In Times Like This...that shoebox money holds its value

At one point my policy used to be spend it....ALL, and wake up and do it again. It was quite realistic for me and some of my closet friends and business acquaintances to sit at a round table and discuss what we wanted to do to get more money...and we still do. What's changed the most for me is now when I plan for the future, I also consider saving for the future.

Its been said that the amount you have saved be the equivalent to the amount of months you can survive without working. I ask the question, if the "lights turned off" right now, how long could you last based on what you have in your shoe box...

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iKnowTANK...is having another party...THIS TIME ITS WILMO DAY

For those of you that have been following iKnowTANK.com since the beginning, you may remember this recurring face...MR. WILMO. He was with us for A DAY IN THE LIFE OF DTP, took part in THICK MIDGET BALLIN', and is even featured in the national launch campaign for the 2011 FORD FESTIVA.

This SATURDAY, June 27th, 2009 AMBIENCE ENTOURAGE and iKnowTANK.com, in conjunction with , Disturbing Tha Peace Records and vitamin water present "WILMO DAY 2009" and "AN URBANE MANNER"

Here are the details...
-SATURDAY JUNE 27TH
-IT's a birthday celebration so EVERYONE with a JUNE birthday is FREE
-ADVANCED TICKETS are only $5.00
-IT'S AT PRESTOS 445 W.TRADE STREET (ON THE CORNER OF TRADE AND GRAHAM ST.)
-DOORS OPEN AT 10 PM
-LAST YEARS PARTY WAS AT CAPACITY AT 11:25...SO GET THERE EARLY ('cuz WILMO definitely knows too many people)

As if that wasn't enough...these videos might get you sent home from work early...

...you might wanna close the door for this one...[NSFW]

THE LIVING STANDARD DAY 11...Take responsibility for your life.

11. Take responsibility for your life.

“The happiest people in the world are those who feel absolutely terrific about themselves, and this is the natural outgrowth of accepting total responsibility for every part of their life.”

“The more you like yourself, the better you perform in everything that you do.”

“Disciplining yourself to do what you know is right and important, although difficult, is the high road to pride, self-esteem and personal satisfaction.”

A lot of the tips in this article are based in taking full responsibility for your own life. When you do that you will start doing many of these things naturally like making decisions, putting in hard work and really trying to keep your focus in the right place.

When you decide to take responsibility for your life and doing what you know deep down is right – for example, going to gym instead of lying on the couch eating potato chips – you increase your esteem of yourself. You like yourself more and more as your self esteem goes up.

When your self esteem goes up you feel more worthy of any success and you are less likely to self sabotage in subtle and not so subtle ways. This is crucial and ties back to tip # 1. You tend to behave in alignment with your own self image.

Taking responsibility for your own life and doing the right thing are not the only things you can do to increase your self esteem and success. Another powerful tip is to like/love other people. Why? Because how you view, judge and think about people is usually how you view, judge and think about yourself.

This may sound a bit weird. But try it out for a week or two and see how it affects your view of yourself and your life. You may be surprised.

THE LIVING STANDARD DAY 10...Make a decision. Any decision. Just do something.

10. Make a decision. Any decision. Just do something.

“Decisiveness is a characteristic of high-performing men and women. Almost any decision is better than no decision at all.”

I harp on about this a lot on the blog from time to time. That’s because it’s one of the most fundamental things that hold people back. Sitting on you hands and hoping that someone else will do something for you usually results in a lot of waiting.

Just make a decision. Try something. The sky will most likely not fall if you fail. You will just feel bad for a short while and learn a few things from asking the question in tip # 5. Then you make new decision based on what you learned and take action again.

Artist vs. Executives....

I know I've been hitting ya'll with the daily with THE LIVING STANDARD for a few days now but I thought I would break it up a little by adding this small piece of comedy...just something to think about next time your in a staff meeting...back to work

THE LIVING STANDARD DAY 9...Keep going

9. Keep going.

“Every great success is an accumulation of thousands of ordinary efforts that no one else sees or appreciates.”

That’s what people like Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan and Bruce Springsteen did. They practiced a lot.

How do you put in all that time and effort if no will reward you right now? Well, you find things you love doing, things you do for yourself – rather than to get someone else’s attention and appreciation – and when things feel rough you just do what you know is the right thing to do anyway. You keep going with persistence but also simple the joy of doing what you love as two supporting friends.

THE LIVING STANDARD DAY 8...Realize that you have to pay the price.

8. Realize that you have to pay the price.

“The price of success must be paid in full, in advance.”

Nothing you really want in life is free. You have to put in hard work to get it. And usually over a long time period. You have to make hard choices and sacrifices.

Now, doing so can produce a lot of happiness along the way and when you reach your destination. But when you take the step from comfortable dreams about success and happiness to actually start doing things then there is always a price to pay. So be prepared for that.

THE LIVING STANDARD DAY 7...Focus on the activities that brings you results.

7. Focus on the activities that brings you results.

“Most people engage in activities that are tension-relieving rather than goal-achieving.”

This is very true. People love to just take it easy or relieve tension – and create more of it – by procrastinating and complaining instead of doing. It seems easier on the surface but in the long haul it tends to cause you more pain.

Of course, you must take time to relax too. But find a good and helpful balance for the two aspects of life and the best ways and most positive ways to relieve tension. Three suggestions could be regular exercise, meditation in some form or just watching a good movie.