Its a typical Friday afternoon and you just got home from that part-time job and youve got that paycheck of a few hundred bucks in your pocket just waiting to be spent. Let me guess whats on your mind you may be thinking of all the partying you can do that night, you may be thinking of going out and buying some of the latest gear from Abercrombie or. just maybe.just maybe you may be thinking of how to invest that money into starting a business. I do. You do. Weve all done it. We all spend money on things on things that we really dont need or things that just give us a quick burst of satisfaction. I think that that is fine because we owe in to ourselves to let loose and have some fun from time to time, thats just a part of being an entrepreneur having fun. But the sad reality is that sometimes we forget to spend money on the most important investment in life on our personal development. Its easy to go the bar and spend $60 on drinks, then another $50 at the club. Its easy to drop $100 on a pair of jeans and a few shirts from your favorite designer. Its easy to spend $40 on expensive meals with your friends in town. But you want to know one of the hardest things that so many students cant seem to do? Spend money on the things that really matter and that can positively change their lives forever, things like books, stocks, conferences, and the most important: starting their own business and becoming an entrepreneur instead of a person who only consumes and doesnt create. We need to recognize that investing in ourselves now will payoff in the future. One of the things that blind so many of us is that its hard to think about the future when were having so much fun now buying up all these material items that basically have zero return on investment. We need to breakout of that dangerous way of thinking and start putting some time into thinking about where we will be in 10 years? What can I do to my life now that will help the outcome of my future? How are all these material items going to add to the value of my company down-the-line? I personally invest a lot of money on books. Amazon.com has become my buddy over the past few years. I tend to do a lot of reading about business, technology, and things that spark my creativity and imagination. Another personal expense of mine is on keeping my websites running by renting servers. I find both of these ways of spending money very wise because each expense can greatly improve the outcome of my future success. There comes a point in you life where you need to decide whats more important, blowing your paychecks on only having fun with your buddies, or putting some of that money aside to learn new things or for finally starting that business that you always seem to be talking about but never really doing anything towards it. We all need to make these decisions each time we spend our money on something. Like I said, its cool to spend your money on having fun, but its really not cool when thats the only thing youre spending your money on thatll only hurt you, not help you. I have a few friends that are really smart guys that aspire to become very rich and successful entrepreneurs one day by starting their own companies. But by the looks of how they spend their money and time, youd never believe me. They constantly blow their money on things that add no real value to their entrepreneurial aspirations. Every time they spend all their money on something completely non-related to their business, they are taking two steps back from reaching their goals in life. Im sorry, but I dont even know if I could call a person like that a serious entrepreneur. How could someone be serious about starting a company and becoming successful in life when the only thing they invest in is partying, having fun, and just not caring about their future? To me, that just doesnt make sense and that can only lead to a life of mediocrity, not success. We live in a world where conspicuous consumption has become so prevalent that its hard not to follow the herd and just spend cash like everybody else. People want the latest toys, the latest fashion, and the latest everything. What about think about starting the latest company? Ask any student nowadays what they want to do in life, and I bet many of them will say I want to start a business. But these same students who want to start a business simply are not taking any action to start oneits all talk no action. The real student entrepreneurs are the kids who are actually making things happen, creating and innovating on a daily basis. These are the kids carrying around notepads writing down ideas, thoughts, and visions of the future. These are the kids going to bed at night brainstorming and waking up in the morning with new ideas. These are the kids learning how to code/design and taking a stake in the internet by starting their own websites. These are the kids constantly networking with other entrepreneurs finding out ways to work together. These are the kids learning about stocks, real estate, and franchises who see a successful future for themselves and are taking all necessary risks and steps to get there. Dont be one of those people who only talk and dont do. Become a person with goals and actually follow-through with them, not a person who just has goals. With no follow- through, then youre destined to follow. With no implementation, then youre destined to be implementing for someone else. With no dreams, then youre destined to be making someone richer because they had dreams and you didnt. Life is a bag of decisions and if you make the wrong choices now, your future can be in serious jeopardy. Its time to decide what road you plan to go down. There are only two roads for the budding entrepreneur. One road is filled with devotion, ambition, desire, and motivation. And the other road is filled with wasting time, talking but not doing, and not being serious enough about your business to discipline yourself to invest in yourself. Russell Crowe said it best: What we do in life, echoes in Eternity! Read more at: www.cashcampus.com/ftt |
