Getting credit is like getting a job. In many cases, you need experience to get a job. But you can’t get a job without experience. Similarly, you need credit to help you make major purchases. But you can’t get credit until you establish credit. It’s a vicious circle.
One of George’s students, Leah, just graduated from college. She has applied for several credit cards and been turned down because she doesn’t have any credit history. She says she’s never borrowed before or even had a credit card. What can she do?
And it has little to do with his incredible coaching accomplishments. ESPN named him the Coach of the Twentieth Century. We disagree – we think he’s the best coach ever!
But our focus today is on an older song of theirs, Change Your Mind.
Want to feel better about today?
Then change your mind! That’s the general message of the song. It sounds so simple, but it really is a great prescription.
The song starts out, “Did you ever think there might be another way to just feel better, just feel better about today?”
It highlights that all change starts from within. We have to think there is a better way. We have to think differently than we have before to feel better once more.
Decide to persevere
The song continues, “If you never want to leave to turn and go away, you might feel better, might feel better if you stay.”
Those may be the most powerful words in the whole song. Change your mind by deciding to stay.
When the going gets tough, the tough stay and fight. Doesn’t have the same ring as the saying we’re used to. But flight is often what keeps us from achieving our dreams.
The tough persist. They don’t give up. The tough resist the natural, human tendency to see the grass as greener on the other side of the fence.
Decide to take it all in
The next verse starts with some great questions:
“Have you ever danced in the rain? Or thanked the sun just for shining? Or the sea?”
Then they tell you why it’s so important to ask those questions: “Take it all in, the world’s a show. And yeah, you look much better, look much better when you glow.”
Isn’t it true? When troubles mount, when a challenge looms large, doesn’t it help to just get away for a few minutes and calm down? When you experience the magnificence of nature, the issues you face seem so much smaller.
Decide to give up … with a twist
There’s a great twist in the next verse. They say: “If you’ve had enough of all your tryin’, just give up … the state of mind you’re in.”
They don’t say to give up. They say to change your mind! Look at things in a new way and try, try again!
They continue by saying: “If you’re tired of fighting battles with yourself, if you want to be somebody else, change your mind.”
Stop. Stop beating yourself up. Stop wishing you weren’t you.
You are a special person. Change your mind and show the world your gifts.
An unusual call to action
They close the song with what may be the most unusual call to action we’ve ever seen: “What ya say we both go and seize the day. ‘Cause what’s your hurry, what’s your hurry anyway.”
Get going. Do it now. But don’t get in such a hurry to reach your destination that you don’t enjoy the journey along the way. Enjoy the good times and the bad. Enjoy the people you love.
Because when you do reach your destination, when you’re living the life of which you dream – life on your own terms, you’ll look back and realize that your journey is part of the prize!
Since we’re nearing Halloween, next time we’ll haunt you with a tale of four wicked witches that often prevent you from reaching bigg success. Until then, here’s to your bigg success!
Bigg success is life on your own terms. The five elements of bigg success are money, time, growth, work and play. Today we want to focus on money.
Some people struggle to save money in the first place because they love to spend it. Other people have no trouble saving it, but they get uncomfortable spending it.
I grew up with one of each. I’ve never seen research on this, but I bet that happens fairly often. Mom was a saver and Dad was a spender. I learned from both of them.
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So I know the answer to this, George, but share with everyone which one you are.
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I think I’m both so I face this internal battle – there are times when I swing to the savings side; there are times when I lean toward spending. The challenge for me is not letting it get out of balance when I shift one way or the other.
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Both of us tend to spend on small ticket items. We’re not bigg ticket buyers so we can completely relate to one of our readers, Paul.
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Bigg question
Paul sent us an e-mail about his dilemma. He’s a regular saver, but he has trouble spending it – especially on bigg ticket items. For example, he could comfortably take a vacation but he’s not sure if he should pull the money out of savings. He wants our advice.
Bigg solution
Reading between the lines, it sounds like Paul wants to spend the money but he’s afraid he’ll need it for something else. Here’s the bigg solution:
Set up a separate account dedicated to the next bigg purchase you want to make. Set aside a portion of what you save in this account.
Right now, you’re implicitly saving for these things, Paul. By planning for your purchase and explicitly saving for it (i.e. by stashing money for it in a dedicated account), you’ll feel comfortable buying it once you’ve accumulated enough money.
Since you’ve been saving all along, Paul, consider taking a portion of the money you have in your general savings account and seeding this account with that money. You may feel you have enough to take that vacation now. If that’s the case, go for it! Then use this separate account for your next bigg ticket item.
Live (a little) in the moment
It’s important for all of us to save for our future. It’s also important to live a little in the moment and enjoy life along the way. Otherwise, we risk forgetting why we’re doing what we’re doing.
So Paul’s going to save for a vacation. If you can’t afford that right now, plan for a weekend away. If that’s going to stretch your budget too much, plan for a nice dinner out this month. Maybe even that’s too much … plan for a nice meal at home. Make it an event. Every day … every hour … every moment is precious. Don’t fall into the trap of living too much for the future. Strike a healthy balance between now and then. That’s living bigg!
How do you save for bigg ticket items?
Share that with us by commenting below, calling us at 877.988.BIGG(2444) or e-mailing us at bigginfo@biggsuccess.com.
We’re introducing a new feature today called Bigg Success Profiles. We want to feature members of our community talking about what life on your own terms means to them. Today on The Bigg Success Show, we talked with Pavel Sokolovsky. Pavel is one of the founders of an exciting new business, Meet Me at Green. Let’s get to the conversation …
Thanks Mary-Lynn. Thanks George. I’m a long-time listener and first-time caller!
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We love talking about life on your own terms and we love hearing the stories of members of our community. So let’s kick it off, Pavel. What does life on your own terms mean to you?
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To me, life on my own terms has a lot to do with ambition. I believe I’m a pretty ambitious young man and I wouldn’t want anybody to put a limit on what I can and cannot do professionally or socially, for that matter. One of the reasons I went toward small business, and not corporations as many of my classmates did, is because I didn’t want to be pigeon-holed by my level at the corporation. Whether you’re a first-year associate, analyst, or whatever it might be, it tends to come with a lot of strings attached and affects whether or not your ideas are taken seriously. Now I’m sure there are people who break this mold – there are all-stars – but this tends to be the case. So that’s why I went into a small business. I wanted to be able to use my potential to its fullest. I want to explore my limits and be the best business person I can be. Starting my own business allows me to do that because I don’t have a boss saying, “No – you can’t do this project.” I only have the market telling me what it will and will not accept, which is great.
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That’s awesome, Pavel. Your classmates were going off to Fortune 500 companies and large consulting firms. Did they ever question you or ridicule you for going off on your own?
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Luckily, they’ve all been very supportive of me. They all know that I’m very entrepreneurial. So they tend to accept that. They have their day jobs – from 8 to 6 or 9 to 5, whatever it may be – and I work what I’ll call my extended hours!
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I like the way you said that!
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But we’re after slightly different things. It’s understood that there’s going to be more than one way to get what we need out of life.
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Everybody for their own terms, right? Pavel, what would you say is your biggest challenge to living life on your own terms right now?
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When you’re starting a business, it’s not the same as a regular corporate job because your cash flow is a little more unpredictable. Many times, you’ll find yourself pinching pennies because you didn’t get paid this week. But you keep your head up because you know if you achieve your goals, the money will naturally follow. While your cash flow is tight, you just have to accept it, not spend it, save up, invest in your business and hope for the best!
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So Pavel, what are you doing right now to overcome this challenge?
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I try to save up a little in a slush fund to treat myself every now and then and to keep my sanity. I like to go out with my friends. I also have a hobby purchasing books on Amazon. I just can’t stop!
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Nice plug! Ca-ching! Now Pavel, what are you doing that’s really fun – either at work or in your personal time?
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My day job is fun. Meet Me at Green has been fun – programming the web site, organizing the people involved and trying to recruit more members. As this community grows, so does my site and its usefulness to all the members. I’m sure you expected an answer like, “I love to go skiing in Aspen on the weekend” but, in reality, when I work on Meet Me at Green, I am having fun. That’s the best part of it.
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Fortunately, or unfortunately, we can totally relate to what you’re saying. It occurs to me, Pavel, you are really into green – whether it be money or the environment!
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The money is definitely not my number one goal, but it’s a good way to validate what you’re doing.
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We wish you the best of luck with your business, Meet Me at Green. Can anybody join?
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We’re focusing on businesses that are involved in green products and services. But if you have a passion for green, if energy efficiency or environmental awareness is important to you, then please sign up! Membership is currently free.
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Thanks Pavel for sharing what life on your own terms means to you.
How are YOU living life on your own terms?
Please share your story with us by leaving a comment below, calling us at 877.988.BIGG or sending us an e-mail at bigginfo@biggsuccess.com. We may feature you on an upcoming Bigg Success Profiles show.
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This is our second installment of Music Lessons. Today, we’re going to look at a song by 
Bigg success is life on your own terms. The five elements of bigg success are money, time, growth, work and play. Today we want to focus on money. 
I grew up with one of each. I’ve never seen research on this, but I bet that happens fairly often. Mom was a saver and Dad was a spender. I learned from both of them. 
We’re introducing a new feature today called Bigg Success Profiles. We want to feature members of our community talking about what life on your own terms means to them. Today on The Bigg Success Show, we talked with Pavel Sokolovsky. Pavel is one of the founders of an exciting new business, 
Thanks Mary-Lynn. Thanks George. I’m a long-time listener and first-time caller!