You Want Golden Eggs Or Golden Chickens?

Don't count your eggs until the chicken's laid them.
- Anonymous

One day, a huge alien ship arrived on planet Earth.

          The aliens on the ship surveyed humankind and were so moved by the poverty they saw.  They pitied the poor so much, they decided to help. They left behind one of their very special chickens.

          Looking around, the aliens chose Mang Pong, a very poor farmer, to receive their wonderful gift. In the middle of the night, they teleported this chicken to the backyard of Mang Pong. And in a blink of an eye, the ship rocketed away to a far distant galaxy.

          When Mang Pong woke up the next morning, he discovered the strange-looking feathered creature at the back of his little hut. 

          "Where did that weird animal come from?” Mang Pong asked. "It's extra-large and has golden-colored wings!”

          But then something even weirder happened. When the chicken stood up, Mang Pong saw a shiny egg underneath it, glimmering under the sun. The chicken just laid a golden egg!

          Boy, was Mang Pong excited.

          He rushed out, sold the golden egg, and bought lots of food, new clothes, and new furniture for his tiny house. Life was great that day!

          The following month, Mang Pong couldn't believe his eyes. Because the chicken laid another golden egg! So he ran to town, sold again the golden egg, and bought an iPod, a laptop, a jacuzzi, and a 60-inch LED TV. Ah yes, life was becoming very sweet for Mang Pong.

          And when the third month came, he already expected the egg.  And he sold the golden egg and bought more stuff.

          But the next day, Mang Pong grew very impatient. He realized that he had to wait for another month for the next egg. But he wanted buy his own personal helicopter and his very own private helipad. He badly needed more golden eggs!

          And then he had a brilliant idea—or so he thought.

          You see, Mang Pong wasn't very bright.

          He said, "Where are these eggs coming from? From inside the chicken!” 

          So he grabbed the alien chicken, got his sharpest knife, and cut it open.

          But alas, Mang Pong didn't find a single golden egg inside.

          And the alien chicken was now dead!

          Mang Pong cried at the loss of his chicken and all her golden eggs.

          And slowly, the farmer had to sell his clothes, his furniture, his iPod, his laptop, his jacuzzi, and his wide-screen TV.

          And in a year, the farmer became very poor again.

          One day, as he walked around town depressed, he met one person who had become very rich. And the man was thanking him profusely. 

          "Why are you thanking me?” he asked.

          "Remember the golden egg you sold me?” he said.

          "Yes, of course,” Mang Pong said.

          "Well, the egg hatched…” he said. 

           "What do you mean the egg hatched?” the farmer asked.

          "I placed it in an incubator. After 12 months of care, it hatched and out came a chicken.  A very special chicken. It's extra-large and has golden wings. But more importantly, it lays golden eggs!”

          Mang Pong could only stare in disbelief. 

          Every egg he sold—given the right conditions—could have become a chicken!

          Oh, if only he kept the eggs and made it hatch—then he would have had many chickens laying golden eggs for him every day.

          After many years, the alien ship returned to planet Earth. 

          They were happy to discover some had become wealthy.

          The rich were those who owned chickens that laid golden eggs. 

          But they were also sad that many remained poor, including Mang Pong.

Money or Money Machines?

          This is the story of many poor people.

          The poor prefer golden eggs (money) rather than the chicken that lays them (money machines).

          Remember this lesson: Every golden egg has a chicken inside. 

          Do you have money right now?

          Inside every coin and paper bill is a money machine.

          You just need to "incubate” it for some time. 

          So you always have a choice. 

          You can "spend” the egg or you can make the egg become a chicken.

Blessing or Burden?

          How many of you are praying for a house? 

          How many of you are praying for a car?

          Do you want to make that happen?

          I'll teach you to adjust your prayer.

          Don't just pray for a house or a car.

          Because if you do, this is what will happen:

          Mike says, "Lord, give me a car!”

          And kaboom, the car appears in front of him.

          "Praise the Lord!” Mike says. 

          But in no time, he'll have more needs.

          Very quickly, he'll be praying, "Lord, give me gas!”

          Soon, he'll also pray, "Lord, give me money for the tune up and change oil.”

          The car that was a blessing has become a burden. 

          Remember: Money without money machines are not blessings but burdens. 

          Because the things that you buy with your money need more money to maintain them.

          Here's how you should pray for a house and a car.

          "Lord, give me a money machine so that I can buy a house and car!”

          The money machine should come first.

          The liabilities should come later.

Spend vs. Incubate?

          Your golden eggs—if you incubate them—can become chickens.

          Your money—if you don't spend it—but incubate it—can become a money machine. 

          We've been brainwashed with a wrong spirituality: We've made God the chicken.  We've made Him our money machine.

          But from experience, God doesn't give money.

          He gives us money machines that will give the money.

          God wants to provide money machines for you.

          Here are the different types of money machines: (1) job, (2) self-employment, (3) paper investments, (4) businesses, and (5) properties.

          I repeat: Don't just pray for money. 

          They'll become burdens, not blessings. 

          Instead, pray for money machines that produce the money.

Two Components of Financial Wealth

          Friends, let me define what Financial Wealth is to you.

          Financial Wealth is not money. Or property. Or stocks. Or jewelry. Or houses. Or cars.  All those are simply fruits of wealth but not wealth itself.

          In fact, I believe wealth consists of two things.

          First, having a mindset to create money.

          Second, having an ability to create money.

          This is what wealth is all about.

          Some people are confused. 

          They think that wealth means golden eggs. 

          But wealth is not owning golden eggs.

          Wealth is owning the chicken that lays the golden egg.

          Some people think rich people have Rolexes, BMWs, and expensive clothes.

          No. All these are golden eggs. (Some of them have borrowed those golden eggs and are paying huge interests!)

          It's not how many golden eggs you have.

          It's how many chickens you have that can lay golden eggs.

          May your dreams come true,

          Bo Sanchez

Control Your Cash

        Robert Babson said, More people should learn to tell their dollars where to go, instead of asking them where they went.

        Even Jesus said, If, then, you have not been faithful in handling worldly wealth, how can you be trusted with true wealth?  (Luke 16:9-11)

        One day, my friend Pam was talking about her aging mother and her two daughters.  She said, "Bo, we're torn between loving my mother and loving my kids.”

        Her mother was 63 years old and very sickly. Since her father died, her mother was living with Pam for the last two years.

        "Bo, we're not rich. But last month, we spent more than P12,000 for my mother's medicines. Again! I wish my two brothers and other sister would take care of her too,” she said, her voice trembling. "My husband doesn't complain, but I'm sure he doesn't like it. We have two daughters and we sometimes can't buy them things for school because of Mom. Yesterday, my daughter asked me again if I could buy her a computer—but I told her, 'Sorry, we can't,'” she paused to breathe, fighting back her tears, "'because grandma needs our money.'”

        "Have you asked your brothers and sister to help out?” I asked.

        "We fight about it a lot. Over the phone. Emails. I tell them to let mother stay in their homes. That it's their turn. But they tell me they can't afford it too.”

        "I see.”

        "Bo, the sad thing is that Mom feels it. She knows we don't like her at home.”

        "Why do you say that?”

        "I just know. Perhaps she overheard us fighting. Sometimes, she talks about dying so that we won't be burdened anymore.”

What If We Can Go Back in Time?

        What if this 63-year-old grandmother read this book when she was in her 20s, 30s, or even 40s? The situation would have been totally different.

        Dramatically different.

        Because she and her husband could have saved every month 20 percent of their income and invested it in the stock market, mutual funds, and other investments.

        By age 63, she would have had P10 million.

        She'd be living comfortably in her own simple house. She'd be paying for her own medicines and doctor's fees. With her own money, she'd have hired a fulltime caregiver and house helper.

        Every weekend, her children and grandchildren would visit. The grandkids would love going there because there's always delicious food prepared for them.

        During those visits, her four children would "fight” for grandma to stay in their home.  "Mommy, you always stay with my sister,” the younger sister would say, "Why don't you also stay in my house?”

        Once a year, grandma pays for a big family vacation for all her children and grandkids.  Last year, they went to Vigan. This year, they'll be going to Batanes.

        Thanks to grandma, everyone looks forward to this big break.

        Now I ask you: What kind of future do you want?

        May your dreams come true,

        Bo Sanchez

Create Your Money Machines

I love a quote from Harold Geneen.  He said, In the business world, everyone is paid in two coins: cash and experience.   Take the experience first; the cash will come later.

         Meaning?  You've got to go out there and do it.

         You need to fail along the way.  Cry some tears.  Hurt some bones. 

         Just see to it that your failures are small.

         And most important, you learn from every failure.  (Don't waste your tears.)

How God Supplies Your Every Need

         So many people say, "God will supply my every need.”

         I love saying that.

         But how will God provide?

         Ninety nine percent of the time, He'll do it through what I call money machines.

         How many of you would like to own a machine that prints money?

         I own 6 of them.  (A long time ago, I had 16.  Now, I've been focusing on my most financially rewarding businesses and discarding the others.)

         Every day, they print money for me.

         The difference between the financially wealthy and the financially poor is the consistency of money machines you own. 

         In Bible times, sheep or cows were their money machines. That's why it says, Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds…  (Proverbs 27:23)  In the same way, you also need to give careful attention to your money machines.

Two Stages of Your Financial Life

         I got this piece of wisdom from my friend Rex Mendoza.

         He said that there are two stages in our financial life.

         In the first stage, man works for money.

         The second stage, money works for man.

         Sadly, there are many people who don't reach Stage 2.

         They get stuck in Stage 1. Consequently, they're very busy doing things they're not happy about.

         Because in Stage 2, they can now do anything they want. The irony is that when they do what they really want to do, they can earn even more money.

Are You Busy Getting Rich Or Are You Just Busy?

         Someone said, "If the devil can't make you bad, he'll make you busy.”

         Many people are so busy!

         Busy earning money. In the process, they lose their family life, their health, and their spiritual life.

         So busy, they don't ask themselves the question, "Is this the best way to earn money?”

         But in Stage 2, people start owning automated money machines. These machines print money for them every day.

         Then they stop just being busy. They become busy getting rich in all areas of their life.  They spend more time with their families. They serve God. And they do what they love, thereby earning more money.

         May your dreams come true,

         Bo Sanchez

7 Laws of Aggressiveness

The greatest dreams are always unrealistic. - Will Smith

            If you want to become wealthy, you need to be aggressive.

            If you want to be entrepreneurs, you have to be aggressive.

            If you want to be great employees—not just mediocre ones—you have to be aggressive.

            Single-minded.

            Pro-active.

            Focused.

            Here are the 7 Laws of Aggressiveness:

1. The Law of Clarity

            People ask me, "How were you able to achieve all that you have achieved?”

            Here's my answer: "I know what I want. I imagine it. I dream it.”

            How can you be aggressive if you don't know what you want?

            People who aren't clear with what they want will always be lukewarm, wishy-washy, tepid, non-committed.

The more precise these thoughts are, the quicker it becomes a reality

            When Tiger Woods was 8 years old, he already said, "I will break all golf world records and be the number one golfer in the world.”

            When Steven Spielberg was 12 years, he already said, "I will tell stories to the world through movies.”

            When Bill Clinton was still in Yale, Hilary said that he told everyone he met, "One day, I'll be the President of the United States.”

            They were clear about what they wanted.

            Are you?

            Review your dreams.

           

2. The Law of Focus

            An aggressive person is totally focused.

            At any time, you only can focus on one thing.

The more focused you are, the quicker it becomes reality.

            Single-minded.

            (More on this on Habit 7.)

3. The Law of Intensity

           

            Show me a successful person, and I'll show you a passionate person.

            If you have not yet discovered your passion, you've not yet discovered your path to success.

            Be intense! Be passionate! Be on fire!

            Note: I'm not talking of obsession.

            We want to live a life of balance. 

            But to succeed in business, you need to have passion for what you do.

4. The Law of Action

            Let me ask you a question:

            Six frogs were sitting on the fence. One frog decided to jump off. How many are left?

            If you answered 5, you're wrong.

            The correct answer is all 6 are still sitting on the fence. 

            Because I said "One frog decided to jump.” 

            But did he really jump?

            Many people just make decisions.

            "I'm deciding to diet tomorrow.”

            "I'm deciding to quit smoking.” 

            "I'm deciding to get rich.”

            Will something happen?

            Aggressive people don't just decide. 

            Aggressive people don't leave the place where they made their decision without putting their decision into action.

            Unless you act, nothing happens.

            One of my most favorite quotes is from the CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt.

            He said, "Fail quickly. So you can try again.”  

            This has been the story of my life.

5. The Law of Hustle

            If one door is closed, look for an open door somewhere.

            You don't give up until you succeed.

            Walt Disney was turned down 302 times before he got financing for his dream of creating the "Happiest Place on Earth."

            Colonel Sanders spent two years driving across the United States looking for restaurants to buy his chicken recipe. He was turned down 1,009 times! How successful is Kentucky Fried Chicken today?

            Aggressive people hustle.

            They always look for the open door.

6. The Law of Gestation

     

            There's a timing in everything.

            The baby has to stay in his mother's womb for nine months.

            You can't force the baby to come out in one month or two months.

I believe there's also the right timing for the birth of your achievements.

            Wait for the right time.

            Remember: Success is 90 percent preparation and 10 percent action.

            You don't wait for luck. You create it.

            But how? 

            Let me define luck for you: Luck is when preparation meets opportunity.

            When opportunity comes, you're prepared!

            So keep preparing now for your great success.

7. The Law of Integrity

            Everything you do must come from love.

            You can be a loving person and an aggressive person at the same time.

            In fact, you are aggressive because you love.

            Naturally, entrepreneurs focus on money. 

            But there are two types of income.

            There's monetary income. And psychic income. 

            In psychic income, the entrepreneur believes he's making this world a better place—by giving jobs, by giving his product, by being a businessman.

            Remember that you're a great person.

            Don't ask, "Am I worthy of these goals?” 

            Ask, "Are these goals worthy of me?”

How Aggressive Are You?

            I read the life story of Sylvester Stallone and it moved me.

            Stallone was born in poverty. In fact, his mother gave birth to him in the steps of a school. 

            When he grew up, he spoke with a slurred speech all his life. 

            Yet his dream was to be an actor.

            Obviously, no one wanted to hire him. 

            But the man had hustle.

            Every day, he sat in front of the Director until he was given a bit part in a movie. After that, no one wanted to hire him again. 

            One day, he became so poor, he sold his dog for $50. 

            That was heartbreaking for him. 

            He then wrote a movie script that nobody wanted. 

            Finally, after many rejections, one production house said they want to buy the script for $75T on one condition: Someone else would play the main role.

            Stallone rejected their offer because he wanted to play the main role. 

            The production house raised the price to $225T—for as long as Stallone would agree that someone else would play the main role. 

            He rejected them again. 

            Finally, they offered him an offer he couldn't refuse: $1M. 

            But he rejected that too. 

            So they offered $35T for the script—with him in the starring role. 

            He accepted! 

            And as they say, the rest is history: That movie was Rocky and it grossed $171 Million. It also won 10 Academy Awards including Best Actor and Best Picture of the Year. That one movie started his meteoric rise to stardom.

            (By the way, when he became rich, he bought back his dog!)

            That, my friend, is aggressiveness.

            After reading his life story, I realized why many are not successful. We're simply not aggressive enough.

Rate Your Aggressiveness

           

            Do you give up easily?

            Do you get discouraged and become passive?

            From a scale of 1 to 10, rate your aggressiveness towards your dreams. 

            1 is totally passive while 10 is Stallone's aggressiveness.

           

            Aggressiveness Rating:                                  

            How can you be more aggressive?

            Next Habit: Money Machines.

            May your dreams come true,

            Bo Sanchez

5 Cultural Roots That Rob Us of Our Aggressiveness

The world is moving so fast these days that the man who says it can't be done

is generally interrupted by someone doing it.

Elbert Hubbard

• You ask your husband, "Have you fixed the roof?” He answers, "I'll do it next week.  It leaks only when it rains anyway.”

• You ask your son, "Have you bought a new battery for the car?” He answers, "Next month. It still starts if you give it a little push anyway…”

• You ask your friend, "Have you started investing?” He answers, "I'll do that after I get over my bills. Besides, God will provide for my needs…”

• You ask your sister, "Have you renewed your insurance policy?” "Not yet! Been so busy. So far, nothing bad is happening with me anyway. And if something happens, you'll take care of my kids, right?”

            I agree with my wealthy foreigner friend. 

He said, "I haven't seen a more polite, courteous, and nicer people than the Filipino.”

            This is indeed our strength.

            And that's why we're the best employees in the world.

            That's why our biggest export is Overseas Filipino Workers.

            We export the best nurses, teachers, managers, domestic helpers, engineers, and seamen.

            But our strength is our weakness: We're too subservient, we lack aggressiveness.

            Where does this come from?

            There are 5 Cultural Roots that rob us of our aggressiveness:

1. Haciendero Complex

            When we were mostly farmers, we had a haciendero who would take care of all our needs. Food, housing, education of the kids, hospitalization,…

            To this day, we still want someone to care for us.

            To many Filipinos, the President of the Republic of the Philippines has become the biggest haciendero. The governors and mayors and congressmen have become the new hacienderos. People depend on them. They ask them for everything.

            We've lost our aggressiveness because of the Haciendero complex.

2. Bahala Na! Attitude

            May I give you common examples?

            You ask your son, "Did you study for the tests today?”

            He answers, "Bahala na!”

            You ask your husband, "Did you tune up the car for our trip to Baguio?”

            He answers, "Bahala na!”

            You ask your friend, "Did you go to the doctor for your checkup?”

He answers, "Bahala na!”

            "Bahala na!” means whatever happens, happens.

            It's fatalism. Que sera, sera.

            The word may have come from our old Filipino word, "Bath-Allah” which was our name for God. So "Bahala” could have meant, "I trust God.”

            But we twisted the meaning and made it fatalistic.

           

3. Lotto Culture

            One day, I was talking to a woman who had large debts.

            I asked her how she plans to pay her loans. 

            She said, "I'm buying lotto tickets.”

            I was about to laugh when I realized it wasn't a joke. This was her only plan.

            Everywhere I go, when I ask the poor, "How will you get rich?” they always give the same answer, "I buy lotto tickets.”

            Nowadays, another kind of lotto has appeared: Noonday TV shows.

            Poor people pin their hopes on winning these contests to rise above their poverty. For the poor, lotto isn't a game.

            It's their only hope.

            I feel so sad. 

            That's why I've made it my passion to teach financial literacy.

            By the way, some people treat network marketing (or multi-level marketing) like the lotto. It's a common invitation. "Join us,” our friend says, "because all you have to do is buy the basic package, ask two friends to join you, and you'll earn millions.”

            That's not true. 

            My close friends who are very successful in network marketing work like crazy. Some of them work 10 hours a day. Believe me, it's not a lotto ticket. It's something better—hard work that's fulfilling and helping people at the same time.

4. Manana Habit

            One man said: "I will stop procrastination—starting tomorrow!”

            It's a close cousin of "Bahala Na!”

5. Crab Mentality

            I mentioned this earlier.

            I've met a lot of people who are afraid of what others will say.

            In our culture, some people will look down on you because you're aggressive.

            Some won't like it that you're aiming too high.

            Some won't like you anymore because you're trying to succeed.

            Some will criticize you because you're becoming wealthy.

            Some will even create dirty gossip about how you got rich.

            I urge you: Don't mind the crabs.

            Fulfill your dreams anyway.

            May your dreams come true,

            Bo Sanchez