Do you think your most valuable asset is a possession – your home, your car, your stereo or your savings? No, none of these things are your most valuable asset.
Even if you have millions of dollars, your money is not your most valuable asset. In fact, it might become a liability if you get obsessed about keeping it and protecting it. Your life can become controlled by your cash or possessions.
No, the most valuable financial asset you own is not a possession, but your personal golden goose.
The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs
The Greek slave Aesop told this story about 2,500 years ago. A man and his wife owned a goose that laid a golden egg every day. They decided they were not getting rich fast enough. They believed the bird must be full of gold and so decided to kill it to get what was inside NOW.
When they cut open their golden goose, they found it was just like any other goose – no gold. They not only failed to get rich all at once as they had hoped, they no longer enjoyed the daily golden eggs.
Because you have probably heard this story, you would never think of cutting open a goose that laid golden eggs for you. You would take special care of that goose. You would buy it the best goose feed, build the most comfortable goose nest and give it the nicest goose pond available, right?
The truth is, you own a golden goose.
Conditions of Success
Your ability to work and produce something valuable is the goose that lays golden eggs for you. The more ability you have, the more golden eggs you can earn.
The Best Investment in the World
Professional investors are constantly searching for investments (golden geese) with three qualities:
1. The investment must be safe and secure.
2. It must produce above-average income.
3. Opportunities to buy the investment must be everywhere.
Your Personal Golden Goose Investment
Your ability to make money fits all three qualities:
1. Your ability to earn money is safe.
Some oppressive person might try to kill your goose with criticism, attacks or backstabbing. Yet once you bounce back, your skills start to produce golden eggs again. Your skills do not easily disappear.
2. By investing in your golden goose, you can earn a huge income.
For example, a Denturist might spend $50,000 to $90,000 on education to learn to be a Denturist, but then goes on to earn at least $150,000 to $1,000,000 per year. He or she earns at least twice their initial education cost every year from graduation onwards. How many other types of investments can do that?
3. Many investors spend most of their time looking for golden geese. They are happy if 60% of their investments make money. By investing in your personal abilities, you can expect 90-100% of these investments will help you succeed.
Because you get some improvement from everything you learn, you have no real risk. In fact, you can expect an excellent return on your investment by obtaining any skill: people skills, computer skills, speaking skills and so on.
Even better is improving your personal power base – your ability to deal with difficult situations, to make correct decisions, to work harder, to accomplish more, and to do tough jobs.
As an example: Denturists across Canada have invested time and money in training to be skilled managers of their practices through executive courses and consulting with The Art Of Management. The result of that investment has been an increase of $120,000 to $300,000 over the next one year period. That usually represents a return of 300% or more on their initial investment.
Recommendations:
1. Make a list of all the abilities and skills you have that make you money. For example, your friendly manner, your smile, your skill as a Denturist, your skill in the lab, your ability to get referrals from Dentists, your ability to get patients referring to you, etc..
2. Next, list what skills or abilities you feel would help you go to the next level: how to hire and train the right staff, how to increase the inflow of new business from your marketing, how to get a patient to accept ideal care (not the cheapest thing you can make), how to ask patients for referrals, how to be a good executive to your staff, how to strategize and cause continual growth and expansion (no more peaks and valleys), how to set up your life for a good retirement, how to manage your financial matters so that you always have enough money, etc.
3. Invest some time and money into gaining those skills and abilities. A little hard work now pays off big in the future.
Improve your golden goose and you will soon have all the golden eggs you need!
Call us at 416-466-6217 for a FREE Practice Assessment!
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