The Untold Story - Who is Nelsiwe part 3

You are the architect of your own future

Here I am today, having survived it all and I am at the peak of my life.

 I want you to know that if I could do it, there is absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t.

I am calling you therefore to move out of the past into the future, armed with knowledge and confidence. That means leaving behind old attitudes, old excuses, and tired alibis for not becoming as fully competent and able in the area of personal finance and your life as you are in any other role you inhabit. If you are asked to describe yourself without the word mother, father, daughter, son, or your job title, I want to hear you say “I am powerful, empowered and secure; I am in control of my life, of my financial destiny”. After all; every man/woman is the architect of his own fortune.

Every time I think back to my life’s journey, I am fulfilled. I remember to be grateful for all the experiences that I went through. After all, I wouldn’t be who I am today had it not been for them. I realize now, God was shaping me for the blessed life I get to enjoy today. He was refining my heart, enriching my spirit, teaching me that in life we can survive anything if we put our minds to it.     

My journey with life and finances was therefore very simple. My Motivators to Create Wealth and live comfortably was just as simple. These were

§  My Past Experiences  

o     I had to prove that background doesn’t matter

o    I had to heal and realized that the only way to get healing was to ensure that I never financially felt dependent on anyone but God

o    I was so tired of working hard, being told what I could and could not have, I was tired of being broke and simply wanted to change that.

§  My Aspirations

o    I wanted to be beyond average. Everything I had grown up around gave me the energy to want to push out of being average. I demanded the best for my own story.

§  I was told by my Father that I couldn’t wear pants at home

o    I wanted to afford the things that would make me happy, or at best boost my confidence, as well as define who I was, not who They wanted me to be.

§  I was told by a boyfriend that I wouldn’t amount to anything. This was my greatest drive believe me. it fuelled every fibre of my being

o    I had to prove him wrong

o    I had to rise above who he thought I was, and become who God says I am.

So – WRITE DOWN YOUR WHYS AND BE PASSIONATE ABOUT THEM. Remember that: WITHOUT PASSION IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO ACCOMPLISH ANYTHING IN THIS LIFE!

I am not by any means claiming that is all going to be easy, but I promise that IT SHALL BE WORTHWHILE!

Still, while I was as driven as any person can be and had my list of motivators (yes, I almost always keep everything written down in scraps) I will admit that …. It wasn’t until I watched a man of former statue lying in Mbabane government hospital, all by himself, sick to his bone, left alone to basically die, that I fully appreciated the value money has in our lives. Seeing him there so broken literally broke my heart. My father at that point was lying in the same hospital battling diabetes. And while he didn’t win that battle and succumbed to his death that very year (God rest his soul), this other man’s state I think changed me more than my own father’s death. This was a man who before was chauffer driven, would never stand in line for anything and society had labelled him “Important”. I was awakened to the truth that “it doesn’t matter who claps for you today as you go up the ladder, who gives you the impression that you are important, it only matters what you provide for yourself, how you position your life for the future”.  

I realized right then that I had to change my stars that my story needed to try and have a happy ending. That, even if God forbid, life’s challenges found me, I should do my best always to prepare for my future while I still can and trust that God our provider will always be my guide and source. Yes, that I was going to not just pray, but get up and work hard, work smart and make sure that I smiled more, laughed more, dance and ultimately make some difference to this our world.

So true to my epiphanies, I from then onwards worked diligently, worked smart and today having worked for over a decade, I can safely say that – The journey has been FUN and I enjoy making Money. Not just for self, but for others that in my field we get to work with (I hope that you are one of the ones I get to influence somehow to make life that much more pleasurably somehow).

The conclusion to my story is that “Seeing your sweat turn into sweetness is the best Gift there ever will be to a life”. I am blessed. I do not lack for anything that I need. And therefore, I do believe that it was all part of Gods larger plan for my life.

 

So why do I continue to learn about Money?

In two sentences:

§  I never want to have to suffer because I didn’t plan for my life, or make a bad decision because of money (e.g. staying married to someone who is not worthy of me because I need his financial security, or more commonly still, staying at a job I don’t love because of car and or house payments).

§  I also want to live a life that will be filled with moments where I know that I made a difference to society. Hopefully live a legacy of positive living to many.

Note

“If your only goal however is to become rich, you will never achieve it,” said John D. Rockefeller, America’s first billionaire. His point was simple: when the only thing you care about is making money, no amount of money is ever enough. What you have always pales in comparison to what you don’t have and could have.