The James Dicks Blog

It’s true…we really do.  We all need a mentor to help us succeed.  There are plenty of them out there and they come in lots of shapes and sizes.  Some you have heard about and some you haven’t.  Some are people whom you never realized.  It’s these people you can learn from that will change your life forever.  When you are lucky enough to realize that you have found a mentor make sure you are ready to learn everything you possibly can.

I was on the plane the other day sitting next to a rather smart and well-educated gentleman; I think he was a PhD or something.  But we started taking about mentors and a comment came up about Anthony Robins, a well known motivational speaker.  He is also a seminar guy; meaning he does or at least used to hold seminars all over the country and around the world for that matter.  I have personally heard Mr. Robins speak and WOW — he was great!  The point is we all have to have a mentor.  For instance Mr. Robins is great; you don’t have to listen to him everyday but only when you need to hear him.  I have heard Zig Ziglar speak more times than I can count, and he has been giving the same basic speech for about 50 years.  I actually was lucky enough at one of the events I was speaking at to follow him on stage. I ended up seeing Mr. Ziglar at lunch and if you don’t know me I seize every opportunity I can to learn more. I walked up to Mr. Ziglar asked him if he wanted to join me for lunch, you know what he said – yes.  I was amazed, but it was also one of the best lunches I ever had and he is truly an amazing man.

So, you never know when and where or who your next mentor is but you need to be on the look out to learn as much as you can from as many people as you can.  When I was young I used to work for a few seminar companies.  Yes, they have stigmas but there is no better place to learn.  I was one of the people that helped you register when you attended a seminar.  The luxury was that I got to travel with the person giving the seminar.  These seminars were on a variety of topics, and at that time my favorite was real estate.  I can remember being on planes with the speaker and driving them crazy with questions so I could learn everything I could on the topic.  Some would be thrilled to share their information with me and some would be annoyed.  Oh well, that was their loss.  You can be sure that you would feel sorry for the speakers who got stuck in a car with me for a two hour drive between cities; I would ask them questions until they couldn’t take it anymore.  But I sure learned a lot during those summers.

Now to my good fortune. I would clearly say hands down that my best mentor would be my Uncle Jack, WOW! This guy is a wealth of knowledge and experience, both personally and professionally.  You see, you want to find someone who is one willing to share with you and who really cares in your growth and development.  Someone that takes ownership in what you accomplish.  My uncle has been there every step of the way.  Yes, I have made many mistakes and as my mentor he has even let me make some mistakes.  Some of these mistakes were small some were big, but all of them I learned from immensely.

I guess one reason I take the time to share all of these stories I write and strategies is because I care. I spend a great deal of time trying to give back and help all those who wish to learn.  Sure, I get some people that are skeptics, those who don’t want to learn, that develop all sorts of wild ideas, but I don’t do what I do for them. I do what I do for people like you; someone who may be reading what I write so that they have the “tools” and the information to help themselves.  I don’t think I am writing anything top secret, in fact all I am doing is passing on the same information I learned from someone else at some point in my life – paying it forward. You should do the same thing.  If you learn something that really helps, and you find someone else facing the same situation, then you should do everything you can to help them.  If we all do that we will all be better people.

So, at the end of the day if you want to take that next step in your personal development or your financial life you need to find a mentor that you are open to learning from and one that has and will continue to make a difference in your life.  Open your heart for change and you will receive it.

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You heard it folks, five years, only five years is that enough to make the money you want and change your financial lives forever?

I was discussing this topic the other day and you would be amazed at how many people out there are in financial dire straits.  Okay, maybe not amazed but this particular problem is no longer someone else’s.  In fact, it is probably a dilemma that is hitting home and hitting hard.  It might be you or your neighbor; maybe someone in your family but odds are we are all facing a little financial crisis of our own.

Not to worry, there is plenty of time to correct the problem.  I want you to take a few moments right now and think what has happened in your life over the last 5 years; write it down if you have to.  Be specific because, after all, you are trying to change your financial outlook.

This is so simple!  I mean anyone that is under the age of 65 can think this one through and make a real change.  If you are over 65, no problem; you just have to be a little more laser focused.  Unfortunately there are lots of people out there that are over 65 and facing very difficult financial times.  You may have lost a tremendous amount of your financial portfolios, and/or retirements.  Now you are faced with some very tough times.

Number one rule – I may not be 65 but I have learned this as well as anyone and I did so the hard way.   DON’T BE TO PROUD TO ASK FOR HELP.   PERIOD! I could end the story here as this pretty much sums it all up.  Each of us has friends and family that are in need of help. Try your local mission or church and you will be amazed at how many people are out there willing to help you out.  In the end, all we have is our friends and family.  The good Lord seems to always work it out that when you need the help most; he will provide.  It always seems that a friend or family member is out there and ready to help.  Sometimes it’s you and sometimes it’s not.

For instance, I just had a situation where a lifelong friend trying hard and just needed a little extra cash to get him through this rough spot.  I was in a position to help him so he came on and worked with me. I didn’t really need the work done, but I came up with a few things that we could do together and I got him through the beginning of the year when he needed it most and now he is on his feet.  I just told him yesterday when we were talking that it seems we are always where we need to be to help each other out.

For those of you a little younger…even better!  Five years is not a long time but a lot can happen in five years.  Again, think about your life in five year increments.  If you want to get motivated, this will do it for you.  Start back when you were younger.  You will be so amazed, seriously.  Each five year segment of your life has produced some tremendous things, and yes, you probably have had some down times during these periods.  We all have and that will never change.  Our goal should be to prepare for the down times so we can get through them better each time.

Now that you have taken a few minutes to reflect on your past, you are ready to move forward.  But make sure you wrote down this reflection on paper, as it will help embed the lesson in your subconscious and that is where you need it.  Your subconscious will help you develop good strong habits.

Moving forward, the next five years will be much easier now that we believe we can make a huge difference five years from now.  Start by making some small changes and then work your way up.  Remember that if you are saving money you are making money.  If you always do what you have always done you will always get what you have always gotten. Now get up and make a change.  If you want some specific ideas on what to change or where to start I have written many ideas right here in my blogs.

Motivation is a great thing, it is the difference between success and failure-All you need to do is find that one person that motivates you. 

Happy Investing

James Dicks

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Okay – so not really.  But seriously think about it.  Here’s what it would look like.  President Obama is sitting at the kitchen table at the White House, yes, the White House in Washington DC; this is, after all, his personal residence. He looks at his finances and immediately determines that he has to do something and soon. There is no way he can afford to continue paying his current mortgage and interest on his home, the White House.

So, he tries to call a mortgage broker, but this proves to be difficult as he can’t find a mortgage broker still in business.  The president then decides to call his bank – the bank of China.  He tells them that he needs to refinance his mortgage. 

The bank says, “No problem Mr. President, your account is in good standing with us.” 

The bank then orders an appraisal and comes to find out that the president’s primary residence, the White House, is now not worth what it was, in fact the White House has dropped in value by more than 30%, making the president’s current mortgage more than the value of the home. Join the crowd, I say.

The president then has to decide what to do and to make things worse he just realized that he had an adjustable rate mortgage with a pay option ARM and the mortgage is set to adjust in the next few months.  No way will he be able to afford the new payment.  So, he calls the bank again and asks for help. 

The bank says, “Sorry Mr. President, there’s nothing we can do for you.  I would suggest that you call and apply for the HOPE NOW program.”

But WAIT, the representative at the bank says, “I’m sorry Mr. President but you don’t qualify, you are current on your mortgage.” 

The president then says, “Yes I know, I also have perfect credit.”

The bank representative replies, “Well, I am sorry there is nothing I can do for you, if you are 60 days late then we can give you a four percent fixed rate for 30 years, as well as lower your mortgage amount to 85% of the current value.  But right now you are current on your mortgage.  When will you be making your next payment?”

The president, now frustrated as every other American that owns a home today is, says, “You have to be kidding me, the only way to get help is to stop paying my mortgage so that I can qualify for help.  That doesn’t make any sense!  If I am going to be late then you can have this old White House, I don’t want it anymore…it’s just not worth it.  I can do a deed in lieu of foreclosure and walk away. The Bank of China can foreclose and sell it to someone for 30 cents on the dollar while I am going to go buy the new White House next door for 30 cents on the dollar and start over.  So, what if I have a ding on my credit, it’s a onetime issue and I can be done with it!”

This is only a parable, but in reality the majority of American home owners are facing this exact same situation.  Why should I be a financially responsible home owner and pay my mortgage on time only so that my neighbor can stop paying on his/her home, live in it for the next year or so rent free and then walk away from it, only to have the bank take it back and sell it for 30 cents on the dollar?  Or my neighbor just stops paying for 2 months and then applies for the HOPE NOW program, only to get a new re-forecasted mortgage for 85% of the current value, fixed for 30 years at four percent? This makes absolutely no sense. You can forget about any stimulus plans because if you don’t solve this problem quickly then the majority of home owners are going to just walk away from their home loans. This must be solved first. You solve this problem and you instantly put money in the pockets of American consumers. The consumer sentiment goes up and the economy gets real stimulus.

To examine this plan in greater detail, I invite you to read my blog at www.jamesdicksblog.com entitled I Need a Job – Not Stimulus. I have laid out a comprehensive plan on how we can get money flowing to consumers, as well as from consumers to business.  All we have to do is do it.  Like I always say, “If you always do what you have always done then you always get what you have always gotten.”

Happy Investing -

James Dicks

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