Lukas Coaching

Is it Ethical to Adopt a Child with a Credit Card?

2008-10-04T14:38:00.005-04:00

My friends Stephen and C.C. would have in a heartbeat, but God had other plans for them.

They leave for China on Ocotober 24th to bring home their second child Henry. Listen to their motivating story they told me today on the radio show and visit www.henrypalooza.com for all the details, including how they are raising more than $25,000 in just 4 months!

Struggling With Business in a Down Economy?

2008-09-24T14:43:00.001-04:00

I recently posted this question openly on LinkedIn. While the responses varied, the overwhelming majority of business folks who answered said the downturn in the economy was the biggest problem holding their company back from being great.

Mary answered simply “UM...the economy! :P”.

A few nights ago my family and I were leaving a friend’s home around 7 pm. As we drove down the interstate our 2-year old daughter said “Mommy; Target.” Sure enough, there along the interstate was the side of Target. What is interesting about this story is that at two years old our daughter cannot read. Even more interesting is the fact that the word “Target” could not even be seen from the road; only the graphical part of their bull’s eye.

My first reaction was to ask my wife how much time she honestly spends there each day. Then I wondered what it would look like if kids recognized other businesses as much as my daughter recognized Target.

Our economy is changing, I do not deny that. Ask Best Buy how much they are hurting and they will quickly tell you that big-screen TVs are at an all-time high for sales. As much as we want to blame our problems on the economy, as business owners, the problem often falls on us.

How have you adapted your business to the changing economy? The businesses I coach with have not noticed a downturn in business simply because the economy has changed. Many of them have actually noticed an increase in their business.

You must continually be adapting to the changing market. If not, you are being left behind. Target has done a great job of branding itself to its market. My guess is “the economy” is not hurting their business model. How could you benefit from adapting to the marketplace rather than complaining about it?

Here are all the answers on LinkedIn.

Can Your Brand do This?

2008-09-24T07:08:00.003-04:00

We were driving home from a friend's house recently when our nearly 4-year old daughter said from the back seat "There's Target Daddy!"

This was in a location that we rarely drive by and all you could see was the logo and not the actual word "Target."

I realize we probably visit too much, but what would it look like for business if kids did that with your brand? My guess is that Target is not blaming the economy on bad business right now. Are you?

What I Learned from Lunch with Ron Blue

2008-09-17T20:48:00.005-04:00

I learned that Ron and I are a lot alike. After the stock market tanked and subsequently rebounded in 1987 (does the first half of that story sound familiar?) Ron testified before Congress.

Senetor Dodd asked him what Americans need to do to survive. Ron said "Easy, we all need to do 4 things." When someone like Ron gives you a list of things you need to do, you grab a pen and get ready to write.

You need to spend less than you make
You need to get out of debt and stay out
You need to have an emergency fund
You need to have long-term goals instead of living for today.

If you know me at all you'll be familiar with this list because it's exactly what I teach! Download the steps if you like.

Senator Dodd was just as intrigued as I was when Ron announced he had a list and took diligent notes. The Senator was dumbfounded that it could be that easy. Ron's response? If it works for the people Senator, it also must work for the government."

Point taken Ron. Thanks for lunch.

Let's Hear it for Networking

2008-09-17T09:47:00.003-04:00

I was able to attend an event last night with some of the brightest minds in Raleigh, NC. The intellect in one room was amazing.

My advice, don't ever turn down the chance to connect and meet some new friends. Whether you're looking for a new job, a change in career or any other number of things, it's amazing what can happen to open up to others and talk.

iContact owner Ryan Allis and I will be talking about Social Entrepreneurship on the Past Due Radio Show on October 4th. This is one you won't want to miss. Ryan built a company from $0 to over $1,000,000 in sales in his early 20's and is now working to eradicate poverty and human suffering without simply infusing money into a culture.

Talk to everyone you meet because they all have a story. I am willing to bet you can help them some way which always comes back to you.

How's Your Portfolio?

2008-09-16T18:37:00.002-04:00

This question conjures the image of Ivy League chums in smoking jackets spouting business jargon in an effort to impress each other. A portfolio is nothing more than a collection of investments.

Could be stocks, bonds, or real estate. Could be career, time with kids, and spiritual life.

We coach our clients in the career and financial aspects of their lives, resolving to help them regain control. Take control of your work life – do something you’re passionate about. Take control of your finances – live on a plan to eliminate the burden of debt and bask in financial freedom.

In the investing world, we’re supposed to make educated decisions with money over the long term. In our daily world, we must responsibly make decisions about ourselves and our family. You could work a part-time job in a field you love to see if there’s a long-term fit. You could leave the office and have lunch with your kids. You could read a book that challenges you to grow spiritually. You could seek help with creating a plan for your financial future.

They all take time – an investment on your part. They all require effort – you have to take control of the situation.

So, how’s your portfolio?

10 Ways to Get Rich

2008-09-10T09:53:00.003-04:00

Parade recently had a great article with Warren Buffett who is the richest man in the world. According to Warren, here are 10 ways to get rich:

Reinvest your profits
Be willing to be different
Never suck your thumb
Spell out the deal before you start
Watch small expenses
Limit what you borrow
Be persistent
Know when to quit
Assess the risks
Know what success really means

When the richest man in the world speaks, it's a good idea to listen.

Create Demand for Your Products and Services

2008-09-05T12:52:00.003-04:00

We all want to create more of a demand for our higher priced products and services. You may even feel like it's a hard sell to get a customer or client to upgrade and spend more money.

But what if the demand started with the customer instead of in the sales department?

My friends at iContact do a great job at this. Check out this chart that you can find if you want to upgrade your account...

At iContact you are charged more for each contact you have on your list. This chart really makes you strive to build that list, even though it costs more each month to do so.

Why remain clever or sharp when you can be brilliant, advanced or even a genius?

How can you build customer demand into your products and services? Let them do the selling and you may not have to.

The Power of Relaxation

2008-09-03T11:03:00.002-04:00

I have been on a working vacation for almost 2 weeks now. We are in California with family, but every few days I have scheduled phone coaching with clients around the country.

I often hear from business owners who lack clarity and ideas for their business. If this is you I urge you to take some time off to reconnect with why you started your business. I can't believe the number of ideas I have come up with in such a short amount of time.

Raising Your Income to Become Debt Free

2008-09-02T22:14:00.002-04:00

During the radio show this past weekend we talked about getting out of debt. Do you REALLY want to be debt free? Do you REALLY want to accomplish your long-term goals, build wealth, and become a better giver? What holds you back?

We have clients that leave our offices and immediately brainstorm what they can pull together for a yard sale by the next weekend. Some clients are out doing side work painting houses and fixing air conditioning. Others are delivering pizzas or sorting boxes for UPS and FedEx.

There are only two ways to make your monthly budget balance: increase your income, or decrease your outgo (expenses). Debt payments raise monthly expenses, so increasing income is the best way to speed up the debt snowball process.

So...do you REALLY want to be debt free? Life has plenty to offer, from fulfilling careers to making a difference in the lives of those around you by freely giving. Don't let income be an excuse that prevents you from finding your path to financial freedom.

Clean Up, Aisle Nine: Broke Customers

2008-08-23T11:17:00.002-04:00

A recent survey by analytics firm Precima showed that 82% of U.S. consumers intend to keep cooking at home instead of eating out even after the economy improves and they have more disposable income. On top of that, 84% of consumers plan to keep hunting for specials in grocery store fliers, and 78% are making fewer trips to the store to save on gas.

There’s no doubt that gas and consumer goods price inflation has been running wild during the past year. Americans are rapidly changing their behaviors to make ends meet and keep food on the table. Is inflation causing financial strain, or revealing deeper problems? (Is this a “chicken and egg” question?)

70% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck according to the Wall Street Journal; our national savings rate hovers around 0%. Perhaps rising consumer prices are enough to topple the financial house of cards so much of the country lives in. Rising prices expose the overextended. A written monthly budget allows you to take control of your money and reinforce your financial foundation.

Here are a few ideas for your next grocery store trip: 1) don’t shop hungry, you’ll buy things you don’t need; 2) stick to a list; 3) only use coupons for items you use (no sense stocking up on 4-for-1 canned garbanzo beans if you don’t eat them); 4) use CASH! Studies show we spend 12%-18% more when paying with plastic. Establish a monthly grocery budget using a cash envelope to monitor your spending. It’s easy: when the cash is gone, the only places to “shop” are your pantry and freezer.

Confronting your financial situation honestly is the first step on the path toward financial freedom. Don’t miss your opportunity to take control of your life and money today!

Why Credit Cards are a Bad Idea

2008-08-22T11:12:00.003-04:00

As parents, we need to teach their children about money before they go away to college, and ideally, starting much younger than that.

Credit card companies pay universities millions of dollars each year to hand out free pizzas, clothing and credit card applications. If you do not teach your children about how to handle money, Visa and MasterCard will.

My wife and I are choosing to take this responsibility head-on because we know our children will not learn it anywhere else. Could you do the same?

When College Becomes Too Expensive

2008-08-20T15:28:00.000-04:00

It is true that student loans are getting harder to obtain. There is a disparity between the rising cost of inflation (just over 4%) and the rising cost of college (just over 7%).

There must be a point at which parents and students discover the cost of college to be too high relative to the income produced as a result of that degree. Ten years after graduating from college, a full 80% of workers have moved on to an occupation unrelated to their college degree.

The question that has not been answered yet is where to draw that line and simply enter the work force as an apprentice or as a new business owner.

Solitaire Specialist Wanted

2008-08-18T17:32:00.003-04:00

As summer draws to a close many people are vacationing. Those who are at work however, are probably not accomplishing much.

As I walk out of my office, one of the workers in the building normally has a game of solitaire in progress. I happen to enjoy a game of solitaire every now and then, but after about 2 or games, I like to move on. I have to believe there is more to life and vocation than hour after hour spent in front of a computer game.

Rick Warren calls this a purpose driven life and is the meaning that many of us are trying to find. I don't think that purpose is found in front of an electronic card game, but behind the covers of a book or a walk in the woods with your thoughts.

Man Your Post if You Want to Hear From God

2008-08-16T13:39:00.001-04:00

So many of our lives have become disintegrated and compartmentalized, it's no wonder we have no idea how to get out of our current situation and make our future match what we see in our dreams.

Habbakuk 2:1 says that we need to man our 'post'. Verse 2 states that we need to write our vision down.

If you aren't hearing from God it is because you have left your post. He's trying to get in touch with you, but you're not there listening. Get back on your post and download our free goals worksheet (LukasCoaching.com/resources). Write your vision down on paper. Without clearly defined goals you will likely be in the same place you are now five years down the road. Don't you want more in life?

Shawn called into the radio show today in regards to the book Halftime that he's reading. Shawns asks, what if there is no significance in your life in the first half to be able to give back in the second half. What a great question as Shawn is not alone.

If you feel like you have very little significance in your life, regardless of which half you are in, God wants you to find it. He wants you to find your passion. Picture a grandfather who buys a toy for his grandson. After two weeks of playing with it the boy is tired. Just as the grandfather has the desire on his heart for the boy to enjoy his toys, so God wants us to find our passions and learn about our significance in life. A Career & Personality Profile is a great place to start.

Michael Phelps has Goals, Do You?

2008-08-15T22:15:00.003-04:00

Michael Phelps is that 22 year old swimmer that breaks a record just about every time he gets in a swimming pool.

Leading up to this summer's Olympics, Matt Lauer interviewed Michael and asked him about the power of goals. Apparently Michael has been setting goals for years, but the only other person in the world that has ever seen his goals sheet is his personal coach.

In Michael's words, the two most powerful things in his life that have propelled him to greatness are his never ceasing goal-setting habit and his personal coach.

There is no way I would be so successful if I didn't write my goals on paper each year. The second reason I am so successful... personal coaching. Yes, even the coach needs to be coached.

Are you successful in your finances, career or business? Could you be? Then why aren't you doing anything about it?

Watch this short interview to find out why Michael is so successful.

From Good Idea to Great Reality

2008-08-15T18:30:00.003-04:00

“Have you set clear, written goals for your future and made plans to accomplish them?”

This question was the premise of a 1979 study of Harvard MBA students. Only 3% participants had written goals. 13% had goals (though not in writing), while 84% of the students had no specific goals at all. Ten years later, the class members were interviewed again.

The 13% that had goals were earning, on average, twice as much as the 84% who had no goals.

And for the 3% with written goals? They were earning, on average, ten times as much as the other 97%!

Americans are some of the busiest people on the planet. In all of our tarrying, though, do we truly believe our lives are being lived abundantly? Have you signed up for that art class you’ve talked about for years? Did you start that business you’ve been thinking about? Are you aggressively reclaiming your financial freedom by getting out of debt and living on a plan?

Writing your goals down requires you to transform an intangible idea into something physical: words on paper. Unless you crumple your goal list and throw it away, the paper becomes a source of accountability. Our Goal Setting worksheets will help you establish specific goals for seven areas of your life: Financial, Physical, Personal Development, Family, Spiritual, Social, and Career.

Feel free to get creative with the way you record and track progress toward your goals. Some of our clients post a progress chart on their refrigerator as a constant reminder of their goal to be debt free. I keep a note card in my wallet of my goals for the year, checking them off as they’re achieved.

What are your goals? It’s time to write them down and begin experiencing the power of turning an idea into reality.

It's Getting Harder to Lease a Car

2008-08-14T20:14:00.001-04:00

Leasing a Car is the Most Expensive Way to Operate a Vehicle.

A Marketwatch article addressed many issues that families are facing in a changing economy. Many families have felt the pinch of rising gasoline and food costs.

Most people do not realize that leasing is the most expensive way to operate a vehicle. Both Kiplinger’s magazine and a working calculator point out this obvious fact. I for one am glad that car leases will be slowing down in the near future as I have seen many families get stuck in a lease they cannot afford.

A better option is to bank a car payment for a few months and buy a car with cash. In America we need to live below our means, get out of debt and save enough to buy a car with cash. It is not an easy plan, but doing the right thing never is.

Avoid Getting Clobbered by Credit Cards

2008-08-11T07:20:00.002-04:00

Parade.com points out some best practices to watch out for with your credit cards:

Your rates are raised without warning
You may have been paying your bill in a timely fashion, but if you fall behind in payments to another creditor or if your credit score drops for any reason, it can trigger a jump in the rates on all of your credit cards. Even more surprising: If you charge close to your limit without exceeding it, your rate can jump too.

Your due date changes
Don’t assume that your check must arrive at the same time every month. Some banks have been accused of abruptly switching payment due dates. Others may try to trip you up by specifying that your bill is due by a certain time of day on the due date. Many banks have narrowed payment periods from 31 days to 20 days.

Keep in mind that if even one payment is late, banks can raise your interest rate to as high as 28% as a penalty. Average late fees for large banks rose from $19 in 1995 to $35 in 2007.

Extra charges and penalties
Card companies tack on significant fees for all sorts of services: cash advances, balance transfers, conversion of foreign currency, paying off your balance by phone, and more. Going above your credit limit may trigger the biggest penalty of all, leading to rates of more than 30% a year.

Misleading introductory rates
Your mailbox is probably filled with offers of alluring low-interest credit cards—3%, 2%, 0%. These rates are usually just come-ons, and they may jump to as high as 30%. And it gets even worse. If you transfer a balance to a card with a 0% promotional rate, you may soon learn that the 0% rate applies only to the balance you transferred, while all future purchases accumulate at a much higher rate. And when you make payments, they’re applied to the debt with the lower interest—so the higher- interest debt keeps building.

Mandatory arbitration
When a credit-card company claims you owe money, your legal rights are limited. At least 75% of cards have clauses that say disputes must be resolved in private arbitration forums, according to a recent survey. So when a disagreement arises, a consumer can’t take it to court—a serious issue if you’re a victim of identity theft.

Maybe it's time to get rid of your credit cards for good.

Parade.com

The Financial Reality Our Kids Face

2008-08-09T14:22:00.002-04:00

We covered some great topics during today's show about Kids & Money. In order to equip you with more information about the financial world your kids live in, check out these statistics:

> In 1983, companies spent $100 million marketing to kids; in 2007 they spent $17 billion.

> Kids age 8-12 spend $30 billion of their own money annually, and influence an additional $150 billion worth of spending for their parents.

> The average college grad has more than $3,000 in credit card debt and $19,000 in student loan debt. (8.5% of college students drop out due to debt/financial obligations; 6% drop out for academic reasons)

> 32% of college students say they were "not at all" or "not very well" prepared for managing money on campus (2006 Key Bank poll).

> 35% of children would like to learn more about money management from their parents; 42% of parents say they haven't taken any steps whatsoever to discuss financial basics with their kids (2006 Capital One study).

If we aren't teaching our kids to responsibly give, save, and spend their money, the credit card companies will be happy to fill the void. Bad habits and behaviors are never easy to change, but there's definitely no time like the present to begin a paradigm shift. Today can be the day you take back your family tree and strike a path toward financial freedom.

What are you doing to teach your kids about money?

2008-08-09T12:53:00.003-04:00

As our oldest, Ava, becomes older we're trying to teach her more about money. If you think your child's school or church will teach them about money, think again. I'm afraid the burden is going to fall on you as parents.

Don't let them go off to college not knowing anything about money.

For ideas on what to teach your kids and when, listen to the Past Due Radio Show.

Here's a picture of our oldest Ava in the studio with me. I brought a visual aid with me, which incidentally doesn't work well in radio.

Think Before Emailing

2008-08-03T13:38:00.002-04:00

If you email a prospective (or even a current) employer, make sure you think about your content before hitting send. The New York accounting firm KPMG LLP says that about 1 of every 10 thank you messages (emails) they receive have some sort of smiley face in them :).

That may be OK if you're applying for a job at Apple (or maybe not) but it surely does nothing to accelerate your credibility.

During every step of the hiring process, pretend that your prospective employer is looking for any reason not to hire you. They really are. You cannot let them down at any level because they will find someone else. Don't let a ;) stand in the way of getting your dream job.

The first step to get out of debt

2008-07-30T20:07:00.002-04:00

The first step you must take is to stop borrowing money. If you want to get out of a hole, you need to stop digging.

Take the first step towards getting out of debt. Cut your credit cards up or freeze them in a block of ice.

If you don't have enough money to get through a month without using a credit card then you have to face reality and either cut your expenses or raise your income.

Get $500 worth of Marketing for $100

2008-07-30T07:07:00.002-04:00

As a small business owner, don't ever settle to get only what you paid for out of your marketing. You should be getting way more for your money!

Of course, most businesses only get what they pay for when it comes to their marketing. They will forever stay in the bottom 98% of normal companies. If you want your company to be great, you must take it to the next level.

If you advertise in a magazine, make hundreds of copies. Include reprints in your marketing material "As Seen in Time Magazine". Put a copy on your website, tell everyone you know.

The credibility of the magazine will automatically be transferred to to your business by the customer.

Of course it's not necessary to do this. If you want your business to remain normal, simply keep doing what everyone else is doing. Pay for marketing and only get what you pay for.

Your Spouse Must be Onboard

2008-07-22T22:05:00.002-04:00

Whether you're getting out of debt or starting a new business, you spouse must be on board. When money is tight and one spouse wants to get out of debt but the other spends like their is no tomorrow the marriage is often hanging on by a thread.

You must both be on board if you want to make progress. Part of my job is to show couples how to work together to execute their plans.

Feel alone in trying to reach your goals? Often times I have each spouse separately write their list of financial goals on paper. We get back together and compare. Almost every time both sheets of paper contain the exact same goals.

Retirement, money in the bank, nice home, etc. If you have the same goals, why are you fighting?

When helping someone find work they love or start a business I like to meet with the other half of the marriage to see if they approve. They don't have the be involved, but without the support and encouragement of a trusting spouse it is much harder to succeed.

Try separately writing down your goals and comparing them with your spouse today. It could mean a world of difference and even save your marriage.