Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa September 2013 | Page 70

LESSONS

BY ANGIE REDMOND

Creating YOUR wealth
It all starts with YOU

W

hen you think of the word
‘responsibilit y’ what comes to
m i nd? Most p eople t h i n k of
getting a job, saving money, buying a car,
then a house, followed by marriage and a
white picket fence. Guess what: you just made
yourself poor. Yes, I said it, poor, and why you
may ask? Well, easy: you followed the path of
no resistance and responsibility.

The biggest obstacle to attaining real wealth
is actually YOU. By living your life in a
manner not conducive to creating wealth, you
have failed before you start, but you can change
that, it all comes down to how you think about
your life. The first thing you need to think of
is debt as a disease. There are different types of
debt and the type of debt you want is debt that
is actually earning you money, not costing you
your salary every month. If you are spending
your monthly salary paying off accounts, car
loans and clothing accounts, you have made
yourself poor. Change your mindset, change
the way you see those items. That new car you
want? It’s an anchor and it’s going to keep you
from creating real wealth. That fancy new
phone or gadget, it’s going to keep you working
9-5 till you retire and eke out an existence. You
need to start with the way you view luxury
goods and money, because credit is not money,
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September 2013 SA Real Estate Investor

it’s a trap to keep you paying your money to
someone else for the rest of your life. The best
way to avoid it is to think of the good type
of debt, the type you want. Debt that earns
you money. What does that make you think
of? Property is what you should be thinking.
Yes, you take out a loan from the bank and
that’s debt, but if you buy a property and let
it out, then it’s debt that’s earning you money.
And once you have paid that off, you are now
earning two incomes. Would an expensive car
earn you an income?
Changing your attitude towards money goes
further than just the way you perceive debt; it’s
also about the money itself. What is money?
It’s a piece of paper with a picture on it, any
power it has over you, you gave it. Stressing
and thinking about money all the time is
exhausting. Just don’t do it, fortunes can be
lost and gained in a day and more than one
mogul has lost it all, only to get it back again.
It’s very important that you learn to respect
money and respect what it can do for you,
without allowing it to take over your life.
Investing in property is not just for the rich
and educated, anyone can invest in property.
A ll it takes is the right knowledge, and
knowledge in this day and age is free, with the

Internet at your fingertips, you control your
future. If you want to change your life through
wealth creation then get researching, f ind
out who the experts are and speak to them.
A lot of the property professionals started off
right where you are today, and most of them
are more than willing to help others achieve
their goals. So start researching today, speak
to people who will help you on the right
path, make sure they deserve your trust, and
start planning your financial freedom. How
do wealthy people get even wealthier? They
know and understand how to use money, they
surround themselves with people who know
how to play the money game. Your capital is a
seed; you can grow that capital into a forest by
ruling your finances.
Don’t just settle for ordinary, although it’s
safe and comfortable. You can achieve more
and that brings me to my last point: it’s about
how you see yourself. Most of the people who
made their dreams come true had to battle
huge adversity and they didn’t just sit in the
corner and think ‘I can’t do this, I want to, but
I don’t think I will succeed.’ If they had, half
the technology we have today would never
have been invented. Believing you can do it
and drive and determination are half the battle
won. The way to wealth starts with you.
www.reimag.co.za