by Clarence E. Stowers | Jun 11, 2008 | Empowerment, Money and Finance, Vision
Today, I had the privilege to participate in my final conference call with a few multi-millionaires and guess what, they think very differently about money, life, and relationships.
Have you noticed that some people
struggle with money for years and even
decades and others seem to experience
continual success? Even when successful
people experience tough times it is
usually just a short time until they are
right back on top. The reasons for this is not rocket
science, it is a simple matter of
their beliefs and the actions they take.
I discovered millionaires become millionaires because
they believe truths about money and take
actions to build wealth.
Additionally, I also discovered the #1 reason people are in
financial bondage is because they
believe lies about money. Your beliefs control your behaviors
and your behaviors determine your
results. In order to achieve better
results in your finances you must work
on your beliefs.
I learned 10 valuable lessons while participating in these calls that I'd like to share with you. If you would take the necessary time and apply them to your life, I guarantee your outlook would change for the better.
Lesson #1: Millionaires think long-term in every area of their lives (especially finance & relationships).
A multi-millionaire explained how society is broken own into 5 groups and each thinks differently about money and life:
- The Very Poor think day to day – their goal is to survive
- The Poor think week to week – their goal is to survive as well
- The Middle-class think month to month – their goal is comfort
- The Rich think year to year – their goal is freedom
- Millionaires think decade to decade – their goal is total freedom
So, what do you think?
by Clarence E. Stowers | May 22, 2008 | Empowerment, Family, Money and Finance
African Americans are steadily increasing their wealth, boosting their
holdings in real estate, stocks, and savings vehicles, as they seek to
fund college educations for their children and create a secure
retirement for themselves. It's a process of becoming ever more keenly
aware of the need to save, invest, and plan for the future.
Black Enterprise Magazine has created the Circle of Wealth, a black
wealth initiative that seeks economic empowerment for African Americans
by changing attitudes toward money management. The Circle is an ongoing
cycle comprised of 1.) Knowledge, 2.) Commitment, 3.) Investment, 4.)
Portfolio Management, and 5.) Wealth, all enabling Reinvestment in
Children, Businesses, and Community. As part of this powerful initiative, the magazine developed the
Declaration a Financial Empowerment, the following 10–point
wealth–building pledge (I added the 11th point 🙂
In order to attain a measure of
success, power and wealth, I shall uphold the principles of saving and
investing as well as
controlled spending and disciplined consumerism. I vow to fully
participate in the capital markets and make a solid commitment to a
program of wealth accumulation.
Determination and consistency will serve as my guides, and I shall not
allow external or internal forces to keep me from reaching my goals. By
adjusting my course and embracing a new mandate that stresses planning,
education and fortitude, I lay a strong, unbreakable foundation for the
preservation and enrichment of my family, children and children's
children.
From this day forward, I declare my lifelong commitment to financial empowerment.
DECLARATION OF FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT
I pledge the following:
1. To use home ownership to build wealth
2. To save & invest 10-15% of my after-tax income
3. To commit to a program of retirement planning and investment
4. To engage in sound budget, credit, and tax management practices
5. To measure my personal worth by my net worth, not income
6. To be proactive & knowledgeable about investing, money management, & consumer issues
7. To provide access to programs that will educate my children about business & finance
8. To support the creation & growth of profitable, competitive black-owned enterprises
9. To use a portion of my wealth to strengthen my community
10. To ensure that my wealth is passed on to future generations
11. To give @ least 10% (or more) of my wealth to my church to honor God and expand His Kingdom
TODAY IS THE DAY I TAKE CONTROL OF MY FINANCIAL DESTINY!
COME JOIN US AND MAKE THE COMMITMENT!
by Clarence E. Stowers | Apr 16, 2008 | Books, Communication, Empowerment, Leadership, Vision
Currently, I’m reading a new book entitled The Missional Leader by Alan Roxburgh, and boy is it GREAT! I’m willing to suggest this may be one of the best books I’ve read (so far) regarding leadership and change.
Thinking about initiating a wide-scale change/transition initiative
in your church or organization? Here are a couple of questions worth
asking before you dive in…
- Are we STRUCTURED for change?
Is your church or organization structured in a way that will allow the
RIGHT PEOPLE to lead and make decisions? If not – do not proceed past GO….do NOT collect $200!
First things first!!
If you’re not structured for change, it doesn’t matter how passionate or
committed you might be to it – there will always be a chance that the
wrong people could step in to infiltrate, hijack, or sabotage the transition.
- Am I COMMITTED to change?
Perhaps the question should be…. "Am I committed to change – NO MATTER WHAT THE COST?"
Am I willing to lose people? Lose money? Lose popularity? Lose friendships? Maybe even lose buildings?
Listen to me……..TRUE CHANGE is COSTLY! There will be a cost! And it will be painful. It will be felt.
There will be scars and bruises.
Are you up for it?
Consider that question! Because if you’re NOT fully, 100%
committed, you better think twice before diving in – for YOUR sake AND
for the sake of those who will believe in your vision and stand by
you.
by Clarence E. Stowers | Apr 10, 2008 | Communication, Current Affairs, Empowerment, Race
In the black community in America,
there is a severe disconnection among those of different classes.
Many upper and middle-class blacks feel
as if they can look down on, talk down to, and overlook black people
who are considered lower class. Unfortunately, I’ve witnessed black
people who are college-educated, living in nice homes, driving fancy
cars or earning a high salaries, looking down on blacks who are less
fortunate. Lawrence Otis Graham even wrote a book explaining why
upper-class blacks want nothing to do with other blacks. They only
want to deal with “Their Kind of People.”
Why is it that
some blacks who have "moved on up," by working hard and
achieving the American dream feel they can distance themselves and
underestimate poor black people? Is it because they feel they have
nothing in common with lower class black people? Is it because they
feel they are more accepted among white people?
Perhaps it is
because lower class blacks get blamed for many of the problems the
black community allegedly has, such as speaking poor English; having
babies outside of wedlock; high dropout rates; using and selling
drugs; and filling up the jail cells.
Is it because they
feel like they are more accepted among white people? Or are they
just outright silly, feeling as if they have arrived?
The last
time I checked I thought most of the black people in America were
descendants of slaves. With that being the case, we all come from
nothing. They make brainless statements like low class blacks are
not good enough to associate or be seen with. They even have a
website devoted to “stuff educated black people like.”
Some
are so confused. They go as far as talking bad about them in front
of whites. They are not willing to try and take the time out to help
or share information that will help the lower class blacks get to
their level. They don’t attend black schools, and they move away
from predominantly black neighborhoods.
That is not to say
that all black neighborhoods have lower class black people living in
them, but a lot of blacks have forgotten who they are and where they
come from.
Black people are not in any position to look down
on one another. We as black people haven’t risen to our full
potential. Even rich black people are not globally in control of as
much as they could. They are rich, but they have to be careful what
they do or say because if they make the wrong move all of their money
can be taken away in the blink of an eye. High and middle-class
black people who are walking around feeling as if they are in a
position to look down on others need to wake up and smell the coffee.
In my opinion, the divide is created by
the monopoly capitalist economic system and social structure which
gives rise to and reinforces class divisions within the society.
Hence, classism is the effect, not the cause. Trust me, at the end
of the day, we are all the same.
by Clarence E. Stowers | Apr 8, 2008 | Current Affairs, Empowerment, Politics
Most black Americans have been Democrats for at least the forty-one years that I’ve been alive. What have the Democrats done for us in all that time? We have the lowest average income of any large racial group in the nation. We’re incarcerated at an alarmingly high rate. We are still segregated and profiled, and have a very low representation at the top echelons of the Democratic Party. We are the stalwarts, the bulwark, the Old Faithful of the Democrats, and yet they have not made our issues a high priority in a very long time. Why should we be second-class members in the most important political activities of our lives? Why shouldn’t the party we belong to think that our problems are the most important in this land?
I’m not saying that we should become Republicans. The Republicans don’t care about us either. But at least they don’t pretend to be on our side. And you have to admit that, of late, the Bush Administration has put black faces into high-profile jobs that carry clout on the international playing field. I don’t have to like Colin Powell or Condoleezza Rice to appreciate that once a black person has been put into a position of power, the second time around is much, much easier.
We are a racial minority in a country where racism is a fact of life, a country that was founded on economic and imperialist racism. Taking this into account and adding it to the fact that our issues are regularly put on a back burner, I believe that it is not out of order to send out a call for the formation of an African-American interest group, or maybe a political unit, that would bring our issues, and others, to the forefront of American political discourse.
If we had our own political voting bloc that paid attention to issues that reflect our needs in domestic and international affairs, things would change for us. The first thing is that many more of us would be likely to vote. Imagine the interest young people would have if they felt we were organizing based on our own interests: They could work for a candidate who represented their issues; they could run for office themselves.
Even though the party would be based on the racial identity that has been shoved down our throats since the first days we came here in chains, we wouldn’t work only for ourselves. We’d argue about medical care and Social Security and the good jobs that are disappearing from this nation like fleas off a dead dog’s back.
If we took the vote into our own hands, we wouldn’t have to ask the Democrats for their support–we could demand it. George W. Bush, or whoever takes his place, will send for our representatives to come to his home to discuss his plans. This is because they have not yet figured out how to dispose of the vote in the American political system.
Imagine it. We could actually democratize America by taking power away from the two-party system and handing it over to the people. Other special parties would arise splintering off from the centrist attendants of the rich once we show them the way.
What I’m talking about here is the beginning of an American Evolution, a movement that will create a series of political interest groups that will transform our two-party system into a kind of virtual parliament. We could construct smaller political groups based on specific interests. There could be Black Party Congress members from Chicago, Watts, Harlem, the Motor City and a dozen other inner-city bastions. All we have to do is have a fair representation in the House of Representatives to have an extraordinary impact on the wheels of government.
NOW YOU SEE WHY I DON’T OFTEN SHARE MY VIEWS – TOO RADICAL…
by Clarence E. Stowers | Apr 4, 2008 | Christian, Christianity, Church Issues, Communication, Current Affairs, Empowerment, Family, Race, Religion, Vision, Worship
Next week I’m starting a new blog series entitled: "Ten Challenges Facing African Americans & What You Can Do." Trust me, I will hold no punches and exercise my 1st Amendment right.
Will I offend some, YES…
Will I spark debate…YES
Will you disagree…MAYBE
Will you engage…I HOPE SO
Will I cuss…STAY TUNED 😀
Will you comment…I PRAY THAT YOU DO
Stay tuned…Spread the word…Can’t wait till Monday…
