A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I played Cashflow 101 game board as a special bonus to the first 10 who bought my ebook guide Rich Money Habits – 8 Ways To Shift Your Money Habits and Be Rich. I was excited because I haven’t done anything like this before in my life. I first learned about the Cashflow 101 boardgame around 2005 when I read Rich Dad Poor Dad book of Robert Kiyosaki. Ever since reading the book and finding out about the boardgame, I had a yearning to play Casflow 101. The only problem — the boardgame costs quite a bit, around PhP 10,000. And being a struggling employee facing credit card debts, I didn’t have that amount of money then.
One day, while reading through the Entreprenuer’s forum, I learned that someone is holding cashflow 101 games at AIM Makati City. Even though the price is quite expensive (at that time) at PhP 800 for a 4-hr workshop, I grabbed the opportunity right away. I enjoyed the game so much I played again (and paid another PhP 800). It was a real learning experience, realizing that there’s a different world of money out there I’ve never recognized before.
When I went to the US a year after, buying a Cashflow 101 board game for myself was one of my main goals. So when I got back from my 6-month stint in the US, I didn’t hesitate to buy the game and bring it home with me to the Philippines. I immediately played the game with my family and friends. Everytime I play, I learn something new — how to analyze a deal, how the cash flows for every event that happens in your life, etc. The most important realization I got was recognizing my own attitude about money. Am I generally conservative? Or agressive? Am I the type who goes into debt and takes advantage of the power of leverage? Or am I contented just watching other players enjoying making deals left and right while I am still afraid to take advantage of the small deals even though it is only play money.
It’s been months since the last time I played Cashflow 101 game. While playing the game this time around, there were many real-life lessons that came flashing through my mind that I wanted to share with you.
Here are the top 10 real-life tips I’ve re-learned while playing Cashflow 101 again.
1) Having a High Income Does Not Mean You Are Wealthy
One of the players had a profession of a doctor. He had a hard time getting out of the rat race because of the high expense. He had to be really be creative and financially savvy to generate a lot of cashflow to cover the high expense. Contrary to popular belief, high income doesn’t necessarily mean you are wealthy. Even with your high income, a high expense will leave you little cashflow (aka Paycheck) at the end of the month. Unless you turn that casfhlow into income producing assets, you will have a hard time getting out of the rat race. What does it mean? You need to manage your expenses and be creative if you want to achieve financial freedom. You cannot rely only with your high income.
2) Being Creative Is More Important Than Being Knowledgable
In real-life, what you know is only potential asset unless you apply it. And the only way to apply what you know is by being creative in using the knowledge that you have to find solutions to other people’s problems. Getting into good debts to buy a real-estate property can be a good strategy, provided you know how to manage that property so it gives you extra cash at the end of the month. For that to work, you need to understand your market, your cash flow and equip yourself with the necessary financial intelligence to make the deal work. Good deals are everywhere. However, those with creative minds have an easier time recognizing those deals because they invested the time to learn to spot those deals. To be creative, you need time and effort. Time to feed your mind data to recognize good deals from bad, and effort to battle through the emotional learning to make it work.
3) You Can Be An Ordinary Teacher and Beat A Doctor From Getting Out of the Rat Race.
Sometimes, having a lower income can be an advantage, provided you also have lower expenses. And because you have lower expenses, the less passive income you need to generate to get out of the rat race. In real life, this is easier said than done. One because, sometimes, even with the low income, the expenses are even higher. You end up borrowing money from other people just to pay for the food you eat. Other times, you are discouraged with living each day from paycheck to paycheck. If you play the cashflow 101 boardgame, realizing this important lesson will give you hope. If only you know how to manage what you have, you have the power to get out the rat race sooner than you think.
4) Be Careful What You Focus On
What you focus on expands. If you focus on problems, you will see problems. If you focus on opportunities, you will see opportunitites. In playing Cashflow 101 board game, there’s a trap that a lot of beginners frequently fall into — i.e. focusing on your paycheck. When you receive your paycheck, you glee in delight as you bring your token over the yellow cell. As you accumulate more and more money, however, you begin to hunger for more opportunities instead, to the point where you no longer want to fall into a yellow cell (paycheck)…You now want to land on an opportunity everytime! When this happens, celebrate because you have just started to shift one of your core money habits. You are now focusing on opportunities and going beyong just receiving a monthly paycheck. You are no longer a slave of the 15th or 30th days of the month. Now, you are looking for small deals and big deals so you can build those assets that produces income. Keep it up and soon financial freedom will be yours.
5) Every Event In Your Life Impacts Your Cash Flow
Lose your job. Have a baby. Go on a shopping spree. Buy an opportunity. Donate to charities. They all impact your cash flow. They either add in to your expenses, or to your income. However, they don’t have to stop you from building your asset and minimizing your liabilities. You still have the power to determine how it impacts you. At the start, I pulled up a doodad card where I had to pay more than what I have in savings. I had to borrow money from the bank just to pay for the “vacation”. When you get in this situation during a game, it’s a bit discouraging because you don’t have any money left and you don’t have anything to invest. You have to wait for your next paycheck to get back into the game. The reality is that a lot of people live this kind of lifestyle in real-life but they don’t have a clue that one false move (a.k.a. losing your job) can lead them into financial disaster.
6) The More You Play The Game of Money, The More You Recognize Opportunities Around You
I’ve played the game many times, and because I’ve read and re-read the cards on deck, I know what small deals and big deal opportunity cards are out there. I know what’s possible in terms of market going frenzy over houses, stocks or businesses. I do believe the same applies to real-life. The more you learn about what’s possible, the more you are able to expand your consciousness and focus on those opportunities. By taking advantage of those opportunities, you give your self a chance to gain your own financial freedom.
7) Take Action and Take Advantage of Opportunities
Watching others make a move doesn’t do you any good. Take action. No matter how small. Each baby step is a giant leap to your dreams. You never know when the next wave is going to hit and carry you to your goals. I’ve played the game since 2005, and yet I am still learning. The only reason I learned what I know is by taking advantage of the opportunities that life gives me. I don’t always make money, sometimes I even lose some. But the more I go through all those experience, the more I gain the confidence to move forward.
8) Luck Favors the Prepared Mind
Opportunities are flashing before your eyes every second of every day. You only need to train your mind to see those opportunites. The reality is that it takes time to build your mindset to see those opportunities. It took me years to finally see that earning money aside from your job is indeed possible. But without the constant exposure to financial lessons, I doubt if I even had the courage to start the Rich Money Habits blog.
9) Money Attracts Its Own Kind
Even the smallest passive income can turn into big amount if you put your heart and soul into it. In reality, there’s only one asset you actually have – YOU. You are the asset. You determine whether something becomes an asset or a liability. A perfectly viable business like Mang Inasal can be profitable if the owner knows how to turn it into an asset. If the same asset is transferred to someone who doesn’t know how to manage a food business, and doesn’t have an inkling of an experience running a business even as small as a food cart, the same asset can turn into a liability.
10) YOU are the asset
Even the smallest passive income can turn into big amount if you put your heart and soul into it. In reality, there’s only one asset you actuall have – YOU. You are the asset. You determine whether something becomes an asset or a liability. A liability can turn into an asset, and vice-versa. A perfectly viable business like Mang Inasal can be profitable if the owner like Edgar Siap knows how to turn it into an asset. If the same asset is transferred to someone else who doesn’t know how to manage a food business, and doesn’t have an inkling of an experience running a business even as small as a food cart, the same asset can turn into a liability.
Keep on dreaming. Keep on learning. Keep on Believing.
Cheers!
Allan
P.S. If you’re searching for ways to practice what you learned in Cashflow 101 in real-life, CLICK HERE to email me.
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