I Already Had John S Book

Category: Finance, Credit.

There we were, driving down the highway in my friend John s new$ 100, black Mercedes convertible, 000 shiny. I was thinking to myself, "This is the life.

It was the first time I d ever been in such an expensive( and fast) car. I want this, too! " It was the summer of 1993 and John called me to, "do lunch. " I was so excited. He was young. ambitious. the life of the party. everyone wanted to be around him. and all the ladies wanted to date him. You see, John was the, at the time owner of RE/ MAX of Indiana and his office was based in Indianapolis. John was, a wealthy guy, and still is with a passion for learning. I looked up to him in many ways. mostly the way he managed his money and how people adored him. I admired him.

John and I had a barter relationship. He loaned me books and audio courses. I taught him how to use a computer and become tech savvy, and in return he taught me how to change my thinking so I could become successful. He recommended seminars to attend. So when he called and asked me to lunch I was thrilled to have some one- on- one time with him at some fancy lunch spot where all the big wigs hung out. He guided my path to" reprogramming" my mind. As I turned into his neighborhood I was impressed.

And considering I was living in a 900 square foot condo at the time. The average home had to be at least 15, 000 square feet. I was like a deer in headlights. But what I eventually learned was. how smart you are doesn t determine the size of your bank account. John is a very bright guy, but I always thought I was smarter than him. I know a lot of smart people who are broke.

That s the key. Wealth is not about intelligence, it s about how creative you become in problem solving. Most people limit themselves with two words. .I CAN T. I admired him for that. and I wanted to be like that, too. John didn t know the meaning of those two words. Only a few years older than me, he was financially successful while I had just filed bankruptcy. What was I missing?

John had millions of dollars in the bank and I felt lucky to have a$ 500 secured bank credit card. I was curious to learn what made successful people successful. The book became my study guide, and John became my financial role model. So I studied the book, Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill. I pulled into his very long, tree- lined driveway and parked my new, blue Ford Escort with the temporary license plate still on the back. We shook hands and chatted a bit.

I knocked on his front entrance door( I had to choose between multiple entrance doors because the house was so big and took forever to walk around) and was warmly greeted by his maid who escorted me into John s home office. Then we left in one of his cars. He was driving fast on I- 465( here in Indianapolis) to take me to lunch. He chose to drive his new Mercedes convertible that day. I was enjoying the company and conversation and was all dressed up. Let me backtrack for a moment. you see, after I filed bankruptcy I decided to wear only jogging outfits. I felt really important.

I m serious. All day. That s all I wore. Every day. In the summer I wore shorts and t- shirts. I looked like a rapper. It was easy. convenient. time- saving. and very cost- effective.

After all, I could only imagine what kinda fancy place John was going to take me to for lunch. So wearing jeans and a shirt with a collar was dressed up for me. Out of the blue he asked me if I like tuna fish. We exited off of I- 465 onto Allisonville Road and headed north. I said, "Sure, " not thinking too much of it. We turned into this little strip mall. As we got out of the car I noticed he was walking toward a little deli next to the dry cleaner.

I was thinking he needed to pick up his dry cleaning or something since we parked in front of a dry cleaner. No, it couldn t be. Could this be where we were having our power lunch? I got all dressed up for this? This little place could best be described as a hole- in- the- wall. They knew him by name.

We entered the hole- in- the- wall. It was then that I realized this was going to be my power lunch. As we ate our bagels with tuna fish I was in disbelief. almost embarrassed. John ordered for me. he ordered bagels and tuna fish. Here I am with one of the wealthiest young business execs in Indianapolis and we re at a hole- in- the- wall deli eating bagels and tuna fish. The white linen tablecloths?

Where s the maitre d ? The crumb scrapers? Those things weren t there. The sparkling water at our table with soft music playing in the background? When John paid, I glanced down at the bill printed on adding machine tape and noticed our lunch was$ 1 I was ready to spend$ 25 just on my lunch. $12? Before that power lunch with John, I was too embarrassed to be frugal. That day I gave myself permission to be frugal.

I thought it was a sign of weakness. of poverty. of being simple- minded. of being on a tight budget. I wanted to spend. to buy things. to show the world I could get whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. I wanted nothing to do with that. Of course, that type of thinking put me into bankruptcy. And being frugal was okay. What I learned that day was- John s choice of being frugal in some areas allowed him to be extravagant in ways that mattered to him. I knew he had a large house.

I knew he had a housekeeper. I knew he took many fun vacations with family and friends. I knew he had several nice cars. His large house payment gave him a much needed tax deduction. On the surface these things might not seem so" frugal. " But what John taught me was that each of those things had a purpose. His expensive cars were business write- offs allowing him to accommodate the wealthiest Realtors who wouldn t be impressed by the head of a large real estate franchise driving a car like my Ford Escort. And his expensive vacations were a way for him to blow off steam and recharge when his batteries got too low.

His chef kept him eating healthy and freed up his time to focus on what made him rich. his real estate franchise. Wow! ! I changed that day. And I wanted all of that, too. And it served me well in my recovery after bankruptcy. You can t have everything after you begin to recover from bankruptcy. The point is.

You have to pick and choose carefully based on what s most important to your recovery at that time. But it s essential for recovering after bankruptcy. Delayed gratification is difficult for most people. Remembering the tuna fish and bagels 13 years later. John moved to Rancho Santa Fe several years ago. One of the last times I saw John was when I did a Credit After Bankruptcy seminar in San Diego.

So I drove to meet him at his new home- or I guess I should say, mansion. I wanted to see him face- to- face so I could tell him, for the first time, how much he inspired me and what he meant to me during those days after bankruptcy. It was good to see him. It took everything inside me not to get misty( real men do that, you know, too) . Sometimes you forget about all the people who helped get you where you are today. I don t know why I waited so long to tell him.

I certainly did. Then he told me how proud he was of my accomplishments and me. And I wanted to correct that. He noticed how much I had grown as a person and was proud to call me a friend. I had to leave. I couldn t take anymore.

I was starting to get emotional. Several months later my friend Joe and I met up with John when he was in town for his first book- signing at an Indianapolis Barnes& Noble bookstore. We said goodbye. I already had John s book. Apparently, I inspired him to accomplish one of his goals- to write a book and touch a few people s lives. I was there to show my support.