In this bite-sized ep, Terry reveals the biggest lesson learned from the last few years of coaching people on their finances. It has to do with what separates those who persist long enough to get traction and results, and those who start strong but fall off the bandwagon.
You’ll also get the inside scoop on the secret project the team have been working on to help you bridge this gap and have your efforts compound into results
Hey it’s Terry.
You might have noticed we’ve had a little hiatus for the last few weeks on the pod.
And that’s because we’ve been busy building something for you.
I’ll explain…
Over the past few years, coaching people from all over the world has taught us alot about what does and doesn’t work. And what does and doesn’t matter.
And we believe in studying ‘bright spots’ to replicate and scale success.
It’s those people who:
– Start fast and build momentum faster in part because they…
– Sidestep obstacles and tackle money monsters head on which allows them to…
– Smash their goals and start making big money moves that change their livesange their lives.
And years later, they are still going strong.
When we look at these winners, we see one clear pattern…
Of course, they take responsibility and commit to action.
That’s a prerequisite.
But it’s not enough…
It’s actually what happens after the start that matters most.
See it’s not hard to start.
What’s hard is not stopping.
Gyms all over the world swell to capacity in the first week of Jan.
But by Feb, there’s so many free machine’s most gyms look more like a showroom than a sweat den.
It’s the same with money.
Like New Years firecrackers, most people start with a bang. And before you know it they’ve fizzled out and fallen back to earth.
And here’s what’s tragic…
Most of the time, the hardest work is behind them. And their efforts never really amount to anything.
Going from 0 to 1 is alot harder than going from 1-2. And going from 2-3 is actually pretty damn fun because you’re seeing real progress.
So why do most people stop just as their efforts are about to pay off?
Well, what we’ve learned is that it’s a problem of focus.
When you start something new, you’re inspired by some dream off in the distance.
In the realm of money, the dream could be any number of things:
It could be owning your home free and clear.
Or it might be quitting your job and retiring early
Or just travelling overseas every year knowing your financial future is secure.
Whatever the dream, it’s a destination.
And that means we don’t get there the moment we take action.
Dreams take time.
Where people get tripped up is fixating on the gap between where they are and where they want to be.
Now, it’s useful to perceive the gap.
It’s what get’s us from zero to one.
But once you’ve done that, focusing on the gap actually holds you back.
Here’s an example…
Imagine you set a goal to build a 3 month cushion so you can get started investing this year.
If you only focus on the gap, every day you don’t hit the goal you will have to acknowledge you’re not there yet.
That’s not really an expansive feeling.
For many, it just feels like failure.
And that’s why those who focus on the gap tend to give up.
But where they have failed you will succeed.
Here’s why…
Because you are about the discover the secret to sticking it out.
The secret to going the distance.
The secret to harnessing the law of compounding and making it work in your favour.
Ok I’m done teasing you. Here it is…
Instead of focusing on the gap, start training your attention on the gain.
Look at what you’ve accomplished and think about the trajectory you are on.
Your brain will connect the dots and extrapolate a straight line out into the future.
This will have the effect of pulling forward the feeling of ultimate success into the now.
You will build a sense of belief.
And this will reinforce the behaviours you’re looking to perpetuate to get results.
In game design this feeling is what’s called a ‘win state’
And Stanford’s Einstein of Behaviour science BJ Fogg says this THE CRITICAL FACTOR in long term habit formation.
Here’s how he puts it:
“We don’t change by feeling bad, we change by feeling good’.
So if you want to cross the chasm that separates the dreamers from the doers, focus on the gain and forget about the the gap.
Which brings me to where I started with this email…
For the last three months we’ve been figuring out how to help more people use this insight to reach their goals.
How to make it useful.
And after a pretty solid sprint this last month, we finally cracked it…
We’re calling the end result Compass.
It’s the only habit formation framework specifically built for personal finance.
It helps you break down your big journey into manageable milestones.
And it trains you to focus on the gain as you close the gap win by win.
Think of it like your own personal assistant, showing you what to do next and reminding you of how far you’ve come.
That’s what Compass is, and that’s what it does.
Best of all, its totally free to you when you join the community.
We did a bit of a soft launch last week, and so far we’ve gotten some great feedback.
I can also see how it is absolutely motivating people to start taking the small actions that lead to big results.
If you’re keen to start converting the knowledge you’ve been accumulating into action, all you need to do is
Hit that link in the show notes and you’ll be able to start using it immediately.
