Intangible Wealth (IW)

The other day I was listening to author and speaker Jim Rohn.  During his speech he spoke about what he called the two easies.  At age 25 he found himself broke and disappointed.  He was very hard working but had nothing to show for it.  Then something remarkable happened.  He found a mentor that helped him change his philosophy and turn his life around.  He had achieved a higher quality of life and accomplished many of the goals he set for himself.  One of his goals was to become a millionaire.  Lofty?  Sure.  But he proved it was attainable.  By the time he was age 31 he was a millionaire, and his life had completely changed for the better. 

Age 25 broke; Age 31 a millionaire.  Is it hard to do?

Q:  How hard was it to go from being broke at age 25 to becoming a millionaire by age 31? 

A:  It wasn’t hard, it was easy.

Q:  Easy?  If it was so easy, why didn’t everyone else become millionaires too??

 …

A:  Because it’s easy not to!

He continued:  “That’s the difference between success and failure, health and illness, pennies and fortune; the difference between two easies; easy to and easy not to.”

What determines whether something is easy to do or easy not to do?

Answer: our philosophy.  What do you think is smart?  What do you think is risky?  What do you value?  What are you willing to do to accomplish your goals?  Our answers to these few questions will give us some insight into our philosophy.  Our philosophy is the force that governs how we live our lives.  Here are some more questions that you may find insightful. 

Whose fault is it for your successes?  Whose fault is it for your failures?

When is it acceptable to be dishonest?

How hard should you work on your job/family/self/etc.?

I ask myself these questions whenever I need a “check up from the neck up”.  Coming up with answers for these questions often requires much reflection.  However, it does not take long to come up with responses if you set aside the time; especially when you consider that your answers may positively change the rest of your life, and positively affect the lives of those around you. 

We can either change our goals or change our philosophy.

Many of us will find that our current philosophy will not get us to where we want to be.  The sooner we recognize this means that we can make a change now as opposed to much later.  For example, if your goal is to get in shape yet you find that your current philosophy has you skipping exercise every day and cuffing the ice cream pint on the couch, you need to make some changes.  If your goal is to set aside $100 every month for your children’s future but you can’t seem to do it because you’re spending $100 on frivolous items instead, then your philosophy needs an adjustment.  And if your goal is to make more time to read yet you use that time to flip through television stations, then your philosophy needs some fixing. 

So, which should we choose: (A) change our goals or (B) improve our philosophy? 

Ding ding ding!!! 

Correct, (B) improve our philosophy!  That way, we can get what we want out of life without being distracted by the less important elements and circumstances.

Which Two Easies Do We Choose?

Once you understand how your philosophy effects your life it will become much clearer why there is often nothing hard about accomplishing goals: it really is easy.  Once you make an unwavering decision on what you deem acceptable in your life you’ll find that there are little to no obstacles between you and where you want to be.  Simply put, if you want to become healthier, adopt the philosophy of a healthy person, and…PRESTO! You’re on your way to health!  If you want to be more positive, adopt the philosophy of a positive person and…KAZAM!  You’re on your way to a more positive attitude.  In the above story, Mr. Rohn adopted the philosophy of a millionaire at age 25 and began heading towards that destination, only to arrive there six years later, at age 31.  There’s nothing hard about that.  It’s quite easy.  And becoming a millionaire is not any harder than losing 20 lbs or shutting off the TV to read instead.  Each of them is easy to do with the right philosophy.  But remember, they are also easy not to do with the wrong philosophy.  We just have to decide what our philosophy will be.  Then choosing between the two easies will actually prove to be very easy!  

What’s your choice?