Money-Wise (#2)

Yesterday afternoon, after I had just withdrew some money from an ATM, I turned around and was surprised by a man who appeared in front of me suddenly and said, "When I look into your face, I see that you are a lucky man."

My antennae went up, eventhough I haven't quite caught the whiff of a fish yet, and I did the rude thing of walking away and ignoring his, "Excuse me!". I would rather be safe than sorry.

If something is too good to be true, it probably is. I have heard of hard-selling marketer who promises branded electronic items for attending their talks only to find that the free stuffs were substandard. Their justification for their deceit: there is no such thing as a free lunch. Then there are the famous scams telling you that you have an inheritance or won a prize. But, the catch is that you have to wire some money first for the incidental costs and so forth. The more daring ones would try to pull a fast one by telling you that your loved ones have been kidnapped for a ransom.

There is a myriad of great stories out there telling you how people have made it in life; loosely translated to mean making their first million and more. Then the following herd would jump on the bandwagon with the belief that they can copycat another person's financial success.

It's mind boggling to see how marketing gurus as well as life coaches are enriching themselves so much and so quickly by selling their success stories and formulae to intelligent people. For sure, what they say would have their merits, but I have my reservations that the attendees can carry out the resolved to form the new habits and develop the character for that kind of success story. Please, attending a seminar would NOT change one's life; it's not worth spending your money on it.

Every person has to discover what best works for himself or herself, and zoom in to develop those areas regularly on our own steam. As we become better and better in tacking our sailing boats to the wind of our life's situation and circumstances, we shall be able to circumnavigate that bit or much closer to our goals.

Not everyone will find success as a financial planner, businessman or golfer. You can be a butcher or shoe repairman with a small fortune to boot. You just have to find your elements and be the best in your area of work or play.