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I have an oak tree grove not far from my home. As I took my walk
this morning I noticed that the squirrels were very busy harvesting the
acorns. Yes, harvest time is here in the northeast. It is a
time of gathering together and storing; creating reserves for the winter.
What reserves do you need to gather and store for your life?
What are reserves for
your life? Reserves are containers that store objects, emotions, dreams,
and thoughts or just about anything else you want in your life. They
cushion us when we need it and create security by providing a stockpile of
resources to use just when we need them. Creating reserves for yourself is
one of the greatest gifts that you can give yourself because it's a
positive investment dedicated to your personal success and fulfillment.
Having a reserve can also
be a feeling from within. You feel that you are not lacking in
anything. The decisions you make are not based on greed or being
needy. With a reserve you have enough time and resources to respond
to the opportunities that are always waiting for you to acknowledge.
Look at the different
areas of your life – Personal, Professional, Relationships, Health and
Well-Being, Financial, and Fun. Where do you want to build a
reserve? The goal is to have your “reserve container” so full that
you will be able to lead a terrific life far beyond the reach of scarcity.
Scarcity-based worrying is a leading cause of fear. Fear cannot be
totally eliminated from your life, but the goal is to keep fear from being
an overwhelming, personality-distorting presence in your life.
Here are 10 strategies to
build a Reserve in your life. This list was developed by Thomas J.
Leonard, founder of Coach University
(www.coachinc.com)
and Coachville
(www.coachville.com)
and author of The Portable Coach, 28 Surefire Strategies for Business
and Personal Success.
1.
Pick a single area in which
YOU
can develop a huge reserve within a week.
Most of us only develop
“more than enough” in building a reserve. I am challenging you to
really build a reserve. Pick something that particularly annoys
you whenever you have to deal with its scarcity. Now, load up a
reserve so you do not need to deal with it for an extended period of time.
On a whimsical note, I hate to do grocery shopping. So, I buy
groceries in bulk and only shop for household goods once every 6-8 weeks.
I have a reserve of items in my home and a reserve of time that I would
have spent doing grocery shopping. Where are you going to build a
huge reserve this week?
2. Identify and remove whatever is eating away or draining a reserve
that you already have.
There are two parts to building a reserve. The first is composed of
addition: acquiring or building things you want. The other part is
subtraction: reducing losses and eliminating unnecessary drains. The
subtraction component is just as important as the addition component.
You want your cup of prosperity to remain full and not spring leaks.
Your prosperity cup will leak if you do not handle the things that eat
away at or drain your reserve. What are the things in your life that
drain your reserve? For example, what are your “money
suckers”? When you have a reserve of money, what drains it away?
What is your plan to accumulate money rather than spend it?
3. Make a radical change of some sort, just to rattle your own cage.
Most of us are stuck in our own velvet groove, especially in relation to
our habits of consumption and saving. It is time to shake things up
by making a very quick and radical choice. Playfully rewire your
pattern concerning reserves. Then notice how the big change you made
ripples out to other parts of your life. It can be magical.
4. Become an investor rather than a spender.
This requires that you redirect existing resources. Even without an
income boost, you can put yourself on an abundance track. Pick one
aspect of how you now spend money or time. Instead of simply
spending or meeting expenses in that area, concentrate on building
something. This can be as simple as looking for ways to make money
from a hobby or as basic as diverting money usually spent at cafes and
restaurants into an accumulation of capital that could someday start a
business or buy a house or realize your dream of retirement. Your
time is a commodity, your money is a resource; in both cases you deserve a
healthy return on your investment.
5. Grab stuff even if it makes you feel guilty.
If you want something for your reserve, take it. NO, this does not
mean that you should steal or do an end run on your ethics.
What it means is that you don’t go on a guilt trip just because you take
what’s readily available. Get in a mode of acquiring things you
like, whether it is time, money, ideas, or even people. If you learn
a good idea from someone, take it. Adapt it to your talents and
circumstances, and run with it.
6. Get your personal needs met.
Personal needs that are not met are an insidious drain. They seduce
you into wasting resources, without really knowing why or how to stop.
No matter how much of a reserve you put together, unmet needs can
eventually cause it to leak out. To make your reserve develop faster
and last longer, plug all the holes of neediness: You can’t capture
reserves in a sieve.
7. Reduce your lifestyle significantly.
How much energy does your lifestyle consume? Remember that a
lifestyle isn’t a life. Is your lifestyle too big? What amount
of money do you need to sustain it? If “living large” has become a
driving force, it’s standing between you and the life you want.
Simplify. Then you will not have to put out as much to keep it all
running. Simplify until you feel your reserves rising steadily,
whether they are expressed in time, money, or space.
8. Hand over big chunks of your administrative / management
tasks to experts.
What are some things in your life that you can delegate to someone else?
Is it important for you to do everything? Can you let some things go
so you can have a reserve of time? There are costs involved, but
time is a commodity. Don’t be afraid to invest in things that give
you more time to use for the highest possible benefits. Free your
time, and your mind, for whatever is truly special in your life.
9. Get a lot more space.
When you have a feeling of roominess in your life, you have what is called
“space”. You will need to have a lot more space to store all the
reserves you will be accumulating. You can get it in hundreds
of different ways: cleaning closets, giving up
shoulds
or coulds or frustrating projects, taking a path of least
resistance, abandoning roles you never chose, or simply taking a lot more
vacations. Space leads to reserves.
10.
Handle the money, Honey.
All the reserves in the world in other areas of your life won’t give you
enough of a reserve until you build up the financial side of your life.
You can handle the money, either by increasing your income or decreasing
your expenses. Or both. Are you consistent in your saving?
Do you save at least 10% of your current income? When you have
accumulated a financial reserve, it will be a tomorrow where you are in
control. It takes courage to be this aggressive about savings.
The resulting reserve is worth it.
The above strategies might look like a huge leap to build reserves.
Start with #1 and a week later see how you feel to have a reserve in an
area of your life. You do not have to go down the list sequentially.
Pick the items that you are willing to put some energy and action into.
Start building reserves in areas of your life and note how those reserves
make you feel. It will become easier and easier to bring reserves to
all areas of your life.
As I watched the squirrels today gathering their reserve of acorns, I also
noted that there was always time for play. Building reserves takes
focus and determination. Do not forget to spend some of your “fun”
reserves while building reserves in other areas of your life. “Fun”
reserves are the only reserves that replenish themselves automatically
when used. |
