Financial Leverage: (Part 2 – Creating A Budget)

From Jordan…

As we discussed in Financial Leverage: Part 1 , to live a Financially Leveraged Life means you’re living below your means. That is, you’re spending less money than you make which allows you to save money for the future.

The first step to take towards living a Financially Leveraged Life is creating a budget. Although budgeting may seem like a drag, being in debt and not being able to chase your Dream is even more of a bummer, so it’s important to figure out how you’re spending your money and where you can save. Once you’ve got a clear understanding of your current budget, your challenge is to find places where you can spend less (or earn more) in order to achieve your financial goals.

Let’s first look at the importance of creating a budget.

You’d never set out on a cross-country road trip without consulting a map. And, likewise, you can’t expect to reach your financial goals without developing a plan for spending and saving. Contrary to what many people think, a budget isn’t restrictive. It actually allows you to spend your hard-earned money the way you want to, often stretching it even further. Most importantly, it puts you in control of your finances and allows you to be a Dream Giant!

There are many benefits of a well designed budget:

1. Figure out how to get out of debt
2. Stop living paycheck to paycheck
3. Curb impulse purchases
4. Find ways to cut costs
5. Set and prioritize financial goals
6. Live on less money (creating financial margin), so you can have more time to go after your Dream
7. Distinguish between “wants” and “needs”
8. Meet your family’s changing needs
9. Learn how to save some money so you can pay cash for big purchases
10. Sleep at night without worrying about your bills

We could go on and one about the benefits of budgeting but let’s now look at how to create that dreaded budget.

Don’t make it hard. Creating a budget is nothing more than examining your income and expenditures in order to determine exactly how much money you have coming in and where you’re spending that money. Before you begin to create your budget it is important to realize that in order to be successful you have to provide as much detailed information as possible. Ultimately, the
end result will be able to show where your money is coming from, how much is there and where it is.

When constructing your budget, be realistic when looking for opportunities to save money. People are more successful when they cut back, as opposed to cutting out. Don’t be too strict, or you won’t stick with your plan. Know, however, that small changes
over time can add up. Here are the initial steps to create a budget. It’s a process, but the good news is there’s no such thing as a failed budget. This is your pathway to financial success, so never give up:

1. Write down your financial goals. Having goals is essential to tracking your progress. Maybe your goals include debt freedom, building savings, or giving extravagantly. Whatever they are, take the time to think about your short-term and long-term goals. Write them down. These are your financial motivators.

2. Record every single purchase you make, without exception, for one month. Be sure to record every purchase no matter how small. Think of this as your budget prep. Record every dollar that leaves your pocket. Underestimating your spending is one of the greatest budgeting blunders. Knowing your spending habits will put you on the right track.

3. Record all of your sources of income. If you are self-employed or have any outside sources of income be sure to record these as well. If your income is in the form of a regular paycheck where taxes are automatically deducted then using the net income amount is fine. Record this total income as a monthly amount.

4. Break your expenses into two categories: fixed and variable.
a. Fixed expenses are those that stay relatively the same each month and are required parts of your way of living. They include expenses such as your mortgage or rent, car payments, cable and/or internet service, trash pickup, credit card payments and so on. These expenses for the most part are essential yet not likely to change in the budget.
b. Variable expenses are the type that will change from month to month and include items such as groceries, gasoline, entertainment, eating out and gifts to name a few. This category will be important when making adjustments. Don’t forget a “fun money” category or miscellaneous. You need to give yourself some breathing room.

5. Total your monthly income and monthly expenses.
a. If your end result shows more income than expenses you are off to a good start. This means you can prioritize this excess to areas of your budget such as retirement savings or paying more on credit cards to eliminate that debt faster.
b. If you are in a situation where expenses are higher than income you should look at your variable expenses to find areas to cut. Since these expenses are not typically essential it should be easy to shave a few dollars in a few areas to bring you closer to your income.

6. Tweak your budget at the beginning of every month. After each month take a minute to sit down and compare the actual expenses versus what you had in the original budget. This will show you where you did well and where you may need to improve. Be adaptable and flexible.

Budgeting should be a life long habit. Don’t quit. Live below your means with the help of your budget. You’re sure to find financial peace of mind if you do. Creating a budget doesn’t mean that all of your problems will be solved, but it is an important step to determining your financial health and creating financial stability. It won’t be too difficult to create a budget, but it will be very difficult to stick with one.

Just remember, you can do it. If you want to reach your maximum potential and specific purpose, you’ve got to!

Living Life On Purpose

From David and Bradley…

This post is an extension of our Dream Giant series. We feel so strongly that you were created to “live life on purpose” that we wanted to re-emphasize what it means to us!

Why do you get up in the morning? Your answer to this single question tells more about your perspective and worldview than just about any other statement you can make. 

Think about it!  Your answer to this very simple question establishes your perspective of the purpose for your day, which in turn establishes your understanding of the purpose of your life.  So let us ask you again…why do you get up in the morning?

Do you wake up each morning just to exist?  Because you have an appointment that day?  Because you have to get kids to school?  Because your spouse made you?  Because you have to make money?  Because you will be fired if you don’t make it to work?  Simply because you were done sleeping?  Or because someone told you long ago that you were supposed to wake up each morning?

OR

Do you wake up each morning to make a positive difference in someone’s life that day?  To love and teach your kids as best you can?  To love and serve your spouse?  To earn a living to support your family and to fund a great cause that you are passionate about? To put others before yourself?  To help people in need through your job?  To build a business to meet a desperate need in this world?  To change the world one day at a time?

If you remember, in So You Want to be a Dream Giant post (part 1), we stated that “For those of you that find yourselves wondering aimlessly through life without a feeling of purpose, relax and realize that you were created on purpose and for a specific purpose and that the sooner you buy in to that line of thinking, the sooner you will realize the freedom and happiness that comes from realizing your dreams.”

Your purpose for getting up each morning defines your day.  It also affects the way that you plan and prioritize your activities for each day.  As you focus your days on your purpose for getting up each morning, you will in turn establish your purpose for life!

Many of us would say that our life purpose is to love unconditionally…to live freely…to serve selflessly…to lead boldly…to encourage passionately…to change the world and make it a better place.  These are all great purposes for life.  However, if you wake up each day simply because you “have to” with no defined purpose for even getting out of bed that day, then your life purpose very quickly evolves into a Life Simply Lived rather than a Life Lived on Purpose.

The challenge: Stop and think about why you really got out of bed this morning.  Does that define who you want to be and your desired purpose of your life?  If not, then I challenge you to redefine your life purpose by simply changing your reason for getting out of bed tomorrow morning.  Defining your purpose for each day will transform your perspective!

– Take a few minutes to sit down and write out your dreams, goals and desired general purpose for your life (we suggest the “Life Plan” template from Michael Hyatt)

– Set up some reminders each day to help you remember why you got out of bed that day.  Write it on your bathroom mirror.  Make it the background image for your phone/computer/tablet.

– Place a note card by your alarm clock that reminds you of why you are really getting of out bed that day. Or better yet, type it in your Notes section on your smart phone!

Redefining your PURPOSE will revolutionize your life.  Your work will no longer be just to earn money…it will become an avenue to change the world.  Raising your kids will no longer be a chore but because you have a desire to leave a generational legacy. It will become your passion to raise up great warriors for a cause.  Going to lunch will no longer be just to eat…it will become an opportunity to encourage a stranger who might be having an awful day.

Don’t live life simply because you have to.  Make each day of your life a Day of Purpose, so that you will live a Life on Purpose!

It’s really a simple question that deserves serious analysis – Why do you get up in the morning? It’s you Purpose!

Margin (Part 3 – Time)

From David…

“There are too many hours in the day, and not enough things to do,” said NO ONE EVER! If that statement defines your life, drop us a note because we need to get some tips from you!

As a follow-up to Margin – Part 1 and, more recently Margin – Part 2  which dealt with finding financial margin in your life, let’s take some time to discuss how to create margin in our time and why this is vital to achieving your dreams.

Time is one of the greatest gifts and curses that was given to mankind. We long to use the time we have for good and to accomplish great things, but our time becomes limited.

We KNOW on the front end that we have 60 minutes every hour, 24 hours every day, and 365 days every year (except leap year!). When you actually look at those numbers and add them up, it seems like we have a ton of time on our hands. Think about it…who couldn’t accomplish great things in a year when you have 525,600 minutes to get it done?

That’s a lot of time!

The truth is that we do have a lot of time, but life is full of so many demands that require our time and attention making it difficult to get those great things done without dropping the ball in other areas. Let me free you up for a second…it’s OK to let some of those balls drop! I promise! Or at the very least pass them over to someone else! This becomes another area of margin that we will discuss in a later post. 

I’m not advising you to drop all of your responsibilities in life at one time, but there are times when we need to let some things go so that we can focus on the things that really matter and to create some margin in our time to focus on achieving our goals.

The late Dr. Stephen Covey, author of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (a great read by the way) writes that our time spent each day can be grouped into one of four different quadrants.

1. Important and Urgent
2. Important but Not Urgent
3. Not Important but Urgent
4. Not Important and Not Urgent

Most of us can usually identify those things that fit into the “Important and Urgent” quadrant. These are the activities that we definitely need to devote time to.

We can also usually identify those activities that fall into the “Not Important and Not Urgent” category. These are often the activities that waste so much of our time. Sometimes it is good to engage in activities that are not important and not urgent. Recreational activities, vacations, and other things that are sometimes considered not important and not urgent are actually very good for us in moderation. Bottom line – We need to find a way to minimize those time-wasting activities to devote that precious time toward important activities. But How you ask? For starters, use the calendar app on your smart phone and begin planning a few days in advance.

The most difficult quadrants to identify and altar are the middle two. Those things that are Not Important but Urgent often pull us away from activities that are Important but Not Urgent. For example, if I am working on a project that doesn’t have to be completed for another two weeks but it is very important for the success of our company, it’s easy for me to be pulled away from that project to help a colleague resolve his computer issues. His computer issues may be urgent because he can’t get anything done himself if his computer isn’t working. However, while his computer issues may be important to him, that issue is not important for me and the role I play within the business. Getting the vital project for our company completed is far more important than me fixing my colleague’s computer! Bottom line – In order to achieve your goals, you must learn to remain focused on the activities that are important and minimize your efforts toward those things that are not important. Doing so will create more margin in your time so that you can commit yourself to those activities that will help you achieve your dreams.

Another option to create margin in your time is to leverage the margin you have in other areas of life to increase the margin in your time. I recently implemented this strategy in my own life to help find more time to focus on important activities. When I first bought my house, I was given a lawn mower as a housewarming gift. I also had very little financial margin in my life, so I utilized the margin in my time to cut my own grass. I had the time and needed to save some money. Four years, 3 1/2 kids, and a full work schedule later, I have much less time on my hands, but I do have a little (not a lot, but enough) financial margin in life. I decided that my need for more time and mental freedom was worth giving up some of the financial margin, so I found a friend who recently started a very cool and purposeful lawn maintenance company (yes, even lawn maintenance can be cool and purposeful…check them out at http://www.philawnthropy.com) to free me from the burden of cutting my own grass.

I know that cutting your own grass is not that big of a deal, but in my life right now, every little thing that I can move off of my plate frees up even the smallest bit of time and focus that can be diverted toward achieving my dreams, which are far more important than keeping my grass cut. My neighbors may beg to differ, but in my world, my grass is low on the priority list right now.

How about you? How have you found ways to create more margin in your time? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below.

More margin discussions to come, so standby.

Expand Your Comfort Zone.

From Jordan…

Are you tired of spending your life in your Comfort Zone? Are you ready to push your limits beyond what is comfortable and familiar? I believe that life should be exciting, engaging and challenging! I know getting there can seem like a struggle, but I want to help you. I believe that my greatest achievements have come when I stepped out of my Comfort Zone and I want you to do the same thing.

My natural inclination is to stay in my comfort zone. I have always struggled with stretching my own personal limits and trying new things. I like the familiar. I like things that feel comfortable. I’m the shy guy in the back of the room who observes while others take the spotlight. However, I have learned over time that I must stretch my own comfort zone so that I can accomplish things that I never thought I would do but always wanted to.

From a psychological standpoint, your comfort zone is an artificial mental boundary within which you maintain a sense of security and out of which you experience great discomfort. For the most part, your comfort zone is a reflection of your self-image and how you think and expect things to be. When you are in an uncomfortable situation, or one that doesn’t fit your expectations, you usually do whatever you can to make yourself comfortable again.

For many people, even if they are unhappy or unfulfilled, their natural inclination is to stay within their comfort zone simply because it is familiar and safe. Many stay in jobs, relationships, and situations that have long since lost their relevance only because they are afraid of the unknown. The truth is that security does not reside in anything outside of ourselves; instead, it lies within us.

Unfortunately, if you choose to remain in your comfort zone you will never find out what your true potential is or what you are capable of achieving. Nor can you really succeed at anything without venturing out of the comfort of your safety net. If, however, you make the decision to move beyond the circumstances, people, and experiences you are familiar with, you move out of your comfort zone and onto the path of personal development. It is a path that forces you to stretch yourself, push your limits and become more than you were.

Let’s look at a few benefits of expanding your comfort zone first; then, we will look at ways to make it possible in your own life. The following are just a few of the many benefits:

1. It can enhance your enjoyment and experiences in life by making you try things that you never would have tried.

2. It can stimulate brain activity which will boost your mental health.

3. It can increase your self-confidence.

4. It can make you more resilient.

5. It can prevent you from getting stuck in a rut or becoming depressed.

6. It will challenge you to improve yourself.

7. It can prevent atrophy which is when your skills gradually decline in effectiveness due to under use or neglect.

Great leaders are never satisfied with comfort. Pushing their own limits is how they get to greatness. Every great leader has a comfort zone, but what distinguishes them from everyone else is what they do with their comfort zone. There are those who are perfectly happy staying warm and cozy in this safe box they’ve built; and then are those who constantly push and test the limits.

I’m not suggesting that a comfort zone is a bad thing. It’s there for a reason: to protect us. Otherwise we all may be jumping off cliffs and out of airplanes. It also protects us from taking on more stress and anxiety than we are equipped to deal with. But eventually the familiar routine of your comfort zone will keep you from learning, and experiencing new things that are potentially good for you. It’s also likely to prevent you from building a thriving business!

So how do you know when your comfort zone is holding you back? Here are a few things you may notice:

1. You are bored.

2. You have lots of stress.

3. You criticize every thing you do.

4. You envy others.

5. You get anxious about your situation.

6. You make lots of excuses.

Do any of those sound familiar? If so, then it’s time to expand your comfort zone. Try these small steps:

 1. Stop Being Afraid

What are you really afraid of? Make a list. Include everything. Now make a plan to face your fears one at a time. Begin small. Reach out to others for help if you need it. Knock these fears off your list one at a time and celebrate each success.

 2. Realize That You Aren’t Perfect

Are you afraid of what others may think, or of letting someone down? Usually the “rules” we create around how to behave so others will accept us are nothing but self-imposed, ridiculously high standards. Get a little crazy. Do something fun. Break your illusion of perfection and join the rest of us in the human race.

 3. Surround Yourself With People Who Will Expand Your Comfort Zone

This is something that I try to do in my own life. I like to think “inside the box”, so I try to surround myself with others who like to think “outside the box”. This stretches my mind to think in ways that I don’t normally think and it takes my mind to places outside of my comfort zone.

 4. Imagine Your Success

If you spend a few minutes each day visualizing your success you will become more willing to take the risks associated with it. Give your brain a break and daydream a bit. You’ll be amazed at the results.

 5. Let Go And Let God Have Control

Your comfort zone keeps you in a very predictable space. You usually know exactly what’s going to happen. A fear of the unknown will keep you stuck forever. So let go of your control and trust that God will lead you in the right direction. This is the best advice I can give because He controls all and sees all. Who knows what you will accomplish in your life if you do just this one thing!

Now, take that leap of faith! Expand your comfort zone and conquer the world!

Exuding Supreme Confidence

From Bradley…

A few weeks ago I was listening to a program on sports radio and the topic was Jason Kidd, the recently retired NBA point guard and future Hall of Famer. Kidd determined that he wanted to be a head coach and had recently interviewed for a vacant position in the NBA. The host was discussing reports that were circulating as to how the interview went.  His only characterization was that Kidd had “exuded supreme confidence” and now the team had him at the top of their list of candidates.

Wow…so… let me set the scene for you.

Kidd walks in to the interview room and the top executives within the organization are sitting around the table.  He is prepared, professional, and eager to leave no doubt in their collective minds that he is the ONLY person for this job. He answers every question thoroughly but with just the right amount of deference. He sits up straight and makes direct eye contact. The consistency embeds a singular notion that there can’t possibly be anyone better for this position. 

And you know what… he got the job and is now the head basketball coach for the Brooklyn Nets. 

Kidd’s responses to questions throughout the interview could have been sub par and nonchalant. He could have displayed knowledge of coaching in the NBA that left much to be desired in the minds of the interviewers. But, because he displayed a confidence level that screamed “I’VE GOT THIS!”, he had a better chance to be hired. Now, that’s not to say that form always wins over substance. It doesn’t. But every inch counts when you’re trying to reach your goals. Whether in a meeting with a potential client or just trying to land your first job, when you exude supreme confidence you will have placed yourself in a better position to be successful.

Practical Tips on building confidence:

1) You must identify the times that you don’t feel confident. Make a mental checklist of those situations and circumstances that cause apprehension and doubt to creep in.  Then, begin to build positive thoughts into your psyche that fortify a mindset of confidence. When the negative circumstances arise, slow down, breathe, and remind yourself to be confident.  This is not a difficult task but it does take time and you have to allow yourself to be  patient as you turn negative habits into positive ones.

2) Ask your spouse, accountability partner/mentor (more on this in a future post), or trusted friend to make a list of both positive and negative qualities they see in you. You need to hear your positive qualities to build confidence and hear your negative qualities to spur growth.  This may not be as easy as the previous tip, but it will allow you to open yourself up to someone whom you interact with on a personal level. You will be surprised at the learning that can take place when you put this into practice. And that leads to…

3) Practice. Give yourself small opportunities to display your confidence. Start by interacting with new people in low pressure environments. Coffee shops, restaurants, and sporting events are good places to give it a try. This practice will allow you to build your confidence so that when the time comes to interview for a new job, network with a high level executive, or schedule a sit-down with a well-known businessman to pitch your latest idea, you will be ready.

Confidence can be a genetic quality or it can be acquired… but it takes work. Either way you possess it, it is a useful tool in positioning yourself for big things.  The ability to “Exude Supreme Confidence” is a characteristic that successful people leverage in daily life to realize their dreams. Make it a habit starting today! 

Margin. (Part 2 – Money)

From David…

We recently began a discussion about the need for margin in our lives in order to have the necessary assets (money, time, relationships, energy, etc.) at our disposal to pursue our dreams.  If you missed Part 1 of this discussion, you can find it here.  (It will help you understand what we mean by the term “margin”.)

As we previously discussed, money, or really the lack thereof, is probably the most common obstacle for most of us who Dream Big.  We all think that if we were sitting on a multi-million dollar trust fund, then we would have everything that we need in order to accomplish our dreams.  Well, I beg to differ.  Money is definitely a great asset that can be leveraged to accomplish dreams, but it is by no means the only necessity or asset that is needed along the way.  If I have a ton of money, but no skills, time, or partners who fill in the wholes where I’m weak, then I’m dead in the water.

Don’t get me wrong, money helps, but I don’t want you to think that your lack of money should prevent you from pursuing and, for that matter, achieving your dreams.  Money is just a piece of the puzzle…nothing more and nothing less.

Let’s talk about money as it relates to margin from two different angles.

 1) To those with Financial Margin…

First, if you do have a lot of margin in the area of finances, by that I mean you have a spare amount or measure set aside for that special situation or dream, then you are ahead of where most find themselves.  I would challenge you to leverage this margin to your benefit by making wise use of those funds to pursue your dreams.  If your goal is to own your own business, then this may mean buying an existing business with extra cash set aside for expansion.  It may also mean letting your financial contribution get you in the door with skilled individuals who have developed that next big thing.  If your big dream is to build a cohesive family dynamic that can withstand the toughest trials of life, then you may want to use your financial margin to take your family on a retreat or vacation geared toward just that.  Whatever your dreams and goals may be, you can use this asset to help you leverage your life to achieve those dreams.  Warning…don’t throw away your extra cash on bad investments.  Research what you are spending your money on and make wise decisions that actually move you closer to achieving your dreams.

2)  To those with NO Financial Margin…

If you see that you have no margin in your finances…well, you’re not alone.  Most of us fall (or have fallen) into this category.  However, this should in no way prevent you from pursuing your dreams.  Rather, if extra finances are needed to achieve your dream, then you must either (1) create the margin yourself or (2) find it elsewhere by leveraging your own margin in other areas of your life to make up for the lack of financial margin.

Creating the extra financial margin in your life may seem like a daunting task, but the concept of doing this is really not very complicated.  Just live on less than you make.  Sounds simple, right?  It actually is just that simple.  If you make $1,000 per month, but spend $1,200 a month, then you are living on more than you make, and… keeping up with the “Jones” and living a mediocre life.  However, if you make $1,000 a month, but only spend $800 per month, then you have a $200 per month margin. That $200 can be leveraged to help you achieve your dreams!

So, how do I restructure my finances to make this work, you ask?  Well, it’s really a simple concept.  If you are making $1,000 and spending $1,200, you either need to increase what you make or decrease what you spend.  If you can cut your spending, then the margin starts to appear.  If you can’t cut your spending, then find a 2^nd or 3^rd job and increase your income.  Simple, right?  Again, it really is that simple.  I’m not saying that any of these options are easy.  But I’m not writing this and you aren’t reading it because it’s easy.  It’s tough to Dream Big, and it takes sacrifice.  But, when you make the sacrifice to achieve your dreams. it will always be worth it.

In addition to creating your own financial margin, you can also seek to leverage other assets to make up for your current lack of financial margin.  If you have a special skill set, knowledge base, or experience in a particular area, then use that to your advantage as leverage.  If you have all the time in the world, then seek to partner with a financial supporter who lacks the time to research and execute that new business idea.

As an added bonus/challenge to finding or creating margin in your finances, let me throw out one last piece of advice to you…GIVE!  That’s right, give money away.  This may seem completely counter-intuitive to most of you, myself included.  However, I was presented with this challenge a while back, and I have been amazed at how blessings have poured out in my life.  To you accountant readers, take a deep breath, and just relax.  Let me explain how this works…OK, so I can’t really explain it.  I just know it has been true in my life, and the life of many people who I know.  There are very few times in scripture where God actually challenges us to “test” Him.  This is one of them.  Read Malachi 3:10 and other scriptures about being a cheerful giver.  I challenge you to “test” the Lord in this area.  You might just be surprised at what He does.  I’m not saying that He will make you a millionaire, but I am saying that He promises to care for us and to put you on a plan of purpose.

While financial margin is always a positive, the lack of margin in your finances is not a deal killer.  It simply means that you need to leverage your other areas of life to make up for your lack of financial margin.

 More on leveraging your margin or lack thereof in other areas of your life to come shortly.  In the meantime, if you are drowning in debt that’s killing your financial margin, I would recommend Dave Ramsey’s “The Total Money Makeover”. 

Until next time, Dream Big and apply these tips in your own life for creating financial margin!

Leveraged Living Profile: Bradley Lum

As a Christ Follower, the principles that I’ve applied in my life are a product of purpose based living. This is a direct result of my relationship with Christ. I give Him and only Him all praise, honor, and glory.

Let me first introduce myself.

I’m married to my best friend and I have a one year old little girl who is the light of my world. I’m a product of middle class parents, one a minister and the other, a teacher. I grew up in an environment that taught me the value of hard work and the need to surround myself with good people. I have a strong will and even stronger opinions but I pray that God uses them in a way that allows me to stand for those who are unable to stand for themselves. I’m a maker. I’m a believer. I’m a dreamer. I bring loads of energy and the will to get IT done…no matter what IT is. I love life and love spurring others to PLANT deeper roots and COVER wider areas than they ever have before. (More on this in a later post!)

I am a product of leveraged living. I thrive on it. I firmly believe that it is one of the great separators in life. For many people, they hear “leverage” and immediately think that it means to “use” or “take advantage” of someone else. I don’t agree. In fact, I believe that leverage is an essential component of you realizing your potential. Leverage helps you to identify your strengths and weaknesses, continually refine your brand, and expand your network. Leverage isn’t a good thing, it’s a GREAT thing.

I want to walk you through my life story and show you some of the ways that I have leveraged my life to be on the right path toward realizing my potential and reaching my purpose.

As a young athlete, I had aspirations of playing Division 1 college baseball and even playing professionally. I soon found out that very few athletes get to play for pay! In fact, the jump from college to the pros is only made by less than 0.1% of all athletes. As a high school senior, I broke my right arm. This wouldn’t have been a major set back except that I WAS A RIGHT-HANDED PITCHER. How could I play D1 college baseball if I wasn’t able to play at 100% as a high school senior? Well, the answer is simple…I couldn’t!

But, instead of taking my circumstances as they were, feeling sorry for myself, and giving up, I decided to go to a small college in my hometown and play there instead. All the while I was playing at the smaller school, I knew that I could make it at the elite level of college baseball, the Southeastern Conference. At this same time, some of my former high school teammates were playing at the University of Mississippi. In the summer after my sophomore year at the smaller school, I began to put a plan in place that would give me the best opportunity to make the jump to the new school. First, I informed my former teammates of my plan. Then, I had them make calls on my behalf to the coaches. I had now laid the groundwork which gave me name ID with those coaches. The next step was setting up a meeting before school started. Before I knew it, they were inviting me to a workout. Within the month, I had a spot on the team. I knew what I wanted, I made a plan, and I executed it with leverage.

My first job after college was a coaching baseball at a local high school. I love my job but knew that if I stayed in the profession, I wanted to coach at the college level. So, what did I do? You guessed it. I put a plan in place that leveraged my skill set and my network. Soon after I was coaching at the college level. Again, LEVERAGE.

A few years later I decided that I wanted to transition into the business world. I knew the best way for me to do this was to go to law school and give myself instant credibility. But I also knew that being a businessman meant that I had to do more than just be a student for three years. I had to get in the business community. So I did. I grew my network and worked hard to put myself in a position that would give influential people the perception that I was a mover and shaker. It worked. Three years later, I am the president of a sports consulting firm and a partner in a number of a other companies, including a technology start-up and a healthcare business development group. It’s all about LEVERAGE (and God’s timing).

I’ve been practicing leveraged living for a number of years. Hopefully, I can pass on the lessons I’ve learned in a way that is easy to understand and apply. I don’t have all the answers and won’t pretend to, but I will do my best to walk with you through the process of getting the most out of your life.

Dream Big. Max Out. Live the Journey… because you’ve only got one shot at it!

From “Good” to “Great”

From Jordan…

Greatness is not accidental. It doesn’t just happen. A true leader knows that when they do something they need to do it better than anyone else. I know you are “good”. You would not take the time to read this if you weren’t. But I also know you’re capable of achieving truly”great” things. The problem is that days go by, then weeks, then months and may be even years and you are still cranking out just “good”. You have not yet written that amazing novel, designed that unbelievable product, created that awesome tech company or dominated your industry. Lots of people admire you and your work, but you may be growing a sense of disappointment in yourself.

How do you change this? How do you go from delivering “good”, to delivering “Wow!” every time you do something?

Here’s a great way to start:

1. Find Time to Stop and Think.

First things first. Do you really want to achieve “great” things? Do you really want to make the “good” in your life “great”? Then make time to separate yourself from everything around you so you can have some deep, intimate thinking. Get out of your office. Skip going out on Friday night. Get a little less sleep for a few nights so you can think alone. You need to remove yourself from all the interruptions and distractions in your normal life. You need to get out of your normal routine. You need to create an environment where you can expand your mind and focus on those Dreams. If you are like me, you spend 75% of your workday at your office desk and in front of your office computer. Find a unique place that is dedicated to working on your Dreams and goals. Every time you go to this place you will have the physical and mental flexibility to think and Dream. It doesn’t have to be complicated or fancy. You just need a place away from where you do the “normal” stuff in your life.

2. Set Some Priorities.

If you want to achieve something “great”, you need to decide what it’s going to be. I know this seems blatantly obvious, but if you study successful business people you will notice a consistent correlation between those who know what they want to achieve and those who actually do achieve “great” things. My childhood soccer coach once told me that, “if you aim at nothing, then you will probably hit it every time”. Take out a notepad. Write down two or three “great” things you want to achieve in your life. If you can’t think of two or three “great” things right away, it’s ok. Dream. Think about the desires of your heart. What makes you get excited? Once you have found those “things”, write them down and move forward.

3. Plan Aggressively and Execute Those Plans with Vengeance.

How do the successful people I work with distinguish themselves from the pack? They have a plan and they work that plan, but they aren’t trapped by that plan. This may sound simple, but “good” leaders struggle with this simple concept a lot. Usually they design a plan, but don’t work it; or they work the plan, but completely stop when they uncover a problem or stumble. Once you start implementing your plan, don’t stop until you are finished. Adapt on the fly. Improvise as best as you can. Unless
something absolutely devastating happens, keep going. Let me give you an example: When we started our most recent charity-driven tech company we flew to meet with an IT team to build our website. We got excited about the potential. We thought we ‘d found the perfect guys to hire, but over the course of time things did not work out with them. We had made plans. We were following that plan, but when obstacles arose we had to adapt and change our plan slightly to make things happen. We are about to launch our company this year and we were able to find the right team to build our website. We didn’t give up. We didn’t let a fairly “big” obstacle get in our way.

4. Examine. Modify. Adjust. Move Forward.

You have now done some deep thinking about your dreams, set some priorities, and made a plan. You’ve begun the process of making your “good” become “great”. Now what? Try this: Examine what you did yesterday. Modify anything that you do not like. Adjust your plan as necessary. Lastly, move forward and never give up!

Moving from good to great takes planning and execution. Go for it! You’ll be surprised at what you find.

Margin. (Part 1)

From David…

Expanding on the idea of preparation for achieving those Big Dreams, and being in a position to truly leverage your life for success, let us throw another concept out to you – Margin!  What good are your dreams if you have no margin in life to pursue those dreams?

First, let’s talk about what margin really means, and how it applies to our lives.  Webster defines margin as “a spare amount or measure or degree allowed or given for contingencies or special situations.”  In other words, do you have any room in your life to pursue that dream of yours?  If you are currently maxed out in every area of your life (time, money, relationships, energy, etc.), then you have nothing to contribute toward achieving your dream.

Let me say that I am not talking about cutting everything out of your life so that you can sit on the couch, watch TV all day, and wait for your dreams to come to you.  The only way that you will ever achieve your dreams is by going out and actually doing it.  It takes a lot of hard work, long days, long nights, hard seasons, and sometimes multiple failures.  I am simply saying that if you have already maxed out certain areas of your life, then you have nothing to give toward achieving your dreams.

Often one of the greatest challenges of a Dream Giant is finding the margin to leverage life to pursue and achieve the dream.  Don’t let that be you!

There are a number of areas in life where margin may be needed in order to achieve your dream.  You don’t necessarily need margin in all of these areas, but you will need some margin somewhere.  This all depends on your dream, your skill set, your leveraged areas, and your areas of weakness.  The general concept is to find or make margin in certain areas of your life so that you have that spare amount or measure for that special situation.  Then you leverage the margin that you have to make up for areas with little to no margin.  Maybe you don’t have a dime to your name, but you have tons of time on your hands.  Well, leverage the margin you have in time to make up for the lack of margin in finances.  Get the idea?

Let’s briefly discuss a few of these areas and we will discuss each of them in detail in future posts.

1)    Money

One of the most common areas where margin is absent is in your finances.  This is especially true for young dreamers who are in college, just out of school with loads of student debt, or couples who have been blessed with little children and all of the expenses that come with those precious gifts of life.  By the way, those little children are a gift…not a burden.  (Another thought for another day, but just wanted to throw it out there.)  However, dreams can often feel impossible due to a lack of finances.  There are a number of ways to create margin in this area of life, and a number of ways to leverage other areas of margin in your life to compensate for a lack of margin in finances.

2)    Time

This is another huge area where many people feel like they lack the margin to pursue their dreams.  However, I have found that there really aren’t that many circumstances where people lack time.  It’s usually a matter of priorities and focus that prevent us from having more margin in our days to pursue our dreams.  This is not always the case, often times, we do have life circumstances that should or must take certain priorities in our lives and that do prevent us from having a margin of time to pursue our dreams.  At the time of writing this post, I have three children, five and under, with my fourth due in three months.  Those are all demands on my time that should and do take priority over pursuing my dreams some days.  The challenge becomes eliminating other non-priority time drains to create the margin to pursue our dreams.

3)    Relationships

This is typically an area that is ripe for leveraging.  It is often our relationships in life that can provide the leverage that we need to overcome the lack of margin in other areas of life.  However, this too is not always the case.  Depending on your personality and circumstances, you may have developed relationships that have consumed all of your emotional and personal margin.  Again, we will discuss this in more detail later on.

4)    Energy or Focus

Often times, we simply lack the energy or focus at the end of the day or throughout the day to pursue those dreams.  If this is the case, then you need to read this blog everyday.  We are going to help you find that energy and focus that you need to leverage life to achieve your dreams.  There are also some things that can be changed to expand your margin in this area to give you that much-needed boost of energy.

I will expand on these four areas in upcoming posts to help you better understand why and how you can find or create margin in each of these areas of your life, and how you can leverage these areas to help you succeed in the journey of life.    

So you want to be a Dream Giant (Part 2)

From Bradley…

In Part 1 of this series, we discussed the first step to becoming a Dream Giant: gaining the ability to dream big. This is not an attribute that comes easy. It takes work but if you truly want to take steps toward living life as a Dream Giant, you’ve got to be willing to take each step of this process and apply it daily. This is not an easy thing to do…but…you CAN do it. Any questions on step 1? If so, please contact us. We love hearing from you and want to help as you take the journey into Leveraged Living!

Now that we’ve gotten through step 1, let’s dive into step 2.

For many of you, even the thought of taking control of your life by chasing your desires brings an overwhelming sense of fear. You try to grasp it and, almost immediately, your mind begins to contemplate the risk involved. This is a habit that has been created over time because for most people, without knowing, that’s their default. By definition, fear is induced by a perceived threat (or risk) which causes you to pull away and hide. This risk is a product of your environment and your environment is telling you how you should live your life. Its time for you to stop reacting to the people and circumstances that surround you and begin proactively making decisions that will lead you to a place where you can live out your dreams. Remember, you were created for a specific purpose. Don’t miss it because fear cripples you from getting there.

With that, the second step to becoming a Dream Giant is reinventing your emotions of fear into platforms for purpose. You may not realize it but your fear is a real emotion that’s created by real energy. That’s both good and bad! It’s bad because over time you’ve allowed this self-created emotion to be warped into a death trap – crippling fear…BUT there’s good news…You have real energy that is creating real emotion and that emotion can be retrained to work to your advantage, for a purpose.  Your challenge is retraining that emotion to be your catalyst for life-long success.

You’re thinking… “Well that sounds great but I have no idea how to retrain emotion or what that even means!”

Okay – so let’s dig in! What we know – a) you have emotions; b) these emotions most likely lead you to experience fear when you attempt to think about switching careers or pursuing a new business; and, c) they must be retrained for you to be free to pursue your real interests. So how can you retrain emotion?…I thought you’d never ask!

I want you to realize that retraining emotion is not easy.  It takes committed people who are willing and ready to do life differently than they ever have before. It takes daily, consistent action with the bigger goal in mind. If you’ve ever learned a second language or lost a lot of weight, you know that it just doesn’t happen over night…but SOMETHING happens everyday.

So here’s the challenge – begin to take daily (and sometimes hourly) steps to reinvent that emotion of fear into a platform for purpose.

Here are some practical tips you can apply daily:

1) Pray. My “go to” tool is asking God to use me in ways that affect positive change and in ways that put me in position to realize my purpose. (If this is not a part of your life, it can be!…and we would love to help you understand how.) Fear WILL run when this becomes a daily part of your life.

2) Go buy a small notebook and jot down your life goals. Keep a running list. Talk through these goals on a weekly basis with your spouse or close friend. Over time, you will begin to see the fear of attempting these goals fade away.

3) Find some podcasts, books, and videos that discuss topics about living with purpose. You can access a lot of this for free on the web.  We have a list of great resources that we can send your way as well. Just ask!

A good friend of mine once said that “Fear is a choice of how we think our present actions and reactions may affect our future. It’s all a self-fabricated story of what we anticipate could or might be. It has no real direct impact in the present moment except for the self-made possibilities.” This simply means that fear has NO PLACE in your daily life BUT the emotion is real and therefore it should be confronted head on and transformed into a springboard for positive progress in your life.

You can’t become a Dream Giant until you can dream big and you can’t dream big if fear is your first response to action. Stop fearing and start living!