Wealth Coach Diaries | A Note From Judith

2010 crept in under a blanket of snow, rather than coming in with the more customary bang.   After my month off in the Caribbean sunshine, sub-zero temperatures came as quite a shock delaying my return to full productivity still further in a way I rather enjoyed as it gave me at least three weeks to be acclimatising, thinking, planning and working on my financial intentions for the year.

There will be changes, of course.   There always are.   And no matter how distressing while we come to terms with them, in our heart of hearts we all know that change is good for us and that it all works out for the best in the end.   Whatever you have planned for your own new year, I hope it’s a good one.

Now, what has this Wealth Coach been up to in the last couple of weeks?

Weekly Wealth Webinars, Wednesdays at 11 a.m.

The Money Gym saw the beginning of term on Wednesday last week with our weekly wealth webinar at 11 a.m.   We run these now in three terms of 12 weeks and we rotate the topics between general wealth creation in the first week, followed by Mainly About Property, Mainly About Business and Mainly About the Internet on each of the following three weeks, then repeating the pattern three times in each term.   The general wealth creation call is open to all our clients including Silver and then all the other calls are for current and past Gold, Platinum and Boardroom clients.   They are generally all recorded so if you are entitled to attend but unable to do so, you can listen again later.   You can call in live or listen live on the web too.

How do you join?   Log into the Money Gym website and go to the home page of your level of membership and hit on the Webinar Access button which takes you to a further page with two buttons which lead to the schedule on one and the access details on another.

If you are a Silver member, note the dates for your diary of 10th February and 10th March and then the next two terms start (with Silvers again) on 21st April and 8th September.   If you don’t know whether or not you are entitled to attend, or you have forgotten how to log into the website or can’t find the information you need, then do please let us know.   We send weekly reminders to all current clients and usually one annual reminder to all alumni who are welcome to join or re-join us at any time then want another boost with their wealth creation activities.   Wednesdays at 11, come on down.

Money Gym Google Groups

Similarly we have been reconnecting with our community via all our Google Groups where topics of interest over the last twenty days have included investing in Champagne, rent2own, Facebook fan pages, buying and selling businesses, membership club sites, Cashflow, article marketing, Twitter, 2010 goal-setting, estate agents, time management tools, sales training, proof-reading, saving money, thriftiness, recipes, making videos, manifestation, debt, credit ratings, Warren Buffet, rooms to rent and sharing resources.   Phew!

I notice that one of our groups has 260 members and Google describes its activity as “low”.  Everything’s relative, Google! Plenty are overwhelmed by their membership of any single one of our Google groups let alone all of them.   There are ways to cope with this.   You never need to keep a single email because they are all archived on each group’s website and keyword searchable. You can set your membership to send you a daily digest instead of an email each time anyone posts and you can operate my favoured Scan/Delete policy which means I have deleted all those I receive before bedtime every day, having replied to any where I have something to offer.   Simple.

Out and About

Nicola and I had lunch with uber successful Neil Asher last week and we both went for the recession-beating £8.25 menu at Carluccio’s and Neil paid.   Boy did he get a bargain!   The two of us for that price.   Neil describes himself in an email to me today as a “self-made multi millionaire with seven businesses in five countries”, just the sort of chap you want to have buy you lunch on a bleak Thursday in snowy January.   He looks like Davie Bowie which was a bit of a surprise and he wasn’t in the least bit phased by Nicola and I chatting, laughing and coming up with ideas and stories at top speed on the hoof.

He’s very abundant, and wrote later to ask after my Top 10 Wish List for 2010 in case he could help me achieve any of them and offering his hopes that we would develop a great friendship in time.

I must confess to having to ask Nicola and Neil himself “were you truly wafted here from Paradise?” – you just don’t often see such giving and abundance.   What a role model.

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How tall will you grow?

So is this really the last newsletter of 2009 or the first of 2010?  What an honour to have this place to describe another month in the life of a wealth coach!

I’m sort of in the middle of a house move that’s taking a longer than average time to complete.

We bought a new house two weeks ago and immediately set to, lining up builders (headed by Dave) to put Velux windows in the roof and an electrician (Phil) to re-wire the place, all ready to go as soon as we took possession.

The electrician arrived and as we waited, me expecting Dave to join us, Phil shared “Didn’t Dave tell you he was on holiday this week?”. Builders – they do seem to deserve their reputation!

So we now have two houses, one in a state of some disrepair and being decorated or prepared for decorating as it seems to have last been attended to in the 1970’s. We do hope that, in addition to this becoming a loving family home, a bit of what Gill Fielding calls “buff and fluff” will add value to our new acquisition, almost overnight.

We’ve chosen to take out an insurance policy to cover the mortgage in the event of my death and I’ve discovered that I’ve now reached the age when people will no longer take my word that I’m in good working order but require me to have a medical to prove it! Fortunately this was made easier by the fact that the nurse would come to visit me – and rang the doorbell promptly at exactly 8.30am on Sunday morning. Impressive. The medical was swift, professional and comprehensive. It has been proved beyond doubt that I am a non-smoker and I’ve had my height measured for the first time in over 30 years!

All this activity has set me thinking…

Property. Despite the scorch of being burned by the fallout from Passive Investments and the gloom still oozing around the credit crunch and recession, I find I still have faith in property. Yes, although the Passive blow hurts I guess I’m in a position where I can see how I might deal with this. I also know it has taught or maybe reinforced some important lessons for me.

I guess each of us takes different things from life but in my case, recent events have helped me to learn:

• to be happy being a cautious investor.
• what I thought was due diligence wasn’t diligent enough and I’ll do better next time
• if it feels too good to be true, it might well be
• whether “they” are victims or rogues, I still need to deal with my issues, not theirs
• the worst case scenario is worth preparing for, just in case
• when you’ve done the sums and they add up go for it anyway because nothing in life is risk free.

Perhaps this also reminds me that “Good decisions are based upon experience and that experience is gained by making bad decisions.” Another notch up on the experience scale.

During 2010 I will continue to invest in property, to do my sums and follow my chosen strategy. I might even try something new, letting shared accomodation. Any tips for me? I am older and wiser, in different ways richer and in others, poorer.

And as I look at life over 2009 I see how it is easy to blame others when things don’t go well, whether “others” are family, business colleagues, bankers or political leaders. It’s so much easier to be judgemental with the benefit of hindsight! For me, the important thing is to learn lessons, apply them and to move on.

I get slightly scared and certainly disappointed when I see what looks like the “tall poppy syndrome” in action. You know that…. when seeing a poppy that stands taller than the rest, cut it down so it doesn’t show-up the shorter (underachieving?) poppies! It’s also important for me to use or apply my values to personal and business situations and accept that others may have different values. Doesn’t mean I can’t learn from them and apply lessons to my own life!

Guess I also know that it can be lonely being a tall poppy. How many of you have faced the scorn of family or friends when you have decided on financial freedom and maybe the pain of other people doing the “Told you so” routine when you had the courage to take action?

One of my coaching clients has recently invested in developing their wealth awareness with Gill Fielding… I know many of you will know Gill from either the Wealth Creation Conference, The Secret Millionaire or even Stephanie Hale’s Women Millionaire’s Bootcamp.

When my client returned home, a protective partner pointed out that Gill was a scammer of the highest order, only after her money and… I suspect many of you can fill in the blanks having faced similar situations yourself. It takes courage and determination to stand out from the crowd, to commit yourself to taking action, to growing wealthier and wiser. Even though we know that successful, wealthy people have also learned to deal with losing money before making more, it’s still hard when that’s the lesson we are walking through.

My client has responded by immediately working to strengthen her positive beliefs, to completing a daily gratitude journal and finding a positive community of people to support her progress in 2010. Go for it girl. Be that tall poppy!!

This year I’ve also learned that my feet have grown a shoe size and I seem to have gained half an inch in height….

So what have you learned in 2009 and how tall will you grow?

Here’s to a great Christmas and New Year celebration and to a prosperous 2010!

Have You Taken Up Residence On Your Couch For December?

Sitting on my couch, among my new set of cushions, reflecting on 2009 and thinking ahead to 2010, I’m struck by how certain times of year lend themselves particularly to this kind of introspective thinking.

Easter, with the promise of spring and new life, September with the start of the new school year (and even us grownups still remember that feeling!) and of course Christmas with the impending New Year.

Funny old days, in early December, are they not?   It’s very, very dark, at both ends of the day, and recently it’s felt like it’s never going to stop raining.  One can hardly remember the sun or the sunny days of Summer and it seems an awfully long way off to next summer, that’s for sure!  The couch seems the best place to be, with Strictly or X-Factor on the TV and the heating on full.

The New Year is coming quicker than lightning but all we want to do is wind down to Christmas!

On the one hand some of the country go into a spending spree and Christmas decorating spasm, and on the other hand, some people are quietly emailing tales of woe, stories of quiet desperation and harsh self-criticism about another year gone by – wasted!  Months of procrastination, prevarication leading to …………….absolutely no results.

Do you secretly feel really cross because your 2009 has not progressed you to where you want to be, financially?  Perhaps you have been one of the pension holders or property investors affected by the credit crunch in some way or other and you rather hopefully had all your eggs in one basket?

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Why I Have Sent Tudor Equity A Cheque For £2.5k With A Smile On My Face by Clare Hanbury

Money Gym Subscriber Clare Hanbury-Leu says: The relationship with Passive Investments was built on trust. I have trusted them to find the right properties – to renovate them to a high standard – to rent them out as quick as they can – to advise on the best mortgage deal – to re-mortgage and turn things around as soon as they can etc.

Most of us must be happy to accept risk to put so much trust into the hands of people we don’t know well. My friends, my financial adviser, my partner all felt nervous of the arrangement and advised against it but I pursued it – uncharacteristically ignoring their advice. My instinct felt strong on this one.

I have been involved with Passive Investments for 3 years and have two properties. The rental on one of these was a little slow in coming and the turnaround on the first mortgage again a little slow. I had one property fall through and lost a bit of money on legal costs and survey etc. All this said, I have been delighted with the results of the investments to date and delighted with every contact I have had with the company. I have felt totally supported by them. I like having them in my life. Every glitch, every query has been dealt with quickly, politely, humorously.  I have been happy to talk to two potential clients and chat through my experiences with them.

I have had some contact with Greg in the last few months and found him open and straightforward. He is an ideal business partner. Even prior to my contact with him there was no doubt in my mind that these are very tough times for the company with its peculiar business model that clients pay when we have done well and not until then! I am staggered that he has stuck at it as long as he has with no salary. I know he has worked for the future of his own properties (which is good thing) but he has also worked free for me too!

When the letter came though last week, the trust I had placed in them suddenly felt foolish. However after a few minutes indulging in panic…most of what I felt was what a WASTE of the talent and expertise that is this team. I felt upset that I would not complete the portfolio. I felt nervous about having to deal with the properties on my own and I felt frustrated to have to do so when they have a good system in place. I have a property in London too which I manage myself and would much rather it was in Passive’s care! Then I read that Steve wanted to keep things going with the team there and I was keen to know how I could help.

So…..there is this 2.5k (which is a LOAN) to help Tudor Equity capitalise – this is money that the very same advisers, partners friends etc will describe as throwing good money after bad – but I don’t think so. From a numbers point of view…Because the 15K back payment /property has been reduced to 10K this means that by the end of completing the portfolio of 5 properties, there will be a SAVING to me of 25K from the original agreement AND I’ll get the 2.5 loan back.

Hmnnn why is this a difficult one to agree to? I guess that it’s difficult because of trust. Do I trust them again? The way I see it is that they have ALREADY done so much for me re: my properties that they have ‘earned’ this AND if the team don’t think they can make a go of it because there are not enough of us signed up – we’ll get the money back anyway…and if they DO think they can make a go of it – well I am willing to give them an opportunity to do so.

My cheque is on its way to them with a smile on my face. I really want to help keep this business going and I am grateful to them for giving us a chance. I have not yet spoken to anyone outside of Passive and I have not looked on the internet to read what is being said so my words are unaffected by others’ opinions.

I don’t see any point in NOT supporting the team now. I feel the market is not only stabilising but strengthening – I think we all know this and what we also know is that we have a dedicated team and they will be even more so if this can go ahead. I really hope there are enough of us to give them a chance to navigate a path to creating a robust business again. I’m sure they can do it. The banks won’t help but I will.

Clare Hanbury B.Ed (Cambridge) MSc (London) MA (London)
International Development Consultant ClareHanbury.com

Passive Investments In Liquidation | The Money Gym

Read The Latest Money Gym Statement Here>>>>

Nicola says: Following the shocking news that Passive Investments have gone into liquidation, and that Andy Shaw and Greg Ballard are being made bankrupt by one of their larger creditors, many people are asking us to comment, both on the blog and in our private google group.

When I first met Greg and Andy, back in 2004 I think it was, they struck me as two highly intelligent, funny, energetic, successful guys, who had been in traditional business before, who thought very differently to many people and who had created a FANTASTIC model for investing in property. They were also helping their friends and family invest in the same way, on a fairly small scale, as well as building their own portfolios which numbered about 150 properties in those days.

I immediately knew that our Money Gym clients would love to meet them and hear about this method of investing in property, getting your money back out and going again, as the need to leave money in a property was frustrating many of our clients. We organised an Open Day at my hotel, The Acacia, and many of the clients who were there wanted Greg & Andy to do it for them, like they were doing for their nearest and dearest. Greg and Andy put together an offering, and I spread the word into the Money Gym group of clients and subscribers.

I introduced them to Gill Fielding, my first wealth mentor, who immediately invested with them, ditto Maria Davies. Gill then started presenting this opportunity for them. When Gill could no longer present, Maria Davies took over for a while.

Everyone loved the concept, especially busy professionals and people who wanted to invest in property but didn’t have the first clue about how to go about it. Most people really took to Greg and Andy too, as they shared their knowledge freely, helping many, many people make money along the way. I particularly remember one lunch where they helped a Money Gym client to negotiate a purchase, making him an extra £80,000 along the way. They then took him under their wing and mentored him for a while in his own property deals.

Pretty soon, they were so swamped with people wanting them to invest for them, that they had to create a company to handle the demand. Passive Investments was born.

We are also aware that they then developed a “private investor” scheme whereby people with money sitting idle in a low interest bank account lent the money to Greg and Andy personally for bigger property projects, and because I was not one of those people, I didn’t find out any further details and they never sought a public platform for that opportunity though the Money Gym.

My sister Sarah and brother-in-law Nick invested, my sister Heather invested, Steve Watson and I both bought a “place” each too. I would have happily bought more “places” if I could. The company still owe us for some of the second “place” so my family and I are all out of pocket as well as those of our clients who chose to invest alongside us.

One ray of hope is that those of our clients and family who have properties may make up the monies they have lost (by having paid a fee for a service that now won’t be delivered) AND may ultimately end up better off, due to now not having to pay Passive the agreed “back end” fee on the eventual refinancing of their properties.

Judith Morgan, ex-accountant, Money Gym client and now our business partner, invested the entirety of her inheritance from her Mother into her two “places”. This should have meant ten properties in the fullness of time but she only has three. Her portfolio could not be grown once it became impossible to achieve mortgages or re-finance.

I have heard some horrible stories going around about things that Greg and Andy are supposed to have said and done and while I have no personal knowledge of those things, I’m working on the “innocent ‘till proven guilty” theory. I have always liked and respected Andy and Greg, and I feel sure that most of the rumours are unfounded.

Only yesterday Andy’s website was apparently hacked into, allegedly by someone known to the company, and a personal message to members and investors was changed beyond all recognition to cast the worst possible light on Andy. Here is a link to Andy’s correct personal statement.   Remember to click on the Free User button and then the blue Download button.

We have also been re-educating our clients during the credit crunch to take a more active role in managing ALL their investments, including this one which was originally intended to be passive.  You might want to read about one of our clients (who is not alone by any means) who feels that she will go forward with Tudor Equity, the company that some of the management team is putting together to take the portfolios forward.

Feel free to comment on the blog here but be aware that we reserve the right not to publish any comments that are potentially libellous or are simple repeating content from other people’s blogs or emails.

Later Note: James Tickell, director of Portland Business & Financial Solutions, the insolvency practice chosen to disband the Passive Investments empire, says the matrix of firms will formally enter liquidation on 11 December.

Contact:  London Office, 43 Pall Mall, London, SW1Y 5JG, Tel: 020 7925 2651 / Fax: 020 7925 2652 / Office email: post@portbfs.co.uk

A Week In The Life Of Another Wealth Coach: Philly Fuggle

As Judith mentioned in last week’s newsletter, between now and Christmas, all of us coaches will be sharing with you a bit about what we are up to.  Judith called on me to be the first, because I think she was a bit concerned that I would not get to do my bit before I got myself all tied up in dirty nappies and sleepless nights and before I started talking “Ga Ga” to you all.

Yes that is right, for those of you who did not know, I am expecting, due on 8th December and soon to be a Mum.  So as you can imagine life in Philly’s world is all go, along with the baby preparations, I am busy automating as many of my tasks as possible and getting things in place so our wealth creation activities keep building for us whilst we have a bit of time off to welcome our new family member.

This week has been an eye opening and exciting week for me with the start of a year’s relationship with a wonderful new Gold Client, being hit by the “Boiler Bang” and meeting a COMPLETE newbie to the internet.

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Key Success Secrets – Part 1 | Introduction

In the early days of my wealth coaching career, I was always very focused on the practical, the down to earth, the “how-to” of becoming wealthy.  I’d read all the books out there on the market on the principles of wealth creation, becoming rich, the power of belief and focus, attraction principles and I was angry and frustrated!

Because none of them told you how to make money!  None of them laid out a step by step plan of  HOW TO ACTUALLY DO IT!

So my first book The Money Gym – which started as an email programme, I was not arrogant enough to think I had a book in me – was written out of that frustration;  I wanted to give you a step by step, logical plan for how to make money and even become rich.

I wrote it as I wanted it, simple, easy to understand, with pictures.  I tried to include (and credit) the best bits of all I had read or heard, from Robert Kiyosaki to Napoleon Hill, from Steven Covey to Mary Hunt, from Gill Fielding to Robert G. Allen, especially where it was helping me and making a positive difference to the way I thought and particularly to the way I acted.

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Overseas Property: 10 Years of Free Holidays + Your Money Back – and more!

I know I have been banging on ever since the Property Extravaganza about RED and how it’s all about pensions and SIPPs – and it is.

And about how a self-employed person without a pension can create a really meaningful one in only 10 years with only £25k and no more often using the “free” money locked up in their existing paltry little pension – and that’s right as well.

But RED does all sorts of other interesting things too and this week’s story concerns 10 years free holidays for the price of one, plus your money back (guaranteed) plus the capital gain on your original stake.

Most people ask me to say that again when I tell them about it because it sounds too good to be true!   Can I just leave you to read that bit in bold a second time please?

Do you know what the average price of a family holiday is?   £3,600.

And with Red, £2,000 or £3,000 would buy you a two week “bit” of a property which is prime beachfront or golf-front in any of the Top 10 sunshine holiday destinations in the world where sunseekers and golfers holiday all-year round.

Your investment would entitle you to stay there for those two weeks for each of the next 10 years if you wanted to, or rent it out privately yourself if you did not or for only an additional £99 you could even swap it to go somewhere entirely different instead.

I know, sounds a bit like timeshare, doesn’t it?   But it’s not.  Because at the end of the 10 years, the property is sold, you get your original stake back PLUS your share on any capital uplift on the building.

For instance, if your £3,000 had bought you a stake in a leveraged beachfront apartment in Spain costing £250,000 and the property had doubled in value in those 10 years, you would be entitled to an additional £10,000 back.

So, let’s get this straight, Judith.

• I pay £3,000 (approximately)?   Yes.
• I get 10 years’ free holidays? Yes.
• I get my original £3,000 back at the end of the 10 years, GUARANTEED*?   Yes.
• Plus any capital gain on my share of the building when it’s sold, which could be anything from zero to £10,000 or more?   Yes.
• And I can do this as many times as I like?   Yes.
• And I can do this with multiple units without involving a SIPP at all – either for my private use or via the reinvestment programme where it compounds like gangbusters?   Yes.
• Or even mix and match – some for private use, some for reinvestment?   Yes.

*And what’s more, your original £3,000 stake is guaranteed by Lloyds of London never to fall below that in value.

I know.   The Red story just gets better and better.   And this is only the second chapter, there’s more next week and next week and next week, until I run out of delights to share with you.

Want to hear more about Free holidays?   After me!   Contact me judith [at] themoneygym.com for more information and a telephone consultation.

Next week: How to hoover up all those tedious bits of dreary ISAs, disappointing under-performing investments various including stocks and shares and savings accounts and so on and convert them into RED “bits” which give you a guaranteed return of 20% per annum, straight or compounded for an even more sexy return.   You have read the chapter in Nicola’s book about compounding, haven’t you???

RED – the only investment product we have yet seen where your original stake is guaranteed not to fall, underpinned by Lloyds of London.   Woo hoo!

Money Gym conversations with my hairdresser by Annie Kaszina

Last week my hairdresser gave me a big hug and told me I was one of the two people who had changed his life.

Ok, I’ll admit I simpered a little with delight.  Because I love to help people.  That’s how I get my good feelings.

D.’s been doing my hair for years now.  He’s the best hairdresser I’ve ever had.  Apparently, I’m one of his best clients.  Now, I’m not a big spender on hair (unlike one woman I know who freely admits to having spent some £200,000 [sic] on her one daughter’s hair and her own).  But D. and I have great conversations; ‘Money Gym conversations’, I call them.

‘Money Gym conversations’ are those conversations when you share a little of the information you have gleaned, with someone you know.  Maybe you’ve done it yourself.  You say something and suddenly you hear a few little crashes, as scales fall from the other person’s eyes.

D. and I had conversations like that about property as I sat with a head full of silver foil, and he became a confident property investor. One time he talked about making an ‘aesthetic improvement’ he fancied to his home.  He had been well and truly ‘sold’ something he did not need, something that would never, ever, add value to the property. (It gave me chest pain!) We talked about it for 20 minutes, while he did my highlights.  In the end he decided that the £20,000 was better in his pocket.

Phew!

What did he do with the money?  There were a couple of trips to the Far East.  Also he reduced his workload so he can spend 1 day a week working on his business development.  He wants to do fashion shoots – he’s certainly good enough – and he can afford to do unpaid work 1 day a week, while he gets his face and his talents known.

The latest thing is he has expressed an interest in the RED scheme.  He hadn’t given his pension any thought, so it would kill a couple of birds with one stone for him.

That’s one of the great things about the Money Gym.  You learn a whole different outlook on money.  It’s another way, often a very powerful way, to add value to other people’s lives.  Even better, when you can do it with some simple information.

It kind of blows that hoary old anxiety: “But-if-I-make-money-people-mightn’t-like-me” right out of the water.  Doesn’t it?

It’s always possible if – or, more correctly, when- you make money that there will be some people out there who will take it personally.  They will feel aggrieved, but you already know that.  These people operate from an unconscious scarcity mind-set.  In their world-view there is a pot, and it has only a certain sum of money in it.  Somehow, the amount you should have, has been pre-ordained.  (These people are the duly (self-)appointed arbiters of how much that is.)   When you take more, you are, therefore, in their humble opinion, depriving others of their meagre pittance.

Now, my wonderful hairdresser is the first person in his family to own even one home, but that sort of consideration has never bothered him.  He got the point of property investment, and growing his wealth, quite quickly.  (There were a couple of occasions when his nerve wobbled a little, and I quaked in my boots, because badly hacked hair I do not need.  So while he mixed up the tint and marinated my head, I took charge of the situation, we did a bit of positive belief work and by the time the tint was ready for washing off, he was safe to cut my hair.  PHEW!)

But then, D. had already resolved that old ‘…but they may not like me’ baggage.  It was one of the things that endeared him from the start.  The first time I met him, he walked into my kitchen carrying a bag that bore the sign: “I can only please one person a day.  Today is not your day, and tomorrow is not looking good either…”

Supposing you can only please one person today, and tomorrow, and the day after, and – you get my drift – with your wealth creation efforts, who will you focus on?

Money Gym Success | Debbie Bissett

Debbie Bissett, dynamic business woman and Money Gym Gold client, shares some of the secrets of her success and how we “coached” her into starting to make money for herself, rather than always for other people.   This video is a 10 minute clip from the Money Gym Business Surgery workshop, which we filmed for our Gold clients in India, Switzerland and Australia.

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