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Want to Build Wealth? Start a Business? PAUSE and Read This First!

Written By Millen Livis


Building Wealth is a journey not a destination. You have to start where you are – assess your current assets, your income, your skills and passions – and decide that you are going forward no matter what. Your commitment is very important since you are going to be on this journey for a long time no matter how much money you have now and where you may end up.

 

Like any journey, your “wealth journey” should start with a plan, a “wealth plan”. Financial Freedom, in general, means that you have choices (“what”, “where”, “how” you spend your time and money) and that your income exceeds your expenses. Therefore, you need to be aware of your living expenses and decide how much extra income you would like to generate.

 

The usual sources of income are your job, business, rental real estate and paper assets (stock dividends, bond interest, etc.). I always say that any sources of income should be greatly appreciated – whether they are from full- or part time jobs or any other sources. There is a deep sense of satisfaction in earning money, being able to provide for yourself and your family. Besides, “what you appreciate, appreciates.”

 

However, building wealth requires leverage – leverage of time and resources – when you don’t trade your time in exchange for money.  Unless you are a top executive for a major corporation and are making millions of dollars in salary, it is unlikely that being an employee will award you an opportunity to become financially free.

 

Therefore, if you are ambitious and driven to accumulate wealth and achieve financial freedom, having your own business could be one of the solutions. But before going further into this idea, I want you to pause, really connect with your “inner guidance” and see if you are willing to invest time, effort and money into building a business.

 

In my opinion, being an entrepreneur is not for everyone – it requires tenacity, commitment, significant investment of time, effort and money among many things. It requires not just ”stepping out of your comfort zone” but likely “living outside of your comfort zone” because of continuous need for innovation and up-leveling. It may take many years of zigging and zagging before you create a business that will produce significant income. Accepting setbacks and failures as part of the process is one of the most important virtues of entrepreneurship.

 

The highest probability of success is usually found in the intersection of your passion, your skills and experience, and the market demand. Building a successful business assumes offering solutions to some urgent problems that people have or offering innovative services (e.g. Facebook – worldwide connection) or “destructive” solutions to existing services (e.g. Tesla’s electrical car).

 

So, if you are dreaming about having your own business, pause and contemplate your  “cause”: WHAT is it that you want to offer to the world, the impact you would like to create, the movement you want to start, the problems you are going to solve. You may also think about your skills and expertise you can utilize, and assess your passion and conviction that will carry you through rough time. Your passion for offering your products and services must light you up, excite and energize you because this energy will be reflected in your products and services.

 

Building wealth and building a business have a lot in common. Businesses that are built from a place of fear, scarcity or lack are usually rooted in the need to prove your worth, your “good enoughness” and are likely to fail. Building a business, just like building wealth, is a journey and you want to “travel” with excitement and joy, not insecurities, fear and obligations. When you come from a place of scarcity and lack, you focus on “selling” more than “serving”, “chasing” clients instead of “attracting” them. Running business from the place of fear and scarcity is not fun and usually an unprofitable business practice.

 

You must find a place of sufficiency in your heart. Remarkably, a sense of sufficiency rarely comes from how much money you have on your bank account at this moment or your business revenue this month. Some people have a lot of money then lose even more or have a lot of money and still worry about “now enough”….

 

What do you need to adjust to come from the place of sufficiency in business? Set your intention to serve first rather than sell; focus on how you relate to your clients and how you can help them with their problems, “walk in their shoes”. Some business owners have been crushed in the race for more and have eluded the sense of “service”, fulfillment and joy.

 

Running your business in a way that expresses your integrity, your passion, and your life philosophy; using it in a way that expresses your value rather than determines your value – will surely make people want to buy from you because they’ll feel your intention and energy. It’s a vibrational connection that leads to building a relationship with your clients.

 

The ultimate success is earning a living by doing what you enjoy, being compensated for the work that uses your creative talents and that you feel passionate about. And when you perceive your business and life from a place of fullness and gratitude, from a place of “serving” and “being enough,” you experience peace, joy and financial freedom.

 

To Your Health, Wealth and Freedom!

With Love and Gratitude,

millen-sig3

 

 

Millen Livis

About the Author

Millen is a Wealth architect and Financial Independence Coach, entrepreneur, and a bestselling author. Being a Possibilities' Catalyst, she uses her intuition, business, and investment expertise to support entrepreneurial women (like you) who want to master their money, live their purpose achieve financial prosperity and freedom. With her physics and business education, corporate and entrepreneurial experience, money management know-how, mindfulness practices and transformational coaching skills, Millen has a unique ability to guide and support clients in achieving extraordinary success in their lives.

  1. Very timely for me, Millen. I’ve been in the middle of financial/retirement planning – and that includes my business. What is sufficient – and what does abundance mean to me as I go forward – in the bank and in life.

    1. Thank you for sharing, Diane! Yes, it is important, especially for midlifers :), to be clear about your needs and desires and align your actions (business, investment, etc.) accordingly. Glad this article was useful for you.

  2. Having many passions in my life, often makes it challenging to chose just one at any moment in time, Millen. Writing and sharing information, is the foundation for me and I seem to come alive when I am writing. My own journey back to health and all I’ve learned along the way, makes that a passion to share as well. I learned that being an employee limits you and I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit and have dared to change directions every few years, if I wasn’t enjoying what I was involved in.

    Now I am building a health and wellness team as part of Dr. Christiane Northrup’s Team Northrup and I love the camaraderie and support of fellow like-hearted people. We all are committed to empowering others to live their healthiest and most vital lives. It requires a lot of seed planting and time spent educating people, however, ultimately I see how building longer term residual income makes it all worth it. And I get to be of service to others, which is what I know we are all ultimately here to do. Wonderful post, as always! Being an entrepreneur is definitely not for the faint of heart.

    1. Love you sharing, Beverly! “I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit and have dared to change directions every few years”… You are amazing! I am sure that your passion for health and wellness, your entrepreneurial experience and skills, and especially your drive and desire to be of service will make ANY project you take on to be successful. Would love to learn more about your work with Dr Northrup.

  3. Well said Millen. My favorite definition of success is “to be able to live life in your own way” and for me being an Entrepreneur fits with that. But you are right, I worked for over a decade as a life and small business coach and many people jump into this lifestyle with no planning or clear understanding of how much work it’s going to take. Thanks for sharing your great advice!

    1. Thank you for your comment, Marquita! And I like your definition of success. Yes, being an entrepreneur is great… for some people and is not so much for others…. And one certainly needs to plan a transition from Employee to Entrepreneur instead of jumping in and hoping for the best. Thank you for contributing to the conversation!

  4. So true Millen, Wealth in all areas of our lives is a journey and the way we choose to travel on the roads create our abundance and prosperity.

    1. Thank you for sharing, Suzie. Yes, creating Wealth is a journey and an opportunity to connect deeper to yourself and others, to give and receive, to learn and grow.

  5. You have so many wonderful insight, Millen. It’s especially true that entrepreneurship is not for everyone. The big Internet marketers make it all sound so easy. But, the reality is that it’s a real commitment. So, for those us who are committed, we can look forward to supporting our on-line friends and make sure we all get wealthy.

    1. Thank you for your positive and inspiring message to all online entrepreneurs out there, Joyce! Yes, being a business owner requires a huge commitment, focus, discipline and perseverance. Thank you for contributing to the conversation!

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