Consider again the following; do you have a money problem or an education deficit?
I’ve learned that most people respond, “I have a money problem!” and disregard their lack of a financial education completely. But, I’ve discovered that by educating yourself, not relying on the inferior PhD, public high-school degree, you’ve been given, anyone can increase their wealth with a few simple skills.
Let’s discuss three additional ways anyone can improve their financial future. It only takes time and effort, both of which are free.
1.* the ability to plan
2.* the ability to accomplishing tasks
3* the ability to work hard
The Ability to Plan
The skills possessed by a planner are marketable and valuable. If you are not a natural planner you must learn these skills. To learn these skills all it takes is practice. Following is the outline you need to practice to increase your success rate.
The elements of planning are:
1. An overall goal.
2. Several ways to rate success or failure of the goal.
3. A timeline of achievement of said goal.
4. A way to critique the final results (an after action report).
So, If we made a plan to learn how to pick quality mutual funds, what would that plan look like?
The Ability to Accomplish Tasks
Another vital skill to make sure your plan and, for that matter, your goal happen, is the ability to accomplish tasks. Tasks are the elements recorded in step two above to reach your goal. Some elements to work on are your thinking skills, your visualization of roadblocks skills, and your realization skills. Combined these are the ability to critically think through a problem.
Once you can think through a problem by analyzing what will probability work, what will not work, what you need to do when a roadblock arrives and how you will adjust when that roadblock shows itself you will have the skills needed to move your project, plan, and your life forward.
The Ability to Work Hard
The final element in this equation is to learn the skill of working hard. Most people put in the minimum effort required to get a grade or to get to the weekend. But if we’ve learned anything from the habits of the wealthy we’ve learned that it is the few who are willing to put in the extra effort who will receive the significant reward.
She who is willing to pick up a financial book and read it, then discuss it, and finally teach someone else what she learned is someone who has begun to learn how to work hard.
Now, when she has repeated this process 6, 8, 10 or more times and replicate it over 2 or three mediums, ie: taking a class, listening to an expert’s podcasts, attended a seminar or watching an expert online, then she is well on her way to becoming an expert in her own right and has significantly increased her financial acumen and her ability to succeed.
The outcome of your education should have been that you are competent and articulate. Articulate in thinking, writing, planning and speaking. Until you are competent and articulate in these areas it will be all the more difficult for you to succeed in the world of today and tomorrow including the forthcoming difficulties of our collective financial future because we have left our education to others to provide rather than taken the responsibility upon ourselves.
What will you make of your future? Will you rely on others or make the future you want?
*See articles: Increase Your Financial IQ – 1 and Increase Your Financial IQ – 2
See original article Money doesn’t make Education Better! But What Does
**See 30 Life skills document
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