by Keelan Cunningham on February 22, 2012
“Worthy Goal or Cold War Challenge!?: US President John F. Kennedy announces on May 25, 1961, his goal of putting a man on the moon and return him safely to Earth before the end of the 1960s. Bold and audacious, this announcement jump-started NASA’s Apollo program resulting in Neil Armstrong & Co hitting lunar dirt on July 20, 1969…forever altering the course of humanity (Photo: NASA)” ~ Keelan
I believe that the best way to measure your own success is to measure your progress against your own set of predetermined goals in line with your values. When you do this, you stop the comparison game, and carve out your own form of true and meaningful success.
I’ve found that success in life is intrinsically linked to fulfilment and fulfilment comes from filling the voids in your life (which are determined by your values) whilst focusing on the progressive achievement of worthy goals (in line with your values). We’ve all witnessed someone who has all the external trappings of success but deep down inside they feel unfulfilled and even unhappy….Read More
by Keelan Cunningham on February 21, 2012
‘Success leaves clues’ is one of those stock phrases used by personal development legend Tony Robbins. Most often it’s associated with modelling the mindset, behaviour and actions of someone who is successful. But not only does success leave clues but it also needs clues.
What I mean is that success needs success; it requires reference points in the past to know that you have already been successful so that you develop the belief that you can achieve even greater success. The problem is that many people don’t acknowledge their successes to date and so they approach future success from a position of lack rather than abundance.
Many high achievers rarely take the time to acknowledge their success to date. This is a mistake. Taking stock of your successes to date is a seriously important part of setting the overall tone of your life. Taking the time to write down your recent successes is actually great for your state of mind…Read More
by Keelan Cunningham on February 20, 2012
‘Success leaves clues’ is one of those stock phrases used by personal development legend Tony Robbins in his talks and seminars. However, not only does success leave clues but it also actually needs them too when it comes to the mad science of goal setting!
But what kind of clues exactly does success leave and why does it need these clues in order to set future goals? Read on to find out more about this intriguing goal setting tip!
Success is a misunderstood concept if you ask me. Becoming an overnight sensation on X-Factor, or a partner in a law firm, even running a multi-million dollar business etc., may all be worthy examples of what’s commonly thought of as “success”. But in a way these are very clichéd, stereotypical examples of success. What we want to do is define what success means to YOU…Read More
by Keelan Cunningham on December 29, 2011
“Air Guitar World Champion 2010: Markku Hyttinen – Yes, there is actually a air guitar world championship held every year in Finland. So, if do you make it to Destination Absolute Financial Freedom you can pretty much pick up your air guitar and do whatever you want, with whomever you want, as much as you want i.e. play your air guitar all night long!!” ~ Keelan
When you think absolute financial freedom, think total rock star lifestyle! You can pretty much remove any financial limitations and pick up your air guitar for this one!
You will have achieved absolute financial freedom when you can pretty much do whatever you want, with whomever you want, as much as you want – without ever having to worry about money or work again.
So, assuming we’d still like to keep everything we have/do from our financial freedom list, we now add all the new dream capital items we’d love to have that are not in our financial freedom list. For example…Read More…
by Keelan Cunningham on December 28, 2011
“The Harley Davidson – Part Machine, Part Metaphor: Not only is it a metaphor for emotional freedom but also a symbol of financial freedom. A frequent entry on many people’s financial freedom wishlist, not to mention the accompanying roadtrip on Route 66. Certainly, riding a Harley on Route 66 is on my 101 Things to Do Before I Die list. Come get your kicks…” ~ Keelan
You will have achieved financial freedom when you have accumulated a sufficient critical mass of capital to provide enough income for you to live the lifestyle you desire (accounting for inflation) without ever having to work again for the rest of your life. The keyword here is ‘desire’. This is what differentiates financial freedom from its predecessor, financial independence, which is defined more by what you ‘require’ to live reasonably comfortably.
In essence, Financial Freedom would include having and enjoying all the luxuries in life such as….Read More…
by Keelan Cunningham on December 27, 2011
The Legend of the Holy Grail: In this image scene from the film 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade' (1989) we can see Indiana (Harrison Ford) give his father (Sean Connery) a drink from the mythological sacred chalice to heal his wound. Financial Freedom may well be the holy grail of financial well-being but unlike the holy grail, Financial Freedom is potentially available to anyone who wants it bad enough.
Did you know that financial freedom is available to anyone who adjusts their approach to earning income and makes it their business to accumulate a specific dollar amount of money/capital? Well, if your goal is to reach the financial freedom finish line (and it should be!), then just like any goal setting, one of the keys is having absolute clarity on what your end goal looks like. So, what does financial freedom look like? Read on to discover the visual reality of financial freedom using this 5 minute formula…Read More…
by Keelan Cunningham on November 25, 2011
“To Infinity and Beyond: I love this image of this infinity pool overlooking the ocean. Not sure if it totally represents financial independence but it’s fair to say that you have achieved a certain level of financial independence to own a property like this…mortgage free of course!” ~ Keelan.
In previous posts I’ve explained what the first two steps to financial freedom are (Financial Protection & Financial Security) and how much does it cost to achieve each. In this next post we will review what Financial Independence means and what is the target amount of money we need to have to be truly financially free.
You will have achieved financial independence when, through your various investments, you’ve accumulated a critical mass of capital that when invested in a secure environment at a 8% rate of return, provides you with enough cash to meet each of the 6 goals of financial security previously mentioned i.e…Read More…
by Keelan Cunningham on November 23, 2011
"Rogue Trader, Nick Leeson (who interestingly now lives in practically insolvent Ireland) managed to bring down Barings Bank in 1995 all on his own! We now know our banks aren’t as financially secure as they would have us believe. Learning how to manage your own money and becoming your own best financial advisor has never been as important if you want to become financially secure." ~ Keelan
The first step on the road to financial freedom is financial protection. (see my previous post for more on this). In this post I want to explain step # 2: Financial Security and how much it money/capital it costs to actually achieve this.
You will have achieved financial security when through your various investments you’ve accumulated a critical mass of capital, that, invested in a secure environment at an 8% rate of return, provides you with enough cash to meet the following living expenses forever without you having to work again should you chose. For the purpose of this illustration we’re gonna…Read More…
by Keelan Cunningham on November 22, 2011
“Financial Protection: The Fort Knox Gold Bullion Depository in Kentucky, USA under construction circa 1937. President Roosevelt ordered its construction when the The Gold Reserve Act of 1934 effectively banned the private possession of gold. Anyone in possession of anything other than historic coins or jewellery had to sell it to the US Treasury.” ~ Keelan
The key thing to understand about financial freedom is this – no matter how much money you earn, it’s vital to understand that you can only ever achieve financial independence through the generation of non-earned (passive) income i.e. a return on a capital sum invested. Or to put it another way, making money work for us, rather than us working for money!
Now, what I wanted to do was figure out ‘what’s the number’? In other words, how much capital do you need to achieve: 1. financial protection; 2. financial security, and 3. financial independence?
Below I have calculated how much it costs to reach financial protection.
Financial Protection is…Read More…
by Keelan Cunningham on November 21, 2011
What does it take to reach the first 3 destinations on the road to financial freedom?
Everybody, no matter what their current financial circumstances, can achieve the rarefied reality of financial freedom. This article details what it takes to reach the first 3 destinations on the road to financial freedom. So, listen up, as what you are about to read would probably cost you a few hundred dollars if you went to a financial advisor to help work this out. Hopefully, this article will have saved you a trip and a few hundred dollars!
Myths & Misunderstandings about Financial Freedom
You’ll often hear people mention terms like financial security or financial independence in the course of everyday conversation. Within my own social and business circles, practically everyone I know desires some level of financial independence or freedom. However, I’ve found that financial well-being remains hidden and out of reach as a result of fuzzy concepts and even sketchier numbers people have in their head about what these terms mean. Therefore, the first thing I want to do here is dispel any myths or misunderstandings and reveal the true meaning of financial independence and financial freedom.
How Much Does Financial Freedom Really Cost?
The key thing to understand about financial freedom is…Read More…
