Portrait of Scrooge McDuck by ~jaggudada on deviantART

When learning new things, be it a language, a skill and/or a trade, it can sometimes prove difficult and at times very challenging.

For many learning about personal finance, the economy and money – how it works, and how to make it work harder for you, can be daunting and disingenuous due to our understanding of and interest in the subject(s); as well as our limiting beliefs with money and ultimately our relationship with it because of those beliefs.

One sure way I always find that makes learning easy is to break it down to a child’s level or even learning from what children learn from, i.e. children’s books, programmes and games.

So on that note, I wanted to share with you a Walt Disney Cartoon created in 1967 called ‘Scrooge McDuck ad Money, where Scrooge McDuck teaches Huey, Dewey and Louie the basics about money & its history, economics and investing.

It is easy to watch and not too long! So enjoy and do share in the comment box what your thoughts are on it!

Oh and one more thing – Tomorrow the Gold Event of 2012 is finally here – ‘How to Become Financially Savvy with Gold & Profit from it in 2012’.  There are still some tickets left, so why not give your finances a ‘golden touch’ for the New Year and attend this informative and value packed workshop – http://Bit.ly/Gold2012!

Part One

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hwk1MBRNUz0

Part Two

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tP3Rv-nib5M

Remember, as Robert Kiyosaki says ‘”Without financial education, your money flows to those who profit most from your financial ignorance .’ and we are seeing the truth of this statement becoming more evident daily as the global financial crisis continues unabated.

To your financial success and becoming financially savvy!

Butterfly Wealth Creation

I have been following Mike Maloney, the author of the book ‘Rich Dad’s Advisors: Guide to Investing in Gold & Silver – Protect Your Financial Future’ for a while now. He is very knowledgeable not only on gold and silver but wealth cycles on a whole; which is a very interesting subject.

Just like this video below, Mike’s book is a must read and I totally recommend it. His style, as you will see in the video below, is frank, direct and logical.  So if you are interested in protecting your finances and assets, as well as understanding why the economy is in the mess that it is, then you need to watch this video…Today!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5VNAEmmBQM

Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. I will be speaking at the Business City Library on Friday June 17^th on the subject of ’Gold – The Facts Behind its Glittering Rise’. Entry is FREE of charge but you must book in advance. If protecting your assets against inflation with gold, in a cost effective and simply manner, then do attend this event and be in the chance of winning a FREE gift.

P.P.S. KB Gold Webinar tonight starting at 8pm GMT @ http://my.dimdim.com/goldfromkb.com

Due to the current global economic crisis the subject of pensions and savings on a whole, have been in and out of the media on a consistent basis, and with the talks of inflation and whether the Bank of England is going to increase interest rates again and the consequences of that, the consensus is that the idea and structure of a pension and with it the signification of retirement is no longer viable in the 21^st Century.

What is a pension?

A pension is a form of long term saving to provide individuals with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income after employment; otherwise known as retirement.

Here in the UK, pensions first came into existence in 1670 for Royal Navy Officiers but it was in 1946 that the National Insurance Act, or pensions as we know it, was introduced providing a State pension for all, with payments being received from age 65 for men and 60 for women, effective from 1948.

At that time the life expectancy of individuals were low, unlike now in 21^st century people are living longer due to the various advancements in medical technology and other factors.

The pension is nearly 62 years old, and like most things man-made, i.e fait currencies, it has an expiry date, and that date seems to be just around the corner for many here in the UK and other parts of the world.

Why the pension crisis?

The main problem is that the pension model is broken.  Open any newspaper, online article on pensions to see this.  There are not enough people, especially young people paying into the system in which they will not actually benefit from. Governments have purged it. In addition to that there is the stigma of saving for a pension that you may not get out what you put, as has happened to a number of individuals over the years.  The received to many individuals have lost a lot of money from bad investments and scams; such as the Robert Maxwell pension scam and Equitable life.

Ultimately, we are not saving for our retirement due to a number of factors including the rising cost of living (via inflation), cost of education, and the fact we live in a time of ‘buy today’ rather than ‘Save and Spend’.

SIPPS

SIPPS is an alternative to the traditional pension schemes we generally think of.  It stands for Self-Invested Personal Pensions, and are not for everyone. If it is however for you, then you should, of course, and with everything do concerning your finances, carry out own due diligence by comparing and investigating what is best for you and your money; as well as get financial advice – FREE financial advice – which you can do so with Life UK Financial.

Below is a video on SIPPS from LoveMoney.com

www.youtube.com/watch?v=96Pb31N6v5k

As you can see one of the most interesting and attractive things about a SIPPS is its flexibility it gives to use different vehicles to fund it, including property and gold.

I am sure most are aware of the growing popularity of gold and how it is a store of value against growing inflation, however just to clarify not all Gold  can be SIPPS related. The government rules that gold you buy must be of a specific kind. The formal definition of what is required is “gold of a purity not less than 995 thousandths that is in the form of a bar, or a wafer, of a weight accepted by the bullion markets”. You cannot buy – for example – sovereigns.

‘Good Delivery Bars’ are the type of bars accepted by the bullion markets. The standard is a 400 oz bar of at least 99.5% purity.  The fine (pure) gold content of these bars is the standard unit of account of the bullion markets, so if you own 100 grams of gold you own 100 grams of pure gold, which is a bit more than 100 grams of the actual bar.

An alternative to this is to purchase a Gold saving/purchase plan, which you can do with KB Gold. Their gold is 999.9 24k gold bullion kinebars in various sizes (0.5grams to 5 grams) which you can buy on a monthly basis starting from €50 a month.

There are currently so many adverts prompting you to sell your gold, but I say buy gold! There is a reason why it is going up and will continue to go up! Get financially savvy about this and don’t allow preconceived ideas about gold and the sort of people who buy gold, to stop you from enquiring about how acquire it for yourself and family. You can do this cost effectively, even on a tight budget!

To attend a webinar on KB Gold and find out how it’s simple and cost effective purchasing plan can benefit your long term and short term savings plan please go to http://my.dimdim.com/goldfromkb.com/ tonight at 8pm GMT for our weekly webinar.

Alternatively, if property is your thing, then have a look at Platinum Investment Property Ltd, whom I mentioned in my property blog post last month. They are also holding a webinar tonight at 7pm GMT at https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/937753827. If you would like to attend this instead of the gold webinar, then no worries, at it ends at 8pm. Not only that but you can review a pre-recorded webinar on KB Gold by clicking here.

To end, Robert Kiyosaki, author of the No.1 bestselling personal finance book of all time ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’ has been predicting this economic and thus, pension crisis for many years with many pouring scorn on his thoughts and opinions. He says the old ways of doing things, going to school, getting a job and retiring with a good pension is now obsolete! And that is one keeps doing it the old way they will be financially wiped out, which is what we are seeing up and down the land, especially to the middle class’.

“Without Financial Education, your money flows to those who profit most from your financial ignorance.’ Robert Kiyosaki.

This is why financial education is so important to ALL of us and MUST become a part of our daily intake knowledge,

To your success,

Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. I will be speaking at the ‘Develop Your Wealth Creation Mindset’ event at the South Bank University on Wednesday 9^th March. Please click here for further details and I hope to see you there!

Also, the deadline for the Club Asteria membership offer closes this Sunday 31^st January. Click here for details.

Continuing the Wealth Creation series that I started several months back, this post will be reviewing Property as a wealth creation vehicle.

Property, during the last ten years up to 2008, was the ‘golden goose’ of the UK. In that time, and off the back of the plethora of property programmes such as ‘A Place in the Sun’, Location, Location, Location, Grand Design, etc, etc, etc; many individuals became well off, some made a fortune and others became millionaires – the property entrepreneur and Secret Millionaire participant, Kevin Green comes to mind.

Saying that, and due to the credit crunch, it has also ‘broken’ a number of people financially!  So is property still a good vehicle for an individual to create wealth? I say yes!  But with anything there is a time for everything, so although it is no longer the golden goose of the UK, for some the goose is still laying eggs.

And one such person is the former actor and now property entrepreneur, Richard Shepherd, from Lease Option Mastery. In our interview he touches on some of the current property strategies sweeping the UK such as ‘Lease Options’, the traditional BMV, and finally Tax Liens. The interview is some months old but still very relevant to the property market today! So enjoy!!

40 minute interview with Richard Shepherd of Lease Option Mastery

To download your FREE copy of the 5 Lease Option PowerPlays as well as find out…
- How to know when exactly to use each one;
- How to source deals without the need for a deposit, mortgage or any kind of credit check;
- How to find tenants/buyers FAST – so you can get immediate positive cashflow;
- And they’ve even included example “Heads of Terms” for each strategy drawn up by a legal expert.
Then please go to – http://www.leaseoptionpowerplays.com/premanual.html

For further information on Lease Option Mastery and Richard Shepherd please go to the company Facebook group – http://www.facebook.com/leaseoptions, where I am sure he will be happy to answer any questions you may have in regards to his interview.

On a personal note, I am presently not creating wealth from property but instead gold! If you are unsure about how to invest in property or don’t have the funds to lose in the property market then gold is an alternative place to put your money, especially as it is both a protection and growth mechanism. You can then buy property with your increased gold later. One could look at this as a ‘delayed’ property strategy.

It is something to think about as property prices fall and gold rises! So why not buy gold now and then use it to buy property at a later date?  During the hyperinflation years of Germany (click here for details) this is what many did and made a fortune by doing so.  For further information on purchasing Gold please click here, as well as review the Money Week article entitled ‘What the price of gold reveals about UK house prices.’

Ultimately, many entrepreneurs in my network are applying various property strategies and techniques outside of the norm to make this particular wealth creation vehicle work for them.  ‘Different strokes for different folks’ as the saying goes! So if you feel you can do the same, by working with those who know what they are doing, like Richard and his team, then this is a great vehicle for you to also create wealth.

Two interesting articles regarding the UK Property Market:

http://www.propertywire.com/news/europe/-uk-real-estate-outlook-201011264722.html

http://www.moneyweek.com/investments/property/moneyweek-roundtable-what-next-for-property-prices-50727.aspx

International Properties

If you are interested in international properties here are several that have come to mind. If they pique your interest then please ensure you carry out your own due diligence.

Caribbean: The beguiling islands of the Caribbean continue to entice and spoil the 100 million tourists who visit every year, so why not do as many savvy investors are doing and invest in a property or apartment within a luxury hotel resort in the Caribbean? http://www.magnate-property-enterprises.co.uk/ Next webinar: 25 Jan 2011 – www.tuesdaywebevent.com

Albania: An emerging European state with a lot of potential for those experienced in these markets – http://www.albaniapropertygroup.com/en/

Cadiz, Spain: A special place in southern Spain which is a beautiful to not only live but holiday – http://www.sierra-cadiz-homes.com/

Barcelona, Spain: A very popular and vibrant city which I regard as my adoptive city after living there for 4 years…Viva Barcelona!  – http://www.bcnhousing.es

Finally if you want to become more financially savvy in property there are a plethora of information offline and online on property and how to make it work for you.  Numerous events as well! I have listed a number below!

UK Property Resources

Rich Dad,Poor Dad Property events: Dec 11 – 18 and then continuously throughout the year.

Social Housing Expert

Tax Liens

Your Property Network

London Property Mingle

The London Property Network

Women in Wealth

Property Investor Network

Property Berkshire Meet

To Your Success and Becoming Financially Savvy!

Butterfly Wealth

P.S. If you like this post, then please comment, subscribe (to the left of the page) and share by clicking on the buttons below! Remember ‘Sharing is Wealthy!’

Not for a while yet?! Today the UK Government announced their cuts to the public sector as part of the austerity package for the next 4 years. These cuts are due to the last recession and the consequently stagnation of the global economy. These cuts will affect everyone so it is important to keep abreast of what is going on, irrelevant if you want to become financially savvy or not!  For further information on these cuts, click here.

As a consequence I thought I would write this piece in order to further educate you on the importance of understanding what Inflation, Deflation and Hyperinflation is, and how each one can, and will, affect our economy, our lives and our money.

Many do not want to hear it, many do not want to believe it but the fact of the matter is although many will say they have been through and survived a recession before, we are in unprecedented times. There has never been a recession or time like this.  This recession was not based on a housing boom or a stock boom, contrary what we have been led to believe,but the over inflation of our world’s currencies. There is a reason why every shopkeeper and his dog are asking for your Gold! But you need to ask yourself why??  Is there something they know that you need to know?   Furthermore, we are going to enter another recession, otherwise known as the double dip. This recession will be longer and harder than the one we have just come out of, as such you job is not going to save you and neither is your devaluing cash/savings. Only learning the new rules of money will, i.e becoming financially savvy.

Robert Kiyosaki, author of ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’ says ‘if you are still reliant on the old rules of money, go to school, get an education, get a good steady paying job with a good pension and then retire, you are going to become obsolete’.

Right now we are in the midst of the biggest wealth transfer in world history! Where the middle class are being wiped out and a clear line between the rich and poor is being created.

The conduit of this transfer of wealth is Inflation. How? Because as the value of goods go up you will have to pay more for them, equalling you losing/spending your money fast on the simply basics! It is for this reason gold (and silver) has gone up and will continue to go up for the foreseeable future. It is a store of wealth and the oldest currency in the world!

Below are succinct definitions, on what inflation, deflation and hyperinflation are: -

Inflation is a growth in the supply of money and credit, leading to higher prices; as in our world’s central banks (Bank of England, Central European Bank, The Federal Reserve, amongst others) creating more money via the printing press, otherwise known as quantative easing, to stimulate the economy.

Deflation is a decline in the supply of money and credit, leading to lower prices. This can be brought on by people not spending, as is the present case right now. No one wants to spend because they are worried about their jobs and the future of the country.

Hyperinflation is inflation gone out of control, as in what happened in 1920’s Germany, and which can happen here in the UK, Europe US and essentially the World.

The following video, although about the US economy is still pertinent to the UK, as our policies are intrinsically linked; furthermore whatever happens in the US generally affects the rest of the world one way or another, like it or not!  So pllease watch and be educated.

To end, I am not a financial advisor nor am I an economic graduate, just a everyday ‘person’ who got badly burnt by the last recession, as well as because of my own lack of financial education.  So, my question to you is how badly bitten do you have to be before you start educating yourself financially? There is still time to learn, implement and prepare so don’t wait too long! Because those who refuse to hear, will feel! And the pain will be far worse than a bite!

Further Resources

• National Inflation Association
• The Corruption of Capitalism, by Richard Duncan
• Gold

To Your Success & Becoming Financially Savvy,

Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. If you like this post please like, share and comment! As well as subscribe to my blog by filling out your details in the form to the right!

Furthermore if you are looking for a way to protect your gold please click here to join me next week Tuesday 26th October at 8pm GMT for a webinar on Gold, and how you can purchase it in a cost effective and simple way.

Thanks in advance.

There is a saying which goes ‘you need to know where you’re coming  from in order to know where you’re going.’ To a certain extent this is true! We are, after all, a product of our upbringing and conditioning, and then as we become adults, our social circles and peers.  It is these influences that ultimately guide our decision making and choices.  And as such, if you are really serious about your financial future and becoming (more) financially savvy, then it is vital that you do the following; -

1. Surround yourself with likeminded individuals who want what you want and are willing and able to guide you on your way, as you to them and others, also;

2. Acquaint yourself with up-to-date and current news on the economy – see the resource list at the end of this article!

3. Take the time to understand why we are in the economic mess that we are; i.e. understand where it came from in order to have a better awareness and opinion of where it is going.

By doing so, you are embracing the true essence of financial education; and not the ‘what is a cheque book, direct debit ‘type, but the ‘what is the rule of 21; what is an asset, a liability; what is the difference between a passive, leverage, residual or linear income?’ type. Financial education is something that should be taught at school but unfortunately it is not, which is why it is one of the key premises of my organization Butterfly Wealth Creation. 

By financially educating yourself and applying the learning to your life not only do you make better choices with your money, in respect to how to invest it, where to invest it, so that essentially you can make YOUR money work harder for YOU, rather than YOU simply work hard for it; but it also allows you to see opportunities where others only see F.E.A.R (False Evidence Appearing Real) and challenges. This is key to creating wealth as well as protecting it from ANY and ALL global, national and local economic instability.

And lets us not delude ourselves to say that the economic downturn has passed. We only have to read the national and global headlines to know that there is a very real possibility that we could experience a double dip – i.e. another, but longer and deeper, recession. I touch upon this topic in two of my previous blog posts Green Shoots…What Green Shoots?! and And So, The Budget Cuts Begin…

So How Did We Get Here And How Can You Protect Yourself?

The general and accepted consensus is that our global economic downturn was born from the American sub-primed loans crisis. These sub-prime loans were essentially toxic debt repackaged with non-toxic debt, then sold onto other financial institutions in an incestuous fashion.  When individuals could not pay their mortgages the market retracted on its orgy of debt and reckless borrowing, which was when the  global recession kicked in, bringing to mind the adage of ‘when America sneezes the rest of the world catches its cold’. However, the true reality is that the above scenario was just the ‘effect’ or even the ‘consequence’ of other far reaching historical events, rather than the reason.

Last month I attended The National Achievers Congress where Robert Kiyosaki and Kim Kioysaki, and their team of Rich Dad advisors appeared, educating and sharing with us their stories and experiences in order to propel and motivate us on our success journey to debt freedom and financial independence. It was excellent to say the least, and I came out of there with a mission to help others and a determination to live my own life ON PURPOSE, just as Robert Kiyosaki has and continues to do, irrelevant of what the economy does or doesn’t do!

One of the advisors, an economist  - Richard Duncan, author of The Corruption of Capitalism and The Dollar Crisis – was phenomenal and explained the history behind the ‘credit crunch’ with such simplicity and clarity, it was easy to understand, as well as riveting to listen to. He explained that in 1971, the US President of that time, Richard Nixon, withdrew the US dollar from the Gold Standard due to debts created by the Vietnam War and other issues, as well to fund their mission to send the first man to the moon – which to their credit they did do! However, in doing so, the US Dollar was no longer backed by gold and in turn this became the modern source of monetary volatility and consequently unregulated financialization.  That volatility necessitated the rise of risk-hedging financial instruments, such as derivatives (including credit default swaps such as subprime loans). Thus as the value of the dollar was no longer based on gold, it became based instead on projected future value.  This type of money is called ‘fiat money’, sounds very similar to fake money! Which Tim Barello highlights in his blog post ‘Grand Theft Economics’

“…Virtually every industrialized nation on this planet employs what are known as fiat currencies, or money systems that are backed by nothing other than the word of the respective bank and/or government of issue. While politically convenient, such arrangements are nonetheless hazardous, as they allow bankers and governments to effectively create money out of thin air; by doing so, nations have spent well beyond their means, while fraudulently conveying that their worthless pieces of paper hold monetary value.

When juxtaposed against the greatest financial crisis of our era, these revelations also shed light on the mother of all frauds against the US Constitution, and furthermore, the nation for which it stands.”

Richard Duncan goes on to further explain that because the world’s currency is no longer backed by any type of monetary value, the financial institutions are able to employ a duplicitous  method to create money from thin air which is called ‘Fractional Reserve Banking’, This in and of itself is not a necessarily the problem, but  the amount in which they have steadily increased the ratio due to our money no longer being backed by any real value. Please review the videos in my previous blog post Green Shoots…What Green Shoots?! for further information on this.

Inside the world of regulated banking this process is described as ‘expanding the money supply ‘, outside of it ‘inflationary counterfeit-pyramiding’. Thus, when a central bank (Bank of England for example) wants to inject more money into the Markets, officially known as quantative easing, they use this process – create money from thin air to do so. All in all what you need to understand is that the ‘tender’ we hold in our hands no longer represent monetary value but DEBT!!! And because our central banks can print money as and when they like, the value of our ‘fait money’ dwindles due to inflation. Sadly it is the savers who suffer the most because of this. As a saver, not only does the  bank use your ‘fiat’ money to borrow against with better returns for themselves, they also create more of it dulling the spending power of your savings, whist you only receive a paltry interest rate on it, whilst essentially ‘parking’ your money in their bank.  This is what is called going ‘broke safely’ and what Robert Kiyosaki says is a direct result of our lack of financial education. He writes “Without financial education, your money flows to those who profit most from your financial ignorance.”

This process the world Central Banks uses to ‘create money’ is aligned to debt…too much debt, thus the process was, and still is unsustainable, bubbles were created, which is what incurred the recession and when the bubble popped the consequence of that fell at the feet of the taxpayers; and will continue to do so for some time to come. And who are the main group of taxpayers in a country?  Employees and self-employed individuals aka the average Jane and Joe, conditioned by society to go to school, get a formal education in order to get a J.O.B (just over broke), buy a house, pay into a pension/savers account and retire happily ever after! Tell me, how is that working for you? If not great, then hear me when I say the old rules of money are broken! YOU have to create your own personal economy rather than simply rely on the one the State provides.

 Watch Richard Duncan talk about Why the UK’s Ponzi economy is vulnerable to a fiscal crisis.

So now you know the real reason for the recession and why there is a real possibility of a double dip; how do you protect yourself from the continuous deterioration of the value of your fait money; as well as increasing the value of your money? Obvious really! GOLD! This is what the governments used before, so why not YOU?

You only have to watch the numerous TV adverts to see how companies are desperate to buy your gold. I won’t go into the all the reasons why gold is great way to grow and protect your money, and this is not about putting all your assets/money in one basket but solely the recommended amount of 5% – 20%. What I will say, however, is that the value of gold is ever increasing (even though like any item/commodity there are always fluctuations) and I believe it will continue to do so. Why, because there is a trillion dollar amount of debt from emerging markets chasing a billion dollar market of gold, thus gold is a required and wanted commodity in the world today.

So how do you get involved in this market? Well what if I told you your local bank was offering a free service to exchange your money into a gold savings plan starting at E50, would you do it? Would you at a minimum go and find out more about it?  Well, unfortunately your bank can not offer this type of service to you because they do not have the means to, i.e. mines, refinery, production line with no middle men to pay a fee too.  There is a company, however, based in German called KB Kapital & Business. It is 16 years old, and enables YOU to do the above, because they own their own mine, refinery and production line, with no middle men to pay a fee to. As such their margins are low and therefore the FULL exchange of your paper based money into gold from the daily markets is passed totally onto you.  The product is gold – real gold, not coins, or jewellery. And again, their service is a gold savings plan, which if deposited into monthly will counter again the influctutations of the gold market.  KB Kapital & Business is endorsed by the Bund der Sparer, the German equivalent of the FSA, as well as is associated with PriceWaterhouseCooper in regards to its payments system. In its two years since inception the programme has proved a great success in Germany, Holland and other Nordic countries with a number of News appearances by the CEO Mike Koschine. They are now branching out into the rest of Europe and the world, but specifically the UK and USA.

Now, I am no financial advisor (you don’t need to be to talk about gold) or economist but I do know an opportunity when I see one, and this is definitely an opportunity! Even so, you should always do your own due diligence and you can start doing so by attending a webinar tonight given by one of the first pioneers of the company and now, also, one of the top earners of the business, Dennis Nowak, a native of Germany every Wednesday at  at 8pm GMT/9pm CET – please sign up here for access details. 

There is a also another webinar every Fridays at 8pm GMT/9pm CET, as well as others which will be scheduled periodically during the day. Again, for updated information on KB Gold and scheduled informational/training webinars please go here and sign up to the mailing list. 

Other Websites:  http://kbvision.wordpress.com  and http://www.mykbgold.com

KB is offering a service – a Gold Savings Plan –  for EVERYONE and to ANYONE from around the world, as gold is the currency of The World, so why not save in it?

Finally, on the subject of gold do you remember the cartoon ‘The Mysterious City of Gold’? If you do and are anything like me then this clip will definitely bring a smile to your lips! By investing in gold, in either a measured and affordable way, or in bulk, this smile could turn into a laugh…that is you laughing all the way to the bank!

Resources for Your Financial Education

The Corruption of Capitalism by Richard Duncan

The Dollar Crisis by Richard Duncan

Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki

Other Business and Economic Books

Green Shoots…What Green Shoots?!

And So, The Budget Cuts Begin…

Money Week

Love Money

Motely Fool

To Your Success and Becoming Financially Savvy

Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. I just received my first packagewith KB Gold and it is really does bring a smile to your face!

P.P.S. If you like what you have  read/learned please comment, share by clicking on the buttons below and subscribe by filling in the form to the right of this page. Remember, sharing is wealthy!

It is the dawning of a new day, and the new World Cup winner has been exalted to the world: Espana! Congratulations to them, for not only are they World champions but European champions; quite an accomplishment by any means!

I mention this because many times when we watch athletes and performers we forget about the ‘business’ aspect of their field. FIFA is the governing body of football but it is also a business; the same as the Olympics, which is why countries clamour to be representatives of these types of Games.  They generate business for the host country, via tourism, construction marketing, and other industries.  Without the element of ‘business’ there is no real income, no revenue, no money, just ‘show’ and to ‘show’ cost money.

So in continuing the Becoming Financially Savvy ‘Wealth Creation’ series, today’s focus is ‘Business’.

“Business, more than any other occupation, is a continual dealing with the future; it is a continual calculation, an instinctive exercise in foresight.”
Henry R. Luce

There are so many types of business to start-up in but ultimately, as with anything, it is about starting. Robert Kiyosaki, author to Rich Dad, Poor Dad, believes that if you want to create wealth, and increase your cashflow, you don’t change jobs but change quadrants. That being from the E (Employee) and/or S (Self Employed/Specialist) quadrant to the B (Business owner) and/or I (Investor) quadrant.  For further information on this read my blog post – Cashflow Quadrant.

This idea is reinforced by the fact that everyone on TheTimes Rich List are all business owners rather than employees or self-employed individuals. Thus, the point here is that business is a vehicle to getting out of the rat race, working for yourself, within a team of other like minded individuals, in order to create wealth. Like anything worth having, it is not easy but a rewarding path to take. I touch on this in my post the Rise of the Entrepreneurial Nation.

In the attached audio I interview the experienced Mr Ryan Pinnick on starting your own business and the outlook of business in the UK today.

(38 mins)

Ryan started his first business in 2006 investing in property and is now a serial entrepreneur with a number of business interests in Property, Digital Media, Social Networking, Business Development and Global e-Learning.  As a result of his successes and passion to inspire people, Ryan is fast becoming one of the UK’s most sought after speakers presenting on entrepreneurship, wealth creation and personal development. He is also one of the key trainers for Business Success System  - a programme which provides you with all the components required to create your own wheel of business success – and ‘turnover’ in financial terms.

For further information on the FREE Business Success System Workshop, Ryan mentions in his interview and which are taking place THIS WEEK – Tuesday 13^th July – Saturday 17^th July, call 0800 044 5824 or go to http://biz-success-system.co.uk.  Ref: Butterfly.

Times are 12:30pm OR 6:30pm, so lots of choices to attend and start YOUR entrepreneurial journey. Remember you don’t have to be great to start but you do have to start to be great!

Other Business Resources

Business books from Butterfly Wealth Creation E-Store

‘Women in Business’ blog post

British Business Angels Association

Business Networking International  

Business Giants Network

Meet N Link

The Yes Group

Start-Ups

Entrepreneur Magazine

Business Link (please note due to government cuts, Business Link is being phased out.)

Innovate London

Ecademy

Linkedin

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Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. Please forgive the abrupt ending of the audio interview. Technology is great but at times it does have its moments! J

P.P.S. If you are looking for a business opportunity please send an email to info@ButterflyWealthCreation.com I am sure I will be able to help you or at least point you in the right direction!

Finally, if you like this post then please comment, share and subscribe to Becoming Financially Savvy here, by completing the form on the right, as well as on facebook. The group link is on my profile wall – http://www.facebook.com/lavinia.d.osbourne

Last month I attended the National Achievers Congress event where Robert and Kim Kiyosak, of ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’ and ‘Rich Woman’ respectively, appeared with the rest of the Rich Dad advisors.  Listening to them share their stories and advice, especially Kim and Kathy Heasley, was inspiring! And to say it was brilliant is really an understatement! I left empowered by the education and on a mission to make my mark on the world as an entrepreneur!  

I recently wrote an article on the rise of the entrepreneurial  nation, but as Kim Kiyosaki is hosting a Facebook chat event tonight at 8pm BST on her group ‘Rich Woman’, I thought I would turn my attention to women in business and why now is the time to get  going in your entrepreneurial endeavours!

There are a number of new age terms describing women in business today all including ‘MomPreneurs; WomenPrenuers; and of course FemalePrenuers’.  I love all of them! They are uplifting and very cool!

Nancy Clarke, CEO and Founder of WomensMedia, says ‘The good news for women is that business now wants collaborative leadership, relationship skills, sharing of information, and win/win negotiation—skills that come easily to most women.’

Kim Kiyosaki believes that women will be the instigators of the next economic boom, especially as the number micro-entrepreneurs – owners of small businesses that have fewer than five employees and a minimal start-up cost, – rises.  Here are some statistics for you to delve over – http://neweconomist.blogs.com/new_economist/2007/06/women_wealth.html

In the meantime I have recorded an interview with one of my female entrepreneurial role models, Naomi Sesay, a successful  author of ‘The Human Upgrade’, speaker and entrepreneur of several businesses, including the ‘Billionaire Ladies Club’. She has worked with many influential names in the wealth creation and quantum physics arena, including Gill Fielding of ‘The Secret Millionaire’ fame. She  is a shining example of a debt free and financially independent woman.

I met her right at the beginning of my entrepreneurial journey and she made such an impression on me I have just kept in-touch; which with the popular emergence of social media is an easy thing do in this day and age!  Not only that, but they always say if you want to be successful in what ever field you are in, follow someone who has already done it ordoing it, and Naomi  has definitely done it and continues to ’do it’, sharing her experience with, and mentoring, others.

In this informative and content rich interview she talks about why it is great being a FemalePreneur; how she got started; the difference between male and female leadership; and her business the Billionaire Ladies Club! I hope you find it as inspiring as I did! And to Naomi – thank you once again for sharing your story with me and the readers of Becoming Financially Savvy. Please click the link below to listen.

Interview with Naomi Sesay on Women in Business (approx 25 mins)

The Billionaire Ladies Club (BLC) is a unique global network of phenomenal, influential and forward thinking women. Spiritually and compassionately enriched, the members of the Billionaire Ladies Club dedicate themselves to a base line of Financial Freedom with the view of creating Global Transformation in their lifetimes.

BLC are holding an event on 24^thto 25^thJuly 2010 called ‘My Wealth, My Way’ where Naomi has kindly reduced tickets for Butterfly Wealth Creation readers, from £495 to £197 + bring a friend for free!!  To register for the event please click here!  I hope to see you there!

 The Human Upgrade by Naomi Sesay, is an exploration into internal vs external wealth and riches in the face of economic boom and bust.  You can purchased a copy from http://e-store.butterflywealthcreation.co.uk

Her follow-up book ‘Women Who Believe  -  Do or Die’ is an extraordinary, amusing and simple step by step manual for the modern, fearless and, of course , FemalePreneur. It will be published early next year.

 A list of some of the many resources for the Woman in Business:

• http://womenofthefuture.co.uk – Entry deadline for  this year’s award is Friday September 3, 2010
• http://www.internationalwomensday.com – 8^th March 2011, 100 year celebration – 1911 – 2011.
• http://www.shesingenious.org – The Association of Women with new products & inventions
• http://www.women-unlimited.co.uk – inspiration, motivation, education for female entrepreneurs
• http://thenextwomen.com – An online business magazine for female internet heroes
• http://shrutigupta.co.uk – A woman on a focused mission to teach financial education to all women
• http://DaniJohnson.com – A formidable female leader in the realm of Network Marketing

To end, I leave you with another empowering quote from Nancy Clarke: “Honour your talents and act like a woman—a smart woman—who knows how to jump over business obstacles, even in heels.”

And a song for all women on a mission, irrelevant if they are in business or not!

If you don’t like the song that is okay, I just hope you like the essence of it!! Personally, I love it! (As) I am a woman on a mission…..lahlahlah!  Enjoy!!

To Our Success,

Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. If you are looking for a lucrative and great business opportunity, then get in touch and I will be happy to share my business opportunities with you!   Just send a message to info@butterflywealthcreation.com and I will respond to your mail within 3 working days!

P.P.S. If you like this article, then please comment, subscribe by filling in the box to the right, and share ‘the wealth’ with others by clicking on one of the various social media buttons below! Thanks in advance!

Well actually there are TWO winners! I had a really great response to my survey so I thought I would share the joy, as well as the learning of Robert Kiyosaki’s new book ‘The Business of the 21^st Century’, with not only ONE person but TWO!  And they are –

-  Marj Nesbitt, Canada

-  Rachel Henke, UK

 Congratulations to them both!

If you would like to purchase you own copy of the book you can do so on the link below: http://www.knowledgeisking.co.uk/acatalog/the-business-of-the-21st-century.html

Results of the Survey

The results of the survey showed that 100% of participants felt it ‘very important’ to not only develop their personal economy, but also placed a lot of value on financial independence and time freedom.

“Financial freedom unlocks my freedom in general; that is one of the most important facts in life.”

“Because I don’t want to worry about the future – Predictions are that in 20 years we will exist in a third world economy where there are far less companies and far more micro entrepreneurs.”

“The World is changing; no such thing as jobs for life and people need to take care of their own affairs rather than relying on the state. Time is also far more important than money but one needs lots of money/residual Income in order to have the time to spend with loved ones.”

It was also encouraging to see that 100% of participants understood the terms: passive, residual and/or leverage income (Go to http://bit.ly/axKZ8i if you are unfamiliar with these terms) and were already or wanting to generate these types of income models for themselves and family;  with many choosing network marketing, internet marketing, affiliate marketing, the arts, investments and property as their vehicle(s) of choice.

The survey also indicated that most people research their business opportunities by talking with business contacts, which highlights once again the power of networking and going to events or even speaking at events!  Then online and offline research (Google/friends and family, respectively) came in joint second.

As this survey was administrated for a business idea I have, which is to help, encourage, and support individuals in the home based business arena, specifically Network Marketing, it was reassuring to know that 42.9% of people put a value (rather than price) of between £500 – £1000 for the service I wish to provide.  And another 71.4% thought the idea would be useful to the UK business marketplace; some stating that “I think the understanding of passive/residual or leveraged income is very low. I think a service to educate people on this would be very, very, useful indeed!” and “…I have not come across such a Business Link yet in the UK AND A LOT OF network marketers need guidance and training.”

So on that note, another big thank to everyone who participated! And watch this space for further details on my big business idea!

To Your Success

Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. If you are looking for business opportunity or facing challenges in your network marketing business then send an email to info@butterflywealthcreation.com. I am  generally full of ideas and very resourceful so may be of some help to you!

Words from the Budget (Wordle.net)

What a week for the UK! England are through to the last sixteen; although now facing Germany on Sunday! This should make for an entertaining and sentimental game!  C’mon England!

And of course, we had Cameron and Clegg announce the details of the emergency budget on Tuesday.  The cuts announced aren’t only warranted but desperately required in order to slim down our horrendous economic deficit which currently stands at about £160 billion.

So what were the key changes: -

• VAT – to go up from 17.5% to 20% from January  4^th 20100 on all taxable products (cigarettes, alcohol, goods, etc) children’s clothes and food are exempt.
• National Insurance  - to increase by 1%
• Personal Allowance – (the amount non-taxable by income tax) will go up from £6,475 to £7,475 for the 2011-12 tax year, for those under 65, thus an increase of £1000.
• Child Tax Credit – will be cut from families earning over £40k a year from April 2011
• Capital Gains Tax – CGT will increase from 18 per cent to 28 per cent for higher rate taxpayers
• Council Tax – the government will work with local authorities to freeze Council Tax in 2011-2012
• Corporation Tax  - cut by 2%
• State pension age for men is to rise to 66 in 2016, eight years earlier than Labour had planned it, with women joining that bracket a few years later.  There are discussions currently underway to raise it further to age 70.

For further details on the budget and how it will affect you click here for the Direct Gov website.     You can also watch Cameron and Clegg talk about the announcement in the BBC2 Programme ‘Face the Audience…’ by clicking on the link below.

Face the Audience…with Cameron and Clegg (23/06/2010)

Ultimately, those were the key changes with more cuts to come, in particularly 25% of job cuts in the public sector, which the government has sent out letters to over 6 million civil servants asking for their opinion on what job roles should be cut or saved.  However, irrelevant of which jobs go, these cuts will impact on the slow growing job market, and of course raising unemployment. It has already been announced that most quangos will go, as well as other non-essential or underused government bodies, which I agree with.

So what does this mean for the average Joe and Jayne? Generically, it means a number of things like less money in your pocket; more competition for jobs; longer hours and stress working a job which instead of being for two or three people, will now be squeezed into one. Not only that but with the increase of the state pension age to 66, and maybe 70 in the next several years, individuals will fundamentally be living to work rather than working to live.

Most individuals will have less money because even though we are receiving an extra £1000 before tax, we are will lose a part of it to the VAT and NI increase; the ineligibility of relevant tax benefits – such as child tax credit depending on your household income; the cost of inflation and pay freeze for many.  An email sent into the BBC by an aggrieved fireman and his teacher wife, have worked out with all off the above they will be £7-10k worse off! This equals £583 – £833 a month worse off!

In addition, the Con-Dem have accelerated the rise of the state pension age from 65 to 66 for men, by eight years, coming into effect by 2016 instead of 2024 as the Labour party had planned. Women will follow that rise a few years later. There are even talks of employees having to compulsory sign up to company pension schemes, as well as the pension age being raised again to age 70..

The increase in the state pension age isn’t overly surprising. People are living longer and the money to pay for our current pensioners has to come from somewhere.  Not only that income tax and pension savings are where the government get a part of their government income from; so it to their benefit for us to work longer thus pay more taxes, as well as ‘park’ our money into a pension, which we are taxed on and generally have to pay a premium on in order to take out before our retirement age.

It is quite evident in society that retirees are working past their pension age to top up their pension, as it is obviously not enough. The old rules of money: go to school, get a safe and secure job with a pension and retire, are obsolete! Ultimately this not the future I want for my mother or myself. What about you? How do you plan to avoid the very possible outcome of working up until the age of 66/70?

Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad, says in the audio CD to his new book ‘The Business of the 21^st Century –  ‘most of us allow our circumstances/problems to become bigger than ourselves, when in actuality we have to become bigger than our circumstances and problems in order to resolve them and move on from them. And the best way to do that is through personal development’. Develop one’s skill, aptitude and mindset! Something I advocate constantly here on Becoming Financially Savvy, and via my Butterfly Wealth Creation email newsletters:  - attend events, read books, listen to audios, and network with like-minded individuals, etc, etc.

The rise of VAT was also inevitable; again money has to come from somewhere to pay for the enormous black hole our economy is in, however I thought it interesting that the corporation tax or entrepreneurial tax, as it is sometimes referred to,  has decreased. Why, because the government has to give some sort of incentive to entrepreneurs and more importantly wannabe entrepreneurs to start a business.  Right now is the best time to become entrepreneurial, yes even during this economic downturn/slow growth – Microsoft, Ford, and other such great companies all started off during a recession.  The government realises that most jobs are going to come from small to medium size businesses not the global conglomerates; thus one of the aims of the Budget is to create a new generation of entrepreneurs.  Two ways they are assisting in this is exempting all businesses outside of the Greater South East area from up to £5,000 of employer National Insurance Contribution payments for first ten employees hired. Not only that but the EFG (Enterprise Finance Guarantee) – a body that supports lending to small businesses that find it difficult to get normal commercial loans – has been increased by £200 million to support £700 million of additional lending until 31 March 2011. 

So, for those of you who have a business idea you can go to your local Business Link for advice as well as your local council for funding advice.

For those of you who like the idea of starting your own business but don’t know in what or don’t want to leave the security of your job, then why not consider a home based business in either, Network Marketing, Affiliate Marketing and/or Internet Marketing?  There is also a free business workshop being run by Business Success System, which you can attend in the central London area from July 13 – July17. Click here for further details stating ‘Butterfly’ as your reference.

And for those who are worried about your pension and would like some FREE financial advice from a FSA financial advisor please go here – Life UK Financial

Ultimately, with the current and future government implementations and the impact it will have on our pockets, we have the choice of being either bitter and broke, or better! As well as acknowledge that creative inspiration – be it for a business, acquiring a new job or skill, etc, is often born from desperate situations. So lets us get inspired and creative because these are desperate times, and create a better future for ourselves and family.

Please note that these words I write are not just pertinent to the people of the UK but to all my international readers; you have to create your own economy, be self reliant from your employer and the economy.

I leave you with this long but brilliant video of J.K.Rowlings talking about the The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination. I hope it encourages you in your endeavours to get creative in order to become (more) financially savvy -  i.e. debt free and financially independent!

J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine on Vimeo.

To Your Success…

Butterfly Wealth Creation

P.S. Please share how the budget cuts are going to affect you (and your family) and what creative plan (Plan B) are you putting in place, especially if you are an employee, in order to cushion the blow of all the above.  By sharing your thoughts and ideas it may inspire another reader!

Furthermore, if you are open to the idea of creating an additional and more importantly, passive income, then please send me a private message to info@ButterflyWealthCreation.com in order to discuss!

P.P.S  If you like this post please comment, subscribe by filling in the form on the right, and share by clicking on one of the social media buttons below.