Archive for November, 2009
Intellectualizing life
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Intellectualizing Life
One of the things I observe with the advent of the internet is that everybody can and does have a voice. This is a wonderful thing of course. The flip side of it though is that we also get to see inside peoples heads and worlds in ways we would never have imagined.
I notice this in 2 main ways:
1. The things people say “publicly” on Facebook, Myspace and the other social media outlets is incredible. I think it is an incredibly unhealthy way to air things that we would never otherwise do. The Bible talks a lot about the folly of words spoken in haste and this is clearly seen in the many unfortunate arguments, marriage break ups and unkind words that ends up on the net, never to be erased.
2. The other thing I notice particularly through my online circles around personal development and wealth creation is an alarming trend to intellectualise our problems and our lives. I say alarming because I read so many people trying to “fix” things in their lives through knowledge alone and in my lifetime I have found it simply doesn’t work. I have trained and worked with thousands of people in the area of wealth creation and property investment for example and working on the real estate between their ears is ALWAYS the biggest job. People self sabotage and through low self esteem, fear and lack of discipline far more than they ever fail through a lack of strategies and techniques.
So the luxury afforded to us by the likes of the internet spawns an enormous amount of pontification on subjects little known by the authors and your ability to gain an audience is determined by your SEO skills rather than any real ability to help others.
I come across sites these days that are specifically designed to generate internet traffic off a key word so they have automatically generated content. No real human being is really involved at all. So the problem with that is if someone is suicidal for example and looks for help on the net they could land on a site that has all the appearance of being what they want but when they read the first 3 posts or articles they will be advised to
- click here to go through regressive rebirth therapy where you can access your previous lives and deal with the issue
- click here to get some awesome drugs that will solve the problem or
- click here to find someone to have sex with which will somehow solve the problem
So this mass information, cerebral age we are witnessing, whilst it has incredible benefits is also creating a world of lies and deception where you can no longer trust what you read or see. And it is almost impossible to teach people how to discern the real from the drivel as we have so lost our way spiritually. Only by being connected to absolute truth can you discern error and that just isn’t PC in today’s world.
I hope I have “disturbed” you enough to have you thinking about this for the rest of the day. What is real and true and why do I think it is or isn’t? It’s a question you need to be able to answer!!
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Ethical Investing Strategist
School Bus
Posted by: | CommentsOk so this is a school bus in Japan
And this is a school bus in India
So can you tell me why, when something goes wrong with my Japanese made computer I get put through to a call centre in India???
Property Investment Companies
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Property Investment companies have certainly gained an unfortunate reputation in New Zealand courtesy of a raft of them going under and taking millions and millions of dollars of people’s savings with them.
Unfortunately the odd gangster running some of these companies make things worse by hiding their assets and continuing to rub people’s noses in it by their ongoing extravagant lifestyles once they are bankrupt.
The thing about these property investment companies however is what were they trying to achieve really? You see I think a property investment company should be providing good quality property investments right? In the same way I run a property investment education company you would expect me to provide good quality investment education.
Well as an insider in this industry I can tell you that it is very rare to find an investment company that focuses on the client or the property. Sadly the vast majority are focused on one thing, how big a margin can they make out of the property. Their ability and interest in supplying the right advice and then the right property is lacking.
Unlike a real estate agent, whose primary function is to sell a property for as much as possible, property investment companies must learn the concept of clients for life, good faith and above all, honesty.
It is my privilege to work with some of the only property investment companies in the country that do put clients first. In fact some of them use me to vet the properties for their clients to ensure they are doing the right thing. And in addition they either charge a fee or fully disclose their interest in the actual property.
The end result is clients that keep coming back to buy more and more property because they are building successful portfolios. Since 06 I was warning people about Blue Chip and The Docks and other products being marketed by companies that were secretly margin trading property or operating in ways that were not designed to assist their clients. And nearly all of those companies are now gone, taking fortunes with them.
The signs are always there, sometimes you have to get help to dig them out but companies like mine and many others will do that homework and tell you so that you can stay as safe as possible.
This is why I encourage people to take control of their own investing and don’t put your future into the hands of property investment companies that don’t have your best interests at heart. Don’t give the profit away to someone else, bank it yourself!
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The ethical Investing Strategist
Capital Gains Tax, (again).
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Capital Gains Tax
So the news last night has Bernard Hickey being interviewed and labelled as a “Property Commentator”. So good on Bernard for being cleverly marketed but he is no more a property commentator than I am a Ballerina. And this is confirmed by the nonsense he was saying about Capital Gains Tax. I have talked about this this before but the only way to try and stop the foolishness is to keep it out there in the hope that enough of you with influence do something about it.
So first of all CGT was being promoted as the solution to housing affordability. The only problem with that is as soon as you accidentally look up any stats at all you discover that Capital Gains Tax in every country that has it has done zero to slow growth as I explained in detail HERE.
So the argument is so fallacious it seems to have been dropped. Now the so called experts like Bernard are saying it will release funds into businesses which we desperately need. I can hardly believe he could keep a straight face while he was saying it. Think about it for a minute. Property Investors fall into 2 broad groups:
A: Professional multiple owning investors like me, which make up a small minority of total investors and
B: Mum and dad investors who have been shown how to use the equity in their home to buy a second property as a retirement fund.
So the first group will work with Capital Gains Tax and enjoy the UPWARD pressure more tax puts on housing. None of us will move out of property into business lending, hello??
And the second group would no more put money into businesses than fly. Businesses are risky. 90% of them fail. These people, the vast majority of the 190,000 investors will simply keep the property they have or sell it and leave the money in the bank. Neither group is going to create business funding. And if either group did exit housing who on earth is going to house everybody in this country.
It never ceases to amaze me watching people comment on things they know nothing about because they are not actively involved in an industry.
So the only viable reason why the Government is cultivating this drivel can be that they simply see it as an opportunity to increase the tax take and who cares whether it is reasonable or not. I hope I’m wrong about that but I’m struggling to see any other possible reason why such stupid arguments are being raised to introduce something that doesn’t achieve the desired goals.
If we want to control house prices in New Zealand and increase lending to businesses then the Government either needs to legislate directly, (which would be communist in nature but effective) or realise that in a free market economy we don’t always get what we want and we don’t have t pander to every minority nutcase voice demanding to be heard.
I guess if we are willing to ignore the 90% of the population who think the anti smacking bill is wrong and listen to a handful of unqualified zealots try to bring in unworkable taxes I shouldn’t be surprised really.
Rant over. If you have any influence anywhere please get this Capital Gains Tax talked about and let’s try and kill this stupidity before it becomes law.
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
The Ethical Investing Strategist
Gratitude
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Gratitude
I admit to being biased in the sense that being with people always makes me feel good, but I never cease to be humbled by the calibre of people who attend my events. On Saturday people from all over New Zealand (and even some from Oz), gave up a day to learn some key investing strategies for the next 12 months. And the day was for me a never ending stream of thanks and gratitude from those present. I have often commented that I seem to get the “nicest” crowds to events and this was true again so I have to conclude that I attract people with similar values and ethics to myself, hence the affinity I feel.
Gratitude is a powerful force in our lives. A fellow “forgiveness” fan commented on this HERE and it mirrors my thoughts exactly. In my world of running my own events and attending many other people’s I can tell very quickly now whether someone is going to benefit from that event or not. It is written all over their faces usually that they either are thankful for the opportunity to learn something new and network with others or they are really quite resentful of losing a find day and the ticket price.
I remember attending a terrible event once in terms of quality and organisation, it was a shocker. However I spent much of the day talking to 2 people who became key associates of mine. So because my attitude was to be grateful for the opportunities this event presented I gained huge value by being there.
So what area in your life could be improved with an attitude shift today? From grudgery to gratitude, a journey that will change the colour of your world.
Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
Performance Mindset
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I’ve realised something recently that is quite profound (to me), and tragic at the same time. Both as an investor and an educator I am interested in what makes people tick. How can I help someone develop a performance mindset so that they achieve their dreams? How best can I work on the real estate between the ears of an investor so that they get the financial changes they long for?
And I’m proud to say that I have made a significant positive difference to thousands of lives now by sharing what I have found works for me and what I know to be true.
But the profound and tragic part of studying performance mindset is this:
Most people do not believe that getting what they want is possible! They will buy the books, do the seminars and chant the mantras but fundamentally their belief systems tell them that nothing is really going to change. And you know what happens?? Nothing really changes.
Conversely those who do believe in themselves and their ability to design their own lives could get enough inspiration out of reading the tv guide to make a difference in their lives. I see them when I work with them. They are the ones who take 12 months to buy enough property to retire and change their careers and move to Queensland.
Their starting position is no better than the people I met in 2004 at events who are still looking for their first deal.
And if you believe it’s possible then nothing will stop you either. I and many of my friends have taken enormous hits in the last year thanks to a combination of global events etc. To most of us it is an opportunity to learn and get excited over having more skills and facing the challenge of getting our eroded wealth back ASAP.
But so many people are sitting there dying because they just don’t believe they can make a difference in their own lives.
So my friends let me finish today by saying You can make a difference to your own life. It is a principle, like gravity. If you will learn to take steps that will develop you and move you towards your goals you can, will, and in fact must have a different and better life. Only your false belief that fate controls your destiny keeps you stuck, ever.
Get Inspired, Stay Inspired and Stay Safe ~ Dean Letfus
(PS: Really excited to see you all tomorrow 
. Go HERE and scroll to the very bottom to watch last nights webinar on some of the stuff we’re learning tomorrow. And yes you can still come but you need to book today)
