EnTrends

Years ago I worked in a camera shop with a man named Sam
who was constantly bemoaning his bad luck. He often talked
about Mr. Dawson, a man in his seventies who was really
lucky. Dawson owned buildings all over the western suburbs
of Chicago.

One day when he mentioned Dawson, I commented, "Hey,
Sam, you're only thirty-five now. Why don't you start buying

buildings this year? By the time you're seventy-five you'll

have become as rich as Dawson."

He glared at me and stated huffily, "But I don't want to

wait THAT long."

It took me a while to figure it out: Sam didn't want to

BECOME rich. He wanted to BE rich. No time delay, no

learning, no work.

The last time I saw Sam, fifteen years later, he was fifty

and still working in a camera shop for about the same pay.

Still not wanting to wait.

The point here is obvious, so I won't belabor it.

However, if you have ambitions for greater wealth, here are

5 tips I've personally found useful.

1. Find somebody who's doing it

I'd never had much success until I met John, who said he'd

lived in Japan for years and had made good money there.

After he returned to Japan, he phoned and invited me to come

on over, too. "There's lots of work and the pay's terrific,"

he told me.

I didn't quite believe it would work for me, but I tried it

anyway. And that was the start of a great new career - and

leap in income.

I found success by following the example of somebody who
was already succeeding.

2. Feel like you DESERVE success

If there's something inside you that feels you don't deserve

good things, it'll try to sabotage you at the most

unexpected times.

Old habits may pop back up to dilute your energies. Or you

might start unintentionally alienating your most important

employees, customers or suppliers.

There are a million ways to defeat yourself when you don't

feel you deserve success.

How do you lock in a feeling of deserving?

Some people set aside a certain amount of time to devote to

worthy causes. Others donate a tithe of their income to

charity or church. Still others meditate on their oneness

with their Creator.

The best approach for you will be the one that satisfies

your own inner need for reassureance and a feeling of worth.

3. You're not ENTITLED to success

A common wrong turn is the attitude of entitlement.

Please understand, life does not OWE you or me anything.

It strews untold riches and joys at our feet, but it's up to

us to recognize them, to reach down and pick them up.

Russell Conwell was famous for telling the story of a man

who left his farm in search of diamonds. He traveled the

world for decades without success.

But upon returning home, the man instantly recognized the

black sand in the stream running through his property. It

was filled with raw diamonds, and it made him a wealthy man,

after years of fruitless searching.

It took him decades to recognize the riches that life had

strewn so casually at his feet. True story, by the way.

4. Sometimes it's a grind

Most times, opportunities come in kit form. You ask life for

a chance at becoming rich, and circumstances send you a

problem or a puzzle.

You may notice that many other people have that same

problem. Once you solve it for yourself, you can then make a

very nice profit helping other people to quickly overcome

the same difficulty.

Life has just given you a rich opportunity. It does that all

the time, but mostly we don't notice because we're so busy

griping about what a grind life is, what a raw deal we have.

5. Be thankful in advance

It's just as simple as managing well what you've already

got. Appreciate and be thankful for the things you already

have. Love the people who are already in your life.

Then, just to prime the pump, be thankful for even more than