The opening line of Charles Dickens’ “A Tale of Two Cities” is “It was the best of times and the worst of times….”

That’s how I feel about our economy right now.

On a conference call recently, I made the following comment:

“We make our own economy.  There’s just as much money out there as there ever has been.  Your life is a result of your mindset, actions and decisions.”

In another conversation about Mike Dillard’s new product, The Elevation Group, I’ve recommended that people wake up and realize a simple truth:

“What we’re going through right now is not just another recession.  This isn’t just a slump that we’re going to work out way out of.  The US dollar is in decline.  And it’s time for Americans to wake up and realize that hyperinflation in America is not only possible but it’s likely.”

If you look at those two statements, they might seem like a paradox.  In fact, a couple of people have heard me make both statements and they’ve asked me, “Tony, which is it?”  Because it sounds contradictory to them.

So, let me clarify what I mean and how that second statement doesn’t negate the first one.

I DO believe that our lives are the result of how we choose to think.  That the quality of our lives is a result of the quality of our thinking.  I believe that our thoughts, beliefs, expectations, decisions and actions are the “ingredients” that make up our lives.  And we create our lives every hour of every day by the decisions we make. Call it “law of attraction” if you want to.  Call it “law of the harvest”.  Call it whatever you want, but it’s a law of sorts.  We create our own lives.

At the same time — and this is what has confused some people — the fact remains that this “law” — whatever we want to call it — is not the only factor working in our lives. To use an extreme example, anyone who’s read “Man’s Search For Meaning” would agree that Victor Frankl did an amazing job of maintaining a positive mindset in the horrible circumstances of Nazi imprisonment.  But — and this is my point, so don’t miss it — he was still in a Nazi prison camp.

Now, I don’t mean that to say that Frankl’s attitude and mindset was unrelated to the fact that he survived the ordeal.  In fact, quite the opposite.  My point is that he didn’t stick his head in the sand and say, “I’m not in prison, I’m not in prison, I’m not in prison.”  He simply looked around and said, “This is the environment I’m in.  And I have a choice about how to deal with it.”

This is how I feel about our current economy.

Only a fool would say, “Our economy is the same as it’s always been.”  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to notice that food prices have gone up dramatically….that the value of the US dollar is dropping like a rock…..and that the economy is steadily getting worse, not better.  It’s obvious for anyone who wants to observe it.

So, to borrow from Frankl’s experience, let’s call this economy our “prison camp”.

It is what it is.

The question is, within this framework what are you going to do about it?  THAT is the opportunity for us to choose our thinking, our decisions and our actions.  That’s what we have control over.

Some people prefer to say, “No, I don’t want to hear anything negative.  I don’t believe in negativity.  I just want to focus on the positive”.

Well, if someone is in the  group, here’s my message for them:  Grow up.  There are weeds growing in the garden.  It’s not enough to stand around and say, “There are no weeds, there are no weeds, there are no weeds.”  If you want to have a healthy garden, sooner or later you’re going to have to acknowledge that — YES — there are weeds in the garden.  And you’re going to have to figure out how to deal with them.

So, I don’t see a paradox.

YES, I believe that we have the ability to create our lives by our thoughts, decisions and actions.
And YES, I also believe that the economy is in a precarious position that will make the Great Depression look like child’s play.

And it’s IN this situation, that we have a great opportunity!  Sure, it’s frightening….but it’s also exciting.

Did you know that there were more millionaires created during The Great Depression than in the 20 years prior?

Did you know that the Empire State Building was built during the Great Depression?  And the Golden Gate Bridge?

I believe you and I are facing even GREAT opportunities right now.  And it will come from

1. Understanding that it’s still our thoughts, decisions and actions that create our opportunities
2. Being informed about what’s going on and not ignoring it or sticking our heads in the sand
3. Finding out what informed, wealthy people are doing in this economy so that you can model their behavior

I honestly believe that anyone who’s reading this blog has the opportunity to become VERY RICH in the next few years, even if you don’t have a lot of money right now.  Because it’s not about how much money you have….it’s about getting into position so that — when the s&$% hits the fan — you’re not caught with your pants down and wondering what to do.

Not you.

You’ve got a plan.
You read the books.
You got informed.
You made some preparations.
You weren’t lazy.
You didn’t stick your head in the sand and say, “This isn’t happening.  This isn’t happening”.

That’s what Jessica and I have been doing:  getting into position.  And even though we’re running late compared to a lot of people, I think we’re still ahead of 90% of the population.

I’ll close with this.  If you want some recommendations on what I think you can do right now to start getting into position, here’s my top three tips:

1. Get a membership in The Elevation Group. If you’ve been to the financial section of Barnes & Noble, you already know that the information there is either outdated or useless in this economy.  Some of the information is not just bad, it’s dangerous.  The Elevation Group is a resource website that Mike has put together so that the “average person” can find out what’s really happening in our economy, how to prepare for the possibilities, and how to make a ton of money in what we call “The Greatest Wealth Transfer In The History of the World”.
2. Start buying some silver. Physical silver.  Not silver stocks.  Actual silver coins.  American Silver Eagles are good.  So are Canadian Maples.  Buy bullion coins, not “collectibles”.  (Collectibles are great but, if you’re hedging against inflation or looking to protect your assets, bullion coins will let you buy more silver for your dollar.)At the time of this writing, silver is still only around $30 an ounce.  Anyone can afford to buy an ounce or two of silver every week.  You’ll be glad you did.  Silver is actually more rare than gold and — as the dollar continues to plummet — putting your money into silver is the best way to protect your assets and watch them grow.  (Note:  I’m not a financial counselor.  Due your own research.  I’m just telling you what I would do.)
3. Buy a book called “Emergency:  This Book Will Save Your Life” by Neil Strauss. The reason this book was helpful to me was NOT because it was written by a guy who knows all about a possible economic crash.  Quite the opposite, in fact.  When he started writing this book, he knew NOTHING.  So, this book is an opportunity to “look-over-his-shoulder” as Neil goes through the whole process himself, learning about the economy, learning what possibilities could occur in a economic crisis, etc.  This book also includes non-economic preparation.  Think about it:  if the dollar crashes, the banks are closed.  If the banks are closed, there will be a run on the grocery stores.  If there’s a run on the grocery stores, you’d better have a plan.  Emergency is very easy to read, even funny at times, but will leave you with a very clear perspective about your ability to not only survive but to prosper in times of crisis.

Bottom line:  there has never been a time when “self-reliance” is more important than it is right now.

We live in times of uncertainty.  So, it’s important that you understand how to control your thinking….don’t follow the knee-jerk reactions of the “herd”…..and start thinking for yourself.  If you do that and you get informed, you’re in the top 1% of people who can get very RICH in the next few years.

As always, please leave your comments or questions below.  Also, please use the link/buttons provide to share this with others!

One of the things that great network marketing companies do is to offer incentives and contests for its distributors to participate in. The interesting thing about contests in Avant is that the pay plan is so lucrative that — to win a contest — you put so much money in your pocket that you could easily buy whatever the grand prize is!

But, in this case, the prize was even more interesting: rather than another big-screen TV, a trip to the Caribbean or an Apple iPad…….Avant decided to create a prize that actually touches people’s lives: an all-expense paid trip to New Orleans to join Avant founder, Brent Payne and the Avant leadership team for four days doing humanitarian work in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans.

Did you know that there are still people in New Orleans who haven’t recovered from Hurricane Katrina? It’s true. And while some people have chosen to say things like, “Well, those people don’t want to help themselves” and do nothing…..Avant is choosing to be part of the solution by actually spending time with these people, teaching them some basic concepts about personal development, planting gardens, and stocking a community food pantry.

So, on July 22nd, I got a phone call from Brent Payne congratulating me for being the winner of the contest.  During the last week of the contest, I was averaging nearly one new Elevate sale per week ($1k profit each).

Do you want to know the dirty little secret? It was the easiest stretch of business I’ve ever conducted. It was relaxing. It was simple. No rushing around. Just simple, relaxed movements. Here are some thoughts that come to mind for why I believe it was so simple for me to win:

#1 Begin With The End In Mind

When I heard that Avant was doing humanitarian work in New Orleans, I sent a note to Brent asking him about the dates so we could go ahead and start arranging for someone to keep our kids while Jessica and I went to New Orleans.  That’s important.  I’d already decided to be there. When I learned about the contest, I thought, “Even better.  I’m still going but Brent’s going to pay for my airline flights.” And, here’s the thing:  that isn’t intended to sound like bravado or to be arrogant; it was simply a stated intention:  I’m going to New Orleans and I might as well be the one to get to go for free.

#2  Be Authentic

This isn’t a tip for winning contests; this is a tip for winning LIFE.  I remember when I first got started in this industry, I was always worried about how I was coming across to my prospects.  The phone would ring and I’d rush around closing the doors, worried that the dog was going to bark or that I wouldn’t appear professional.

Screw that.  That’s for the birds.  When I decided a few years ago to start just living my life and stop worrying about all that nonsense, here’s what I did:  I started doing all my business from my cellphone.  Even today, if you call me asking about Avant, you’re just as likely to catch me floating around my pool, driving in the car with the family or waiting for a table at our favorite restaurant.  You might hear Easton in the background laughing like a maniac because he crashed into Mom while they were playing Mario Kart on the Nintendo Wii.  Or you might hear Will and Pate splashing in the pool.  Or, if you’re like Leo (a fellow I spoke with earlier this week), you might hear me signing for packages from the UPS man and wondering who sent me a big box of Omaha Steaks!

My point is this:  people are tired of marketers who try to be something they’re not.  Be authentic.  Whatever that means to you.  For me, it means living my life in a way that I don’t have to change who I’m being just because the phone rings.  And because there seems to be so few authentic people around, I promise your prospects will notice when they look at you and see you just being yourself.

#3  Keep The Main Thing The Main Thing

Let me give you a quick image:  picture a construction site where a beautiful cathedral is being built.  The scene has lots of construction workers but something strange is happening…

Most of the construction workers are sitting over to the side admiring their new hammer….or showing someone their new saw…..they’re filming videos of themselves trying to explain to other people how to drive a nail….and you’ve even got some of the workers saying, “I just don’t seem to be getting good results with this saw.  Maybe I need to buy that new course for $3,000 on ‘How To Use A Saw Like A Pro’.

But as you continue looking around the construction site, you see something else:  a much smaller group of people are — gasp! — actually working on the cathedral! They’re driving nails.  They’re sawing wood.  They’re laying bricks.

They are, by God, getting the job done.  And they don’t waste their time sitting around worrying about whether or not they’re using a hammer that’s as fancy as someone else’s.

Heck, if you look closely, some of them may not even be holding the hammer right.  Some of them might not even HAVE a hammer:  they’re driving nails with the side of a pair of pliers!  They’re so focused on actually doing the thing that they can’t be sidetracked to sit around and spend their talking about the work.  They’re too busy actually DOING THE WORK.

The network marketing industry looks like that to me.

I see a lot of people who say they’re professional network marketers but they’re really just sitting around talking about the business.  Or worrying about their business.  Or spending time designing blogs, making friends on Facebook and making videos of themselves.

And there’s nothing wrong with any of those things…….unless the person is doing that stuff instead of making money and actually driving nails in their own business!

Don’t misunderstand me.  I have a blog (obviously).  I make videos.  I use Facebook.

But ALL of those things are secondary to actually driving the nails every day.  My primary focus is always, “Who are the 4-5 people that I’m introduce to AVANT today?”  “Who did I talk to earlier who’s probably ready to get started on my team?”

THIS is the actual work of network marketing.  Not all that other stuff.

It’s all about keeping the main thing the main thing.

Make sense?  Great!

So, I’ve pulled my workboots out of the closet and we’re packing our bags to go to New Orleans next week to get our hands dirty.  We’ll do a ton of masterminding while we’re there and it’s always good to hang out with Avant’s founder, Brent Payne.  If you’re in the New Orleans area, call me on 334-655-8194 if you’d like to get together and talk about Avant, meet the founder and find out more about what we’re doing!

Lastly, do me a favor.  If you like this post, comment on it below and retweet it or share it with others!

To your IMMEDIATE success!

Tony Rush
+1 334-655-8194 mobile

http://www.best7minutes.com

http://www.weareavant.com/main

I hate to break it to you — no, that’s not true — I actually love being the one to break it to you.

The rules change and — as usual — most people aren’t paying attention. In fact, the rules changed quite a while back and most people still don’t know it. The ones who DO know it are not only having a BLAST in business but they’re making tons of money.

Here’s the skinny:

Your customer doesn’t care about all the features of your product.
The prospect doesn’t care that your MLM company is paying an extra 4% on the 3rd level.
If you’re talking to your prospect about the how many hotels will take your discount card, you’ve made a wrong turn and don’t even know it.
And, for those of you still in the stone ages, the prospect sure as hell doesn’t care about ORAC scores or how many mucopolysaccharides are in a serving of your miracle fruit juice.

People buy on emotion….and they justify their purchase on fact. Period. End of story.

In other words, WHILE the prospect is making a decision, they’re depending more on the emotional cues that they get from you, your company and your presentation….not just the data. Only AFTER they’ve made their decision will they quote some fact or other about why they made the decision they made.

That’s right: oftentimes the prospect herself doesn’t know why she made the decision she made. Only AFTER the decision is made will most people manufacture a list of reasons that would bear any resemblance to “critical thinking”.

Emotion is the ignitor. It’s the thing that sets our hearts turning. Why? Author Dan Pink knows why:

Good news and bad news: more people today, than ever before, demand EXCELLENCE. Not just excellence for the sake of it, but a committed, driven company looking to improve on what they can and get rid of what they do not.

And there are companies like that out there. And there are other companies out there who serve more as a warning to us all.

One of the most fascinating things I’ve experienced in my career in marketing is that people will often try to “solve their problem with problems”.

Sounds like a paradox and it is. Here’s what I mean:

I’m in a business where I’m contacted daily by people who legitimately want to create more freedom and money in their lives. They want to quit their job, work from home and create a new lifestyle for themselves.

And yet, when given the opportunity to have exactly what they say they want, many will reply, “I’d really love to do this and I know it would work for me. But I just don’t have the money.”

Or someone who works 60+ hours a week and wants more time with their family….and when they look at a business that can set them free from the workforce forever….many will say, “I’d love to do this but I don’t have the time.”

They’re trying to solve problems with problems.

It’s a paradox. It doesn’t work.

The reason why they say they CANNOT do something is usually the reason why they MUST do something.

Until they figure that out, we can probably call those people in six months and they’ll still be struggling financially. Or working 10 hour days and missing their kids’ ball games.

These aren’t unintelligent people. Not usually. They’re not stupid. But, they’ve fallen into the trap of mediocrity: they choose to believe that life is happening “to” them and they’ve forgotten that they are actually creating their lives with their thoughts and decisions.

Nothing changes until the person changes. And no problem can be solved with the same quality of thinking that created it.

How about you? What decision or action are you putting off today because you think that you have something holding you back?

What can you do today to remove that obstacle for good and get on with your life?

Her name is Helene Hadsell. And she wins every contest she enters. Seriously.
She’s won 5 trips to Europe, a luxury home, televisions, boats, etc.

In fact, by 1982, she’d won 5,000 different contests she’d entered.

Freaky.

Back in the 80s, she wrote a book called “Contesting” that’s a bit of an underground best-seller. If you can find a copy today, they usually cost $300 or more. In it, she explains exactly how she did it and how she’s actually got it down to a system so that others have been able to get similar results in contests, business, relationships, etc.

Well, today she’s 83 years old and she’s at it again. You can check out the story here…

Hardly a day (hour?) goes by when you don’t run across someone online, in-person or on the TV who’s talking about how tough it is to make money in this economy.

And it seems the culprits are the usual suspects: the talking heads on TV. People who get paid — not to think — but to read.

Let me give you a tip: don’t buy into the rhetoric of the media. If you pay attention to them, they’ll have you thinking that there’s no money and that no one has anything to spend.

Which is complete BS. In fact, consider just a few random thoughts from the last couple of weeks…

• I just flew to and from Los Angeles first-class and it was completely full. People who paid nearly twice the ticket price for the privilege of being treated better than cattle, to have a wider seat and to get drinks and snacks without begging.
• I was in the Apple store last week and it was wall-to-wall people. All of them buying or looking to buy iPods, iPhones, iMacs, laptops, software, headphones or computer monitors.
• I recently talked with a 13-year-old kid who made $24,000 in four days by marketing on the internet. (I kid you not. His dad is freaked.) Evidently he didn’t buy into the doom-and-gloom.
• A quick glance at the Clickbank directory shows that there are thousands of dollars being spent every day on products that anyone here is smart enough to put together
• If there’s a Whole Foods near you, go there in the evening and see if you can count the number of people who go out of their way to come to that store to buy stuff that costs way more than a less-healthy version at Wal-Mart.
• There’s a guy in NYC who’s making a fairly good income by selling GARBAGE as art. Don’t ask. But, know this: if you want an acrylic cube full of stuff that he’s picked up after a Yankees game or after the NY Eve party in Times Square, it’ll cost you $100.

And the list goes on and on.

Now, obviously there really are economic issues right now and it’s not my point to try to say there’s not.

But anyone who’s been paying attention for the last 20 years knows that the news isn’t about journalism any more…it’s about editorializing, speculating and giving opinions.

And there’s a big difference in factually reporting economic problems (which is true) and
telling the public that no one wants to spend any moeny (which is NOT true).

Heck, have you noticed that some of the most famous “news commentators” are actually comedians? (Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, etc.)

Here’s the FACT:

No matter WHAT the economy is doing, there’s always a group at the bottom end of the market who knows exactly how many pennies a carrot costs. They have a “give me a penny off” discount philosopy and they invest most of their mental energy into thinking about ways to “save” money….not in way os thinking about “increasing their income”.

It’s difficult to make it financially working in that kind of market. Further, those people are usually extremely negative and have a tendency to bring you down by constantly focusing on what something is NOT rather than on focusing on what something IS. (Some of you will understand what I’m saying).

On the other end of the market are people who want quality and beauty and efficiency and positivity and value. And they’re willing to pay for it. They don’t care how many pennies a carrot cost. They just want to make sure they’re grown organically in a special greenhouse where a gardener comes in and sings opera to them every two hours. And they don’t give a damn what it costs. They just want the carrots.

Not only is that the kind of person you want to market to…but that’s also the person you want to spend your time with. Not so that you can be extravagant with money (although there’s nothing wrong with that, either)….but because you rise above all the gray, dull, negative energy of people who spend all their time worrying about whether they’re getting ripped off for a nickel.

At the end of the day, this economy is about the same thing it was about 3, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 years ago: opportunity mixed with difficulty. It’s simply money moving from one group of people to another. The trick is to find out where the money is going and get in front of it.

And stop watching the news. It’ll rot your brain. It’s full of people who make less than $100,000 per year to read words on a screen and to pretend they have a clue what they’re talking about.

Screw ‘em. Go make some money and forget anything you’ve ever heard them say.

People afford what they CHOOSE to afford. And when you spend your time offering great products and opportunities to people who are focused on expansion (not shrinking), then making money is a piece of cake.