Do you Possess this Precious Gift?

Do you possess this precious gift?

Read the following statements to yourself and see if you identify with them:

• I work hard and smart because it’s the right thing to do.
• Honesty, integrity, and responsibility are hallmarks of my character.
• I see opportunities before most people do.
• I am capable of taking action in the face of an uncertain future.
• I have a global horizon for economic gain.
• Being ahead of the crowd is important to me.

If you identify with these traits, you are one of an elite group of truly independent thinkers and pioneering spirits who drive the locomotive of all progress and economic success.

Do you Possess this Precious Gift? Uniqueness

One of my gifts is the ability to predict the future. Not in a prophetic sense, but by seeing and knowing trends as they unfold.

From 1986 to 1998, the computer industry around Washington, D.C., was my playground. My expertise was to forecast the prices of computer components years into the future to help my clients win large contracts. I was one of the best in the business, and my clients were some of the largest suppliers of private label computers to the federal government. I helped them make millions.

Since retiring from the computer industry in 1998, I have helped new clients see the future of capital formation, real estate development trends, and the shifting tourism markets in Latin America and the Caribbean. This includes starting a bank and an insurance company, as well as developing properties in Belize, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador and Honduras.

Our company owns more than 5 miles of beach front property, has developed hundreds of homes and condominiums, and built a small town including all infrastructure and a golf course.

We even started a teak plantation like the one described above in both Panama and Nicaragua.

Do you Possess this Precious Gift? Focus on the Best Chance to Succeed

My role today is to help sort through the clutter and noise in the region to identify the absolute best prospects that offer the highest chance of success for my clients. Then in the case of the bank, insurance company and the real estate communities, hire the world’s best talent to run it. The teak, with an annual maintenance program, pretty much takes care of itself growing bigger year after year.

To achieve success in the marketplace, it is important to identify opportunities with substantial upside potential.  The real key, however, is to have a strong foundation in the form of a great team, hard assets, and no debt in place to help cushion any downside or downturn in the markets.

The pioneer knows that the world is rich with extraordinary, but hidden possibilities.  Discovering and capitalizing on them is the hallmark of our existence. Seeing the future is what we do.

One way to see that future is to read widely and voluminously. Several recent surveys point to a huge shift in attitudes about retirement. Not only is it important to know what people are seeking, but also consider possible locations for them to enjoy their golden years.  An ever-growing number are now considering Latin America. The total is more than 4 million, according to the Zogby Company. Any company in place to serve these folks stands to do very well.

You may want to read how you too can be out in front of this huge demographic wave. To do so, request the ECI Summary. Look it over and contact me if you like what I offer.

Do you Possess this Precious Gift? Success is an Attitude, Not an Event

Success stems from a set of characteristics that you already possess, or you wouldn’t be reading this.

Attributes like imagination, vision, conviction, courage, fortitude, perseverance and a love of life make up the greater part of who you are.

We are passionate for success. Each of us has our own definition of success, but we all share the conviction, that it is only by working hard, smart and with a vision of the future that we achieve this goal. All solid progress in the world rests on the imagination to see the future, but much more importantly, the courage to act by bringing that imagination to life.

It is this attitude of success that separates the average person from the one who drives progress.

The common man has no shortage of imagination. In fact, he is likely to sit and dream of a grandiose lifestyle and carefree existence. But how is it to be accomplished? Maybe he buys lottery tickets in hopes of hitting it big. But taking a chance on winning the “Big Six” contest offers only a very slim chance of personal betterment, and always at the expense of others ($1.00 each from the millions of people who did not win).

True progress, as lived by the very few, delivers a better life to everyone. A willingness to work hard, go the extra mile, think outside the box, do the things we fear, engage the world proactively and maintain optimism in the face of adversity — these are the characteristics of the uncommon man.

The lottery player hopes to win big in one fell swoop. The pioneer, who drives the locomotive of progress, knows that all success is built one small step at a time. The common man suffers the failures in life and learns little. The winners work through the setbacks and see them as vital in the process of growth. Ultimately, it’s not the number of times you fail, but the number of times you can fail, and continue trying. This is the true mark of a champion’s life.

A great example that highlights the contrast between the two types is the different viewpoint on a tree farm that might take 20+ years to mature to harvest.

The common man says, “That’s too long to wait to get a return on my investment. I’d rather spend my money on something now. I’ll worry about investing later, and besides, there is always Social Security.”

The pioneering person looks and thinks, “This is a tremendous opportunity because so few folks will be willing to wait for the trees to grow. That means scarcity and a much higher return on my investment. It can be passed to my children and grandchildren. Let me check this out.”

Do you Possess this Precious Gift? Actions Determine Your Future

Chances are, if you have read this far, you are one of life’s few winners. You take action in the face of uncertainty with a belief that your future will be a brighter one if you work hard to make it that. You aren’t going to wait for Social Security to pay you a retirement benefit, hoping that you will have a good life on that pittance. You aren’t afraid to think outside the box and do things that others may question as reasonable.

You decided at some point in your life that your actions are what largely determine your future. I say largely because luck does play a role in success. In fact, I’m a huge fan of luck and especially the saying, “The harder I work, the luckier I get.”

The average person hopes. He or she lives a life of “lotteries,” always hoping for the promotion, hoping for a nice bonus check, hoping for the markets to come back, hoping to have money in their retirement. But hoping and being lucky are two totally different animals. Hope relies only on outside fortune and undeserved reward. Luck is the opportunity that the uncommon person seizes and acts upon for the betterment of all.  Think of penicillin and all the other “lucky” discoveries.

Actions produce both results and luck. You are committed to taking the small steps to secure a stronger financial future for yourself and your family. You know that by doing these things for yourself, you also drive the engine of progress for everyone in the world and you can feel good about your contribution to society.

So why is this gift of success possessed by so few?

Maybe it’s the responsibility. Maybe it’s the work involved. Maybe it’s the ongoing struggle to keep and grow it. The reality is that the gift of success is fleeting. We must earn it each and every day by our thoughts and actions. This gift of success is an attitude that predetermines life’s outcome for you. It is the way we become and stay winners at life.

You are a winner because you are successful and not vice versa. With success, you are a winner at life without exception.

As a pioneer, you may see the opportunity as something you’d like to be involved with.  Take a couple minutes right now and request the ECI Summary. Look it over and if you’d like to see more, be in touch.

Mike Cobb is a contributor to www.stockinvestor.com.