Nancy Long, a top leader in my team and a former insurance legend, was telling me today about members in her Networking organisation, who dropped out of business in pursuit of their "passion".

This guy in question started his Network Marketing business in need of more money in his life. But a few months into business, he stopped and was side tracked doing something else - another business which is now in line with his "passion". Yet as far as we all knew, he was still broke.

In my line of business, many people I meet understand the undeniable advantage Network Marketing has in the business world. Yet they turn away, saying that "its not for me.. I'm not cut out for it", or "its not in line with my passion". So what? Network Marketing is not my PASSION either! Network Marketing is a tool - a vehicle - to achieve the things I want. I'm passionate about living life freely with no worries about money. So what do I do for a passion?

My mentor, Eng Hai, says it best: Too many people today use passion as an excuse to stay in their comfort zone. They're not happy where they are. Yet to do something means they've got to get out of the couch of their living room, and start doing something that will make them sweat off their backs to make things happen, and some people just aren't ready to do that. So they talk about passion;"I'm passionate about sitting in my couch... its my God-given purpose to be in my couch".

And so it is, they remain in their couch, as broke and unhappy as they were before. Some of them starts convincing themselves that this is the way life was meant to be - in their dusty couches in the middle of their gloomy living rooms.

What if you're sitting in your couch, and someone flies past you in a plane to an exotic holiday paradise, having the time of their life. Would you honestly feel envious? Or if someone drove past you in a flashy Ferrari, would you secretly wish it was you in the car instead? Passion is not our comfort zone. There may be things you'd rather do than the one that matters. Yet the truth is that if you're not getting what you want in life, like more money, more quality time with loved ones and friends, more time for hobbies, or more health, you're living a life with less fun and excitement. There is no passion in that bland lifestyle.

I'd jump out of my lousy couch, and do what I have to do to get that air ticket to the holiday paradise, or to get that Ferrari. It'll start to make me sweat and be uncomfortable, but when I get those things that I want so bad, I know that its all worth it.

So at the end of my life, I could tell the people around me:

"I lived my life with passion."

After Jack Zufelt's Team Rich-only installation of his DNA of Success seminar last night, I spoke to my guest, David*, about being part of my personal leadership team for my Network Marketing organisation. David was working in the government sector, and has been looking for avenues to get out and make it on his own. He cited financial freedom, the ability to create a residual cashflow to cover his living expenses and still have some more money, without selling his time to an employer, as a major motivating factor.

* Not his real name.

He was hesitant when I invited him to be part of my team, and asked him why.

He told me that Network Marketing was too common, and he wanted to see if there was something else he could do.

Then I said, "Thats fine. So David, do you already know something that can give you a residual income?"

He took his time and thought for a little while. "A business, I can start a part time business on my own."

"You sure thats residual income? My girlfriend does business, she makes money, but she works really hard, and you know what? She's full time in her business. Can you afford that?"

"What about real estate?" He tried again.

"Thats not residual income. Thats sales commission. So if there's no personal sales, where's the residual part going to come in?"

"Investments?"

"Have you got money to invest?"

"No.."

"Then thats not even a question."

We brainstormed a little more, and each time, we realised that it wasn't really residual income. It was either one time profits, or personal sales commissions, or involves more money than either of us can afford.

"Honestly", I said finally, "we can't find anything else that can give you residual income. And most people, who has more life experience than either of us, and more successes than either of us can't tell you about anything else that can give you a residual income with low capital investment. So how much farther are you going to look?"

David stroked his chin, and was thoughtful.

If we wanted residual income, how much further would we have to look before we notice Network Marketing as the only viable way for most people to create one?

Finally, an ad with the right attitude to money!

I saw this advertisement in the train station while I was taking the train from Orchard to Toa Payoh. I didn't even know what the ad was about. But I liked the positive message that it carried. Lots of people go around saying things like "I can't get cash" or "I can't get more money". But like Henry Ford said, "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're both right." I'll bet that those people in the ad could get cash :)

People sometimes go around saying they "can" or they "can't" do something, without realising the impact simply saying that has on them. Because whether we think we can or we can't, our body responds in kind.

Say I'm speaking on stage for the first time, to a crowd I have never met before. If I said and believed that "I can pull this off", I'll probably do a good job. Perhaps there'll be small hiccups here and there, but I'll walk away from the stage feeling generally good about my performance. Yet if I were to tell myself that "I can't do this..." and think of all the little reasons why I can't, I'll be stammering, losing my train of thoughts (because I'm trying to think of all the reasons why I can't do it), and get more and more nervous by the minute. I'm setting myself up to bungle the whole thing!

Here's a little experiment you can try with a friend. Raise your leading arm 90 degrees perpendicular to your body (if you're left-handed, raise your left arm, and if you're right-handed, raise your right hand). Now your friend will attempt to push your arm down, and your job is to resist it. At first, say aloud "I can I can I can.." while resisting your friend's attempt to push it down. Then do the same thing, this time saying "I can't I can't I can't...".

What happened?

If you found that you were stronger when you said "I can" than when you said "I can't", you did it correctly. Your body responds accordingly to the things you tell yourself.

Amazing! So if we we could choose our desired outcome simply by the things we tell ourselves, how do we keep choosing to believe that we "can"?

Here's something I learnt from Jack Zufelt, who is the author of the best selling book "The DNA of Success", a globe-trotting professional speaker, and currently the highest paid trainer in the Network Marketing Industry. Jack was on a short visit to Singapore, and my team, Team Rich, played host.

Jack tells us that we have to "know what you want... to get what you want". By knowing what we want, we can do alot of things. He doesn't buy in to someone's excuse that they can't. Here's what I mean.

Lets say I'm talking to Mary, and after a conversation, Mary tells me that she wants to make more money to feed her family. So I tell her "You ought to do Network Marketing."

Lets pretend Mary doesn't think she could do Network Marketing: "Oh no, I can't do it... I'm just not cut out for it." Mary tells me "I'm not a people person."

Learning from Jack Zufelt, my response would be "So?"
"So what? Can you learn how to be a people person? Mary, don't you want to make that money?"

Mary believed that she couldn't do it because she wasn't a "people person". Yet if I could help her become one, where does that leave her now? Because her only obstacle has now been removed, what's really at the heart of the matters is if she wants to or not. If Mary doesn't really want the money, then she won't; its just not really what she's looking for. If she really wants the money, she'll do it!

So its not even a question whether we "can" or we "can't", because we all CAN do just about anything with the right tools. The real question is, whether we Want or we Don't Want.

(More pictures below)

Thats me, right in the middle, with some of my new friends from my most recent visit to the Army. (On my right, Kelvin, and on my right, Clyde.)

Like any other guy who is physically fit and above 18 years of age in Singapore, I'm liable for National Service, where we are recalled back into military service once every year until we're 35. I don't particularly enjoy being recalled, really. It takes up too much time away from business, especially when I'm on a roll.

This year, my service recall happened to fall on a period where business has taken up a good momentum, and I wasn't particularly thrilled to let it go.

Yet my mentor, Eng Hai, reminds me that I am in the business of networking. so where there are people, there is always good, productive activity abound. Trust my good o'le mentor to get me out of my mental rut :)

If there was a devil, I think I can imagine what he's really like.

He's the way he is because he felt that he wasn't loved by the one that mattered to him the most.

He could have been the most beautiful soul, with the brightest of intentions. But because he did not feel loved like he wanted to, he probably tried doing things to win the love of the one he wanted it from.

Maybe he was an older child in a family, who was the centre of attention for his parents. They loved him, they praised him, and he felt happy and secure. He was basking in the warmth of their love and care, and he thought, it just can't get better than this. I love this world!

Then came a younger brother, the new baby of the family. And now, the parents came to spend more time with the younger brother, who was still young and frail, and needed more nurturing. And so, they showered him with less attention than he's used to.

Now he's starting to feel insecure, and wonders why his parents loved him less. He begins doing things to catch his parent's attention; doing cartwheels across the living room, playing little pranks to catch his parent's attention. Yet everytime, he was reprimanded for being a nuisance, and told to be good.

Over time, he learnt to loathe his younger brother. What is it about him that I don't have? Why do they love him more? He begins to do nasty things to his younger brother, and becomes a bully to him.He's now driven to hurt his younger brother. He also began to hate his parents, for chucking him aside. He started rebelling against them, doing things against their wishes, and waged silent wars against them.

All this because he doubted that he was loved. His parents probably did still love him, but he could not see. And his parents wonder... why has he gotten so bad? He was such an angel before!

So the more he did to win their love, the less he got; an eternal round-about that he can never get out of.

So everytime a friend is jealous of another, or a brother is jealous of his sibling, or a boyfriend is jealous of his girlfriend, the Devil will be around, to play out his sorrowful charade.