’ once again to do a better job next year. Maybe the problem last year was that your resolutions or goals were not specific enoughor worse, not written down.

Get a load of this: A study was conducted a few years ago of graduates from a well-known business school. Only three percent of grads had clearly articulated and written goalsbut those grads earned ten times more than the 83% who had no goals at all. Even those grads who had some sense of their goals, but had not written them down, earned three times as much as those who hadn’t given goals a second thought. How’s that for motivation to get your goals down on paper?

To begin defining your goals, set aside several hours of quiet time (possibly over several days, if necessary) and write these headings on separate sheets of paper: Career, Money, Life (or Lifestyle). Many people’s main focus is their career, so we’ll start with that. If you can’t get the quiet time you need at home, lock yourself away in one of those study rooms at the local public library. You won’t regret it!

Think of where you want your career to take you. Write it down. You may have more than one idea; write them down as well. Allow your thoughts to be ambitious, but remain realistic (for instance, if you know you can’t endure a decade or more of additional education, don’t plan on being a surgeon). These are your long-term goals.

The next exercise is to determine what intermediate steps must be accomplished to reach your long-term goals. If you want to be, say, president of a corporation, determine what skills a president needsexperience in finance, marketing, and operations, perhaps. There are some goals for you.

Continue working backward chronologically (from president to senior management to junior management to supervisor to team leader, for instance), listing the skills, education, and professional contacts needed to hold the positions you have listed until you find yourself listing skills, education, and contacts you currently have. Don’t get bogged down in detailsyou should be outlining the major milestones which must be accomplished. These are your mid-term goals.

After outlining the major milestones, the final step is determining the specific actions needed to accomplish them. Write down those things which can be done in the next six monthsthese are your immediate goals. They might include joining a professional association or researching graduate programs. These goals develop into your daily or weekly To Do list.

Next, list those things which you intend to accomplish within the yearyour short-term goals. Again, talk to counselors, network contacts, and librarians if you don’t know exactly what might be involved in accomplishing a goal.
Although the example here was career goals, the same exercise should be done for your financial and lifestyle goals as well. Immediate financial goals may be to open a money market savings account and conduct research on stock mutual funds. Short-term goals may be to commit to putting $25 per month into your savings account and to join the 401(k) retirement plan with your employer.

Lifestyle goals can be trickier to define. Do you want to have a wide circle of friends who are involved in cultural activities? learn to cook like a gourmet? vacation in the Caribbean each year? marry an intelligent, active, funny person and have three children? Some of your lifestyle goals will be tied into financial goals, such as the annual vacation. Others will have mid-term and short-term goals which may include such tasks as participating in community activities, joining social clubs, or committing to an exercise plan.

You may find that you need several sessions to complete this exercise. Make the time and do it now. It is vital to your success and worth the time and effort expended. Guaranteed.
To stay active in the pursuit of your goals, mark off immediate goals as you accomplish them, and develop new ones which relate to your short-term goals. As you accomplish your short-term goals, develop new ones based on your mid-term goals, and so on. Continue this process of gradually moving goals up on your lists so you are always working on a piece of a task which will propel you toward your ultimate goals.

Okay! You have your goals written and assigned to a timetable. You’re set, right? Not so fast. What will you do if one of the planned events doesn’t happen–you don’t get promoted to supervisor or an unexpected car repair costs several hundred dollars? These events can prevent you from reaching your goals. Now what?

Don’t wait until a roadblock is thrown in your path before planning on how to get around it. Devise a contingency plan, a Plan B. For each of your major milestones, develop an alternate set of goals which you will implement if the milestone cannot be met. This is not to say that you should devise an entirely different scenario for yourself. “If I can’t move into the manufacturing department, I will never be president, so I’ll open a daycare center instead” is going a bit far.

If you miss a promotion, or an opportunity you were hoping for doesn’t materialize, perhaps the answer is to move to another company. Another very real possibility in today’s business climate is being laid off. Your Plan B will be a guiding light for you in this situation. In searching for a new position, review your plan to determine the right place to pick up the path toward your final destination. You won’t make panic-induced decisions if you have a contingency in place–keep your cool and continue to move ahead.

This is a slow time of yearif you can, slip away and get the roadmap for your success laid out on paper for a prosperous 2006!

Kathryn Marion is the President of Education for
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Financial goals are important because they help you achieve the things you want. Goals such as vacations, paying off a debt or buying a car all require planning, patience and the willingness to work hard at saving your hard-earned dollars. There are three types of goals you should sit down and consider:

Short-term goals: These are goals you should be able to accomplish within one month to a year.
Items such as: taking a vacation, buying a new car, or paying off a debt are all items that fit within this category.

Mid-term goals: These are goals you should plan to accomplish within one to five years. Goals such as paying of credit cards, making a major purchase, or remodeling your home can all fit within this category, based on your financial picture.

Long-term goals: These are goals that will take you five years or more to achieve, such as buying a home, saving for retirement or saving for college.

Your goals must be realistic and you must specify a completion date. For example, if you lease a vehicle and find that your lease payment is causing financial strain, a possible mid-term goal might be as simple as deciding ‘to buy a less expensive car in 3 years at the end of my lease.’ Also try reviewing your goals every now and then, and make adjustments. It is ok to be flexible with your goals. Simply taking the time to think about your goals and putting them on paper is the first step to making them a reality.

ABOUT ACCC:

American Consumer Credit Counseling (ACCC) is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization dedicated to empowering consumers to regain control of their lives through financial education, counseling and debt management. ACCC provides individuals with practical solutions for solving financial problems and recognizes that consumers’ financial difficulties are often not the result of poor spending habits but more frequently from extenuating circumstances beyond their control. As one of the nation’s leading providers of financial education and credit counseling services, ACCC works with consumers to help them with the best plan of action to reduce their debt and regain financial stability. For more information or to access free financial education resources log on to http://www.consumercredit.com

Tom Palange

Education Programs Specialist

American Consumer Credit Counseling

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