2DIME’S INVESTOR NOTES
Friday, November 16th, 2007
“Pick a penny up and all day you’ll have good luck”.
TGIF! I think I have almost recovered from last weeks time change. Are we still saving daylight or did we just give back what we saved all summer? Did we really save anything? I’m confused. Calling it Daylight Shifting Time might be more accurate.
I did a quick poll of my friends and family and no one seemed to know much about the whys or what’s of Daylight Saving time so, I did a little research. The official spelling is Daylight Saving Time, not Daylight SavingS Time. The main purpose of Daylight Saving Time (called "Summer Time" in many places in the world) is to make better use of daylight; and, to save energy.
Studies done by the U.S. Department of Transportation show that Daylight Saving Time trims the entire country’s electricity usage by a small but significant amount, about one percent each day, because less electricity is used for lighting and appliances. Similarly, in New Zealand, power companies have found that power usage decreases 3.5 percent when daylight saving starts. In the first week, peak evening consumption commonly drops around five percent.
Energy saving aside, a poll conducted by the U.S. Department of Transportation indicated that Americans liked Daylight Saving Time because during the summer "there is more light in the evenings and so you can do more.”
Did you know? And…. On August 8, 2005, President George W. Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This Act changed the time change dates for Daylight Saving Time in the U.S. Beginning in 2007, DST will begin on the second Sunday in March and end the first Sunday in November. The Secretary of Energy will report the impact of this change to Congress. Congress retains the right to resume the 2005 Daylight Saving Time schedule once the Department of Energy study is complete. Cool! So What!
So, in short, Daylight Saving Time gives us the opportunity to enjoy sunny summer evenings by moving our clocks an hour forward in the spring. I can hardly wait.
While we are on the topic of “Saving:” have you ever thought about your relationship with money and how the preconceived notion about money that a person carries around with them affects the amount he or she is able to accumulate.
The accumulation of money or gain for family and civic benefit is at the focus of my trading career. I would hope that it is near the center of yours as well. I believe that before achieving success as a trader, one must be certain his attitude towards money is in sync with one’s ability to accumulate it. That would mean you would have developed a set of money rules to go along with your trading rules. Simple Rules, like: Never pass a penny that you see on the ground without making an effort to pick it up.
It is not that the penny has any “real” worth in that you could actually use it to buy something. It is that the penny even without “worth” is still a very large and significant mental symbol whose real value lies inside your minds attitude toward wealth. I believe that if you see and pass up one lonely penny on the sidewalk, you are setting off an avalanche of negative values toward money in your mind which in turn will color your ability to attract and accumulate meaningful wealth.
I know you will still think I’m dumb to go out of my way to pick up that penny; but at least you’ll know why I did it. Sometimes, I’ll even go down for dimes and quarters that others are oblivious to. You might even hear me say to myself…..”Well, I’ll be Rich!”
So what other “Money Rules” come to mind? How about…”Always think good thoughts or congratulatory ones about the monetary successes of others, no matter who they are, whatever political party they represent or religion they espouse.” It’s a tough one but:
The slightest negative thought about your or another’s monetary situation will have a long term negative impact on your prosperity. You may still be able to accumulate wealth, but just think of the fortune you could be missing.
Like a lot of folks, I’ve made some unwise financial decisions in life and have been burned pretty badly by them. I carried the wounds from some of those misadventures around with me for years; avoiding this risk and that. Then one day I was fortunate enough to accept a friend’s invitation to attend a free 2 day seminar put on by T. Harv Ecker called “The Millionaire Mind.” What an amazing wake-up-call! All it cost was a 4hour drive to Atlanta and two night’s room and board at the Westin Peach Tree Plaza.
I credit those two days with permanently deleting any baggage I was carrying that had anything to do with an inability to attract, accumulate and most importantly hold on to money. It was emotionally cleansing and wealth enabling. As a part of assembling your trader’s toolbox, I recommend you find a seminar near you and attend.
By the way, his book “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind – Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth” is in print and available on Amazon.com for almost postage only.
Better yet, ask around. Perhaps a rich friend has a copy that you could borrow.
Cheers, 2Dimes / Barry Brush (To contact me send an email. To support@selfinvestors.com and Tate will make sure I get it.)