Wisdom of Rich Dad

The #1 skill of an entrepreneur….

… is the ability to sell.

Watch as Robert Kiyosaki speaks with Sara Nelson of Publishers Weekly about the importance of learning how to sell.

He talks about how he does not consider himself an author, but an entrepreneur whose responsibility it is to sell his books.

The mortgage business has been hard for many mortgage professionals as the real estate market has cools from a flippers dream or from the idea that just owning a home makes you rich. I’ve seen many many mortgage originators and brokers go into other lines of work and honestly who could blame them?

With Massachusetts adding the requirement of licensing, the number is now being seen as falling as much as 80% from the height of the real estate boom when mortgage brokers made easy money and lots of people entered the field. This comes from the Massachusetts Mortgage Bankers Association.

Read the article from the Boston Business Journal! Thanks go to Danielle Rocheford for forwarding the article to me.

There is likely a silver lining in this for the mortgage brokers that stick. They will have far less competition and the ones that stay should have a lot more business I’d guess.

~ The Motley Fool ~

Imagine being free of debt — no more sleepless nights over mounting credit card balances, no more ball-and-chain of debt feeding your anxieties, and no chance of threats from dreaded collection agencies. You can do it! Here’s the scoop — in one minute flat.

0:60 Resolve to spend less than you make
Make it a habit as fundamental as stopping for red lights. Realize once and for all that if you can’t pay for it today — you can’t afford it.

0:55 Distinguish between Bad Debt and OK Debt
OK Debt has an interest rate well under 10% — preferably with some tax advantages to boot. In the best case, what you bought with borrowed funds will appreciate in value. Home mortgages and student loans are examples of OK Debt. Automobile loans are on the border: They often satisfy the low-rate piece, but automobiles almost never appreciate in value. Bad Debt is everything else — from your titanium credit card to the 35% loan from Larry’s Kwik Kash.

0:50 Pick a winner
Out of all your cards, pick the one or two major credit cards that feature the lowest annual interest rate. Resolve to use those cards for emergencies only. As for all the other plastic pals in your wallet, remove temptation by taking them out of your wallet. Throw them behind a major appliance, freeze them in a bowl of water, or decoupage them to a shoebox. Do whatever it takes not to use them.

0:41 Gather the latest bills from all Bad Debt accounts
Line these up on the kitchen table. Find the minimum monthly payment for each account and then add these up to get an overall monthly minimum. Pledge to pay this overall minimum PLUS a hefty additional chunk every month — enough to make a solid dent in the outstanding balance of at least one account.
If you can’t pull this off, you’ll have to make a drastic move to increase your income or lower your expenses. It’s harsh, we know, but it’s also an inescapable fact.

0:34 Pick the highest interest rate account and: Attack!
Next, order the latest bills according to annual interest rate charged. Apply the “hefty additional chunk” (beyond the minimum) to the highest rate account(s). Repeat this process monthly until the last Bad Debt account is paid in full.

0:26 Ask for a lower interest rate
Grab a bill from any account charging you more than 14% interest. Dial the toll-free number on the bill and ask to have your rate reduced — say, to 11%. Tell them that you’d really like to stay with them out of customer loyalty (embellish according to your acting skills), but that you have received offers for much-lower-rate cards. Expect to be made very uncomfortable, but stand firm and remember that, to them, you are both a customer and a profit center. You also stand to save a bundle. The more calls you make, the more persuasive you’ll become.

0:18 Be prudent
Be aggressive in paying down Bad Debt, but don’t get so ambitious that you risk missing minimum payments on your mortgage, automobile, or any other secured credit account. (Secured means that if you miss enough payments, the bank can show up and take away your stuff.)

0:12 Commiserate with others
On our Consumer Credit / Credit Cards discussion board, you’ll find plenty of emotional support and great ideas. Help others celebrate their debt-free “happy dance.”

0:05 Dance, Fool!
You’re done when the Bad Debt is 100% exorcised and you can make remaining OK Debt payments with ease, leaving plenty of budget room for savings.