Knowing the benefits of being rich, you may also desire of becoming one in the near future. But if you are a just a low rank employee of a medium size business or you are just starting your own business, how can you be rich in a shortest possible time?

Think RICH.

All things begin in your mind. Before you could read this article, your brain will first instruct your eyes to recognize the set of letters. Then your eyes will transmit the words back to your brain for it to be analyzed and comprehend. It happens so fast, you would never notice that it undergo that process.

Same thing applies to thinking you are rich. If you let the power of your brain took over your desire to be rich, it will surely be a reality. How? You start thinking of yourself as neighbor of Bill Gates. Look around you. There, you could see the things you bought for yourself. No matter how cheap and outdated your desktop computer is, you had bought it from the money you have. Remember the happiness you felt when you brought it home and use it for the first time. Let your mind do the magic.

Aren’t you happy with the things your money can buy?

Act RICH.

Rich personalities act more refine and sophisticated than ordinary people. True, because rich people say so. Wealthy and influential people set the standards of what they think is refine and sophisticated. They lead the way and others follow their trends. If you wanted to be one of them, you should also act like one.

If money can make rich people powerful, you can also have power over others even if you don’t have enough resources. How? Take in charge and make a difference. Even if you are only a minimum wage worker, act like you own the company. Be the first one to be at your office and leave the last. By doing that, you gain respect from your co-workers and you could even inspired others to do the same. Moreover, it could open greater opportunities for you and it could persuade your boss to give you a raise or promotion.

Aren’t you satisfied with the power you have over your peers and boss?

Feel RICH.

Having a sense of security is priceless. Being able to sleep at night without any worries is everybody’s dream. Money can make you feel safe. False! In contrary based on some studies, rich people often felt unsafe because of what they have. That’s the reason why most of the houses of the rich and famous are heavily secured. Some hired bodyguards and trained K-9 dogs just to protect themselves.

You don’t need to hire security guards and install alarms for your small apartment. Though it still advisable you always lock your door. So how can you be truly rich without feeling the uncertainty of your surrounding? You may not have all the money on the world but you are the one certified Richie Rich if you have your spouse, relative, friends and pets. The love they can provide for you are more than enough to make you feel secure. You can sleep well at night knowing no matter what, you have someone you can call to especially if you are in trouble. And you don’t have to pay them any wages just return the favor by reciprocating the love they’ve given to you.

Aren’t they enough to make you feel more secure?

Money, money, money! Being rich doesn’t mean you need to have lots of it. You just need to think rich by buying only the things you can afford. Act rich by taking in charge of your life and maximize your full potential. Lastly, feel rich by appreciating your true wealth, the people who showered you with affection. You don’t need lots of money to be able to experience the luxuries of the rich and famous. Just follow these three easy steps and in no time you could be richer than Oprah.

Do you still want to be a billionaire?

Money is just simply that…money. It has form and agreed upon value. Money is also a big bad illusion that makes David Copperfield proud. Everything that you heard about money is probably true. Money can’t buy you love, make you happy, buy you friends or make you better.

How do we go about fixing our finances? It starts within all of us. Until you change your attitude about money, you will continue to be a financial disaster. Being financially successful is available to all of us and the first and biggest step begins with us taking responsibility for our present condition. Remember that YOU are the cause of your current financial state.

You have to stop playing the victim game in money. Stop blaming others for your financial mess. Many people blame our problems on others with money, our own kids for being a burden, George Bush and our partners for not making enough money or spending way out of budget. The number one reason that couples get divorced is because of money and finances.

Once we’ve changed our attitude and beliefs about financial responsibility, we can begin taking these 3 steps to financial freedom.

1) Begin by getting an accurate financial picture of where you are currently. Create your own financial statement that includes assets, liabilities, income and expenses. Assets can be cash, investments or real estate. Your liabilities include your car, credit card debt, student loans or home mortgage. Keep track of the money that comes in and the money that is being spent.

2) If you are in a financial mess with a huge massive debt, then take charge and admit responsibility for it. It definitely will not go away magically by itself. It may feel stressful at such times, but the experience will make you stronger in the end. Clean up the past first before looking toward the future. Having the mess will only keep you from getting where you want.

It is not necessary to overwhelm yourself with the entire problem. Be patient and take as much time you need. Start the repair process piece by piece. Get in touch with your creditors and people you owe money to work out a plan to clean up your debt. Most companies are willing to work with the customer to help them get out of debt.

3) Write down what you would like your ideal financial situation to be. Include goals and milestones that you want to meet by certain time periods such as within 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, etc… Always keep an eye on your timeline as it can change depending on how fast you reach your goals.

Set financial goals that are realistic and achievable. If you plan on decreasing your debt, write down your goal as a reduction of $500 for the 1st month. Then you can increase the size of your goal to a $750 reduction for the 3rd month. Another example is having a goal of saving $100 dollars per week, then increasing that goal to $125 per week and so on.

We live in a get-rich-quick world full of dreamers and greedy people. The act of writing down goals and moving up piece-by-piece and step-by-step may seem like a slow process to many. However this is the way to go. Donald Trump did not get rich overnight. He was in debt at one point in his life before he made billions. He started with nothing and ended up a billionaire over time.

For example, let’s pretend that you have saved up 10,000 dollars. Your monthly expenses are 1,000 dollars. If you had stopped working today, 10,000 dollars of savings divided by 1,000 dollars per month expenses means that you are wealthy for 10mths. You are free to enjoy your 10 months any way you want it. You can spend it with friends, family or travel. Time is what many people don’t have these days, so it is ideal to work to create that “free time”.

So how do we accomplish the feat of being wealthy? You do this by changing your entire mind set. Just follow these 7 steps.

1) You have to take some time to think about what your beliefs are in regards to wealth, money, poverty, rich people, spending money and material possessions. Do you believe that there is NOT enough money or too much money in this world? Do you think rich people are greedy? Are you a spendthrift or a saver? Do you believe that poor people are poor because they misused their money? Do you want to own the 13 bedroom home or have your own private jet?

2) Accept the truth that wealth is yours. It always has been and always will be. Remember that you are the creator of your own world. Being wealthy is a matter of perspective. The law of attraction governs the flow of money. Not only does love attract love, but wealth attracts wealth and misery attracts misery. The law of attraction is the reason why the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. 

3) Clear yourself of the blockages to wealth. What is it that is keeping you from obtaining the wealth that you dream about? Do you fear that your business will fail? Would you rather work for the money instead of find ways to create it? Do you believe it is too much hard work to get to your desired wealth? Or do you just believe that destiny/fate will not let you have it in this lifetime?

4) Be willing to accept being wealthy, prosperous and satisfied. Be eager to have what you want and dream about. You deserve to experience the finer things in life. There is definitely nothing evil or immoral about living the good life. There is an abundance of resources everywhere. You don’t have to keep believing that you were meant to live your suffering life in poverty and sacrifice. It’s all in your mindset.

5) Take risks in your quest to be wealthy. Set goals that are beyond you. You may think that some goals are impossible to reach. However, you will find that your talents, skills, abilities, vision and the Law of Attraction will guide you to make it happen. Go out there and try. If you never take any steps toward your goals, you will always be stuck in the same place.

6) Let go of the resentment you feel toward wealthy people and others who have what you desire. You have to let go of all the anger, envy and jealousy you have against them. You want to think of positive thoughts only because the Law of Attraction will not let you have what you resent in others.

7) Make the commitment to life by investing your ideas, effort, time, talent and love into it. There is another truth to life in that you get what you give. In order to receive, you have to start giving. If you want to experience the full life but you don’t contribute, then you won’t have what you deeply desire.

When I talk about contributing, I don’t mean giving money away to every homeless person you see on the street. There are other ways you can contribute. You can give by volunteering at a nursing home, teaching kids the fundamentals of baseball, tutoring kids in different school subjects or holding the door for a wheelchair bound person.

One more point I want to make about the commitment to life is that you shouldn’t give just to get. To my knowledge, life doesn’t use a brownie point scale. That means your wants and desires don’t have a prize scale. Life doesn’t say that for every 2,000 contributions to life, you get a million dollars. You just have to give from the heart without having any expectations in return. Life will take care of that part for you.

Here are some great tips that will help you make your piggybank so nice and plump that Farmer John would be jealous of it! Only this time, when it gets slaughtered, money comes out of it instead of your next Staples Center hot dog or morning bacon. Even though it doesn’t sound like much in the beginning, believe me, a little here and there over the long run will add hundreds and thousands of extra dollars into your savings account. I don’t know about you, but there are plenty of great investments I can do with those extra thousands.

1) First of all, you have to change your views about shopping. Buy because it is something you “need.” These are basic needs items such as toilet paper, soap, toothpaste and food. When I mention food, I mean staying in and cooking as opposed to eating out. Don’t buy because it is something you “want.” Why do you buy another pair of shoes, when the other pair is still brand new or only worn once? That would be a waste of money.

2) Live within your means. There is no need to compete with your next door neighbor or the celebrities with big homes and 14 cars on MTV. Nothing gets us faster into debt than trying to be better than someone else. Take the time to plan a budget and keep a monthly tab on the money coming in and the money going out.

3) Make sure you have a plan for everything. For example, make sure you have a grocery shopping list of the items that you only need. This will prevent impulse buying and spending more than you need to.

4) Use coupons, especially when the item is on sale. A combination of the two will help you gain substantial savings. I used to laugh at my aunt when I was 14 years old. I thought she was wasting her time cutting out those coupons every Sunday. It didn’t hit me until 10 years later how many hundreds of dollars they helped me save.

5) Check out the clearance section at department stores. There can be amazing bargains just waiting for you. You may be able to find that shirt you’ve been wanting to have or that toy your kids have been clamoring about.

6) Go to discount stores like 99¢ Only or Big Lots. There is nothing wrong with shopping there at all! It is not what it used to be. In the past, they may have offered generic items of brand names or poorly manufactured items. But now, they are stock full of name brand items at a fraction of the cost. Why not shop there when the same box of laundry detergent can be bought for 80% off the regular price?

7) Participate in rebate programs in stores that have them. Yeah, it is a pain to cut out UPC codes, fill out forms and make copies of receipts. But the money that you save is well worth it.

8) Keep a jar or large cup nearby if you don’t have a piggybank. Put all your change in there everytime you break your bills. You will notice over time that the loose change will build up. Take this jar to the Coinstar machine at your local grocery store and convert it into dollar bills.

9) Are there gifts that you receive but never use? Well, there is this secret Chinese way that helps you get rid of it! It is called “gift recycling.” This can be anything from unopened chocolate boxes to DVDs. This is another money saver because you do not have to buy any more gifts and you have something that you can give right away.

10) Buy items that can be reusable. Some items that come to mind are batteries and towel wipes. Sure rechargeable batteries cost more initially, but over time, the savings will add up since you do not have to buy anymore new batteries. Towel wipes are great for cleaning spills, counters and mirrors. It sure beats using rolls of paper towels to clean up the same mess.

Ok, I hope that these 10 tips will help you on your way to a debt free life. Remember, only you have the power to avoid the big storm that is headed our way.

Please feel free to leave comments and feedback on any of my articles. In addition, tell me what other personal development topics you want to hear about. Thanks.