THE FINANCIAL D.I.V.

A’S

FINANCIAL
FITNESS
IN FIVE WORKOUTS
PRINCIPLES TO
BOOST YOUR
FINANCES

ACCA, Bsc Appl.Acc. (Hons)

D-Determined&Daring I-Inspired&Intelligent V-Vibrant&Victorious A-Authentic, Action-orientatated African!

 C ONTENTS §


CONTENTS

5 IN T R O D U C T I O N T O F I N A N C I A L F I T N E S S

6 WHY WORKOUTS?
6 Belief systems
6 Breaking free

8 W O R K O U T 1 : S AV I N G S
8 Five benefits of saving
8 Te n q u i c k t i p s f o r s a v i n g

10 W O R K O U T 2 : F I N A N CI A L E D U C AT I O N
10 Asset
10 Li a b i l i t y
11 Good debt
11 Bad debt
11 Cashflow

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12 WORKOUT 3: SERVICE
13 What service do you have to offer?
13 Es h a b l i s h a n e e d
13 Va l u e y o u r s e l f
13 R e s e a rc h
13 Do what you love
13 Give

14 WORKOUT 4: LEVERAGE
15 Ti p s o n h o w y o u c a n a p p l y l e v e r a g e
FINANC IAL FITNES S IN FIVE WORK OU TS

16 WORKOUT 5: JUST DO IT!

16 Begin with the end in mind?
16 Ta k e a b e f o r e p i c t u r e !
17 Create an action plan
17 Just do it!

17 G R AT I T U D E

19 RESOURCES AND RECOMMENDED READING

20 ABOUT THE AUTHOR


 “It’s not how much money you
make, but how much of it you
keep and how it works for you
that matters!” — ROBERT KIYOSAKI
INTRODUCTION


INTRODUCTION
Knowing the rules of money and playing the game to win!

A couple of years ago, my husband Sandras and I played ¹Cashflow 101®

board game, created by renowned financial guru Robert Kiyosaki, for the
first time. I observed as he panicked and semi-hyperventilated about what
to do with the bunch of fake money that he had in his hands. At that time
he would not be bothered about looking at the family finances in too much
detail saying ‘my wife is the accountant so she takes care of that.’ This was
not because he didn’t know the rules of money. He knew them well. He
is an avid reader as I am and is blessed with the uncanny ability to make
money. He was, however, also blessed with the uncanny ability to spend
most of it!
In the 18 months that followed, he started to take a closer look at the
family finances, setting financial goals and applying the principles he had

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learnt through research to our personal finances. The more he did it, the
more comfortable he got.
Later during one of my Financial Fitness Boot Camps, I asked the
participants to share what they felt the term “financial fitness” meant. There
was an array of answers. Sandras was in attendance and his response
was “Financial fitness is knowing the rules of money and using them. It
is like playing in a soccer game. If knowing the rules was all there was
to it, then referees would make the best players in the world but that’s
FINA NCI AL FITNES S IN FIVE WORK OU TS

not the case. It is the player that knows the rules, plays the game and
gets better at it every time through practice and application.” I was
impressed. He now sounded like a seasoned financial guru!
In this e-book I will share five financial fitness principles that will boost
your finances. These are age old principles that have worked for many
people throughout time. They have also worked for my clients and me.
In addition, I will share some simple yet effective ways in which you can
apply them to become financially fitter!
¹ Cashflow 100 is an educational board game aimed at teaching the players investing


 WHY WORKOUTS?
Belief systems
There’s a direct correlation between
where we are in our life financially and our
relationship with money. This relationship
develops over years and is influenced by
several things including our belief system.
This belief system is created and reinforced
by a repetition of patterns that we may have
been deliberately taught or that we picked
up along the way. Either way, we adopt this
belief system as our own at four levels.
These are mental, emotional, spiritual
and physical. This belief system becomes
ingrained in our subconscious mind. The
subconscious mind dictates the bulk of our
actions. Those actions reinforce the belief
system and the cycle continues.
To create and reinforce a belief system
effectively, we therefore need to incorporate
workouts or practical steps in addition to
simply talking about it.
If you are not entirely happy with where
your life is financially, it could be time
to examine your belief system. In order
to effectively create and reinforce an
empowering belief system that will boost
your finances, you will need some practical
action points.
Breaking free
INTRODUC TION
Suze Orman says “choosing wealth as a
goal requires facing everything about your
money bravely, honestly and with courage,
which is a very hard thing for most of us to

do. But it can be done.”
You can create an empowering belief
system by:
Identifying your limiting beliefs about
money.
You can identify your limiting beliefs by
answering the following questions:
• What do you think about money?
• Do you think that money is evil?
• Do you think that money is in limited
supply?
• Do you think that it takes money to make
money?
These are some of the limiting beliefs
that may be holding you back from getting
ahead financially. For example if you think
and believe that “money is evil,” then
you probably get rid of it very quickly by
spending it or giving it away. Examine your
thoughts about money and identify your
own limiting beliefs.
What do you say to yourself and others
about money?
Do you say things like:
• “Money does not grow on trees.”
• “Money is hard to come by.”
• “Money is the root of all evil.”?
These are limiting beliefs. What you say is
determined by what you think. Therefore
examining what you say to yourself and
others helps you to determine your beliefs.
What do you do with your money?
When you get money:
• Do you quickly pay bills, buy stuff, and
hope there will be something left over to
save? Do you spend it on things that you
do not need?
• Do you invest in any ‘get rich quick’
scheme that comes your way because
you do not want to put in the time it takes
to understand how money works?
Examining your actions can also give you
an indication of the limiting beliefs that may
be holding you back.
Getting rid of your limiting beliefs.
A great way to dispel limiting beliefs is by
discrediting them. They are not helping you
grow so why keep them?
For example if you believe, “it takes
money to make money,” find lots of
evidence why this is not true. Like how
about the man that knows a colleague
whose kitchen pipes are leaking. This same
man also knows a plumber. Would he need
money to connect his colleague to the
plumber? Would he need money to ask for
a commission from them?
Replacing your limiting beliefs with
empowering ones.
Replace your limiting beliefs with
empowering ones such as:
• “money is in abundance,”
• “money is good,”
• “I deserve money.”
Write down what you would rather
believe and repeat it aloud to yourself
often. Remember it is through repetition
“Choosing wealth as a goal
requires facing everything
about your money bravely,
honestly and with courage,
which is a very hard thing for
most of us to do. But it can
be done.” — SUZE ORMAN
of patterns that the belief systems that
influence our actions are created.
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Reinforce the new belief by collecting
supporting evidence for it.
Yes! Go crazy finding evidence from the
past and present that supports the new
belief. Have fun with it! Write the evidence
down and stick it all over your room where
you can see it! Read it out aloud to yourself
often and make a ceremony out of it.
FINA NCIA L FITN ESS I N FIV E WOR KOUTS
Like break dance whilst you do it! Keep
collecting more evidence as you go along.
Repeat process.
Now let’s look at the five principles
that will boost your finances. Remember
that application of each principle is more
effective when repeated. That way it
becomes part of your belief system and
patterns of dealing with finances.

 WORKOUT 1: SAVINGS
The foundation for creating wealth
What an emotional subject money is!
Marriages have been broken because
of it. Friendships have perished, health
threatened, lives lost… you name it.
Emotions flair up all over the place because
of money!
Warren Buffet says “until you can
manage your emotions, don’t expect to be
able to manage money.” Oh boy! How can
one manage their emotions around money
better and what can they do to stabilize
their emotions?
One way is by saving money. Saving is
paying yourself first and is the foundation
for creating wealth. When Nobsie attended
my boot camp, she exclaimed “Oh! I
thought paying yourself first meant going on
a shopping spree to spoil yourself!” I have
found that many people share that view.
Paying yourself first is prioritizing saving
money for you. It is a declaration that you
value yourself. It is also a declaration that
you value money and deserve to have it.
Money flows more to people that can put it
to good use.
Five benefits of saving
WORK OUT 1: SAVINGS
• Stabilizes emotions: When you have a
nice comfortable stash of money sitting
somewhere, you are less agitated over
unexpected expenses
• Investing: Savings are a great source of
financing for investing. Great deals are

available in abundance. Having funds to
invest affords you the opportunity to take
advantage of them.
• Boosts confidence: People without
savings are more likely to get swindled
out of even the little that they have.
This is because they tend to be more
desperate and look for quick fixes.
• Gives independence: Many people
have stayed in abusive relationships or
endured abusive bosses because they
needed the financial stability that came
with the package. Having savings allows
one the option to leave.
• Rainy day: Yes. In the event that there
ever was a rainy day, you would have
something to fall back on.
• I am certain you can come up with
more reasons why saving would benefit
you personally. Dr John Demartini
emphasizes paying yourself first. He
says “Priorities are important. Spending
money wisely means spending it
according to priority… of all the things
you pay, ultimately yourself carries the
highest penalty if left unpaid… the world
reflects you and until you are willing to
invest in you, don’t expect others to”.
• The good news is that saving is easy
once you create a habit of it. Have you
been postponing saving for an ‘ideal time
and place’? Are you waiting till you have
more money, no debt, more support from
your partner, more knowledge, more…?
Ten quick tips for saving!
Decide on a percentage of your gross
income to start saving. I recommend not
less than 10%, however even 1% is better
than nothing. A percentage rather than an
absolute amount is ideal because when
your income increases, so do your savings!
What we are trying to establish is a pattern
for repetition so don’t get hang up on the
amount.
• Open a separate savings account and
initiate a debit order to move the savings
amount from your cheque account into
your savings account. Omar Periu calls
it the FAST method (Forced Automated
Savings Technique).
• Include the savings amount into your
budget as the top most priority ‘expense’
as you would do for things such as rent
and celebrate each time it goes off your
account.
• Increase your savings amount by 10%
every three months as recommended by
Dr John Demartini’s Accelerated method.
For example, if you started with saving
R100, increase it by 10% in the third
month and save R110 and so on. In two
years you would have approximately
doubled your initial savings amount.
• “Eat before you go shopping,” says Linda
Smith, creator of the Abundance diary.
“Shopping on an empty stomach leads to
impulse buying. Use a grocery shopping
list,” she adds.
• Use a pre-determined cash amount
for your day-to-day expenses for each
week. This is recommended by Camilla
“Until you can manage
your emotions, don’t expect
to be able to manage money.”
— WARREN BUFFET
Hazell-Harradine of You Unlimited. That
way when her allocation for the week is
spent, she does not compromise and
break her budget.
• Have a piggy bank. Sisanda, a friend of
mine, keeps all her change in a big bowl
on her kitchen counter. She carries it to
the bank, once full and deposits it into
her savings account.
• Check your bank statements for bank
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charges and any interest debited and
ask your bank how you can reduce or
fix them to a limit if you are paying too
much.
• Carry packed lunch. I realized that
buying sandwiches from the nearby
café for breakfast cost me R25 to R50
FINA NCI AL FITNES S IN FIVE WORK OU TS
per day, depending on my preferences.
However carrying cereal from home
cost me R25 to R50 per week! It was a
healthier option and I saved the balance.
• Save the ‘otherwise sunk’ costs. Suppose
you planned to spend R200 on drinks
for the weekend. But your friend invited
you for a house warming party. You only
spend R80. Save the R120 balance as
it would have gone out of your pockets
anyway.

 WORKOUT 2: FINANCIAL
EDUCATION
An essential building block for wealth
I remember the very first time I tried to
drive. I was 16. I thought I understood all
the instructions my friend gave me. Before
I realized what was happening, he was
frantically yelling for me to hit the brakes.
Somehow I managed to stop within two
centimetres of a huge ditch. And instead of
driving forward I had driven in reverse! We
were both so scared that we barely spoke
on the way back home. In that moment I
believed I would never try to drive again!
Repetition has a way of making
something completely new feel comfortable
after a few tries. In my financial fitness boot
camps there are 3 key words that I ask the
participants to repeat with me at intervals.
We make a nice ceremony of it. So we
stop what we are doing, stand up with fists
punching into high heaven and we shout,
“Education! Education! Education!”
Financial education is an essential
building block for wealth. This is not limited
WORK OUT 2: FINAN CIA L EDUC ATION
to formal education such as university
degrees, as important as that may be.
I mean making a deliberate effort to
continuously increase your financial
knowledge. Knowledge is potential power.
It only becomes power when applied to
achieve a goal. Knowledge increases self
confidence and reduces fear. Fear stops
many people from taking action towards
their goals. Napoleon Hill says “where
10
fear controls, noteworthy accomplishment
becomes an impossibility.”
Let us now explore some financial jargon,
their definitions and how you can apply
them to boost your finances. Prepare to
make a ceremony of it. Stand up, stretch
your arms, punch your fists into the air and
shout “Education! Education! Education!”
hree ways to manage your cashflow better:
ASSET
DEFINITION
“Any item of economic value
owned by an individual or
corporation, especially that which
could be converted to cash.”
— investor words.com
APPLICATION
Your liabilities create expenses.
For example your phone contract
is a liability that creates a
phone bill expense. Manage
your expenses by keeping your
liabilities to a minimum. As
the wiktionar y states, they are
handicaps that hold you back.
LIABILITY
DEFINITION
“Indebtedness: an obligation to
pay money to another party” —
WORDNET, PRINCETON
“A handicap that holds one back”
— THE WIKTIONARY
“Anything that takes money out o f
your pocket” — ROBERT KIYOSAKI
A P P L I C AT I ON
Yo u r l i a b i l ities create expenses.
F o r e x a m p le your phone contract
i s a l i a b i l i ty that creates a
p h o n e b i l l expense. Manage
y o u r e x p e nses by keeping your
l i a b i l i t i e s to a minimum. As
t h e w i k t i o nar y states, they are
h a n d i c a p s that hold you back.
GOOD DEBT
DEFINITION
D e b t t h a t puts money back into
y o u r p o c k et. It is therefore an
asset.
A n e x a m p l e is a bond that you
g e t t o b u y investment property
t h a t c o m m ands enough rentals to
c o v e r a n d exceed your monthly
r e p a y m e n t amount.
A P P L I C AT I ON
G e t i n t o g ood debt but only if
y o u h a v e an exact and detailed
p l a n o n h o w to use it. Good debt
i s l e v e r a g e that when properly
m a n a g e d will take you towards
y o u r f i n a n cial goals quicker. This
i s b e c a u s e it usually takes less
t i m e t o b o rrow for investing than
i t d o e s t o save the equivalent
amount.
BAD DEBT
DEFINITION
D e b t t h a t t akes money out of your
p o c k e t . I t is therefore a liability.
An example is a clothing account.
APPLICATION
GET RID OF IT!
CASH FLOW
DEFINITION
“The flow of cash in and out of
your pocket” — LELEMBA PHIRI
“The excess of cash revenues
over cash outlays” — WORDNET,
PRINCETON
APPLICATION
Cashflow can make or break your
financial house and has to be
planned carefully. This is because
if at some point the cash-flowing
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out of your pocket exceeded the
cash-flowing into it and your
liabilities fell due, you may need
to sell off some business or
personal assets to cover them.
Three ways to manage your cashflow
FINA NCI AL FITNES S IN FIVE WORK OU TS
better:
1. Know how, when and where your cash
needs will occur
2. Know the best sources to cover them
and any additional ‘surprise’ cash needs
that may occur
3. Be prepared to meet your cash needs by
proper planning and maintaining good
relationships with your bankers, creditors
and debtors.
11

Continue to expand your financial
knowledge by exploring the various media
that are available to you. You can choose
to learn through printed or audio books,
seminars, classes, videos or Internet or a
combination of all or any of them depending
on availability.
There is also the fun option of learning
through games. I love it because it gives
you a chance to put into practice what you
have learnt in a ‘no pressure’ environment.
This builds your confidence for the time
when you will actually get to take your next
step in investing.
WORKOUT 3: SERVICE
The willingness to aquire wealth
Our older son Mwenda usually comes
home with various fundraising proposals
from school. Some are entrepreneurial
whilst others are for charity causes. One
day he came home with an entrepreneurial
request called the money tree. It was
a picture of a tree and in the branches
were circles big enough to fit coins. In this
WORK OUT 3: SERV ICE
proposal their school had tasked the kids
to do several chores around the house and
neighbourhood and get paid for it.
When he arrived home he was very
excited about the idea of ‘working for
money’ and exclaimed “mummy, what
12
can I do for you so that you can pay me
for my project?” I was already impressed.
He was establishing my need. I felt this
was a brilliant opportunity to reinforce
the connection between valuable service
and remuneration and replied “what do
you have to offer me?” He quickly looked
around and said “I can pack the shoes in
your wardrobe neatly.”
I asked him how much he wanted for
that and he said “I don’t know… anything.”
Now I was getting even more excited. Here
was another opportunity to teach him that
he determines the price of his service. So
I replied “I’ll give you R1”. I could see the
immediate disappointment on his face. The
money tree was worth R25 and he was
being offered R1! He grumbled “Only?” to
which I replied “Yep! Since you don’t know
how much your own work is worth, I say it’s
worth R1.”
He objected on how much work he was
going to have to do and I was glad to inform
him that that was indeed what he should
have thought about before letting me, his
customer, decide what to pay him. He
learnt that lesson quickly and after a few
averagely remunerated jobs he finally hit
gold.
He asked “mummy, are you tired?” I
was. I’d had a long day and had my feet up
in bed. He had been observing me. I said
“yes.” I guessed he was onto something
from the big grin he had on his face. He
then asked the magic question “Can I
massage your feet?” I burst out laughing as
I asked “how much?” I am a big sucker for
a foot massage and he knows that. Suffice
it to say that a great percentage of that
money tree was filled up by that 15 minute
foot massage.
• What service do you have to offer?
We all have some service we can give
the world. The question is whether we
are willing to do so or not. What service
do you have to offer? What product,
service, passion, talent, skill or idea are
you willing to give? Mwenda was willing
to serve in several ways to achieve his
goal of filling up his money tree. The
greater the willingness and capacity to
serve, the greater the ability to make
money. Awaken your mind to how you
can serve and there will be no shortage
of money. How can you do that?
• Establish a need. By asking “what can
I do for you?” Mwenda was establishing
whether I had any needs. Ask people
what they need and see whether you can
fulfil it.
• Value yourself. Mwenda received R1
for doing a R4 job because he couldn’t
determine his own price. People will
value you to the degree that you value
yourself. Determine your rate. Amongst
other things, ask yourself what feels right
to you. Not too high that you walk away
feeling you ripped someone off and not
too low that you feel ripped off. If you
can’t get to something comfortable then
write down, as many reasons as you
can, why you deserve to receive money
for your service. By the time you are
done, you will have a fair idea of what
your service is worth.
• Research. Sometimes establishing
a need is not as clear cut as asking
people what they need. In that case
you will need to do some research. By
observing my state of tiredness, Mwenda
established the need that I would value
the most. And he was spot on.
• Do what you love. People who love
what they do and are grateful for it are
more inspired and enthusiastic and give
better service. That grin on Mwenda’s
face did half the job of convincing me to
happily part with my money.
• What do you love? Explore your
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loves and serve by doing them. You are
authentic when you do what you love. As
a result you are more likely to succeed
and serve longer doing what you love.
Dr John Demartini says “the fountain of
youth is found in authenticity.” I agree!
• Give. We’ve all heard the adage “the
FINA NCI AL FITNES S IN FIVE WORK OU TS
more you give the more you receive.” It is
the law of compensation. Emerson says
“It is one of the beautiful compensations
of this life that no man can sincerely try
to help another without helping himself…
Serve and thou shall be served.”
My colleague Nikki Botha wrote a
brilliant article on giving entitled “Ten way to
make a difference without inconveniencing
your life.” I will share an abbreviated version
13
 of my top five favourites:
• Smile at someone, preferably some
random stranger.
• Write kind and encouraging words on
post-it notes and stick them on the
desks/monitors of your colleagues
• Pay it forward. If someone does
something nice for you… return the
gesture to someone other than the giver.
• Be Santa. Around Christmas time, post
offices are inundated with letters to
Santa or God. Ask your local post office
for some of the letters and answer them.
• Thank those with a thankless job. If you
have an early morning run at a mall that
employs security guards, buy them a cup
of coffee. They have an important role to
play in society, yet very few of us think to
appreciate them.
WORKOUT 4: LEVERAGE
Getting multiple output for every input
to create wealth faster
My friend Laureen is very passionate about
Africa and its development. For a while
she had a dream to bring together a group
of young influential African professionals
WORK OUT 4: SAVINGS
who shared her passion, to effect positive
and sustainable change one community
at a time. In April 2009 she discussed it
with her friend Helen who encouraged her
to go for it. Laureen created a PowerPoint
presentation with her vision, plan and a call
14
to action and sent it to her friends, asking
them to forward it on to others as well. The
response was huge! Three months, and a
few meetings later, the first two chapters of
Organizing for Africa (O.F.A) were born in
Cape Town and Johannesburg.
In the three months of activity, the Cape
Town chapter of O.F.A recorded impressive
results. These included donating over
100 books to a school and creating some
sustainable solutions for a children’s home.
Do you think that Laureen could have
been able to do all that on her own in that
period? It is highly unlikely. She used the
principle of leverage to get her dream going
and achieve results quicker.
Archimedes said, “Give me a lever long
enough and a fulcrum on which to stand
and I shall move the earth”.
One of the definitions for the word
leverage is ‘strategic/positional advantage;
power to act effectively’. Part of this
strategic advantage is being able to use
OPE (other people’s everything) to achieve
your goals. Using OPE multiplies and
magnifies your own efforts and helps you
to achieve your goals quicker by ensuring
multiple output for every input. OPE
includes other people’s money, skills, time,
contacts, ideas and any other resource you
can think of.
Just as leverage is a key ingredient
in achieving goals it is also essential in
creating wealth.
This means in order to create wealth, one
has to take their unique value or service
R O G E R H A M ILTON’S WEALTH
E Q U AT I O N EXPLAINS IT AS FOLLOWS:
wealth = value x leverage
and leverage it. It also means that one’s
level of wealth is dependent upon their
value and how well they can leverage it.
Bill Gates created wealth by taking
his unique value i.e. Microsoft windows
and leveraging it by distributing it on
other people’s hardware and distribution
networks. Warren Buffet did the same in
his initial stock market trading investment
partnership. He took his value which was
his knowledge of the stock market and
leveraged it using funds put up by his
partners (other people’s money) to create
a very successful fund.
Tips on how to you can apply leverage
• Form a mastermind group. Napoleon
Hill describes a mastermind as ‘a mind
that grows out of the blending in perfect
harmony of two or more minds.’ Get a
group of like-minded people together
and meet periodically to share ideas
and brainstorm more effective ways to
achieve your financial goals. Creating
wealth is a team sport and having such a
group encourages accountability to one
another as well as support.
• Get into good debt. It is usually quicker
to borrow from the bank than to save the
equivalent amount. However ensure that
the debt is good right from the start.
• Buy in bulk. Most suppliers give a
discount for bulk purchases. If the
discount is not automatically offered, ask
for it.
• Have a website. It is your 24/7
marketing and advertising tool. It can
also sell for you even when you are
asleep.
• Attend networking events and create
relationships. Besides advertising your
service, these events give you access
to other people’s contacts that could
become your network of distributors and
service providers.
• Delegate. Concentrate on your
strengths and delegate the rest to
leverage off other people’s time.
• Buy where you are paid to shop.
Take advantage of loyalty programs to
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leverage your money and make use of
other people’s systems.
• Read books. Make use of other
people’s experiences and knowledge to
help you get ahead quicker and avoid
unnecessary trial and error.
• Advertise. Use all the media you can
FINA NCI AL FITNES S IN FIVE WORK OU TS
think of such as magazines, social
networking websites, business cards and
bill boards to magnify your brand. People
need to know you exist first in order to
buy your product or service.
• Take advantage of the tax system.
Educate yourself about tax or use a
tax consultant and avoid paying more
tax than is necessary. Tax rules differ
depending on who or what is being
taxed. Be tax efficient.
15
 WORKOUT 5: JUST DO IT!
Begin with the end in mind
When asked by the attendants of my boot
camp ‘how do I get started on my financial
fitness journey?’ My answer is always,
‘begin with the end in mind.’
What do you want to achieve financially?
Is it to invest in property or shares? Start
your own business? Send your kids to a
better school? Take your family on holiday
without digging yourself deeper into debt?
Or is it simply to buy a car that starts in the
morning?
Carl Sandburg says “nothing happens
but first a dream” and one of my mentors
follows that with “a goal is a dream with a
deadline!”
Set some financial goals. Write them
down and make them SMART. SMART
is an acronym for Specific, Measurable,
Achievable, Relevant and Time–bound.
For example simply stating that you
want ‘to save’ is not a SMART goal. Stating
on the other hand that you want “To save
R4,000 for a deposit at XYZ gym by
December 2009,” is SMART!
Take a BEFORE picture! Yes! Just as
you take a ‘before’ picture at the start of
WORK OUT 5: JUS T DO IT!
a diet, you also need to take a ‘financial
picture’ of where you are right now!
“Nothing happens but first a
dream.” — CARL SANDBURG
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THIS IS YOUR PERSONAL
BALANCE SHEET
DEFINITION
A balance sheet is a ‘snapshot’
of your assets and liabilities at a
particular time.
• What do I own right now?
• What do I owe right now?
THIS IS YOUR PERSONAL
INCOME STATEMENT
DEFINITION
An income statement is a record
of your income and expenses over
a period of time.
• What do I earn per month?
• What do I spend per month?
THIS IS YOUR PERSONAL ‘INVEST-
IN-SELF’ POLICY
DEFINITION
Investing is putting money into
an enterprise with an expectation
of profit.
An Investment policy is a detailed
description of how this investing
will be executed.
• What do I save each month?

THIS IS YOUR PERSONAL ‘INVEST-
IN-OTHERS’ POLICY
• W h a t d o I give away each
month?
Create an action plan
Start filling in the blanks between where
you are and where you want to be by
creating an action plan. You can create an
action plan by asking yourself these key
questions. I will use the gym deposit goal
above as an example.
• Why do I want this?
Give the reasons behind your goal. Do
you want to want to start gym because
everyone else is going or is it because
you truly value your health? Unless
the reasons are compelling, you are
unlikely to carry through with it. Make a
connection between what you want and
what is important to you and you will be
more likely to follow through.
• What am I willing to do to get what I
want?
What am I willing to do differently? Will
you go to the bank and authorize a debit
order for an automated savings plan?
Will you rather keep the savings in your
wardrobe just in case you need it for
something else?
• How do I intend to do this?
Determine how much you would need to
save, per week or month, between now
and December in order to meet your
goal.
• How will I celebrate?
A reward is a great motivator so
plan how you will reward yourself for
achieving your goal.
• Just do it!
Dreaming, goal setting, planning and
accumulating knowledge are great
for getting you inspired, motivated,
organized and confident! However they
are preparatory steps for the real deal
which is taking action. Give yourself
permission! Do it! Start now!
• Take the first step.
Stick to it persistently. Push boundaries
Co p yr i ght © 20 0 9 L e l e m b e P h i r i
and comfort zones. Monitor your
steps. Are you on track? Review them.
Continue. Repeat process. Before you
know it, you will be there!
Graditude
Celebrate the journey by remembering to
FI NA NCI AL FITNESS IN FI VE WORKO UTS
be grateful through it. Beginnings may be
humble but do not begrudge them. You may
fail but take it in your stride and learn from
it. Failure is just a feedback mechanism
to see how seriously you want something.
Remember that those who are grateful will
get more to be grateful for. Give thanks in
everything.
I wish you the very best in your financial
fitness journey!
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 RESOURCES AND RECO MMENDED READ ING

18
RESOURCES AND RECOMMENDED READING

AUTHOR BOOK

D R J O H N DEMARTINI How to make one hell of a profit

and still get to heaven

R O B E RT K IYOSAKI Rich Dad, Poor Dad, Guide to investing

S U Z Y G R E AVES Making the big leap

R A L P H W EMERSON Compensation

N A P O L E O N HILL Laws of success

R O G E R H AMILTON Yo u r l e g a c y, y o u r l i f e

S U Z E D R ORMAN Wo m a n a n d m o n e y FI NA NCI AL FITNESS IN FI VE WORKS HOP S

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 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

LELEMBA PHIRI , the Financial D.I.V.A™ is a financial

fitness educator, entrepreneur and financial writer for
O2mag. Her mission is to educate and empower people
globally to enrich themselves and transform their lives by
developing healthy personal finance habits.
She is the co-founder of the Sandras and Lelemba
Institute that is dedicated to research, education and
supporting individuals and organizations in their pursuit of
growth.
Lelemba is a UK Chartered Accountant (ACCA) by
profession and also holds a Bachelor of Science degree in
Applied Accounting.
She lives in Cape Town, South Africa with her husband
and two sons.
For more information visit the Sandras and Lelemba
Institute: www.sandrasandlelemba.com
AB OUT THE AUTHOR

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