“Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” – Benjamin Franklin

Ever heard the phrase “life is like a box o’ chocolates”? How about “Luke, I am your father”? Or most importantly “At least he has his health.”?

Health is one of the most important aspects of our every day life.

We need to ask ourselves each morning: are we energized, ready to jump out of bed and seize the day? Or are we just waking up and just looking for the coffee?

It is safe to say, we all would prefer the former… but what’s the recipe for this Carpe Diem attitude?

Doing what matters to you in life comes down to your mindset; mindset is everything.

For me, I wanted to become physically fit and strong. I recently completed the Mindpump MAPS program and want to share with you my thoughts in this post.

“Your level of success will rarely surpass your level of personal development, because success is what you attract by the person you become.”

Mind Pump MAPS Helped Me Become as Strong as Ever

Over the last 3 months, I went through the Mind Pump MAPS program. The two specific programs I tried were the MAPS Anabolic program, and the MAPS Prime program.

I was a little skeptical at first, but after getting into the early AM workouts, I was crushing personal records week after week.

Priming Your Work Out with MAPS Prime

Warm-ups and cool downs have always been part of an athlete’s main stay.  What do you do to get ready for a big game? Do you have pasta parties the night before a big competition (carb loading)?

Do you visual yourself crushing the competition, visualizing each detail as it happens real-time, and executing the strategy you have been practicing for months?

Many athletes have pre-game rituals: did you know Michael Jordan wore his UNC shorts under all his professional shorts while he was winning his 6 championships for the Bulls?

One of my favorite pre-game rituals is “The Haka” performed by the All Blacks New Zealand Rugby team… talk about intimidating before the match!!!

We all have our own rituals, superstitions, and pump up songs! I personally love “Nothing is Stopping you” by Big Sean and Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger” while getting ready for my workouts.

Are you preparing for a work presentation, wedding speech, first date?  There are plenty of reasons to get yourself in the zone. Am not going to get into mentally psyching yourself up here, but keeping your body physically prepared is key as well.

MAPS Prime

Mind Pump has recently introduced a program on “priming” your body before workouts.

Your body is supposed to move a certain way and there is a reason why form is everything when lifting, shooting a basketball. It’s just like in life, being balanced is extremely important!

MAPS Prime is specifically designed to encourage superior muscle recruitment, proper joint mobility, and priming the central nervous system to maximize the muscle building signals sent throughout your body.

The key to MAPS Prime is in it’s ability to re-align your body.  This means getting rid of muscle imbalances.

The exercises in MAPS prime specifically work to help correct these weaknesses through a combination of lifting, yoga, and physical therapy.

MAPS Prime has had a profound effect on my physical ability and I highly recommend trying MAPS prime out.

The MAPS Prime Workouts

There are three main tests to judge your muscle imbalances and functionality. They help you customize what is right for your priming.

1. Zone 1 – The “Wall Test” consists of the entire upper body starting at the thoracic spine.
2. Zone 2 – The “Windmill Test” identifies spinal and core rotational mobility and over trunk connectivity.
3. Zone 3 – The “Squat Test” consists of the low back, hips, and the rest of your lower body.

After these tests you are given a wide range of movements to help target your  weakness areas before and after your workouts.

Growing with MAPS Anabolic

After going through the MAPS Prime workouts, I continued my workouts with the MAPS RBC bundle. Next up was the MAPS Anabolic workouts.

On workout days, I woke up at 5:10 AM and am one of only people at the gym.

Going EARLY is amazing if you want full use of the squat racks, cages, bench presses, free weights, and most of the other exercise equipment!

After running 1 mile to the gym, each workout was a sequence and combination of the following. All workout days hit every body part, and I felt massive from the pump I was experiencing!

1. Barbell Squats
2. Barbell Deadlifts
3. Walking Lungs 
4. Bench Press
5. Dumbbell Rows
6. Rear Laterals 
7. Shoulder Shrugs
8. Shoulder Press 
9. Barbell Curls
10. Triceps Press-down
11. Planks 
12. Random Yoga
13. Jump Squats 

After running home, I’ll be home at 6:35 AM and make a shake, some bacon and have some fruit.

I LOVE THIS WORKOUT and it is a GREAT start to the DAY!

I believe routine is everything: prefect preparation prevents poor performance.

Give Mind Pump a Try, It worked for me

I want to shout out to Adam, Justin, and Sal over at Mind Pump. They have put together a great program and I’m excited each and every time I go to the gym.

If you listen to podcasts, I recommend listening to the Mind Pump Podcast! The Mind Pump guys have a blend of talents, passions, and experiences in personal training, bodybuilding, and personal transformation, which are interesting to me and other people looking to grow physically.

I listen to it most days; they talk about various myths of the workout industry. Also, they discuss different mental and physical exercises for becoming a complete person.

I definitely recommend the Mind Pump MAPS program. After increasing my squats by over 100 pounds (admittedly, I started low) and other lifting by nearly double, I’m excited to see how the next 3 months go!

Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich and other classics, said, “No mind is complete by itself. It needs contact and association with other minds to grow and expand.” Putting multiple minds together, you can create a mastermind group and create something which is more powerful than the sum of those individual minds.

While it is true that many business owners and entrepreneurs use “mastermind” groups to connect with like-minded individuals, share tips and tricks, and grow together, I believe true life mastery comes from WITHIN. Every person has a potential which can be tapped, unlocked and used to obtain results beyond our wildest dreams.

Each one of us has the ability to put in time and effort to become the master of our own lives and pursue happiness – however happiness is defined. While a support group helps, there’s a thriving soul and spirit which is more powerful and potent inside of us than anyone else can influence or control.

Through working on yourself each and every day, and looking to become just a little better than yesterday, consistent daily efforts will result in massive success – and this has nothing to do with anyone else. It only has to do with yourself and what’s inside of you: someone unique, amazing, and strong.

What does it mean to become a Mastermind?

Over the past year now, when I’ve interacted with various readers, I’ve been called a “mastermind”, “the mastermind”, and a slew of other things which imply that I’m smart.

As you’ll soon find out, one of the principles of becoming a mastermind is the realization that I am not smarter than you or anyone else in this world.

All of us has a powerful brain which can be used to better your situation. All of us are unique and have different talents. You have the power and resources to improve your situation if you want.

What does it mean to become a mastermind?

At a high level, becoming a mastermind is pursuing overall mastery in many areas of life.

At a lower level, there are many pieces to this pursuit which are necessary to think about on the way through life.

Principles of Becoming a Mastermind

Below, I’ve compiled a list of principles which I look to write about and share with you on this blog, and also have looked to implement in my life to be a little better than the day before.

One caveat, with many things I write about on this blog, I look to present you with options and tools which can improve your life. If you don’t agree with my view on life, that’s fine – no love lost 🙂 Thinking critically and looking to assess if new information is valuable in your life is one of the principles 🙂

• Critical thinking and being willing to think hard about different scenarios and strategies is very more important than any result
• Understanding I’m no smarter than you or anyone else in the world
• Realizing nearly everything can change and nothing is certain
• Living with an abundance mindset will lead to achieving your wildest dreams
• Wealth is not the goal, but a by-product of providing immense value over time
• Do a little bit each day to get a little closer to you goals
• Seek the truth, uphold the truth, but recognize that your opinions can and will change over time
• Happiness comes from doing what you want with your life and spending your time the way you want
• No one is the same as you, and there’s a learning opportunity with every new interaction
• Accomplishments should be celebrated and thanks should be given to where you came from
• Removing noise is essential for success
• Understand things take time and will generally take longer than you think

Below, I dive into each of these individually for further explanation.

Critical thinking and being willing to think hard about different scenarios and strategies is way more important than any result

Why are humans superior to the common ape?

Simple: humans have a powerful brain which allows them to do think critically, employ long-term thinking to navigate this complex world.

Unfortunately, many people don’t think hard about their situation and as a result, their situations don’t change.

Thinking critically and thinking hard takes a lot of energy, but it’s incredibly important for intentional living and becoming who you want to be in life.

If you take nothing else away from this post, that’s fine – I believe that thinking critically is the most important principle and can lead to all of the other principles I lay out here.

Understanding I’m no smarter than you or anyone else in the world

I’ve read 100s of books, listened to hours of podcasts, implemented much of what I learned, and constantly am seeking to learn and grow my knowledge base. When I play board games, I’m very good at visualizing strategies,  implementing them and improving the odds of winning.

I could say I’m smart, but that would be ARROGANT.

Arrogance is not attractive nor productive.

Here’s my take on this:

The only thing I know is I know nothing at all.

This is a quote attributed to Socrates, and is something I look to apply in my life.

I’m going to stop short of saying that humbleness is a principle of becoming a mastermind because I believe there is a time and place for celebrating your accomplishments (whether it be in a private or public setting).

Everyone has different talents and levels of knowledge.

Just because you share a different view, which may be more or less informed than my view, this does not mean that you are smarter or less smart then me. All it means is I need to learn more, and there’s a learning opportunity, or vice versa.

Realizing nearly everything can change and nothing is certain

My education is in mathematics and in the past, I’ve been employed as a statistician.

Math is one of the only subjects where things are absolute (there are caveats here, but let’s agree 1 and 1 is 2, 2 and 2 is 4, etc.).

When looking at data, human nature, politics, economies, almost anything, all of these things have variation and unexplainable change.

If you have more than 1 data point, in statistics, you need to introduce confidence intervals and talk about ranges of an outcome.

Want to hear a joke?

Why were economists created?

To make weathermen look smart.

The world is incredibly complex and ever changing. You have 7,000,000,000 people walking around and 7,000,000,000 motives.

This ties in with the previous principle. To think that things are static and absolute is short sighted.

I’m not smarter than the world or the universe; I’m just a speck who is looking to understand more and will probably never know anything.

Related to this principle is not taking yourself or work too seriously and having fun with life.

Living with an abundance mindset will lead to achieving your wildest dreams

I’ve talked about having an abundance mindset before on this blog.

What is an abundance mindset?

Put simply, it’s a mindset where you can win and I can win.

Living with an abundance mindset is viewing the world as a beautiful place with endless opportunity.

We both can have a favorable result from our interactions.

You can have anything you want – but it will take time and effort to get there.

Wealth is not the ultimate goal, but a by-product of providing immense value over time

I talk a lot about personal finance on this blog and one of my goals is to become financially free at a young age, but I don’t have a “number” and I don’t care about early retirement.

Personally, I think the concepts of personal finance are boring. The reason I talk about it though is because it’s important and something I realize many other people struggle with.

Money doesn’t really matter to me because just having money is not fulfilling. Money is a tool to do what you want with your time and money.

Honestly, I want to have millions of dollars in the bank someday. I don’t want to put a number on it, because that would put an artificial cap on my sights. $10 million? Why not $100 million? Why not a billion?

With an abundance mindset, all of these are possibilities.

Here’s the thing though, wealth does not come easy.

Wealth comes from providing immense value over time.

How do I provide value? How do I solve other people’s problems? 

Answering these questions will lead to the answers of becoming wealthy.

Do a little bit every day that will push you a little bit closer to your goals

Overnight successes are 5 to 10 years in the making.

Success comes from simple daily disciplines added up over many days, weeks, months, and years.

In personal finance, this concept connects to the concept of compound interest.

Very few people can go from no wealth to becoming a millionaire overnight.

But, by being consistent and saving money each and every month and year, you will start to accumulate more and more money.

It’s the exact same thing with your goals. Take a step each and every day to become just a little bit better than yesterday.

Seek the truth, uphold the truth, but recognize that your opinions can and will change over time

This principle follows from the principle that I’m not smarter than anyone else and because of this student mindset, I need to be open to incorporating new information into my worldview.

While navigating this complex world, there are learning opportunities in every place you look.

I want to know the truth and I want to make sure that this truth is the REAL truth – not some phony infomercial truth.

That being said, because I know I’m not smarter than anyone else, I’m able to be fluid in my thoughts and understand that I’m not always right.

I’m not an expert in everything and many things are not certain and static.

Recognizing things can change and will change will set you free.

Happiness comes from doing what you want with your life and spending your time the way you want

When are you enjoying life? What are you doing? Who are you with? Why do you feel this way?

Happiness in life comes in many different flavors and varieties.

I believe happiness comes from doing what you want with you life.

What makes you happiest? Are there things you are doing in your life you love doing? How can you do more of that and less of the things you aren’t doing?

Ultimately, you are the creator of your life and can do anything you want with your time and energy.

The pursuit of life mastery involves taking your current situation and making tweaks over time to better it.

It might not change over night, but can change over time.

No one is the same as you, and there’s a learning opportunity with every new interaction

We are different and because of this, there is an opportunity to learn and grow from each other.

It is arrogant to think just because I’m more well read or have certain experiences that I’m better, smarter or more whatever than someone else when I have no idea what they’ve been through or what they have seen in their lives.

In reality, having an open mind will allow you to learn more and grow to become better, rather than having a closed mind.

Accomplishments should be celebrated and thanks should be given to where you came from

Did you just get a promotion at work? Did you recently have a big win? What about just a small win?

Yes? Do a little dance then!

There’s no reason not to celebrate your wins.

Wins are a great time to reflect on how you got to that point, give thanks to your supporters, and start to plan for the future.

For a happy life, balance is necessary:

• balance between fun and play
• balance between consumption and creation
• and balance between celebration and struggle

Removing noise is essential for success

Social media, the news, and things that don’t matter are not important to your purpose and life.

Over the last few years, I’ve looked to reduce and remove noise from my life and it’s been incredibly beneficial for my productivity.

With so many people and companies looking to grab our attention, it’s tough to stay away from that new shiny app or toy.

Many of these new shiny things aren’t worth it though and won’t lead to happiness in the long run.

Noise gets in the way of our goals, purpose, and actions.

Take time to understand the noise in your life and make moves to reduce it over time.

Understand things take time and will generally take longer than you think

All things take time. We need to be patient while continuing to do a little bit each and every day to become better.

No one is an overnight success as I mentioned in one of the previous principles, but that success will come eventually through disciplined action taking and consistent efforts.

By understanding that things take time, we can stay patient and grow over time towards our goals.

This is just one way, you are the creator of  your life and need to think for yourself

As I mentioned above, thinking critically and figuring out what is most important for you and your situation is incredibly important for success.

Listening to supposed “gurus” or “experts” can help inform you of your situation, but ultimately, you need to implement what feels right for you.

I talked about this above, I’m not some genius mastermind that you might think – I’m still on my way to life mastery, financial freedom, understanding more about this world, and finding the truth to further improve my situation. All I can do is just that; working a little bit more each day to become a little bit better.

You have the ability to do whatever you want in your life.

You are the CREATOR of your life.

Go and get it.

Readers: what are some of the principles you try to live with in your life? Do some of these principles resonate with your life practices?

Are you looking to save more money? You don’t need a budget, but what you do need to do is start experimenting with your life to find what works for you and what makes you happy. This post is a guest post from CityFrugal about his experiments and the results leading to a nearly 50% savings rate.

Shortly after I graduated from college, I arrived in San Francisco to start a new job. One of the most significant adjustments from my cross-country move was rent prices. My half of a two-bedroom apartment cost $1695 per month. Before I moved, I paid $475 a month to live in a large house, so sticker shock didn’t even begin to describe what I was feeling – it was sticker electrocution.

Even worse, rent was going to eat up more than half of my take-home pay. I had a little savings cushion, but I wasn’t making a lot of money. If I wanted to pursue financial independence, I was going to have to get creative.

I didn’t know where to begin. Big change seemed daunting, so I started tinkering.

Over the next few years, I noticed some impressive results. In fact, I watched my expenses decrease as my life improved.

Encouraged by my progress, I started doing more conscious testing a couple of years ago. What if I cut down my spending in one area and reallocated it to another – would that make me happier? What if I automated my savings plan rather than manually adjusting it month-to-month? Would it be worthwhile to “waste” money and buy time?

I’ve lost count of the experiments I’ve conducted since those first days in San Francisco. The results are clear: I’ve saved between 25% and 47% of my annual income for the past eight years. Most importantly, I made sure the money I do spend makes me happy.

None of this came from an epiphany, a lifehack, or One Weird Trick. I’ve just stacked up small win after small win for years. Over time, these small wins can be life-changing.

The Experiments That Changed My Life

My life today is the result of hundreds of little tests. Not all of them were successful. Most of the ones that were successful improved my life incrementally.

But there have been a few experiments that have turned into something bigger – much bigger. These three experiments have saved me more than $100,000, made me better at my job, and improved my happiness.

In other words, these little experiments changed my life. Maybe they’ll change yours, too.

I Made Walking My Primary Mode of Transportation

After months of suffering through delays, traffic, and angry commuters on the crowded San Francisco bus system, I decided to move to an apartment where I could walk to work.

It was a bit of a challenge to walk through biting wind on the infamous San Francisco hills. Still, I found that I arrived at work each morning calmer and happier. Meanwhile, I avoided significant transit headaches and got some exercise.

After realizing how happy walking to work was making me, I tried walking more places. I would stroll to the water at Fort Mason on the weekends or walk to my friend’s apartment across town.

Switching to a walking-based life is the single most significant lifestyle upgrade I’ve ever made. You learn the ins and outs of your area. You get in touch with the city and the people around you. You soak up the ever-changing ecosystem in which you live.

By walking for most of your trips away from home, you also save a lot of money.

I still take taxis or the subway occasionally, but walking is now my primary mode of transportation. By walking (almost) everywhere, I’ve saved $2,500 per year versus my friends and coworkers.

I Made the Grocery Store My Primary Source of Food

When I moved to New York, one of my coworkers told me, “Everyone uses Seamless here – grocery stores are so expensive that it’s cheaper to order food than to make it yourself.”

The guy probably thought he was helping me. I thought he was, too.

I started my time in New York with an avalanche of delivery orders. I was ordering meals four or five times a week. Each meal was reasonably low cost, but they added up.

I was making more money than I had in San Francisco, but I was saving less of it.

Fed up with the price tag of my restaurant meals, I decided to browse the grocery store and check out the prices.

I was astonished. Everything was so cheap. I walked out with enough food to feed me for three full days – meals that would have cost over $100 to order from nearby restaurants – and paid $30 for it.

Since then, I’ve put my tinkering to use at the grocery store, to tremendous effect. Today, I cook all my breakfasts and lunches, plus about half of my dinners.

My average homemade meal costs about $4 versus a Seamless equivalent order of $15. This simple habit has saved me thousands of dollars per year.

I Learned to Win the Morning

In my early twenties, I turned up my nose at the idea of routine. I was young, (relatively) successful, and living in a fantastic city. Why should I limit my options each day?

Maybe I’m boring now, but I understand what I was missing.

I tested my first morning routine five years ago. That iteration included a morning run, breakfast, and guitar playing before beginning a stressful workday.

I’ve made dozens of adjustments to it since then, but my morning routine has become the bedrock on which my life is built.

In my current morning routine, I have time to write, exercise, and reflect. I start my workday centered and happy, spending zero dollars for the privilege. My morning routine has cut more than five years off of my working career.

I’m always surprised to learn that my friends and coworkers don’t have mornings like this. Theirs are more free form, less fulfilling, and often far more expensive.

Enter the Lab for Your Own Personal Experiments

For you to become successful, I suggest you start doing tests and experiments in your life.

Your mileage will vary with each of these experiments – the tests with the most impact will be the ones you choose for yourself.

How can you conduct similar experiments and get a taste of this life-changing magic? There are a few steps to take:

1. Start with Your Pain Points

Some pain points are unavoidable – e.g., high rent or student loans – but others are instructive. Removing negatives is one of the most powerful ways to increase your happiness, so it makes sense to start with those.

If you’re spending more than you’d like on Amazon, you might consider a test to reduce that spending. You could remove the app from your phone for a week or cancel your Prime subscription for a month.

You should also consider things that frustrate you in daily life. I hated my bus commute in San Francisco, so I figured out a way to skip the traffic and the crowds altogether. I was unhappy with my food spending in New York, so I tested ways to reduce it.

Where does your money go today? What frustrates or upsets you about your daily life? What negatives could you remove? Start there.

2. Devise a Test

Once you have ideas of things to try, you’ll need to set up an effective test. No matter what you’re testing, there are a few critical elements to any good experiment:

• Start small. Big trials are daunting, costly, and carry significant potential consequences. I suggest starting with small changes – a tweak here or an adjustment there – before you attempt something big. Don’t underestimate the power of a series of small changes. They can have a big impact.
• Set a timeframe to evaluate. The length of your experiment will vary, but having an endpoint in mind will motivate you and keep you focused.
• Define success beforehand. What does success look like to you? Is it saving money, improving your mood, or making your life easier? Define your success metrics beforehand, and you’ll know whether your experiment is worth continuing.
• Don’t burn the boats behind you. This isn’t the time for hero-ball. Keep your experiments reversible. You want to allow yourself to switch back if it doesn’t work.

3. Don’t be discouraged if an experiment doesn’t work.

Don’t let one failed experiment keep you from trying again. If an experiment fails, that doesn’t make you a failure. Remember: you’re the scientist, not the experiment.

Success and failure aren’t short-term metrics. We try to measure them daily or weekly, but their timelines are years and decades. The magic comes from systematically testing throughout your life.

4. Iterate, iterate, iterate.

Whether you’re initially successful or not, experimentation is an iterative process. The value comes from repeated trials.

If you cut spending on things you don’t care about to fund something you love, what are other areas where you could apply that logic?

If you saved money by insourcing a chore, what else are you outsourcing that you could do at home?

If you simplified your life by automating your savings, what else could you automate to make your life easier?

These are the questions to ask yourself. It takes work to think like a scientist, but once you make the shift, experimenting becomes fun.

1% improvements or a few dollars saved may not look like much in the short run, but it adds up over time. As Emerson reminds us, this is what life is all about.

“All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

David writes about how to design a remarkable life from first principles at cityfrugal.com. Want to learn more about how to treat your life as an experiment? Sign up to receive CityFrugal posts and subscriber-only bonus content in your inbox. 

Would you rather have a million dollars today or a penny which doubles each day for 30 days?Compound interest is alive and well in all areas of life.

One of my core philosophies in life is performing simple daily actions and disciplines each and every day to get a little bit closer to my goals. I know I’m not going to reach my goals today, next week, or the week after.

BUT over time, maybe a few months, or a few years later, I’ll get there and accomplish more than I could have ever imagined.

In this post, I will be touching on the most important concept of personal finance, compounding interest.

What is Compound Interest?

Compound interest is essentially “interest on your interest“, or put another way, growth on your investment taking into consideration the previous growth on that same investment.

One of the simplest examples of compound interest is the following: would you rather receive $1 million dollars today, or would you rather take a penny, but double it every day for a month?

The first day, you have 2 cents, the second day, you have 4 cents, the third day, you have 8 cents… two weeks in, you have $81.92. Well, guess what? At the end of the month, you end up with over $10 million dollars.

You only started off with a penny, what happened? That’s the power of time and compounding.

Yes, you started off with a small amount, and for a long time, you didn’t have much, but 30 days later, boom, $10 million bucks – much more than $1 million!!!

“Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it … he who doesn’t … pays it.” – Albert Einstein

A Real World Example of Compound Interest

In the world of personal finance, there are a few ways compound interest can affect you, but I’ll focus on two: your investments and your debt.

How Compound Interest Affects Your Investments

Let’s say that you’ve invested in an asset which returns, on average, 7% each year, and let’s say you invest $10,000 the first year.

After one year, you have $10,000 of your original investment, and $700 of growth.

While yes, $700 would be great to take out and spend, you decide to leave it in because now, that $700 is going to grow at 7% in addition to the rest of your $10,000 original investment.

After the second year, you now have $11,449 ($10,000 + $700 + $700 + $700 * 7%)

Again, you decide to leave it in, since now, both $700s are going to grow in addition to your original investment.

Over 30 years, the growth is quite large: your original $10,000 investment is worth $76,123!

After 1 year, you barely had anything more than your original investment. But after 30 years, you had over 7 times your initial investment! That’s the power of compounding.

How Compound Interest Affects Your Debt

Let’s say you’ve taken on some debt.

Now, instead of growing an investment, you are paying interest down on your loan from the bank or some other institution.

I created an example where the user had 2 credit cards, a mortgage, an auto loan, and a student loan totaling $246,500.

• Credit card #1 has a balance $3,500 and an interest rate of 23.49%
• Credit card #2 has a balance $10,000 and an interest rate of 20.19%
• The mortgage has a balance $200,000 and an interest rate of 4.00%
• The auto loan has a balance $8,000 and an interest rate of 5.00%
• The student loan has a balance $25,000 and an interest rate of 7.00%

By paying an extra $25 a month and applying a debt pay down method, in this example, there is potential savings of at least $49,915!

How is this savings achieved?

By adding a little bit extra each month to your scheduled debt payment, you can let compounding take over and speed up the time it will take your debt to be eliminated.

Compound interest can work for you OR against you. Which are you going to choose?

Applying the Concept of Compound Interest in Your Life

On The Mastermind Within, while personal finance is one of my focuses, another focus is self improvement and personal development.

As I mentioned in the intro, one of my core philosophies is applying compounding in many areas of my life.

Growth is NEVER linear.

In a world filled with instant coffee, instant breakfast, instant credit, instant shopping, instant information, and 24/7 news, we have come dangerously close to losing touch with reality and believing we have access to instant life. But life is not a clickable link.

Starting out in any area you want to become better in, growth is incredibly slow.

Think back to a time you were a beginner in something you wanted to become better at.

I love the example of when I started working out: I was weak and barely could do a few push-ups.

The next time I worked out, I could only do 1 more push-up, but it was progress. The next time, I could do 2 sets of 5. After a few sessions of working out, I was up to 3 sets of 8.

After a few years of working out, 30 push-ups in a row isn’t out of the question. What started with less than 5 push ups in a row turned into many.

It’s the same concept in life in whatever you want: personal finance, education, health, etc.

Become Financially Successful, One Month at a Time

On this blog, I have a bunch of others articles on the subject of personal finance. These personal finance articles will help you become better financially. Here is a list of all of the posts:

• What Makes You Happiest and Why Money Matters
• Why Financial Literacy is Important
• Think Critically. Personal Finance is Personal. Do What’s Right for You.
• Become Debt Free Using the Debt Avalanche and Snowball Methods
• Place Asymmetric Bets to Build Extreme Wealth in Your Twenties and Thirties
• What a Relatively Frugal 25 Year Old Male Living in the Midwest spends his Money on
• Wealth is more than a Number on Your Computer Screen
• The Ultimate Collection of 800+ Personal Finance Blogs

I’ll be frank: you aren’t going to get rich just by reading what I’ve wrote, and saving $100 this month.

You probably aren’t going to get rich saving $100 each month this year.

BUT, save $100 a month for 10, 20 or 30 years? You’ll be wealthy.

Paying an extra $100 on your mortgage for 10 or 20 years? You’ll be debt free.

Saving $10,000 a year for 10, 20, or 30 years? Hello Double Comma Club! (1,000,000 has 2 commas 😉 )

Make the simple decision to build wealth today, and I know with consistent efforts over time, you will be a huge success.

Concluding Thoughts on Applying the Concept of Compound Interest

Remember: simple daily actions and disciplines WILL add up to massive results over time.

Doing something once won’t be enough.

Doing something twice isn’t either.

Performing something daily for weeks and months? I know you’ll get there.

Readers: how are you applying the concept of compound interest? Have you seen compounding take place in your life or finances?

Throughout your life, have there been any situations where you have no idea why a certain result occurred?

Do you think there are any events from your past that didn’t have a big impact on your life, that potentially had a big impact on another person’s life? Why do we as humans view the world primarily from our own perspective and not consider other people’s views?

In The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Mitch Albom writes a fantastic story that will change everything you’ve ever thought about life after death and the meaning of our lives here on earth.

Everything you do and every interaction you have has an impact on someone else. We should be purposeful in our interactions with others to make the world a better place.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven is a novel which follows the life and death of a man named Eddie. In the novel, Eddie is killed and sent to heaven, and when arriving in heaven, he meets with the five people who had the most significant impact on his life when he was alive.

The rest of this post includes a summary of The Five People You Meet in Heaven, my takeaways, and my recommendation for you. Enjoy!

Summary of The Five People You Meet In Heaven

The beginning of The Five People You Meet in Heaven is a little bit sad. Eddie is an 83 year old man working at Ruby Pier. Ruby Pier is a fantastic attraction and amusement park for all ages and Eddie has been a ride operator and mechanic for many years.

Today is the last day of his life. Eddie doesn’t know it, but one of the rides will fail and he will be crushed by a passenger cart while trying to save a young girl.

After death, Eddie goes to heaven and meets 5 people. Instead of experiencing a lush garden of paradise, Eddie finds Heaven to be a place where your earthly life is explained to you by a number of people. Each person helps Eddie understand different parts and the unseen connections of his life. In addition to helping Eddie, I found that the lessons those people leave can apply in our lives.

The First Person Eddie Meets in Heaven

The first person Eddie meets in Heaven is the Blue Man. The Blue Man was part of the freakshow attractions at Ruby Pier, where people could stare at others who were not normal. The Blue Man became blue because he drank silver nitrate (poison) in an attempt to help him with stomach problems. Over time, the poison changed the color of his skin!

The Blue Man tells the story of his death. One day, The Blue Man borrowed a car to practice his driving. Eddie was a young boy and was playing baseball in the yard. Eddie missed a ball and went to chase after it in the street. The Blue Man nearly hits Eddie, but swerves and keeps driving. The Blue Man is bothered by the event and stressed out. He has a heart attack and crashes in a nearby alley while Eddie is safe.

The Blue Man goes on to tell Eddie the lesson to be learned from this event. “…there are no random acts. That we are all connected. That you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind.”

We are all connected – every act we perform will have a direct impact on someone else. We may not realize it, but someone will be affected. You never quite know what the impact of a simple good deed will do for someone else! 🙂

“…there are no random acts. That we are all connected. That you can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind.”

The Second Person Eddie Meets in Heaven

The second person Eddie meets is his captain from the Vietnam War. While in Vietnam, Eddie and his fellow soldiers were captured. For months, they were held in captivity and forced to work in a coal mine. Finally one night, Eddie was able to distract the guards with his juggling skills and the rest of the men took out the guards.

After the escape, the soldiers burned down the village with gas and fire. As the village was burning, Eddie thought he saw a shadow in one of the burning huts. He screamed out to it but couldn’t hear anything. He was very worried he was burning someone, and wouldn’t move. To get him out of there, the captain shot Eddie in the leg and they got out of their safely.

The captain then shares his story. Once Eddie was discharged due to his leg injury, he returned home. The captain kept going with the team and one day, he was driving down a path and came to a gate. He went to open the gate and walked around. On accident, he stepped on a land mine and was blown up.

Eddie was distraught at this point and didn’t understand why the captain had shot him or why the captain died in war and he didn’t. The captain said, “Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you’re not really losing it. You’re just passing it on to someone else.” The captain sacrificed his life for the rest of his team. Sacrifice isn’t bad if it’s helping others.

“Sometimes when you sacrifice something precious, you’re not really losing it. You’re just passing it on to someone else.”

The Third Person Eddie Meets in Heaven

The third person meets is Ruby – the Ruby of Ruby Pier. Ruby explains to Eddie his relationship with his father. Eddie and his father’s relationship was far from great – actually, they didn’t speak for years on end!

Eddie had been so angry with his father because he thinks his father has ruined his life. He blames his father for all the bad things that has happened to him.

While Ruby admits that Eddie’s father had been absent during his life, she says, “Holding anger is a poison. It eats you from inside.” Ruby shows Eddie how his father died – attempting to save a man’s life. At this point, Eddie realized how great a man his dad was, even with his quirks and felt sad he showed anger towards him.

“Holding anger is a poison. It eats you from inside.”

The Fourth Person Eddie Meets in Heaven

The fourth person Eddie meets in Heaven is Marguerite, his wife. Marguerite was the only woman Eddie ever loved.

Eddie and Marguerite’s marriage was not great – Marguerite put up with a lot of Eddie’s bad behaviors and emotional distance. Eddie still loved Marguerite with all his heart.

Upon seeing her in Heaven, he was overwhelmed with emotion. He missed her so much and was happy to see her. They talked about their past and how things ended. She became sick at 47 years old and passed away. Eddie wishes he could have spent more time with her on Earth. Marguerite explains, “Lost love is still love, Eddie. It takes a different from, that’s all.” If you love someone, even from afar, even if they are gone, it’s still love.

“Lost love is still love, Eddie. It takes a different from, that’s all.”

The Fifth Person Eddie Meets in Heaven

The fifth person Eddie meets in Heaven is Tala. Tala is the girl who was in the fire and was the shadow that Eddie saw. Tala is a young girl and badly burned. She was told by her mom to hide in the hut when the soldiers were burning the village.

The events in Vietnam are certainly sad, but Tala has a different view on it. Throughout his entire life, Eddie had been influencing and helping kids stay safe through his work. He walked around Ruby Pier and made sure all the rides would not break down. Tala explained that Eddie’s salvation lies in the work he did: keeping children safe.

We are all right where we’re supposed to be. We shouldn’t compare ourselves to others. Focus on our own work and let the world take you where it needs you most.

“We’re all right where we’re supposed to be.”

Takeaways from The Five People You Meet in Heaven

With all books I read, I look to have a few takeaways and action steps.

I’ve been studying emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills for a few years now, and I’m realizing more and more that to be successful with people, it is crucial to view situations from the other person’s point of view.

To interact effectively with others, I don’t need to be a smooth talker or someone who knows everything.

Rather, I will look to be a person who asks good, penetrating, and thoughtful questions and who is a good listener. Also, I will focus on reading body language and adjusting my actions accordingly to make the other person feel comfortable.

When I die, I want to look back and say I had a strong and lasting impact on people. I’m still working on myself and trying to get better so I can fulfill my goals.

Our Recommendation for The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Mitch Albom is an outstanding author and The Five People You Meet in Heaven had a significant impact on me. I’d recommend any of his books and believe they will have an impact on you as well.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven is an easy read and appropriate for all ages. Everyone is born, lives, and dies – the takeaways you might potentially have are endless. To further enrich your understanding and perspective, read essay samples related to this book or other similar short stories and novels.

As I mentioned above, my main takeaway is every event and every situation is connected. What happens through your eyes can be completely different than what happens through someone else’s eyes. People have different perspectives, different experiences, and come from different places; it is our duty to realize this to lead our interactions to  see the world through other people’s eyes.

Performing a 48 hour fast can be a scary thought, but with the right tips and plan, you can successfully make it through your fast. With this article, you will learn how you can make it to 48 hours without breaking your fast, and learn about the benefits of fasting.

Over the past 4-5 years, one of my constant experiments has been with my diet and eating habits. I’ve tried fasting, but never had done long fasts before.

Back in college, I was lifting 5+ times a week and doing other exercises to get in great shape. At the same time, I was trying to hit certain nutrient and calorie levels to sustain my growth, and started down the rabbit hole of “exercise science” (the same thing as bro-science?).

At some point along this path, I came across intermittent fasting and was intrigued. Not eating for more than 12 hours?? Would I die? I can’t skip breakfast! Who are these mad people who don’t eat!

Getting outside of my comfort zone has shown to bring growth, and I decided I would skip breakfast the next day. A few months later, I did a 24 hour fast and after a while, fell into a eating pattern where I don’t eat breakfast anymore.

Fast forward to last month, and I challenged myself with a 48 hour fast.

I successfully completed this 48 hour fast, and in this post, I’ll be sharing with you my experience, as well as talk in general about intermittent fasting and my eating habits over the last few years.

First, a disclaimer: I’m not a doctor. Everyone’s body responds to things differently and just because I’ve had a good experience doesn’t mean you will. Please consult a real doctor if you have concerns or interest about this subject.

What is Intermittent Fasting and What is Fasting?

Let’s start with what is intermittent fasting?

Intermittent fasting is all about restricting the amount of time you spend in an eating state, and increasing the amount of time you spend in a fasted state.

All of us fast while we sleep, but if we extend that fast out a few more hours, that’s where some magic starts to happen.

By fasting, you are able to cleanse your body and cells. This cleansing process is what makes fasting so great.

“But I could never skip breakfast!!! I wake up sooo hungry!”

As I mentioned in the introduction, I don’t eat breakfast anymore and now will have my first food around 11 AM.

Intermittent fasting is actually not that hard to do. While it’s a challenge at the beginning due to the mental barrier of not eating, you get used to it and there are benefits to this as well.

One other thing is while fasting, you are allowed to drink water, tea and coffee – these are 0 calorie drinks which are very helpful in keeping you “full” and your mind off of food.

Why is fasting good for you and what are the benefits of fasting?

Here’s a slightly snarky, but legit question for you to ponder: what kind of eating habits did our hunter-gather ancestors have? Were they able to go down to the local grocery store and pick up whatever they wanted?

Humans have been fasting for many years – for a variety of reasons – and don’t need 3 meals a day. I don’t know if it’s some marketing ploy or what, but our bodies naturally can handle large periods of non-eating without loss of strength or energy.

What happens to our bodies in a 48 hour fast?

When our bodies go into a fasted state, a number of things happen. Our bodies are very good at cleaning themselves out, but when you keep putting crap in, then the there’s no time for our bodies to get the crap out!

By restricting the time we are eating, our bodies are able to focus in on cleaning out our cells which will lead to detoxification.

If you aren’t eating for 16 hours, then for that 16 hours, you body is going to work making sure you are cleansed. Ratchet that time up to 24, 48 or more, and you (theoretically) should be removed of many of the toxins you’ve accumulated.

A number of other great things happen as well though are outside the topic of this post (Read more about these health benefits here).

Why I Decided to Fast and My Eating Habits Over The Years

As I mentioned in the introduction, I’ve been challenging my own eating habits the last few years.

In the spring of 2015, I started experimenting with intermittent fasting.

Growing up as a child, my parents always told me I needed to eat breakfast. I was influenced as well by the marketing of always having to eat cereal or other carb-loaded and sugary things in the morning, or else I would DIE of hunger and not grow up to a strong adult.

Throughout college, I had the full meal plan and continued to always eat breakfast until 2015. I challenged myself at some point that I would skip breakfast and not eat until lunch.

It was certainly tough that first morning. 9 AM rolled around and all I could think about was food. I was drinking green tea and a lot of water, but I was still “hungry”. Later in the morning, I had a meeting and focused in on some work. All of a sudden, it was noon and time for lunch. I made it! I was still alive!

At this point, I thought this was pretty cool and started to do it every morning.

After a short while, I wanted to keep testing. What about a 24 hour fast? Could I do it?

I ended up doing a few 20+ hour fasts and realized that hunger is largely psychological. It’s 11:32 AM as I write this now and I haven’t ate yet today. I’ve had 4 big glasses of water, but am not hungry.

I don’t eat breakfast anymore, but my health and diet habits have become a little bit less of a focus recently.

This brings us to August and my 48 hour fast. I needed a change and wanted to push myself to the next level.

The Big Challenge: a 48 Hour Fast

I was feeling a little bit chubby and tired in the middle of August. Even with my usual 14-16 hours of fasting, I wasn’t getting the exercise required to stay in shape.

To shock my system, so to say, I decided I would do a 48 hour fast.

“48 hours without eating?? What are you thinking?”

Part of life is about pushing your boundaries and getting outside your comfort zone.

At 5:22 PM on a Sunday night in August, I finished up my dinner and started my 48 hour fast.

After waking up the first day, I was fine and had my usual energy levels. Around 11 AM, I started getting hungry and this wasn’t helped by a few people around me at work heating up their lunches and eating at their desks.

I went on a walk around noon and that afternoon, and during this time, was drinking lots of water and had 2 cups of coffee. I was feeling good and not too hungry.

That night, while my girlfriend ate dinner, I avoided the kitchen and got down to work. Lots to do and no distractions for me!

Around 9:30, I decided it was time for bed. I hadn’t ate all day but was still feeling energized. When I laid down in bed, thoughts ran through my mind… “what would I feel like when I woke up? what if I woke up and was starving? should I be nervous here?”

I fell asleep and had a great night of sleep…

36 Hours in with a TON of energy

The next morning, I woke up at 5:05 AM. I sat up in a little bit of a stupor and thought to myself, “Whoa, I feel amazing.”

I had so much energy, I decided I would record that week’s podcast episode. It was 5:30 AM, and I was so excited talking about my fast during the fast. I talk about it the first 15 minutes of the podcast episode.

My energy levels were unbelievable and I didn’t even need coffee.

That being said, I wasn’t doing a strict water fast, and did opt for coffee throughout the 48 hour fasting period.

When I was recording the episode, I was drinking water and a cup of coffee, and after finishing my recording, I got ready for work and headed off on the bus.

Things were looking good. 8 hours to go.

Hitting a Wall but Pushing Through

Again, around 11 AM, I started getting really hungry and I started suffering a little. Getting up at 5 the last two days wasn’t helping, nor was the stupid work I had to do.

That second afternoon, I was feeling down, a little weak and a little bit tired.

I finished my 48 hour fast with an apple, banana and some tacos at 5:30 on Tuesday – 48 hours after I started.

Reflecting on the 2 day fast, I was worn down but hanging in there.

After eating at 5:30 PM, I felt a little better but was still feeling tired and a little down (probably since I woke up at 5 AM both Monday and Tuesday though let’s be honest).

Going to bed the first night with an empty stomach was interesting, but I’d been drinking a ton of water all day – so really, it wasn’t an empty stomach. I woke up the next morning with a TON of energy.

I was very hungry both days around 11 AM. This was 6 hours into my day on both days. In both cases, I drank more water and went on a walk through the Downtown skyways. By 12:30 PM, I was able to focus in again. With this combination of focus and energy, I was able to get a ton of work done and was loving it.

Overall, I’d say it was a good choice to do this 48 hour fast. It was an amazing experience and was very happy about this endeavor.

6 Steps and Tips for Completing Your First 48 Hour Fast

If you’ve decided to give a 48 hour fast a chance, here are some tips for getting the 48 hour fast done:

1. Start with a 16 hour fast a week or two before the 24 hour fast
2. Eat a big meal around 4-5 PM before starting your 24 hour fast
3. Use sleep to your advantage
4. Drink plenty of liquids to keep you full over the two day span
5. Stay busy during your one day fast
6. Stay positive, listen to your body, and be strong
7. Make your first meal back simple and healthy

Whether you are going for a 12 hour fast, a 24 hour fast, a 36 hour fast, a 40 hour fast, or a 48 hour fast, these tips for getting through your fast will be beneficial for your fasting goal.

Let’s dive into each of these tips for completing your first 48 hour fast in more detail.

1. Start with a 24 Hour Fast to Prepare for Your 48 Hour Fast

First, if you’ve never done a longer fast before, you should start with a shorter 24 hour fast. This way, by doing a shorter fast, you can get an understanding of how your body might respond to fasting.

There are a number of interesting feelings I experienced when I fasted for the first time, and the first time I did it, it definitely was stressful and nerve wracking.

But after doing it a few times, I now know how to cope with those thoughts and feelings.

If you can successfully complete a 24 hour fast, but you still aren’t comfortable with trying for a 48 hour fast, maybe it makes sense to try doing a 36 hour or 40 hour fast.

2. Eat a Bigger Meal at 4-5 PM Before Starting

Once you are confident you can do a 48 hour fast, then I’d recommend eating dinner a little bit earlier and if you are nervous about the fast, make it a big meal!

I suggest an earlier dinner because the second afternoon can be very difficult, and having a 5 PM cut off versus a 7 PM cutoff can make a world of difference mentally.

Imagine you finish work around 5 PM. Eating a big meal as soon as you get home not only follows your body’s natural rhythm but also ensures you’re well-fed and mentally ready for the fasting period ahead. On the other hand, delaying dinner until later in the evening, like 7 or 8 PM, might increase your anticipation and make it harder to start the fast.

So, to sum up, eating a bigger meal around 4-5 PM helps prepare your body and mind for a successful 48-hour fast.

By addressing both physical and mental aspects, this approach makes it more likely that you’ll complete the fast comfortably.

3. Use Sleep to Your Advantage

Something which is overlooked when fasting is it’s a lot easier to kill time if you are sleeping.

While I had a ton of energy that second morning, it may have been better for me to sleep a little more to help pass the time.

4. Drink Plenty of Liquids When Fasting

Next, make sure you are drinking a lot of water during your fast.

First, this will help with flushing your system, but also, by drinking a lot of water and other liquids, you can feel more full.

Drinking water is very important for general health, but even more important when you aren’t eating and trying to stay sane.

Other liquids you can have are black coffee and unsweetened tea.

Coffee contains proteins which suppress your appetite, and this can help with hunger pains. One thing to note though is coffee leads to elevated cortisol levels, which makes it harder to burn fat.

Green tea is another drink that you can utilize when fasting. Green tea has some caffeine, helps suppress your appetite, and in addition, drinking green tea does elevate cortisol levels.

In general, whatever you decide to drink, just make sure it doesn’t have any calories, and also that you are staying hydrated throughout the day.

5. Stay Busy During Your One Day Fast

Have you ever heard the expression, “time flies when you are having fun?”

Time does fly when you are busy and occupied with work or play. If you decide to do a 24 hour fast, it will be a lot easier if you can stay busy and occupied throughout your day.

One of my worst fasts ever came when I had nothing going on during the afternoon at work.

From hours 18 to 23, I sat at my desk and, more or less, just thought about how hungry I was and calculated how much time I had left until it was time to eat.

On the other hand, you can go a long time with not thinking about food if you are busy and actively engaging your mind and body.

Also, a lot of times I’ll eat just because I’m bored or anxious. By staying busy, you won’t get bored and feel tempted to eat.

Staying busy will help you get through your fast much easier.

6. Listen to Your Body When Doing Your 48 Hour Fast

Finally, there will be moments when you want to eat and don’t want to push through.

Staying positive, drinking water, and resting could be best here – but also, if you become shaky or actually NEED food, then it is totally okay to end your fast.

If you are someone who is sensitive to not eating and have troubles with blood sugar levels, fasting might not be for you.

For people who check with their doctors and know the potential dangers of fasting, listening to your body will be very important for completing your fast successfully.

If you get a headache (which is very common and a sign your body is flushing out toxins), drinking more water will be critical for your success.

Being self-aware is incredibly important for success in this world, and being healthy rather than fainting or becoming sick because you tried to push through is a better scenario.

7. What to Eat After Breaking Your 48 Hour Fast

After completing a 48-hour fast, it’s essential to reintroduce food gradually to avoid overwhelming your digestive system and ensure a smooth transition back to regular eating.

Here’s a step-by-step approach to what you should eat after breaking your fast:

• Start Light: Begin by breaking your fast with easily digestible foods such as fruits or vegetables. These options are gentle on the stomach and provide essential vitamins, minerals, and hydration to replenish your body after the fasting period. Opt for fresh fruits like apples, berries, or watermelon, or choose raw or lightly steamed vegetables such as cucumbers, carrots, or bell peppers.
• Proceed with Caution: While you may be tempted to dive into a hearty meal immediately after fasting, it’s crucial to exercise restraint and pace yourself. Rushing into a large meal can overwhelm your digestive system, leading to discomfort, bloating, or even nausea. Instead, take your time to savor each bite and pay attention to your body’s hunger cues and satiety signals.
• Listen to Your Body: Pay close attention to how your body responds to food after the fast. If you experience any discomfort or digestive issues, consider scaling back on portion sizes or opting for lighter fare until your body adjusts. Remember, your digestive system may need some time to readjust to regular eating patterns after a prolonged period of fasting.
• Choose Nutrient-Dense Foods: Once you’ve eased back into eating, focus on consuming nutrient-dense foods that provide sustained energy and nourishment. Incorporate a balance of lean proteins, healthy fats, complex carbohydrates, and fiber-rich foods into your meals to support overall health and well-being. Examples include grilled chicken or fish, avocado, quinoa, leafy greens, and legumes.
• Stay Hydrated: In addition to food, prioritize hydration by drinking plenty of water throughout the day. Proper hydration is essential for supporting digestion, maintaining energy levels, and promoting overall health. Consider incorporating hydrating beverages like herbal tea, coconut water, or infused water with fresh fruits or herbs to replenish electrolytes and enhance hydration.

By following these guidelines and tuning into your body’s needs, you can effectively transition from a 48-hour fast back to regular eating without any adverse effects.

Remember to be mindful, patient, and gentle with yourself during this process, allowing your body the time it needs to adjust and thrive.

Takeaways from This 48 Hour Fast

I hope you’ve enjoyed this article about the story of my 48 hour fast!

I have a few takeaways for you about fasting in general and my experience of this 48 hour fast.

First, eating in general is largely psychological. When you wake up, you aren’t hungry – you are thirsty. Drink some water and see if you are still “hungry” and “can’t go without breakfast”. I used to not drink water or coffee in the morning until after my meal, and now I drink it when I wake up and feel great!

Second, again, think back to our ancestors (hunter gatherers). They didn’t have a grocery store and they certainly didn’t have the luxury of eating 3 meals a day. Why is this narrative pushed? Is it a marketing ploy to sell bacon and cereal (I do love breakfast foods though…)

Human biology is undeniable…

I’m definitely going to be doing another 48 hour fast in the near future, and plan on pushing the limits to a 3 or 5 day fast as well! The experience I had at the 36 hour mark was unbelievable, and literally felt like I had tapped and unlocked my full potential. It was sooo powerful.

I’m glad I’ve started fasting, and if it makes sense for you, I’d say give it a try! Even skipping breakfast once in a while could lead to some great health benefits.

Readers: have you ever tried fasting? What are your takeaways from reading about this? Do you think you’ll try something like this?

Achieving financial freedom is a big goal, but a goal that can be achieved through consistent efforts over time. Becoming wealthy is possible with the right formula and process. In this post, you’ll learn about steps to financial freedom and financial success.

Are you looking to become financially free? Does financial freedom sound amazing to you? What if you could become financially free?

What if you could skip your commute and spend time with your friends or family uninterrupted all day? Wouldn’t that be fantastic?

Make no mistake, financial freedom is quite a lofty goal, but is possible. If you decide financial freedom is what you want, there are a number of personal finance habits you can cultivate to become wealthy.

If you want to become better with your personal finances, you’ll definitely want to read this post all the way through.

In this post, I’m going to share with you a seven step plan to get to financial independence – the ultimate personal finance goal.

First though, let’s talk about what financial freedom is and why becoming financially free should be a goal of yours.

What is Financial Freedom?

Before talking about the steps for achieving financial freedom, let’s talk about what financial freedom is and why you should care about financial freedom.

Financial freedom, or also known as financial independence, is the ability to do what you want with your time and energy without having to worry about money at all.

Being financially free could mean having enough money saved up in bank accounts and investments where you don’t need to work anymore.

Financial freedom could also mean owning a number of businesses which provide you with enough cash flow where you have your bills paid each month without having to work.

Becoming financially free is something everyone wants deep down (whether they consciously know it, or subconsciously know it), but not everyone knows how to get there, or knows why it would be empowering.

For me, financial freedom means being able to do what I want to do when I want to do it. No silly corporate meetings, no talking to pushy co-workers, no commutes – only working on hobbies and my passions.

What do you think? Wouldn’t it be great to be able to wake up each day and do what you are passionate about?

This is what financial freedom is all about. Now, let’s get on to the steps to financial freedom.

The 7 Steps to Financial Freedom

You may have heard of the seven steps to financial freedom before. Maybe you haven’t. There are two versions of the seven steps to financial freedom I’ve come across over the past few years.

One is by Dave Ramsey and the other is by Tony Robbins.

Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps to Financial Freedom

The first seven steps to financial freedom is from the one and only, Dave Ramsey.  Dave Ramsey, for those of you who don’t know, is a personal finance and money management expert with a radio show and many courses and workshops that help people get their finances in order.

Dave Ramsey’s 7 baby steps to financial freedom are:

• Baby Step 1 – Build a $1,000 emergency fund
• Baby Step 2 – Pay off all debt using the debt snowball
• Baby Step 3 – Save 3 to 6 months of expenses in savings
• Baby Step 4 – Invest 15% of household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement
• Baby Step 5 – College funding for children
• Baby Step 6 – Pay off home early
• Baby Step 7 – Build wealth and give

I like these, and completely agree that for most people, these steps are great for building wealth and reaching financial freedom.

If a person doesn’t have $1,000 in the bank, then that should be goal number one on the way to financial freedom. Next, pay off your consumer debt and start saving for the future.

Finally, become fully debt free and share your wealth with the less fortunate.

If you follow these steps, you will be wealthy – I have no doubt.

Tony Robbins’ 7 Steps to Financial Freedom

The second set of seven steps to financial freedom are from Tony Robbins. Tony Robbins wrote Money: Master the Game a few years ago and goes over his seven steps to financial freedom in it.

Tony Robbins’ 7 steps to financial freedom are:

• Step 1 – Make the most important financial decision of your life (Decide to be the investor, not a consumer.)
• Step 2 – Become an insider: know the rules before you start investing
• Step 3 – Make the game winnable through knowledge
• Step 4 – Make the most important investment decision of your life (dollar cost average, asset allocation)
• Step 5 – Create a lifetime income plan (consider insurance and annuities for income)
• Step 6 – Invest like the 0.001 percent (model the portfolios of hedge funds)
• Step 7 – Just do it, enjoy it, and share it!

I read Money: Master the Game a few years ago and I really enjoyed it.  While there was quite a bit of fluff, there were many actionable tips and takeaways for me to implement in my life.

Step two of Tony Robbins’ steps is all about managing fees, how financial advisers may not be the best route to go, and buying and holding are all things to know and consider before investing.

Finally, he talks about alternative routes to income and wealth once we have a substantial nest egg. It’s one thing to have a lot of money, but it’s another to have a lot of money that is protected from disaster.

I want to be unique with my content and ideas. Both of these plans have a lot of merit, and I’ve built off of them and created my own seven step plan to financial freedom for you.

Our 7 Step Plan to Financial Freedom

Coming up with a seven step plan was tough. Everyone’s situation is different – and with anything you read or consume, it’s important to take a step back and see how it can fit into your life.

All I can share and point to is my seven step plan to financial freedom. The following list is what I’m personally trying to do to grow my wealth, and get on the way to financial freedom:

1. Build an emergency fund
2. Pay down consumer debt
3. Save 10% of my income
4. Learn about investing
5. Invest in yourself and grow your income
6. Stay consistent
7. Give back with your time or money

Let’s go into each of these in more detail.

Step 1 for Financial Freedom: Build an Emergency Fund

An emergency fund is most important for your personal finance success.

It’s truly tragic – around 70% of Americans don’t have $1,000 in their bank account.

What happens when the furnace or AC goes out in your house? What happens if your car breaks down, or you get sick? There’s so many unplanned emergencies to account for.

Having a safety net will be beneficial for your financial well-being, and will also be great for peace of mind.

Saving up 3 to 6 months expenses, or even having $5,000 saved is a great starting point for your emergency fund.

Step 2 for Financial Freedom: Pay off Consumer Debt

Debt sucks. Debt is a restriction on your life, and does not allow you to live the life you want and deserve to live.

Getting out of debt is possible by spending less money, and applying debt payoff strategies.

After getting your debt knocked out, you can start focusing on offensively building your wealth.

Step 3 for Financial Freedom: Save 10% of your Income

After building an emergency fund and destroying your debt, the next steps are to start saving. Take 10% of your income, and start saving it for the future.

After paying off your consumer debt, take that money and start directing it towards investment and savings accounts for the future.

Get your savings rate up!

Step 4 for Financial Freedom: Learn about Investing

You need to learn how to invest.

Financial freedom isn’t going to come through investing in CDs. The only thing guaranteed about a CD is you are guaranteed to lose money due to inflation! (Okay, in some situations and rate environments they are okay – but not right now)

Do you want to be an active investor or passive investor? Active investors should look at starting businesses or buying real estate. All you need is to educate yourself on the matter and get your licenses and you can become a successful landlord. It’s a great way to bring in more income and the better you get at it the more properties you can purchase and wealth you can build over time. Technology makes the process of managing properties more seamless and less time-consuming. Once you purchase your real estate property then look into finding the best property management software out there to use. It can help you better vet renters and you can create and customize your lease agreement terms online. Do you want to sit back and watch your money grow without much work? Stick it in the stock market.

These questions are worth asking yourself.

After figuring out your goals, next learn about the different fees, downfalls and traps in your chosen market.

For example, paying a financial adviser 2% over 30 years could amount hundreds of thousands of dollars lost!

With these information, you can wisely grow your wealth and become wealth over time.

Step 5 for Financial Freedom: Invest in Yourself and Grow Your Income

The best investment you can make is in yourself.

Your level of success will rarely exceed your level of personal development, because success is something you attract by the person you become.

If you are looking to make more money and be successful, then you will have to work on yourself.

If you increase your income, you will be able to save more. By saving more, you will be able to increase your investments.

All of these steps go back to investing in yourself and improving as a person.

Step 6 for Financial Freedom: Stay Consistent

Paying off debt and then going back into debt isn’t going to help on the way to financial freedom. Saving $5,000 in one year isn’t going to amount to much.

BUT, saving $5,000 a year for 30 years and investing it in something returning 5-7% a year can grow to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Consistency is the key to everything.

Step 7 for Financial Freedom: Give Back

No matter how wealthy you become, there’s one thing you should always remember: IT DOESN’T MATTER UNLESS YOU SHARE IT WITH OTHERS.

Giving you time, money, and knowledge can help others achieve their goals and dreams.

We make a living by what we earn. We make a life by what we give.

With these 7 steps, you will be on your way to financial freedom. However, if you are still struggling to get past step 1, below are 2 easy steps you can take for personal finance success.

2 Easy Steps to Take for Financial Success

Make no mistake, becoming better with your money and personal finances can seem tough.

However, there are two easy steps you can take for overnight financial success:

1. Tracking your income and expenses
2. Learning about personal finance

Step 1: Track Your Income and Expenses

What gets measured gets managed.

Knowing where you are financially is so important to financial success.

Consider the following example of two people: Mark tracks his income and expenses every month, and Lisa doesn’t track her income or expenses at all.

Mark wants to retire in 15 years, and has identified that by saving $500 a month, he will reach his goal with average market gains.

Lisa also wants to retire in 15 years, but doesn’t know she needs to save $500 a month, and as a result, is only putting $250 into her retirement account each month.

Mark saves $400 a month right now, but has identified he can cut $100 out of his food spending each month and put that towards retirement.

Lisa spends $300 a month on random shopping expenses (of which she doesn’t know the dollar amount), and doesn’t realize that she doesn’t need these random shopping expenses.

Who do you think will be successful? Mark, who tracks his financial situation, or Lisa, who doesn’t track her financials at all?

I’m going to guess Lisa will be mighty disappointed at the end of the 15 year period.

How to Track Your Income and Expenses Each Month

Each month, I pull all of my transactions from my Mint account into my income statement spreadsheet.

I categorize my transactions and see exactly where my spending and savings rate landed during the month, and look to see if there are any trends forming.

You could download these transactions from your bank directly, you could use similar tools to Mint, or you can analyze your income and expenses through your online banking application – all are acceptable.

For me, I see the importance of tracking my income and expenses by looking at my spending in various categories. I typically spend $300-400 on food and drink a month.

I know this as I’ve spent $300-400 a month for the past 18 months consistently. Some months are worse than others, and in those months, I may spend closer to $500 on food and drink.

If I didn’t know how much I was spending on food in a given month, maybe I’d continue to spend that amount month over month, or even start spending more.  Let’s say, somehow, I started spending $300 more a month on food and drink because I wasn’t tracking it.

Now, all of a sudden, I could end up spending an additional $3,600 a year ($300*12 = $3,600) on food and drink, just because I’m not keeping track of my expenses!

That’s a lot of money that could be better served somewhere else.

Tracking our cash flow also makes us think more about our finances.  If I wasn’t tracking my expenses, I wouldn’t have this mental trigger to keep my spending down on food and drink.

There are a number of tools and apps you can use to track your income and expenses.

If you aren’t already tracking your income and expenses, and you don’t want to click through to my other post, I have a spreadsheet for download which you can get by putting your email into the box below.

Step 2: Be Consistent, and Learn with Books, Blogs, and Podcasts

Consistency is the key to being successful in this world.

Consistency involves working, learning, and growing a little bit each and every day on the way to your goals.

It’s not enough to invest $100 one time and let it sit.  It’s not enough to cut expenses one month, and then revert back to your previous spending habits.

I can guarantee you short term success will not lead to long term success unless the short term actions are internalized and made into long term habits.

Consider this example: would you rather receive $1 million dollars today, or would you rather take a penny, but have it double every day for a month? Naturally, most people would say, “Give me the million bucks!”

But if we step back and actually analyze the other side, we can see what a big mistake that might be.

The first day, you have 2 cents, the second day, you have 4 cents, the third day, you have 8 cents… two weeks in, you have $81.92. Well, guess what? At the end of the month, you’d end up with over $10 million dollars. You only started off with a penny, what happened?

Yes, you started off with a small amount, and for a long time, you didn’t have much, but 30 days later, boom, $10 million bucks – much more than $1 million!!!

This is the same concept as the power of compounding over time.

If you save $10,000 a year for 30 years and achieve a 7% rate of return, you will become a millionaire.

This is a mathematical fact.  It’s the power of consistency and compounding at work.

Applying Consistency and Learning in Your Life

The penny example we just went through above can be applied to the base of your knowledge on personal finance, not just investing or savings.

I’ll be the first to admit, I’m not a personal finance expert.

I have no idea the intricacies of Roth IRAs, 403(b)s, or how 1031 exchanges work in real estate. That being said, I know that I could learn any of these things if I wanted to. There are millions of words published in text and voice out in the world and on the internet.

While hopefully this site will be a great starting point for you, there’s so much more out there. For example, there are so many personal finance resources which all have something to offer.

Reading these different personal finance blogs, listening to podcasts, and reading books are great ways to increase your financial knowledge.

If you want to become an expert on the stock market, take a step today. Maybe you want to build your understanding on different forms of debt – take a step today.

For you, if there is anything you want to accomplish this year, or in life, just take a step. That’s all you can do initially.

No one goes from 0 to 100 in an hour or a day.

But, by going from 0 to 1 to 2 to 3, you can get there over time.  It’s about taking baby steps to start, and as you get more comfortable, you can increase the pace – in other words, you sometimes have to slow down to go fast!

What you do today matters. What you do every day matters.

Successful people are those who understand that the little choices they make matter, and because of that they choose to do things that seem to make no difference at all in the act of doing them, and they do them over and over and over until the compound effect kicks in.

Start Tracking and Improve Your Financial Situation

Tracking your income and expenses, and having a hunger for knowledge, will get you firmly on the path to financial success.

Start with identifying your why, then start tracking your income and expenses with a spreadsheet or online tool – and continue to learn about personal finance, investments, and building wealth!

Having these two steps in mind will guide you on your path to your financial goals.

Over time, by having your why and a plan, you will be able to make smart financial decisions and stay on the path to personal finance success.

Get on the Path to Financial Freedom and Become Financially Free

With the information presented in this post, you now have three different, seven step plans to financial freedom to draw inspiration from and put into action.

After reading this, take a step back to reflect on these different plans, and how they may align with your own plan.

If you aren’t quite yet on the path to financial freedom, implement the 2 easy steps to take to become better with your finances, and you’ll be in a better place financially soon.

Take action today and get on your way to financial freedom!

Having balance in life is very important. Working too much and always being on the go can be detrimental for you. Likewise, being lazy and ignoring responsibility can make it hard to achieve your goals. In this article on living a balanced lifestyle, you’ll learn about 8 tips you can apply to live a balanced life and how to find the right balance in life.

Becoming better as a person, or becoming better in a certain interest can be overwhelming. Balancing new information, past experiences, and the rest of your life can be difficult.

Balance is something I think about most these days when looking to live a fulfilling life.

Being balanced in life can help solve so many problems.

I ask myself, “am I in balance or do I need to reassess where I’m at in my life? Do I need to take a break, or should I push through?”

How to live a balanced life and how to find the right balance in life is hard, but can be done with the right guidance and patience.

What I’ve learned is balance is incredibly important in life, and in this post, I’ll be sharing with you why balance is so important, how to find the right balance in life, and 8 tips you can use to create more balance in your life.

Finding The Right Balance is Very Important for Success

Balance is one of the most important things to create in your life. This may be obvious, but having the right balance is very hard to do in practice.

For example, too much work will result in becoming burnt out.

Too much play will result in no work getting done.

Spending too much time with friends could lead to a lack of identity.

Spending too much time alone could lead to loneliness and one way of thought.

Too much sleep can lead to a number of health issues.

Too little sleep and your energy and work will suffer from lack of clarity and focus.

Doing too much exercise will lead to overuse injuries, and sitting on the couch all day will lead to small muscles and droopy skin.

You probably know the saying, too much of a good thing can be a bad thing? Well that’s what we are talking about here 🙂

Balance is key and important in life because with many things, being extreme is typically a detriment to living our lives the right way.

Many of these things we know, but don’t take action to find the right balance.

The Many Areas Where Balance Can Be Ruined

While it might be impossible to be completely balanced in life, there are many areas, some of which we’ve touched on earlier, where balance could be ruined.

Being completely balanced in life is almost impossible, but these areas can give us a better picture of what to focus on if we want to find balance in life.

The areas where you need to focus on balance the most are the following:

• Being Out of Balance at Work
  • Getting yelled at by your boss, working 80 hour weeks, or not having work at all might not be the best for your long term well being.
  • Balance at work is having time for development, some busy times, some fun times, and opportunities to do what you want with your time (as ultimately, you spend more hours at your job than you probably do anything else other than sleep!)
• Being Out of Balance in Our Sleep
  • Always being tired, because you go to bed too late, or sleeping in every day might not be optimal. Over time, over and under sleeping can take a toll on your body and mind.
  • While on the weekends, it is nice to sleep in once and a while, doing so every day can affect your focus and productivity.
  • Likewise, too little sleep, and you really will be dragging!
• Being Out of Balance in Our Health and Exercise
  • This might be an obvious one: sit on the couch all day, and you’ll quickly find yourself out of shape. Work out all day, and you may get injured from overuse.
  • A balance between activity and rest will lead to a healthy lifestyle.  For example, you may choose to spend your free time going for a bike ride or taking your dog for a walk. In either case, make sure that you put safety first. Look both ways before crossing the street and keep your dog on a leash. If you happen to get in a biking accident or bitten by a dog while out and about getting exercise then seek medical attention right away. Your next call should be to a personal injury lawyer who can assess your case and get you the compensation you deserve.
• Being Out of Balance in Our Eating Habits
  • Another seemingly obvious one: eat only junk food, and you’ll get a stomach ache. Eat too much, and you’ll start to put on pounds. Eat too little, and you’ll lose muscle. What about too healthy? Eating too healthy… well, some things can be good in moderation!
• Being Out of Balance in Our Relationships
  • Sometimes it’s great to see your friends, and sometimes to great to be alone.
  • If you are with your friends all the time, work and responsibility will be put aside.
  • If you spend a lot of time alone, sometimes that will keep you narrow minded and not in touch with reality. There’s a lot of world to see out there people!

Like I said above, there are many things in life we need to balance, and this is just the start to finding the right balance for a great life.

Finding balance is an exercise in self-awareness and knowing where you are in life.

I’m going to share with you where I am in my life with my thoughts and actions, and then will talk about the tips for you to find balance in life.

Finding Balance and Trying to Live a Balanced Life

Over the past few years, I’ve been trying to find balance in my life in my work, my play, my exercise, my diet, my sleep, and my hustles.

Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about balance in my work and play, and also in my sleep.

I’m pretty busy, with a few side hustles, and a day job.

During this past winter, I got into a habit of going to bed between 11:30 and 1, and getting up at 8 am, right before scrambling off to work. With the usual winter morning darkness, I struggled to wake up at any time earlier than 7 (even if I went to bed early), and decided that it would be better for me to stay up later and sleep in.

Now, I’m finding that with the sun coming in at 5 am, I’m able to wake up if I need to, and also sleep in if I please.

Some days, if I’m really busy, I’ll get up at 5 am. Other days, if I’m tired, I’ll sleep in and get up around 7:30 or 8. I’ve found a balance between more sleep and less sleep.

Similarly, I’ve found a balance in my diet and exercise, where I eat well most of the time, and exercise a few times a week. With this, I’ve stayed relatively in shape, and am still able to play pick-up sports and not be too tired.

I’m sure you have some of the same thoughts about activities in your life.

You want to become a Rich? Drop the 9 to 5 and Start Working 95

About a year ago, I came across an interesting article talking about Grant Cardone, a super salesman, entrepreneur, and millionaire. In the article, he says, “Most people work 9 to 5. I work 95 hours (per week). If you ever want to be a millionaire, you need to stop doing the 9 to 5 and start doing 95.”

This quote has stuck with me ever since, if wealth accumulation is my goal, then it’s crucial for me to start putting in more and more hours to get to this goal.

I want to become financially independent. At the end of the day, ultimate failure to me is not being able to support myself and my family.

If I could have 1 thing in life, the ability to provide for my family is the only thing I could ever ask for.

As my wealth and abilities grow, my tune has started to change. I feel very confident I can become rich without sacrificing as much in the short term.

I can sleep 8 hours, exercise, see friends, and still reach my goals.

My mindset towards grinding has changed through reflection and reading.

My friend Matt, the founder of Optimize Your Life, talks a lot about finding balance in life. Matt says,

“If we want both success and happiness, we need to make sure to give attention to all of the different areas of our lives. We cannot ignore our marriage to further our career success. We cannot ignore our health to have more time for our relationships. Ignoring our finances to further our friendships will not lead to success.”

I’m trying to find balance in my life right now. I have my goals and my purpose. There’s so much I want to experience, to learn, and to do.

At the same time though, I need to be cognizant of what is also important to me: my relationships, my health, and my finances.

Now, I want to discuss an interesting topic: the pressure of expectations.

How to Deal with Expectations When Trying to Find Balance

In a number of conversations I’ve been having with friends about their thoughts on their goals, I’ve been bringing up balance and trying to discuss the expectations around the situation.

When I set out to do something, a lot of it is from within and what I want to do with my life. Maybe I’m a little bit of a rebel, but these days I try to stay grounded and not influenced by outside opinions or expectations.

I stand up for what I believe in, and stand down for things I need more information on.

With some of the struggles of balance I’ve been learning about with others around me, I try to understand a little more and ask if the struggles are coming from the inside or outside.

Are you driven from within to go and accomplish your goals, OR are you driven to accomplish your goals because you are trying to impress others and make other people happy?

I’ve found that rarely will looking to impress others leads to a happy and fulfilling life.

At the same time though, at work, there are tasks I have to get done for others and I’ll do those happily because my paycheck helps me achieve my financial goals.

After figuring out if the pressure is internal or external, you can start to go down the question rabbit hole.

If the pressures are external, is there anything you can change about the situation to reduce this pressure? Could you change jobs? Change scenery? Is the community you are surrounding yourself with the right community?

If the pressures are internal, why are you expecting so much out of yourself? Could you do more? Are your priorities in the right place? Are there things you could be doing which would allow you to work smarter, not harder?

Starting with this question can help with the question of how to balance your life to better align your actions with a less stressful and more fulfilling experience.

Now, let’s get into the tips for creating balance and living a balanced life.

8 Ways You Can Find Balance in your Work and Leisure

Are you looking for more balance in your life? Are you looking for the right balance for happiness and success in your life?

Here are 8 steps you can take to live a more balanced life and to find balance in your life:

1. Breathe and relax
2. Figure out what’s important to you
3. Take actions to reduce noise in your life
4. Become more self-aware and understand yourself
5. Understand the purpose of setting goals
6. Let things go
7. Understand progress takes time and it’s okay to take breaks
8. Live life at your own pace and adjust over time

Let’s dive into each of these 8 balanced living tips below.

1. Take a deep breath

First, take a deep breath and collect yourself. Everyone gets stressed out from time to time, and that’s okay.

Breathing allows you to slow down, get your bearings, and relax.

Your brain needs air to think and process information! Give your brain what it needs! 🙂

By relaxing, breathing and slowing down, you can then start to think rationally and game plan to achieve the balance in your life that you want.

2. Figure out what’s important to you

Next, it’s important to figure out what matters to you, and to assess where you are in your life right now.

What’s causing the imbalance in your life right now? What would your life look like if you were in balance? How would you feel?

Figuring out what is important to you and aligning your actions with your goals and wants is something I think is a necessary ingredient to happiness and fulfillment.

3. Take Actions to Reduce Noise in Your Life

Many times when we get out of balance, it’s because we have taken on too many things with work, at home, or with friends.

Reducing noise can help you focus and allow you to not be distracted or overwhelmed with negativity and stress.

For me, I’ve removed noise by not watching the news or TV, by unsubscribing to marketing emails, and through spending time only on things I want to do.

What makes you happiest? How are you spending your time? Is your time being spent in a way which brings you happiness, or is it being blocked by other things in your life?

By reducing noise, you can start to do more of the things you like, and spend less time on the things you don’t like.

4. Become More Self Aware will Lead to What You Want in Life

After you’ve taken a deep breath, reduced noise, and came up with a thought for what you want in life, now it’s time to make some adjustments.

Self awareness, maturity, emotional intelligence – all of these things develop over time and have been a constant struggle for me.

There are times where I get wrapped up in a conversation and all of a sudden, I lose focus for a second and get annoyed by some minor comment or action. I’m sure there have been times where you’ve had a similar experience.

It’s tough to always be on and present in the moment but can be worked on.

Similarly, I’ve had experiences where I’m so focused on getting my work done and I lose track of time. All of a sudden, an hour later, I notice I’ve been sitting for a few hours straight – something not good for my health.

Or if I’m exhausted and keep pushing. It’s okay to take a break and sometimes very necessary! There’s no point in pushing through exhaustion if it will lead to a cold or the flu.

If the people around you can’t handle you taking a break when necessary, then maybe it’s time to surround yourself with other people (people with demanding and unrelenting bosses, I’m looking at you 😉 )

My point with this post is to focus again on that it’s okay to relax and have a break from the grind. Of course, action is important, but again, balance is what will lead to great success.

5. Understand the Purpose of Goals

I want success in my career and finances at a relatively younger age, and through these overarching thought, I’m someone with a lot of goals and ambition.

Some of my goals are a little over the top, and if I don’t hit one, sometimes I feel down.

That being said, here’s the thing: life happens. It’s okay if I miss a goal, or a sub-goal.

Goals are so incredibly essential for someone who wants success.

One of my main mantras and principles which I live my life by is “simple daily actions and disciplines WILL result in massive success over time”.

Do some sort of exercise each day and I’ll be fit.

Read each day and I’ll grow my knowledge base.

With this philosophy in hand, ideas become actions. Actions become habits. Habits become my or your life.

At the same time, it’s okay to take a break if you need it.

Going 100 miles an hour to get to some arbitrary mark or goal might not be the most beneficial or sustainable if it’s going to rob you of your energy, time, health, relationships, or focus.

It’s okay to take a break. It’s okay to not always be on with your A game.

6. Let The Little Things Go

Speaking a little more generally here, it’s okay to not always be on in terms of personality, exercise, relationships, money or work.

One of the keys to my success has been the ability to let things go and move on to other things that matter.

Some people might call this apathy, but the ability to simply shrug things off is a great ability to have.

There are so many triggers out there waiting to get you… social media notifications, controversial news headlines, an accidental bump by a passing stranger…

The other week after work, I was walking to my bus. To my left, there was the patio of a bar downtown and to the right, the tall office building.

Up ahead, I saw a guy walking and talking on his phone. The interesting part here was he was talking on his phone and walking backwards on a busy sidewalk.

As we got closer, I was minding my own business just going to my bus. We ended up bumping shoulders a little bit because the sidewalk was tight.

After a few seconds, I was crossing the street with a bunch of other downtown walkers and I hear, “Hey! Watch where you are f***ing going you b****!”

I could have turned around and yelled back. Maybe I should’ve said something first.

I just kept walking and didn’t let it bother me. It was after work, I just wanted to get home safe, and if someone bumps into me on accident, I’m not going to get worked up over it.

While obviously that guy should’ve been watching where he was going, accidents happen. Recognizing accidents or random meaningless things are happening to you and being able to move on is a great skill to have.

There are many things we can’t control in life, but also many things we can control.

7. Understand Progress and Finding Balance Takes Time

Nobody is an overnight success.

Things take time to develop and take shape.

Working through the struggle and working towards balance will take time, but it definitely will be worth it 🙂

As I’ve looked to simplify my life a little more, I had a thought which I’m going to share with you now: you can take a break if you need one.

There’s a quote I’m sure you know: Rome wasn’t built in a day.

Your six-pack and dream body is not going to get created from 100 push-ups done 1 day.

You probably aren’t going to become a millionaire in the next month.

Just by mindset, you might not be able to overcome your fear of public speaking.

However, do 100 push-ups for 30 days in a row, and you’ll see progress. Save and invest $500 a month for 20 years, and you’ll be close to a million dollars. Practicing your public speaking over time will lead to more confidence.

Things take time, and being patient will lead to you feeling good about your progress.

8. Live Life at Your Own Pace

Finally, it’s important to live life at your own pace if you want a balanced life.

When looking out into the world, it seems that everyone is going one million miles an hour and you need to do the same.

Even though I’m someone who prefers taking action and getting out into the world, first, it’s important to start by asking and understanding what YOU love doing and what will bring YOU joy.

You and I only have one life (as cliche as that is, it’s true).

The key to balance is living life at your own pace. 

Figuring out that pace might be a little bit rough at first, but it will be worth it for living a fulfilling life.

There is absolutely NO reason why this should make you feel like you should live at a faster pace (if that’s what you want).

If you want to take it easy on a weekend, do it! Splurge on that ice cream shop down the street! Do what’s necessary to keep you sane and happy!

At the same time, if you are goal driven and want to live intentionally, then it’s important to get back to work after you’ve had your fun.

Balance is so critical in life for leading a fulfilling and happy life. Balance in all areas (relationships, work, money, stress, etc.) can be managed, but will require you to turn inward and seek the truth from within your powerful mind and spirit.

What’s important? What isn’t important? What makes you happiest?

Balance has been on my mind and will continue to be on my mind. I’ll figure it out and I hope you will too.

While you can be successful without balance, it will be very tough to sustain that success as a large wind can blow you off the balance beam at any time.

Figure out what’s important to you and look to find balance between work and play, friends and alone time, creation and consumption, healthy food, exercise, and junk food.

Find Balance in Life and Live a Fulfilling and Great Life

Now, it’s time to take actions to figure out what’s important to you and how you can reduce the noise of what’s bothering you to let the signal come through.

Take a deep breath and collect yourself. Everyone gets stressed out in life from time to time (and that’s okay).

What’s causing the imbalance in your life right now? What would your life look like if you were in balance? How would you feel?

Many times when we get out of balance, it’s because we have taken on too many things with work, at home, or with friends.

Out of these things, what’s important? Is there anything you could remove to get back your time and energy for what matters?

After reducing the noise in your life, think back to what what’s most important to you and your life. Focus in on what makes you happiest, and you’ll start getting back into balance.

Unfortunately, this process may take a few weeks.

Rarely will things happen overnight.

Maturity and patience is required here as things take time to develop and take shape. Working through the struggle will be worth it though 🙂

Readers: how do you keep balance in your life? How do you decompress? Do you find there needs to be a balance between work and play, friends time and alone time, and creation vs. consumption?

What differentiates good companies from great companies? Why do some companies grow over time, while others seem to stay stagnant? How can a good company become great?

In today’s world, there are many solid companies.

Each quarter and each year, they are profitable, but they aren’t amazing. They are good, but aren’t going to be your portfolio’s all stars.

What is stopping companies like these from becoming the media’s darlings? Maybe, asked a better way, what is keeping these companies from going from good to great?

Good to Great, by Jim Collins, presents the conclusions after studying a certain subset of publicly traded companies to identify key attributes of how companies go from good to great.

Collins wanted to answer the question, “How can good companies, or even bad companies, achieve enduring greatness?”

The rest of this post includes a summary of Good to Great, takeaways from Good to Great, and a reading recommendation for you.

Book Summary of Good to Great

For many years, Jim Collins wondered if there were any companies that went from mediocre to great, and what made this transition possible.

He started forming the following research question:

If these companies existed, what were the defining attributes which allowed these companies to outperform their competitors and the general market?

In the late nineties, Collins and his team of researchers set out to answer this question.

First, they had to define what exactly mediocrity looked like, and what greatness looked like. They didn’t want to study companies that were always great – he did that in his book Built to Last.

Instead, he wanted to look at a set of companies that made a leap from average or below average results in the stock market, to great results which needed to be sustained at least 15 years.

What was surprising, was these good to great companies generated cumulative stock returns that beat the market by an average of seven times in fifteen years, better than the results delivered by an index of the world’s greatest companies (Coca-Cola, GE, Intel, etc.)

Next, the research team contrasted the good-to-great companies with a carefully selected set of comparison companies that failed to make the leap from good to great.

Over five years, the team analyzed the histories of all twenty-eight companies in the study.

After sifting through an absurd amount of data and thousands of pages of interviews, Collins and his crew discovered the key determinants of greatness.

How can Companies go from Good to Great?

After the study was completed, the research team found 7 main conclusions:

• Good to Great companies have level 5 leaders in their organization
• Good to Great companies get the right people on board, and then act
• Good to Great companies confront the brutal facts
• Good to Great companies apply the “hedgehog concept”
• Good to Great companies build a culture of discipline
• Good to Great companies employ technology effectively
• Going from good to great can take a long time

Let’s dive into the key findings in  more detail.

Good to Great Companies have Level 5 Leaders in their Organization

The first finding in Good to Great is how Good to Great companies employ level 5 leaders in their organization.

Level 5 refers to a five level hierarchy of executive capabilities, with level 5 at the top. Level 5 leaders embody a paradoxical mix of personal humility and professional will. These leaders are ambitious, to be sure, but ambitious first and foremost for the company, not themselves.

Level 5 leaders look out the window to attribute success to factors other than themselves. When things go poorly, however, they look in the mirror and blame themselves, taking full responsibility.

The comparison CEOs often did just the opposite – they looked in the mirror to take credit for success, but out the window to assign blame for disappointing results.

Another finding in the study was how larger than life celebrity leaders who ride in from the outside are negatively correlated with going from good to great.

Ten of eleven good to great CEOs came from inside the company, whereas the comparison companies tried outside CEOs 6 times more often.

Good to Great Companies get the Right People on Board, and then Act

The second finding in Good to Great is how Good to Great companies get the right people employed, and then act.

The good-to-great leaders began the transformation by first getting the right people on the bus (and the wrong people off the bus), and then figured out where to drive it.

The comparison companies frequently followed the “genius with a thousand helpers” model – a genius leader who sets a vision and then enlists a crew of highly capable “helpers” to make the vision happen. This model fails when the genius departs.

The study uncovered three practical disciplines for being rigorous in people decisions:

• When in doubt, don’t hire – keep looking. (A company should limit its growth based on its ability to attract enough of the right people)
• When you know you need to make a people change, act. (First be sure you don’t simply have someone in the wrong seat.)
• Put your best people on your biggest opportunities, not your biggest problems. (If you sell off your problems, don’t sell off your best people.)

By having the right people on your team, you can accomplish so much.

Good to Great Companies Confront the Brutal Facts

The third finding in Good to Great is how Good to Great companies confront the brutal facts of their situation.

All good-to-great companies began the process of finding a path to greatness by confronting the brutal facts of their current reality.

When you start with an honest and diligent effort to determine the truth of your situation, the right decisions often become self-evident. It is impossible to make good decisions without infusing the entire process with an honest confrontation of the brutal facts.

Creating a climate where the truth is heard involves four basic practices:

• Lead with questions, not answers
• Engage in dialogue and debate, not coercion
• Conduct autopsies, without blame.
• Build red flag mechanisms that turn information into information that cannot be ignored.

Leadership does not begin just with vision. It begins with people willing to confront the brutal facts and to act to make things better.

Good to Great Companies Apply the Hedgehog Concept

The fourth finding in Good to Great is how Good to Great companies apply the Hedgehog Concept.

Going from good to great requires a deep understanding of three intersecting circles:

• What you are deeply passionate about
• What you can be the best in the world at
• What drives your economic engine

The key is to understand what your organization can be the best in the world at, and equally important what it cannot be the best at – not what it “wants” to be the best at.

The Hedgehog concept is not a goal, strategy, or intention, it is an understanding.

The good to great companies are like hedgehogs – simple, dowdy creatures that know “one big thing” and stick to it.

The comparison companies are more like foxes – crafty, cunning creatures that know many things yet lack consistency.

By sticking to doing what the good companies know how to do, they set themselves up for greatness.

Good to Great Companies have Built a Culture of Discipline

The fifth finding in Good to Great is how Good to Great companies have built a culture of discipline.

To continually succeed and have sustained great results, companies depend on building and maintaining a culture full of self-disciplined people who take disciplined actions.

These disciplined actions need to also be consistent with the three circles of the Hedgehog Concept.

Bureaucratic cultures arise to compensate for incompetence and lack of discipline. Typically, cultures which lack discipline arise from having the wrong people on the bus in the first place.

If you get the right people on the bus, and the wrong people off, you won’t need to worry about bureaucracy.

Good to Great Companies Employ Technology Effectively

The sixth finding in Good to Great is how Good to Great companies employ technology effectively.

Good to Great organizations think differently about technological change when compared to mediocre ones. How a company reacts to technological change is a good indicator of its inner drive for greatness versus mediocrity.

Great companies respond with thoughtfulness and creativity, driven to turn unrealized potential into results. On the other hand, mediocre companies react and jump around, motivated by fear of being left behind.

Good to Great organizations avoid technology fads and bandwagons, yet they become pioneers in the application of carefully selected technologies. The idea that technological change is the principal cause in the decline of once-great companies (or the perpetual mediocrity of others) is not supported by the results from the study.

Certainly, a company can’t ignore new technologies and hope to be great, but technology by itself is never a primary root cause of either greatness or decline.

Going from Good to Great can take a long time

The last finding in Good to Great is how going from good to great can take a long time.

Good to great transformations often look like dramatic, revolutionary events to those observing from the outside, but they feel like organic, cumulative processes to people on the inside.

The confusion of end outcomes (dramatic results) with process (organic and cumulative) skews our perception of what really works over the long haul.

No matter how dramatic the end result, the good-to-great transformations never happened in one fell swoop.

There was no single defining action, no grand program, no one killer innovation, no solitary lucky break, no miracle moment.

This just shows and proves once again how overnight success is 10 years in the making.

“You can accomplish anything in life, provided that you do not mind who gets the credit.” – Harry Truman

Takeaways from Good to Great

With every book you read, it is a must to have takeaways and actionable items to implement in life.

I really enjoyed Good to Great. As someone who is looking to work his way up in Corporate America, but also looking to pursue different entrepreneurial interests, Good to Great had a lot of fantastic points that I want to incorporate in my career going forward.

One of the most important things I’ve noticed in my career so far, both in my entrepreneurial efforts and at my day job, is having the right people in your organization.

Good to Great confirmed my assumption that having the right people is most important. Once you have the right people, then you can start to build towards your end result. Without the right people, you aren’t going to be able to do it.

It’s critical to find people who are going to be there for you and who are going to grind each and every day. People who don’t carry egos and want to be a part of something great.

Another takeaway for me was applying the Hedgehog Concept.

Essentially, I need to do what I know how to do, and do it well. Everything else is not important.

So many times I have a great idea, but need to stop and ask myself if I should be the one to take action on it.

Our Recommendation for Good to Great

Good to Great is a fantastic book for entrepreneurs and people interested in business.

If you are a business person or a manager in a corporation, Good to Great is a must read. Good to Great gives you a road map to building a great company.

If you are interested in business and history, Good to Great is a great history lesson of many public companies. If you are someone who is an investor, or manages others and is looking to build and grow your organization, Good to Great is a book worth reading.

There are so many amazing great tips and points Jim Collins makes which can be applied across a number of industries.

Check out Good to Great for more details on this book.

Getting out of debt is a great goal. When starting on your debt pay off journey, things can look tough. By making a debt pay off plan, and using the debt avalanche, or debt snowball, method, you can get out of debt faster and get on to living your best life.

What would life be like if you didn’t have debt? How would you spend your time? What would the freedom feel like?

Being in debt restricts your ability to be free.

Being debt free allows you to do what you want – without being tied to the expectations of a bank or another individual.

Many people ask, “How can I become debt free? What are the steps to becoming debt free?”

In this post, I will be answering those questions, talking about what debt actually is, and providing you two great strategies for eliminating your debt. You will learn how to become debt free using the debt avalanche and debt snowball methods.

Let’s destroy that debt!

What is Debt?

First, what is debt?

Debt is money that you owe someone else. That someone could be a bank, another business, or a friend or individual.

For repayment, there are terms and conditions associated with certain kinds of debt.

For example, banks lend individuals hundreds of thousands of dollars for a house and allow those individuals to pay back the money over 360 months (30 years).

In addition, there is an interest rate associated with your debt. This interest is the “cost of the loan” to you – no one is going to give you money for free!

Each month, you will have a payment and this payment will be part principal pay down, and part interest.

A Debt Payment Example

Let’s say you have a $20,000 loan with a 6% interest rate and a 10 year term. Using an online calculator, your monthly payment will be $222.04.

Over 10 years (120 months), this will cost you $6,867.01 in interest. If you pay $100 extra a month, you can cut the time you are paying off your debt to 6.25 years (75 months) and you will pay $4,008.09 in interest. By paying an extra $100 a month, you will save yourself $2,858.92 and will be debt free 3.75 years ahead of schedule!

As shown above, by paying extra each month, you can save money and reduce the amount of time to debt freedom.

In addition, once the debt is gone you effectively give yourself a raise; you have more money falling to the bottom line each month for you to save, invest, donate, spend, etc.

Another thing to note: debt is legally binding. If you don’t pay back your debt, there are many negative consequences that can happen:

• Your credit score will tank and it will be more difficult to have a high credit score. Creditors report your delinquencies to the credit bureaus which are responsible for determining your credit score.
• You could be sued. Creditors gave you money for you to use and then pay back over time. If successful, the creditor and court can have your paychecks garnished until the debt is repaid – which means you take home less money each month.
• You might have to declare bankruptcy. Even though you will be able to get out of your debt, your credit will be ruined and your ability to get new credit will be destroyed.

Being responsible with your debt is very important because there are actually some benefits of having debt.

Is all debt bad? Is there such a thing as good debt?

In general, I believe debt is bad – and many other personal finance bloggers and experts believe debt is bad as well.

That being said, I do think there are cases in which debt can be a good thing. (Remember, personal finance is personal – some people hate debt and believe all debts are bad.)

There are two conditions to meet for my classification of “good debt”:

• First, look at the underlying asset you are buying or receiving.
  • If this underlying asset has the potential to appreciate, or increase in value, in the future, then it’s acceptable, “good debt.”
  • Some assets I’m referring to in this case would be a house (houses have potential to appreciate over time, and provide you shelter), education (you have to be careful here, but more education can result in higher pay), or a business (a start-up loan).
• Second, look at the interest rate.
  • There is an opportunity cost calculation to do.
  • Follow the financial theory: if your after-tax return on investments is greater than your after-tax cost of debt, then it’s acceptable to keep your debt.

Everything else is bad debt.

Credit card payments with an interest rate of 20%? Bad debt.

A home loan at 4%? Potentially good debt.

A student loan at 8%? I’m going to go with bad debt. There is, of course, the option to refinance student loans to get a more favorable interest rate.

A car loan at 2%? This one is tricky – cars are depreciating assets, but the interest rate is so low it’s probably fine.

Again, personal finance is personal and depends on your goals. If wealth is your goal, it’s okay to carry some debt. If freedom is your goal, crushing your debt should be your #1 priority.

Strive to be Debt Free and Free Yourself

The word mortgage is derived from a “Law French” term used by English lawyers in the Middle Ages meaning “death pledge“, and refers to the pledge ending when either the obligation is fulfilled or the property is taken through foreclosure.

Literally, mortgage = death pledge.

“A man in debt is so far a slave.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Debt is horrible: it is mentally draining, financially draining, and affects your entire life if you are weighed down by the large barbell of debt.

I want you to experience amazing freedom. Make getting out of debt a goal, and I’m certain you will feel like a weight has been lifted off of your shoulders once you reach that goal.

Think about it: with no debt, you wouldn’t be a slave to the bank, or to anyone. You’d have more money at the end of the month, and with more money, you’d have more options.

Unfortunately, today, I had to wake up and go to work because without my income, I couldn’t pay my mortgage. Until I sell my house, or pay off my mortgage, I have to continue working.

Two Strategies to Become Debt Free

There are two main strategies to become debt free fast. The two methods for becoming debt free are the debt avalanche method, and debt snowball method.

These methods are pretty straightforward. First, compile a list of your debts and their interest rates. After compiling this list, you will then pay a little extra towards a certain debt as determined by whichever method you pick.

By paying a little extra each month, you will be able to take advantage of some huge interest savings (as we will see a little bit later in this post).

The Debt Avalanche Method

Using the Debt Avalanche Method, you pay off your debts by paying extra toward your debt with the highest interest rate first.

Once you have paid off the highest interest rate debt, you put the entire paid off debt’s payment plus the same extra amount towards the next highest until all debt is paid off.

For example, let’s say you have two debts: one at 20% interest rate, with a minimum payment of $200, and balance of $2,000, and the other debt with a 10% interest rate, a minimum payment of $150, and balance of $1,000. You decide you can put an extra $50 towards your debt a month.

Using the Debt Avalanche Method, you would put $250 towards the first debt and $150 to the second debt.

Over time, the first debt will be paid off faster than it would if you just paid the minimum payment. If the first debt is paid off before the second, then you put all $250 towards the second debt, for a total of $400 a month, until the second debt is paid off.

The Debt Avalanche Method is the mathematically optimal debt pay down strategy.

The Debt Snowball Method

Using the Debt Snowball Method, you pay off your debts by paying extra toward your smallest balance debt first. Once you have paid off the smallest balance debt, you put that payment towards the next smallest until all debt is paid off.

Many people like the Debt Snowball Method because psychologically, you can generally see your debt accounts disappear faster. If you have a $1,000 loan and a $5,000 loan, it feels good to have the $1,000 loan gone.

Let’s go back to our example with two debts: one at 20% interest rate, with a minimum payment of $200, and balance of $2,000, and the other debt with a 10% interest rate, a minimum payment of $150, and balance of $1,000. Again, you will put an extra $50 towards your debt a month.

Using the Debt Snowball Method, you would put $200 towards the first debt and $200 to the second debt, because the second debt is smaller in balance.

The Debt Snowball Method is not mathematically optimal, but is still better than applying no strategy at all.

Your Savings by Paying Extra Each Month

I created an example where the user had 2 credit cards, a mortgage, an auto loan, and a student loan totaling $246,500.

• Credit card #1 has a balance $3,500 and an interest rate of 23.49%
• Credit card #2 has a balance $10,000 and an interest rate of 20.19%
• The mortgage has a balance $200,000 and an interest rate of 4.00%
• The auto loan has a balance $8,000 and an interest rate of 5.00%
• The student loan has a balance $25,000 and an interest rate of 7.00%

By paying an extra $25 a month and applying a debt pay down method, in this example, there is potential savings of at least $49,915!

By paying just a little bit more, debt can be eliminated quick, and our user became debt free with some solid cash savings.

In our example, the user started out with $246,500 in total debt. If no method was used, it would take 290 months (just over 24 years) and cost $371,109 to become debt free.

By paying $25 extra a month, the user is able to save nearly $50k, and chop off 140 months (nearly 12 years) off their payment plan! If the user could find an extra $100 in their budget, they could save an additional $12,000 and be debt free 158 months sooner!

With either choice of debt destruction method, you will save money, and be on your way to financial freedom!

Destroy that Debt! Become Debt Free

While the tone of this post was mostly to eliminate your debt, there are times when having debt makes sense.

Remember, personal finance is personal, and if it makes sense for you to take on debt for a certain period of time, then as long as it fits into your future goals and plans, then do it!

Right now, I have $12,000+ sitting at 0% for 3 years for some windows I got back in November. While yes, it’s a $12,000 expense, since it is 0% interest, I don’t pay an extra dime on interest, and when I pay it off in full in 28 months, I’ll be quite happy.

I ran the numbers and it made sense to me. Those windows have made this Winter in Minnesota much nicer, and they have also increased my home value.

Debt is something that can be used wisely and something you should be very careful with.

You now have a great resource for answering the questions: what is debt, is there a difference between good debt and bad debt, and how you can become debt free using the debt avalanche and debt snowball methods.

Readers: what is your opinion on debt? Are there good and bad debts, or is all debt bad? What debt elimination method do you like better?