Wealth Building & Investing

7 Types of Investors: How to Invest And Build Up Your Ideal Portfolio

March 30, 2022 by Dan Lok

Are you wondering how many types of investors are there? Every day, there are people who fear losing money in an investment, while others never fear it. In any industry, investing has its own language. Many people are skeptical about where they invest their money because they don’t know how to build an ideal investment portfolio.

When it comes to investment. Most people may think of their homes or cars, for example. Rather, i’m talking about different types of investors. Which i’ll be sharing with you shortly.

Think of an investment portfolio as a safe to store your valuables. For example, real estate, stocks, bonds, mutual funds and so on. But an investment portfolio is more of a concept. Not a physical item.

If you know how to invest and build your investment portfolio, you won’t fear changes in the stock market. You’re wise enough to know that you don’t need to make more money to be able to save it because saving isn’t the answer.

Saving your money may help with future debts but it isn’t going to get you to financial freedom. What you need to do to build your wealth is to invest it, and the amount you invest has nothing to do with income level.

Rich people focus on investing. Poor people focus on saving. Click To Tweet

Instead, what you invest is an indication of your financial confidence: your knowledge and skills when making decisions about money.

With that said, understanding what an investment portfolio is doesn’t tell you how to build one. First, you need to know the types of investors. And then you have to learn how to invest. Only then, you’ll be able to build your ideal portfolio.

Watch this video about how to get started.

Take Time to Learn The Types of Investors

It’s important for entrepreneurs to take the time to learn the types of investors. Why? Because they are unique players in the growth process of a business. To determine a company’s success or failure is ultimately determined by the level and quality of an investor’s involvement.

There are plenty of stories about people using their own savings to invest in a company. Many still deeply rely on investors. If you depend solely on your savings, you’re not likely to grow as big as you want it to be. Having an investor can play a big role in your success. As i said earlier, your growth process is determined by the level and quality of an investor’s involvement.

Now, let’s get into the 7 types of investors.

1. Banks

A bank loan works the same as any other business investment. The entrepreneur is required to present a business plan, and then the bank will decide whether they should provide the funds. Also, you may need to provide some proof of collateral or a revenue stream before your loan is approved.

According to Investopedia, if you want to fund the expansion of your small business. Consider a Small Business Administration (SBA) loan. However, if you have access to other financings with reasonable terms, then you are not eligible for this loan. This is a good loan to apply if you did not qualify for a traditional bank business loan.

2. Angel Investors

An angel investor is a high-net-worth individual who provides financial aid to help the business get off the ground. They are often found among entrepreneurs’ friends and family. Typically, angel investors provide financial aid in exchange for ownership equity in the company. And this is usually a one-time investment to assist and support a company through its difficult early stage.

Now, this type of investment is risky, because it doesn’t represent more than 10% in your investor’s portfolio. But since they focused on helping startups. Therefore, they are the opposite of venture capitalists.

3. Venture Capitalists

So, what is a venture capitalist (VC)? A venture capitalist is an equity investor. They focus more on companies that exhibit higher growth potential in exchange for an equity stake. VC investors could be funding a startup that wishes to expand but doesn’t have access to equity markets. And usually, they do not.

The difference between angel investors and venture capitalists is that. They are willing to take higher risks because they know they can earn a higher return on investments (ROI) if those companies gain success.

So, whether you’re seeking an investor or looking to be an investor. Understanding the types of investors is important in today’s world.

Here’s the top 5 value of venture capital investment in the 3rd quarter of 2019. (by industry)

4. Peer-To-Peer Lenders

Embracing technology in today’s digital landscape is a must. Peer-to-peer (P2P) lenders consider businesses and projects that are listed online. There are 2 websites that specialize in peer-to-peer lending. There are,

This type of investor acts similarly to the Small Business Administration (SBA) Loan. Now, when it comes to peer-to-peer lenders, your credit history plays a part when engaging a P2P lender. So, check and improve your credit history before finding a P2P lender. Because, if you have a low credit score, they may not find you loan-worthy.

On another note, make sure you understand the terms and conditions on your loan and make payments on time. Failure to do so will result in increased fees and most likely won’t get you another peer-to-peer loan.

5. Personal Investors

This may sound the easiest of all types of investors. But think twice before heading in this direction. It is always a risk when mixing business with family. Not only do you risk your finances, but also your family and friends if the business goes downhill.

When choosing this option, make sure your family ties are strong enough to withstand the pressure. You can either have each party sign a promissory note on repayment terms or sign a partnership agreement.

6. Corporate Investors

As a corporate investor, investing in startups carries a variety of benefits. This includes supporting their own growth and diversifying assets. While some invest outside of startups, more are leaning towards starting their own accelerators and incubators programs.

These types of investors can be great collaborators. However, a careful approach with a lot of patience must be taken into consideration. In order to have an enjoyable relationship between founding partners and corporate investors. It’s vital to understand each other and have some boundaries agreement.

7. Accelerators and Incubators

Accelerators and incubators are perhaps the ultimate gateways to a variety from the types of investors on this list. Why? Because, if you’re accepted into one of their programs. You may receive from $10,000 to $120,000 dollars to develop your idea for growth. The best part about this is, you’ll be able to benefit additional knowledge and resources.

However, there are certain things to consider when joining the program. So, if you’re looking to take your business to the next level. Be ready to hustle.

Building an Investment Portfolio

Markets go up and down. Investing isn’t a game and certainly, it’s not something that you could acquire in the shortest period of time. You can’t achieve perfect performance through market timing. However, you can build up your ideal portfolio. A solid portfolio certainly will allow you to succeed and avoid the stress within market volatility.

If you know how to invest, you know how to build your investment portfolio. Click To Tweet

Your investment portfolio is like an umbrella for all of your accounts and they consist of some of these,

A 401(k) or employer-sponsored plan.
Cash in savings accounts or invested in certificates of deposit
Individual retirement account

As i said in the beginning, your home and cars aren’t considered part of an investment portfolio. Rather, i’m talking about how you can use your money to make money. Such as,

Stocks
Bonds
Mutual funds
Real estate investment trust
Alternative investments
Private companies

So, if you understand how money works, that’ll help you build your ideal portfolio. And diversification is the key to success when investing. Also, when you understand the different types of investors. you’ll have clarity on investing principles. Here are 5 essential guides to building your ideal portfolio.

Have a Purpose and Stay Committed

Ask yourself this question before you invest. Why do you want to invest? Maybe it’s for your family or it could be generating an additional stream of income so that you can achieve financial confidence. Or maybe you want to buy a second home. Most likely, your answer could be all of the above. So, if you are aware of your purpose and you already know what you want to accomplish. What would it take you to get there? And out of these 7 types of investors, which would best fit you?

Solid Understanding of The Fundamentals

To build your ideal portfolio is not just investing blindly. Understanding the fundamentals of individual securities is crucial to building a solid portfolio. And that’s what they are assembled based on.

Your ideal portfolio should be diversified across sectors that are expected to perform well. Plan and have a good strategy to execute your purpose. Think quality over quantity. Click To Tweet

Give Yourself Some Time to Build

This is critical because building your portfolio by identifying your purpose requires you to link all of your ideas. So, when you understand the types of investor that suits you best, you need to give yourself some time. Such as, what you need to achieve? So, based on your solid fundamentals, and a proven approach. It keeps you away from in-and-out, market-timing types of investing approach.

Focus on Things You Can Control

There are certain things you wish you could control. Such as, the market, companies that you’ve invested in and the political views. The truth is, you can’t. However, with your individual approach and mindset, focus on the things you can control. Determine a powerful strategy and stick with it.

Be Realistic With Your Goals

While most of us know how much we have saved. Very few have a realistic understanding of our goals. You might have an inkling of what you spend today and how much you need for the next stage of life. Maybe, you have a 5-year plan. But, how much risk are you willing to take on to achieve your goals? And does your 5-year plan look realistic with the steps you’re implementing?

What You Invest is an Indication of Your Financial Confidence

Your knowledge and skills when making decisions about money is critical. The way we save and make money can be grouped into seven types. I learned about these seven levels of investors from Robert Kiyosaki, and over the years, i’ve put my own spin on it.

While it’s common for one investor to drift a little from one type to another, most people stay fixed at one type for their entire lives.

[bctt tweet=”Saving your money may help with future debts but it isn’t going to get you financial freedom. You need to build your wealth to invest it, and the amount you invest has nothing to do with income level. ” username=”danlok”

As i said in the beginning, if you know how to invest and build your investment portfolio, you won’t fear changes in the stock market or unexpected bills. But most of us still have a certain fear when it involves money. Now, how to create that confidence to achieve financial independence? – to break-free from your fears.

The most important quality for an investor is temperament, not intellect. – Warren Buffett

Before i share the secrets of the rich with you. Which level of investor you are?

Level 0: Non-Existent Investor

At level zero, you have no investments or savings. You are oblivious of money matters in general or your spending habits in particular. You usually complain that you aren’t making enough money, or if you made just a little bit more money, everything would be okay.

The problem is your money management habits. Mike Tyson is an example of a non-existent investor. During his 20 year career, his income exceeded $400 million. Yet before his 39th birthday, he was $8 million in debt. Then $30 million, so he was $38 million in debt.

You might say, someone who makes millions a fight can’t be broke. But his financial statements say otherwise. He has the cash flow of a poor person. In fact, he’s worse than the poor. If your net worth is zero, you’re richer than him.

Level 1: The Borrower

If you’re a borrower, you’re often in far worse financial position than the non-existent investor, although your potential for change is greater. You usually make a bit more money than level 0. You have high debt because you spend all you make and more. Your idea of financial planning is to get a new Visa or Mastercard.

You live in complete financial denial and have often come to believe the situation is hopeless. When you are depressed, you buy more and get more debt.

Level 2: The Saver

As a saver, you usually set aside a small amount of money on a regular basis. The money is usually deposited into low-risk, low-returning vehicles such as a term deposit or money market account. You save to consume.

You save to go on a vacation, then save to buy a car, or save to buy a big TV. You are afraid of financial matters and won’t take risks. In fact, you’ll drive many hours to save a few dollars or line up on Boxing Day for 10 hours to save on one item.

Level 3a: Passive Investor

Passive investors are aware of the need to invest and top up their RSP or 401K by making employee contributions or outside investments like mutual funds, shares, stocks, or bonds. This level makes up two-thirds of the middle class. If you’re here, you’re financially illiterate. You don’t like to take risks.

You like to say things like, “I’m not very good with numbers,” or “I prefer to leave the money decisions to the professionals.” You’ll leave things in the hands of your financial planner but have little idea where things are invested or why. You also believe high rates of return like 20 percent are either illegal or impossible. You believe what you read in the news and do what others tell you to do.

Level 3b: Passive Investor Gambler

At this level, you don’t like to take risks but you also like to use sophisticated investment techniques such as margins, puts, and calls, without understanding what you’re really committing yourself to. Most of the time, you don’t discuss your losses with anyone, but always brag about your wins. You like to gamble.

I’ve seen entrepreneurs work very hard their entire lives to accumulate quite a bit of money. Then they take another person’s advice and in one year they lose what took them 10 years to make. It’s in the nature of entrepreneurs to work hard, so they’re smarter next time. But they’ve already lost decades of time because they took a gamble.

Level 4: Automatic Investor

Automatic investors are aware of the need to invest but they are also actively involved with their investments. If you’re at this level, you have a long term plan that will enable you to reach your financial objectives. You follow the plan of the wealth triangle: you have a high-income skill, build a scalable business, and have high-return investments.

You don’t use the fancy stuff that money managers use, like options or margin accounts. You buy good shares, proven managed funds or solid funds, and hold them for the long term. Warren Buffett is an automatic investor.

Level 5: Active Investor

If you’re an active investor, you manage your own money and don’t trust other people with it. You have a clearer awareness of investments and rates of return. You don’t necessarily take the advice you hear.

For example, i’ve worked in finance. I can say that 97 percent of mutual funds don’t work. Only 3 percent of the 5000 funds in Canada work, so i would not take the advice of financial advisors.

Active investors have to be clear on investing principles, which are the rules of investing. Your vehicles might be real estate or private companies. You actively participate in managing your investments and don’t just put aside your money and hope it grows.

You’re always looking, monitoring, and seeing how you can add value. You optimize performance and minimize risk, getting long term annual returns of 20 to 100 percent. You intimately understand money and how it works.

This type of investor has cash flow. You spend what you want after your assets crank out the cashflow for you. I am at this level.

Level 6: The Capitalist

Few reach this level and fewer manage to remain there. They are the Rockefellers, the Kennedys, the Fords, the Bill Gates, the Warren Buffets. They have two motivations for investing: they are good managers of their money while they are alive, and they leave a legacy to continue after they are gone.

Discover The Secrets of The Rich

No matter what your income level is, start investing. Have a financial plan for your future. Begin at the first level and work your way up. Remember, investing is about how much money you keep and what you do with it. So, do you want to learn the secrets of the rich? How do they invest, and build their ideal portfolio? How do they stay rich by investing?

To the select few of you… here’s your chance to learn from me in person. As i said in the beginning, many people are skeptical about where and how they should invest their money. And this is what i realized.

The secrets of the rich aren’t taught anywhere. So, I decided to show you how it’s done. And because you might have the same question as my followers and mentees. To answer these and many other questions, you’re invited to my event in Vegas i’m holding with my good friend. And the question is, “Dan, how do I grow my savings predictably and sustainably?”

Without losing to inflation.
Without risking it all on the latest opportunities that could be gone with the wind.
Or without keeping it in my low-return savings account?

If you want to discover the secrets of the rich. You must have the mindset to give more, do more and be more…

Learn the secrets of the rich. And change your life forever.

Why Cash Flow Is More Important Than Revenue

May 9, 2020 by Dan Lok

Is your business struggling with cash flow in these uncertain times? This is the time when it’s especially important to understand why cash flow is more important than revenue.

As a business owner, it’s your responsibility to know about your business’ financials. If you don’t know it, who would? Even if you have financial advisors and experts on the team it’s best if you have an overview of what’s going on. Financials are the backbone of your business.

Understanding the differences between revenue and cash flow is even more vital in a crisis like now. Knowing the difference might save you from immense loss or even bankruptcy. If you completely outsourced all your financials so far, now is the time to learn about it and take it into your own hands.

Now is the time to make concrete and realistic plans. Positive thinking alone won’t get you out of a tight spot. Deal with the cold facts and develop a strategy accordingly.

Get yourself familiar with terms like cash flow, revenue, margin, and overhead and find out what your business has to focus on in these uncertain times. What’s important will depend on your business model – however for most businesses cash flow is the biggest issue right now.

Why is cash flow so important? How can you prepare your business to survive the crisis? And how can you allocate money fast? Those are some of the aspects we’ll discuss below.

What Exactly Is The Difference Between Cash Flow And Revenue?

The biggest difference is what the numbers tell us. Revenue tells us how much money your company made from sales. Whereas cash flow is much broader. It shows the total amount of money coming in and out. Cash flow also includes money coming in even if it’s not made from sales.

So while revenue shows the gross revenue coming in, cash flow shows the bigger picture. Revenue measures income, your cash flow measures your liquidity.

The thing is, revenue is usually calculated after you made a sale. It doesn’t take into account if you’ve already received the money. So maybe you made $10,000 on paper but you didn’t receive the money yet.

Cash flow is the actual money you have and it allows you to deal with short term financial demand. For example, you need cash flow to pay employees or vendors.

Revenue is more one dimensional. If you sell something for $100, then your revenue is $100. If you sell something for $1,000, then your revenue is $1,000. Simple as that.

Now cash flow also includes the money going out of your business. It shows you how much you have after all your regular expenses are paid. Cash flow allows you to make better predictions if you are breaking even, doing really good, or sliding into debt. So it’s way more important to keep an eye on your cash flow than on your revenue.

Why Cash Flow Is Even More Important In Times Of Recession

When the general economy struggles, cash flow becomes even more important. Do you know why are so many companies going out of business right now? – Because they lack cash. They might have all these accounts receivable but the money arrives on their account too late.

They need cash to pay their employees or even basic expenses like rent. If the cash doesn’t come in, they are gone.

Now, when the global economy struggles, here’s what happens. Almost all companies generate revenue. But it’s only on paper. The vendor of a supermarket might generate revenue from the last delivery.

The supermarket, however, couldn’t give them the cash yet. They made revenue from food delivery orders and are waiting for customers to pay. The customer ordered food with their credit card. They are an employee at a fashion company and didn’t get paid yet because their employer doesn’t have cash flow.

Do you see what’s happening here? It’s almost a vicious cycle. Only when the fashion company finally pays the employee the ball gets rolling. Then the employee can pay the supermarket and the supermarket can pay the vendor and the vendor finally has cash flow.

So, generating lots of revenue sounds great, but your business can’t survive until you are liquid. That’s why cash flow is more important than revenue.

How Can You Understand Your Cash Flow?

To run your business successfully or even weather the storm your business might be in right now, you need financial literacy. What exactly is that?

Financial literacy means you can understand your finances. If you look at financial statements then you know what’s going on in your business.

Many business owners make the mistake to completely outsource their financial affairs. They hire someone to do it. But really, if you don’t know how your company is doing financially how can you run it properly? How can you make wise investment decisions? That’s exactly why you need financial literacy.

When you look at your papers you need to understand which part is revenue and which cash flow. Only then will you know exactly how to react to it.

Now, every business is different and therefore has different cash flow behavior. Maybe your business has a stable stream of smaller sums. Or maybe you make huge sums but less frequently. It also depends on how large your expenses are.

Either way, nearly all cash flow behavior is disrupted in a crisis. You can expect to get paid slower but might be expected to pay faster. Your vendors will likely be less patient with you because they rely on your payment.

Your clients, on the other hand, might struggle and not pay you in time. It’s unfortunate but it can’t be helped. Instead of focusing on them, you need a game plan about what you’ll do if you need to pay faster than you get paid.

Know Your Data And Create A Plan

Now that you understand cash flow and have basic financial literacy, here is the next step. You want to get familiar with your data and make a plan.

It could be a 60 or 90-day plan, telling you the cash that will be required in the next period. After you have your plan, it’s time to get resourceful. An important thing to mind during this step: don’t manipulate your data to make yourself feel better.

Maybe you are facing the harsh truth that your numbers are in the red…or maybe you want to make some estimates which are too generous and not realistic, but would make you feel better…don’t do that. Be as honest with yourself as possible. Probably even better to be a tiny bit more pessimistic than you usual. Lying to yourself won’t get you out of tricky situations.

Most business owners will either underestimate or overestimate the cash flow they need. It’s hard to meet the exact number when you are making guesses and estimations. To be prepared for the worst, it’s better to overestimate than underestimate your cash flow needs.

Evaluate Your Resources

Now that you know your numbers, it’s time to look at your resources. Are you confident to make it through the next 60 or 90 days? Where can you get the money? Can you ask your bank? Is it readily borrowed?

Hope for the best but really prepare for the worst. Use the power of negative preparation and leave nothing to chance. Negative preparation means to ask yourself the questions: What do I not know? What am I not seeing? What’s the worst that could happen? These three questions will allow you to prepare for a worst-case scenario.

Again we want to stress, it’s important, to be honest with yourself about this. If you see no chance to increase the cash flow to your needs, what’s your backup plan? What do you do if something unexpected comes up?

Think about how you could possibly get more new (or repeated) customers in. That’s a good way to raise cash flow. Maybe you can tap into a new market? Maybe the crisis opened up a new opportunity for you?

How can you shorten the transaction length to get some cash flow earlier? Is it possible for clients to pay an amount upfront? Do you have private capital to invest in your business right now? Or could you find investors to support you? All of these are strategies to get you through when things are tight.

What To Include In Your Plan?

Besides cash flow, you also want to know your monthly gross margin. Now, what’s that? Your gross margin is basically telling you how much money you earn per sale minus the cost of getting your product sold.

For example, a digital agency might sell consulting for $2,500 but they also spend $300 on marketing. That means the gross margin for this product is $2,200.

If you had to adjust your strategy during coronavirus pandemic, then your margin might have changed too. For example, a restaurant that relies on a physical location has a certain margin. But now, they can only do delivery. The margin very likely has changed.

The next thing to think about is which expenses are absolutely necessary. What can be delayed and what can be cut completely? For example, you might still need your best employees to keep the business running. Their salary is a necessary expense you can’t delay. You’ll also need some form of marketing, to attract clients.

Delaying certain expenses gives you the opportunity to keep some cash flow for more urgent matters. What can you delay? Maybe there is a possibility to pay your rent a bit late? Are some higher-paid employees willing to take a temporary pay cut? Maybe even suspend their pay? Seek open communication with them about their current situation.

Should You Cut Your Marketing?

The marketing budget is usually the first thing you’d want to cut. It sounds like a good idea to keep your marketing budget so you have more cash flow right?

But remember, without marketing, you’ll have fewer clients which means flower cash flow. Marketing sometimes takes a while until the effects are noticeable. That’s why you think you can cut it for now. The potential risk is, however, that by the time the lockdowns are over you are left with no clients as you didn’t do any marketing.

Before you cut any expenses, do in-depth research and strategizing session. Even cutting the pay of employees can create long-lasting damage. It could destroy the team it took you years to build. Make decisions you feel comfortable with.

How To Increase Cash Flow

Now you know why cash flow is more important than revenue. But how can you generate more revenue during the downturn? Here are a few strategies.

Add A Strong Guarantee

First, you can increase your sales by giving better guarantees and warranties. This might sound counter-intuitive. Won’t your customers abuse your guarantee? If your product is good, then the opposite is true. Here’s why:

Most customers feel reluctant to buy because all the risk is on them. If there’s no guarantee the decision to buy is so much harder for them. If you offer a strong guarantee or warranty, you reverse the risk. All the risk is now on you.

But since your product is good and does what you promise it does, there’s nothing to worry about. Most people won’t use the guarantee if they are satisfied. So, for nearly all businesses a good guarantee (which has no loopholes) increases sales. But it doesn’t cost more to sell the same product with a guarantee. Hence, you have more cash flow.

Engage New Customers

Another great way to increase the cash flow is to actively look for new customers. What are some untapped markets you can branch out to? Maybe you’ve done a lot of local business and don’t have many online solutions? Now is the time to go online and build a customer base there.

Selling an online product is so great because you don’t have much overhead cost. For most, you don’t have to keep any stock – as the product is digital and not physical. The customer doesn’t have to wait for delivery but can get started right away. This is especially true for info products or online coachings.

Low overhead costs but increased sales result in more cash flow. Sometimes, what you sell only needs to be tweaked slightly so it can be sold online. It’s one of the best ways to increase cash flow during the lockdown.

Dare To Release Beta Products

Do you have any upcoming new products or services which aren’t fully finished? Instead of fleshing everything out to complete detail, it will pay off to release your product early.

Especially if what you created helps others to get through the downturn. For example, maybe you offer online coaching on how to take your business online. But the last two modules aren’t recorded yet. You’d want to release the program already and make sales as you finish it.

Most of your customers won’t mind or won’t even notice. By the time they get through the program, you’ll have everything set up for them.

Alternative Pricing Structures

If you need cash flow fast you might want to adjust your pricing structures. If customers aren’t able to pay the full price upfront, maybe they can pay half? Maybe even offer them a payment plan over the next three months – that way you get cash in every month.

Many businesses offer gift cards that allow them to generate cash now and take care of the fulfillment later. This is best marketed to customers who are already loyal and want to support your business during tough times.

You might be tempted to offer your product or service for cheaper for the sake of making cash flow faster. But often it’s not necessary. Just extending the payment period over a few more months helps. Fall back on payment plans before you start giving discounts.

Want More Money Habit Secrets?

You’d be surprised but most business owners don’t know much about the differences in revenue and cash flow. It’s easy to start a business but it’s a lot harder to maintain it – especially if an unexpected crisis hits.

You might have noticed that Dan Lok’s businesses have taken a very minor hit from this recession. He didn’t have to let go of any employees, he still has his marketing running and he released some new solutions in the last months.

How was he able to do that? The thing is, Dan Lok has seen five recessions during his time in business. So, he naturally adopted some money management habits that keep his business safe.

If you want to crisis-proof your cash flow and income, wouldn’t it be valuable to learn from his experience? Right now you can do so, with the Millionaire Money Habits Video Training. Right now you can get the training and save 50%. View all the details right here.

5 High Return Investments That Can Make A Fortune With Low Risk

March 15, 2020 by Dan Lok

Are you looking to make high return investments? And minimize your risks at the same time? How do you decide which one is best for you? Today I will help you clear the noise in the marketplace.

This is a burning question that I get asked every day.

What investments should I make?

I say…

It depends on what kind of investor you are.

You see…

It’s a matter of growth vs security. If you know how to properly manage your money like the rich, you may know this:

You know that you have to look for investments that provide a comfortable balance of high return and low risk. Low risk means that there is a reduced chance of losing your principal.

However, if you are looking to up your investment game…

You may want to know more about high return investments. And while making such investments you have to consider all the options available to you. Even the ones you may not have heard of before.

Today I am going to give you some options.

Ultimately, what you invest in depends on your:

Likes and dislikes
Understanding
Strengths and weaknesses
Investment amount

Always remember:

Rich people only invest in something they understand. Click To Tweet

What makes sense for me may not make sense for you. So, do your due diligence before you consider any of the high return investments that I am giving you.

You need to have clarity as an investor.

Don’t buy into the whole “get rich quick” or “you’re going to miss out” mentality. Anyone who does that is a very amateur investor.

But first, I want to clear something…

High Return Investments Do Not Have To Be High Risk

You know that not all investments are equal. No matter what type of investor you are…

When you think of high-return investments, you think there have to be a lot of risks involved.

Well, that does not have to be.

You’ve probably heard the following…

“If there’s no risk – there’s no reward.”

“You gotta go big, or go home.”

“You just gotta ride the wave.”

Let me give you an example…

Look at what happened to Blackberry stock in 2008 and you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Thousands had their portfolios decimated as Blackberry plunged from $138 dollars all the way down to a measly $7.50.

Yet at the time, no one would have thought twice about their investments.

Talk about risk.

Let me clear some common myths about High-Return Investing:

You don’t need a lot of capital
Can be done from anywhere in the world
You don’t need to have a good credit record
You don’t need to borrow money
And you do not (and definitely shouldn’t) be taking on a lot of risks

With that said, let’s look at some high return investments that offer low risks:

1. Peer-to-Peer Lending

In P2P lending, borrowers and lenders connect on a platform. There are several P2P investment platforms available such as Lending Club and Prosper.

You directly connect with borrowers and fund loans to them. Banks do not get involved here.

Borrowers can make an application for loans anonymously. They prefer these platforms because they have to pay lower interest rates compared to banks.

You as an investor can get higher returns than what you can get with traditional investing.

And you can select from hundreds of different loans you want to invest in. Loans are graded from the high-rated to lower-rated.

The higher-rated loans pay lower interest rates.

You can decide on borrowers based on:

Minimum credit score
Minimum debt-to-income ratio
Loan term
Loan type

Once you lend money…

The borrower will make monthly payments (the principal and interest) to you.

This will be done within your investment account on the platform. Returns can be anywhere between 6%-36%.

You need to invest a minimum of $25 as individual loans. These platforms offer you to diversify your investment.

So let’s say…

You decide to invest $10k. That means you can fund 400 separate loans if you wish to.

This minimizes the impact of a default associated with any given loan.

Lending Club claims to have provided historical returns of 4.83% to 6.37%.

2. Dividend-Paying Stocks

You have two different ways to make money in the stock market.

One way is through appreciation – an increase in the stock price. For example, you buy stock for $100 and it goes up to $150. That’s appreciation.

Then there are dividend-paying stocks. This investment gives you the option to participate in capital gains. Dividend income and capital gains combined can be high return investments in the long-term.

What’s more…

A high dividend makes it easier for you to hold a stock through a declining market. Because you receive regular cash flow from the dividend.

Here…

You’re investing money in the stocks that pay you even if the stock doesn’t make any money.

So let’s say…

If you buy a stock for $10 a share and its value remains the same for the entire year…

You still get paid in the form of dividends when a company reaches a point where they are cash solvent.

For high return investments, look at stocks that have a history of increasing their dividend over time.

These are called Dividend Aristocrats. It’s an index of 57 S&P 500 companies that have raised their payouts annually for at least 25 years.

Here are 10 that offered a projected upside of at least 10% in 2020.

To reduce risk, you could go with companies that have never decreased their dividend in the last 60 years.

That is historically they have proved to do so. There’s no guarantee that they will not in the future.

3. Preferred Stocks

These are a special type of stock. Unlike common stocks, they are high return investments.

But, you don’t get any voting rights. So when it comes time for a company to vote on any form of corporate policy, preferred shareholders have no voice in the future of the company.

However, you have a higher claim on the company’s earnings and assets.

Hence, when a company declares a dividend, preferred stockholders get paid first i.e. before the common stockholders.

And if a company is liquidated and after the bondholders and creditors are paid…

Preferred stockholders are paid ahead of common stockholders.

In other words, these are high return investments with lower risk because there’s more assurance you’ll receive the dividends.

Think of it this way…

Preferred stocks are a cross between common stocks and bonds. Because preferred stocks have a more predictable dividend income. They have a certain dividend level.

If you buy a common stock you get returns (dividends) only after a declaration by the company board. They may even reduce or remove the dividends entirely.

On the other hand…

Let’s assume you have a preferred stock with a stated annual dividend of $10 per year.

You will receive the $10 per share dividend each year before the common stockholders can receive any returns. But you will get no more than the $10 dividend, even if the corporation’s net income increases multiple times.

4. Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT)

Real estate is what we call a hard asset. It has the potential to perform well even when the financial markets are fluctuating.

Now you may not be ready or have the desire to take on the work of a landlord. But, you can still invest in real estate.

That’s where REITs come in. They give you the chance to invest in real estate without the hands-on work.

Sites like Fundrise allow you to collectively invest in real estate properties. It’s like crowdsourcing with real estate investing.

You can choose to invest in a single property or in various real estate developments.

What’s more…

Often you get better returns over the long-term. Think of REITs as mutual funds that invest in real estate.

You can even do it with a small investment (say $1,000).

Hence, REITs can be excellent high-return investments with low-risk.

Because they pay dividends and receive special tax treatment.

REITs tend to have more stable values than stocks. And like dividend-paying stocks, they add the potential for capital appreciation to regular dividend income.

They pay at least 90% of its revenue in dividends to its shareholders. Those dividends are tax-deductible, enabling the REIT to minimize or even eliminate income taxes.

Returns can be in excess of 10%. Therefore, making them a great source of regular income.

You can invest in REITs directly, or trade on major exchanges. Like exchange-traded funds (ETFs) which hold positions in several REITs at a time.

You can buy and sell positions when you decide it is appropriate for you.

5. Tax Lien Certificates

When you buy a Tax Lien Certificate, you are in effect paying someone else’s property taxes for them.

You see…

In several counties and municipalities in the United States, local governments have millions of dollars outstanding in overdue property taxes.

These overdue taxes are from property owners who will not or cannot pay their property taxes.

And to fund the daily services of police, fire, hospitals, schools, roads, etc., the local governments need this money.

When you pay these taxes, the government gives you the right to receive all of the outstanding tax money due. Along with the fees, high interest, and penalties.

In a sense, it’s like a mortgage.

These Tax Lien Certificates are secured by the real estate they’re attached to.

So you are not actually buying the real estate. You are just buying the government’s lien on the real estate.

Basically, to encourage taxpayers to pay their property taxes on time…

The government charges high-interest rates which are passed directly to you.

To pay you back, you receive government-guaranteed checks of 16%, 18%, up to 36% interest. And these are paid directly to you.

Think of it this way…

You are receiving a continual, high-rate income from the government.

You can buy Tax Lien Certificates secured by different properties. And in different locations in the same state, or in different states.

There are thousands of these available at different price points. It could be as low as $50 and as much as $1,000 or much more.

These certificates are so lucrative that I call them…

The Wealth Builders Of The 21st Century

As an investor, I don’t like leaving things to chance. I make an investment only when I know all the angles.

Among all the high return investments that offer low risk, I found Tax Lien Certificates to be one of the best.

Why?

Because Tax Lien Certificates offer benefits that I couldn’t find elsewhere.

What I especially love about Tax lien certificates:

They are very easy to buy.
They are recession-proof.
The law protects the money.
The high-interest returns you get are mandated by state law.
They don’t rise and fall like the stock market. You get returns regardless of market fluctuation.
They are hidden from the general public.

One thing I particularly love about these certificates…

It doesn’t matter if you have a lot of capital, to begin with.

It’s the most democratic of investments. Allowing any investor to become a high-return investor.

Once you know about these little known high return investments…

And learn to take advantage of them – you’ll wonder why no one else is doing the same.

You’ll wonder why anyone would even bother with the roller-coaster ride of forex trading or the stock market.

But, as I have advised you before…

Investigate Before You Invest

I have wanted to bring this information out to a new audience for quite some time. I decided it’s high time people got to know about these high return investments.

This way you would know about this little known investment which the institutions themselves use to make money.

Most importantly, I wanted to teach you how to use this investment to your maximum advantage.

Now, you may be wondering…

Why are these high return investments so little known?

You see…

The answer is quite simple: stockbrokers, financial planners, and bankers can’t make commissions on them.

And once you know the opportunities out there…

You’ll probably never want to invest your excess money in your bank again.

Most bankers take the money you give them and use these same strategies to reap the high yield returns.

And what do you get? A lousy 1% return.

So they’re basically using your money AND these strategies…

To make themselves a fortune. That’s why they pray these high return investments are not revealed to anyone.

But, these investments are nothing new. They are just not common knowledge.

They have been a proven investment strategy for years. These principles have existed for hundreds of years.

All wealthy people have been using these secrets for decades.

And we have decided to reveal it all in an event called the Secrets of the Rich, which occurred in February23-24, 2020. This was where we offered in-depth knowledge about these high return investments.

This way you can investigate this investment further. Have a “dry run” so to speak.

Uncovering The Secrets Of The Rich

Ask yourself…

What it would mean to you if you could make high return investments without the typical risks?

Certainly, it would give you a predictable and sustainable way to grow your net worth. And you will ultimately be able to build yourself the lifestyle you want.

There are high return investments with virtually no-risk (we’re going to teach you how) that will always help you be able to “look before you leap”.

With these investments, you’ll be able to strategically grow your net worth.

Create Generational Wealth With Dan Pena’s In-Depth Strategies

February 26, 2020 by Dan Lok

Have you heard the term generational wealth before? My mentor Dan Pena teaches and instructs others to generate exactly that. So, what exactly is generational wealth?

Generational wealth is a form of huge fortunes that usually take 20-25 years to create. We are talking about huge sums of money, here. Normally, the generations of an entire family line have to work together to achieve such a great fortune.

The reason why it’s called generational wealth, is because it takes generations to build it up. It’s old money.

Dan Pena is known as “The Trillion Dollar Man”. He acquired huge riches in his life. So, to learn from him is extremely valuable, as he has walked the walk. At his castle seminars, he would teach his mentees how to achieve generational wealth in 3-7 years, instead of 20-25 years. This is extremely valuable knowledge, so of course I attended his seminar.

I visited one of Dan Pena’s seminars back in 2003. That was a huge turning point in my life, and in my pursuit of financial success. Dan Pena has been my mentor ever since, and I would often visit him at his castle.

So now, what are Den Pena’s in-depth strategies for creating generational wealth? Let’s start with who Dan Pena is, and why we should all listen to his advice.

Who Is Dan Pena?

Dan Pena is often referred to as the “Trillion Dollar Man”. He has many impressive achievements, and owns a castle in Scotland.

Getting Dan Pena to be your mentor isn’t easy. You can’t just call him on the phone and book an appointment. Like most wealthy people, he is guarding his time.

When I found out about Dan Pena, I was very young and very broke. I had nothing much to offer, but I knew I wanted to be mentored by him. So I called his secretary and asked for an appointment. Of course, she told me off. But I didn’t give up. For days and weeks, I would call Dan Pena’s secretary every day. My persistence worked. Dan Pena picked up the phone and told me to come to his castle for one of his seminars.

That was the next challenge. I was pretty broke at that time and getting tickets for the flight from Canada to Scotland was a challenge for me, and a major financial risk. But I did it anyway. Today, I am incredibly grateful for everything I learned from him. Let’s just say it was worth the money to fly out to his seminar.

Many of the things that I’m teaching my students today, I learned from Dan Pena back then. Things like, “Consistency is key” or “Smell the leather” are expressions I picked up from Dan Pena.

Dan Pena’s Way To Generational Wealth: The “Quantum Leap Advantage” (QLA)

So, what exactly does Dan Pena teach his mentees about generational wealth?

His system is called the Quantum Leap Advantage, or QLA for short. QLA isn’t for everyone. To learn the system of QLA, it would be best if you were already earning 6 or 7 figures. It’s not a strategy meant for broke beginners. Now, why is that?

First of all, if you want to learn QLA from Dan Pena live, you have to be able to pay for your tickets to his seminars. They come with a price tag. You can also learn QLA via Dan Pena’s YouTube videos. If you do that, there is one catch, however. To accumulate and hold generational wealth you need to first have the mindset of a wealthy person. For many of you, this requires a significant mindset shift.

When you spend a week at Dan Pena’s fancy castle for his seminar, your outlook on wealth changes. I remember the first one or two days at the seminar, I felt kind of uncomfortable and out of place. There was a bell to ring, so the waiter would come and get you food and drinks. I was young, broke, and not used to any of these luxuries. But after a day or two, I thought to myself, This is actually kind of awesome.

You see, even if the QLA strategies are on YouTube for free, only very few people can implement or use these strategies. For generational wealth, you have to be comfortable with wealth. If you never earned 6-figures in your life, then you are probably not ready. Focus on increasing your income first.

How Does QLA Work?

Through his teachings, Dan Pena has created millionaires and billionaires.

The foundation of the QLA method is this: It’s a commercial debt-based business model. You never use your own money. Instead, you borrow money from commercial banks. With that money, you acquire businesses in lucrative sectors. Hot sectors such as healthcare and telecommunication. You grow the business and sell it again. That is the basic concept behind generating generational wealth.

Now, this sounds easier than it’s done. If it would be easy, everyone would do it.

If you do everything right, then achieving generational wealth will take you about 3 years. If you make some mistakes along the line, it will take up to seven years. But that’s still infinitely faster than the usual 20-25 years.

Create Generational Wealth by Changing Your Mindset

Before you can acquire any amount of wealth, you have to adjust your mindset. Most people, don’t grow up in rich environments. Rather, they grow up with a mindset of poor people. If they can’t escape from that mindset, they will stay poor. They have to adjust from a poor person mindset to a wealthy person mindset.

Dan Pena often calls the current generation “snowflakes”. Why? Because they melt under pressure. Most people nowadays have “safe spaces” where they shelter themselves from the world. But, the snowflake mindset doesn’t help you to achieve generational wealth.

To become wealthy, you have to get used to people saying “No” to you. Dan Pena and I still get a lot of “No”s. My High-Ticket Closers, when they sell on the phone, have to get used to rejection. The right mindset is that every “No” you get, means you’re getting that much closer to a “Yes”.

As a wealthy person, you are committed to your results, even if it’s challenging, and the odds are against you. The QLA seminar visitors come from all kinds of backgrounds and all walks of life. That is proof that everyone can become wealthy if they are determined and willing to make the sacrifices that come with wealth.

Your Self-Esteem Needs Some Work

The participants for Dan Pena’s seminars are getting younger and younger. His current “poster child” is a young man who came to him at the age of 17. All he had was a 15-speed bicycle. Now he is 21 and flying his own private jet.

Dan Pena often noticed that almost all of his seminar attendants had low self-esteem. To create generational wealth, they first have to start to believe in themselves. If you are the first aspiring millionaire or billionaire in your family, chances are that others don’t believe in you. So, it’s even more important that you believe in yourself and have that self-confidence to be a trail blazer despite your family’s history of being poor.

This ties back in with your mindset and how comfortable you are with getting rejected. Dan Pena himself also started out as a salesman, so he understands rejection, cold calling, and the numbers game.

The thing is, when you follow the Quantum Leap Advantage method you aren’t selling a product. Selling a product is easy. But essentially, you are selling yourself. Getting rejected when you sell yourself is twice as tough. That’s why you need unshakable certainty and high self-esteem.

How Have You Been Programmed?

Another important factor when it comes to generational wealth is the programming from your parents, peers, and people around you. Dan Pena believes that parents program their kids for a certain type of thinking from a young age.

Dan Pena himself had a rough childhood and even ended up in jail at some point in his life. Only after he changed his program did he get to generational wealth. When Den Pena started to make fortunes, his father said, “Please tell me it isn’t drugs”. He made so much money that everybody assumed it was something illegal.

That’s also a form of programming many of us have to hear every day. In a poor people mindset, it seems impossible to make a lot of money legally. They immediately assume you did something illegal.

To get to the core of your program, ask yourself, how is your program working out for you? What stories are telling yourself? How do you justify your failures? What excuses are you making? When you are very honest with yourself you probably have to admit that your program isn’t making you successful.

That’s why it’s so important to have a mentor. A mentor who practices what he preaches can help you to change your program. They have been where you once were and show you how to overcome it.

Smell The Leather

I teach this concept to all of my students, but I actually learned it from Dan Pena. Smelling the leather is a powerful tool to expand your comfort zone and get used to wealth.

What is it about? Smelling the leather means to tap into the world of the rich, even if you can’t afford it yet. Get a taste for the luxuries you can’t yet afford.

For example, when I wanted to buy a certain car, I would go to different dealerships and test drive the car. I got so used to it, it really felt like the car already belonged to me. When I would walk on the streets with my friends and my dream car would drive by, I would tell them “Look, that’s my car.”

Or when I wanted to buy a Bentley but still had to wait, I first bought the license plate. The license plate would remind me every day of my goal to buy the Bentley.

If you want to live like the rich or get a taste for it, go to fancy hotel lobbies and do your work there. Visit the neighborhood where you want to live and have dinner there frequently. Expose yourself to the lifestyle you want to have. This practice will motivate you to take action.

Smell the leather. I learned that concept from Dan Pena. If you want to adopt a wealthy mindset, it’s the perfect strategy.

Tough Love

Another one of Dan Pena’s core principles for generational wealth is tough love. If you watch Dan Pena on YouTube or attend his life seminar you will see that he isn’t exactly a soft guy. He knows that to become wealthy, you have to go through hardships and he tells you so unfiltered. That the “No BS” mentality you will need to accomplish generational wealth.

Generational Wealth Doesn’t Come Easy

When you want generational wealth, you have to be aware of this crucial factor:

Wealth doesn’t come for free. Most people don’t become rich because they aren’t ready to make the sacrifices to get there. Click To Tweet

In that sense, generating wealth is very similar to losing weight. What do you have to do to lose weight? You have to put in the work and exercise. Still, so many people in North America are overweight. Why? Because they aren’t ready to make the sacrifice that comes with losing weight – sacrifices such as spending time in the gym or holding back from eating too much.

Most people see the glamour of rich people’s lives and want that. But they don’t see the blood, sweat, and tears that got us there. When you want to get really rich, there are many sacrifices you have to make. People, opportunities and mindsets you have to say no to.

Getting wealthy typically involves constant work, even when you don’t feel like it.

Absolute High Performance

To create generational wealth – or any kind of wealth really – you have to be a high performer. You can’t get rich and make excuses at the same time.

You have to be committed to your results and stay consistent. As Den Pena likes to say: “High-performance people are all they can be all the time.” That means they are always like that. Not just when they feel like it. It’s a part of who they are. Peak performance is ingrained in their daily routine.

Den Pena is an absolute high performer because he doesn’t know fear. He is never afraid, because of his life experiences and the discipline he learned in the military.

What Gets Measured, Gets Accomplished

Dan Pena believes that what gets measured, gets accomplished. When you visit one of his seminars, you’ll notice that in the months after, he will follow up with you and see how you are doing. He sees it as his responsibility to keep you on your path of making generational wealth.

Your Emotional Bank Account

Most people are aware of their financial bank accounts. But, there is actually another account to pay attention to: Your emotional bank account.

Your emotional bank account is probably even more important than your financial one. The emotional bank account determines how well you react if something doesn’t go your way. How you take it when your back is against the wall and you have to perform.

Are you emotionally strong? How about emotionally intelligent, emotionally stable, resilient and able to bounce back?

When your emotional bank account is in check, your financial bank account will follow. So, you are creating generational wealth with and through yourself and your own personal strength.

Why QLA Works

Now as you can see, the strategies for creating generational wealth are mostly intangible. It’s not about how rich you are already and which investment gimmicks you are using. It’s about working on yourself so you are actually ready for fortune.

Still, there are some more methodological approaches to QLA that make it so successful.

They way QLA works, you are getting yourself in a position where there is no competition. Most people wouldn’t do it.

Generational wealth gets created by a series of transactions. It’s not just one business you sell, you have to do it over and over again. It’s also about paying attention to current interest rates and checking which sectors are hot right now. For example, healthcare is lucrative right now. As Dan Pena said himself, “My generation doesn’t want to die.” So, there is a lot of money in the health sector.

7 Steps To Mega-Success

When you visit Den Pena’s website, you’ll see that the QLA method follows 7 steps.

Step 1 is the foundation. It discusses how to overcome obstacles, how to get the right mindset and so much more.

Step 2 is about clarifying your vision, to make sure you are crystal clear on what you want.

Step 3 is focusing on perception.

Step 4 deals with creating your dream team.

Step 5 is about the Quantum Leap Action Plan. Remember QLA works without any of your own money.

Step 6 explains why you should pay yourself first.

And finally, step 7 talks about your exit strategy.

The whole purpose of Dan Pena’s teachings is to show you how to become mega-successful. Most of the time, it’s by doing the opposite of what conventional wisdom tells you to do. Very often, conventional wisdom and traditional teachings are wrong.

Ready to Unlock Your Wealth?

Perhaps you are only just starting out as an aspiring millionaire. Maybe you aren’t sure if the concept of generational wealth is too advanced for you.

I believe that you have the potential inside of you to achieve your dreams. It’s possible that so far, you’ve been programmed in a way that gave you poor self-esteem. You’ve been following conventional wisdom that has kept you poor. But all wealthy people – even Dan Pena or myself – we weren’t born fortunate and rich.

In my early twenties, I was broke and in serious debt. When Den Pena invited me to his castle, I wasn’t sure if I would make it, because of the cost of the plane ticket.

We all have to learn to unlock our inner potential first.

My new best selling book Unlock It is exactly about that. All I learned in the last 20 years of being in business, the hardships I overcame and the lessons I learned – I divulged it all in this book.

So, if creating great wealth is your goal but you don’t know where to start, then Unlock It might be of interest to you. It’s not a regular book, either. It offers space for you to take notes and reflect. You can read it in one go or find the chapters that discuss current life situations you are facing. It’s a book full of answers. What would it mean to you to unlock your potential? Check out my book right here.

The Trillion Dollar Man, Daniel Pena, Talks About The Complete QLA Library

February 23, 2020 by Dan Lok

If you’re familiar with my work, there’s a good chance you’ve heard about, Daniel Pena, also famously known as The Trillion Dollar Man. Maybe you’ve seen him in one of my YouTube videos or remember reading about him on my blog.

If you don’t already know, he is the second mentor that entered my life and he has been my mentor for over 10 years. And back when I was in my twenties, it was through his castle seminar mentorship program called the Quantum Leap Advantage (QLA) that helped me bring my business to the next level.

At the time, when he invited me to attend the seminar at the Guthrie Castle, I couldn’t believe it. It was an opportunity of a lifetime for me to learn from Daniel Pena in person. There was no doubt in my mind to take advantage of that moment. But I was reluctant. There was one problem holding me back.

The Decision That Changed The Course of My Life Forever

The price of the seminar. At the time, it cost me a LOT to attend the seminar and I didn’t have that kind of money just sitting around. I was broke and still had $150,000 debt to carry.

So what do most people do in that kind of situation? Yes, they come up with all the reasons why they shouldn’t go. And that exactly what I did. I threw myself into my own mental BS. Questioning whether or not I should go.

But, if I was being honest with myself, deep down I knew I had to attend the seminar. It didn’t matter that I was scared or worried. Because I knew that if I said “no” to this opportunity, it would be the end of our relationship. And I would deeply regret my decision if I made the wrong choice because of my fear. So I knew at that moment, I had to be resourceful. I had to find a way to make it work. And I did.

Today, looking back, it was one of the best decisions I made in my entire life. And because of it, I am now at a stage in my life where I can make an impact and help change the lives of today’s younger generation.

So my mentor, Daniel Pena, gave me permission to release the same program that once cost me several thousand dollars to attend absolutely free for you to use on my YouTube channel. And if that wasn’t enough, he has also released his own complete library of the QLA products on his website and his YouTube channel.

Why is Daniel Pena Giving Away All of His QLA Products for Free?

His answer is very simple. He wants to eliminate every excuse you have to not succeed. Because let’s face it, you and I both know, most people only know how to talk about success but they have no proof to show for it.

That’s why in the personal development and success industry space, a lot of what you see, not all, but a lot of what you see online are all just a big pile of garbage. It’s just like what Hitler proved. As Daniel Pena says, “if you say something that’s wrong and lie a lie evil enough, loud enough, and enough times, people will believe you.”

This is one of the main reasons why he is so confident in the QLA Methodology. Because he created it based on real success. And he continues to improve it based on success. It’s not something he believes to be true or thinks is true. It’s all built on the foundation of a proven track record he has produced for himself as well as for his mentees and devotees.

In the last four or five years, Daniel Pena has produced teenage multimillionaires, like Josh Kim, that are now flying around in their own private jets. He has helped one of his mentees Klaus Kleinfield produce the largest deal in recorded history – the $500 billion mega-city called NEOM. And apart from these two examples, he has many more success stories to prove that the QLA methodology works.

Today, Daniel Pena spends two-thirds of his time teaching for free at universities all around the world because he realized the most promising way to influence the future is by influencing the younger generation.

What is The Quantum Leap Advantage Actually About?

This may not be the first time you’ve heard of the QLA Methodology. You may have heard about it in one of my YouTube videos, in Daniel Pena’s many YouTube videos, or even on his website dedicated to this topic. But even while watching those videos, you might have a pretty good idea about what QLA is about, but it’s not entirely clear. So let me share with you my thoughts on what QLA really is.

From a personal development perspective, it is about acquiring the right mindset for success. It’s about building the self-esteem of a high performer. It’s about how messed up we are by society and by our parents.

From a business perspective, the QLA Methodology is about buying revenue instead of creating revenue. So you do that by acquiring and buying a company or multiple companies. And leveraging the bank by using the bank’s money instead of your own money. That’s essentially what Daniel Pena’s QLA Methodology is all about. But overall, to me, QLA is simply a way of thinking and it is a way of life. However, keep in mind…

The QLA Methodology Is NOT For Everyone.

In fact, it’s for a very small percentage of people that have the right skills, the right mindset, and they have what it takes to make QLA work. So you need to know how to buy, negotiate, close, deal with people, talk to the bank, and run a business.

If you want to make QLA work for you these are some of the many skills you need to know to be successful. You see, it’s a very high-level entrepreneurship. And the concept behind the QLA Methodology is far from starting a regular online business. It’s on a completely different level.

Daniel Pena’s QLA Methodology is The Gateway to Generational Wealth

Throughout the 7-day Guthrie Castle seminar, you’ll find many different people from different countries and from all walks of life buying companies for 5, 10, 20, 30, 50, or even 100 million dollar deals. From my knowledge, learning how to close these types of deals are not taught anywhere else except at the Guthrie Castle.

And by making deals of this magnitude you can create what Daniel Pena refers to as generational wealth. So we are talking about wealth in terms of tens of millions or hundreds of millions of dollars. Wealth that would normally take 20 to 25 years to create. But with the QLA Methodology, the goal is to create generational wealth within 3 to 7 years.

Over the years, Daniel Pena has worked to refine QLA to a process made up of systems that can help people, like yourself, create generational wealth in a shorter period of time. According to him, if you follow QLA perfectly it would take you about 3 years but most don’t get it perfect. Five to seven years if you’re good. And eight to ten years if you really don’t know what you’re doing.

But that’s the perspective I want to give you if you want to learn more about the QLA Methodology or if you want to attend the Guthrie Castle seminar yourself.

However keep in mind, a large percentage of people who have attended the castle seminar in the past have actually dropped out and didn’t make it in two to three months. They gave up. And many of those that didn’t succeed had these four mental obstacles standing in their way.

1. You Were Programmed For Poverty, Not Success

Even with the abundance of information, you can access on the internet about Daniel Pena and with all the time he spends teaching university students. Most people do not appreciate all the priceless value and knowledge they’re getting for free.

And a big reason is because most people are not programmed for high-performance or success. A majority of society is actually programmed for poverty.

Unless you were born into a high-performance family like Henry Ford, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Donald Trump, Bill Gates, and Steve Jobs, you were not taught to be a high-performer. In fact, today we live in what Daniel Pena calls a Snowflake Generation. These are people who melt under pressure.

They don’t have the self-esteem to become a high-performer because of all the bad programming they’ve received their entire life. When life gets tough and they can’t handle it, they feel the need to scurry back into their safe zone – a place where they can release their stress. But in reality, that method doesn’t help you. Because in life there are no safe zones.

In life, you have to suffer if you want to grow into someone successful. You see, everything you could ever want lies outside of your comfort zone. So to get there you need to stretch your comfort by learning how to be uncomfortable.

When it comes to applying the QLA Method, let’s say you are 25 years old. It’ll be much harder for you to execute the system because you have to unlearn all the bad mental programming you received from your parents.

It’s not impossible but it’ll be harder because you’ll be swimming in a lot of your own mental BS. However, if your desire is strong enough, then chances are you will do whatever it takes to produce results.

2. People Who Pretend To Be Successful Never Achieve Any Level Of Success

Many people who dropped out of the castle seminar had this false belief about how much they wanted to achieve success. They say they have a desire to be successful but their words never match their actions. They come in with this mindset of I don’t know how to do something.

Well, what you’re given at the seminar and through the QLA Methodology is the “how-to” or the process you need to succeed. But as soon as people find out that it’s hard. Or they hit their first obstacle and meet a little bit of resistance, they want to quit. That’s when they know they don’t have the real desire to achieve success as they had originally thought.

Daniel Pena once said that even if you attend the 7-day castle seminar and you got one thing out of it: Okay, I don’t think this is for me. Then it’s perfectly fine. Because now you know what it takes to achieve a high level of success. Now there’s no room for you to make any excuses:

I don’t know how to do it.
No one taught me.
I didn’t have any guidance.
I didn’t have enough resources.

So you see, most people pretend they want to be successful. But it isn’t until they realize the tough choices they need to make or as Daniel calls it the “pay price to action,” that they find out it’s not what they thought.

In the wise words of Daniel Pena, the difference between the high-performance people and the rest of society is where “measurable expectations are demanded not asked.” The reason my mentor and I achieved success in our life and can enjoy our material luxuries is because we wanted it more than anything else. Our desire was stronger than everyone else. And that’s what it takes.

3. Tough Love is What You Need But May Not Like

For a big portion of people that don’t succeed in life or don’t have what it takes to succeed, they’ve lived a “bubble-wrapped life” as Daniel calls it. It simply means they were raised by their parents to be weak and soft-minded.

In life, you and I encounter all sorts of problems and challenges. But why do some of us make it out alive and others don’t? Why do some of us handle problems successfully and others don’t? What makes this difference in people?

According to Daniel Pena, it’s because most of us were not taught to be tough-minded and overcome problems that are bound to happen in life. Today, as Daniel goes to teach at universities all around the world. Many of the students believe his message is not politically correct. But Daniel believes political correctness is a manifestation of lack of self-esteem. It’s just a way to hide behind their weakness.

Today people have less self-esteem than ever before. And people make the mistake of thinking that love on its own is enough to make a change and produce results. But it’s not. Even for Daniel Pena’s own three kids, he doesn’t expect love from them, even though it may be good. He would much rather prefer to have their respect.

Because respect is timeless and it’s something you can pass on from one generation to the next. You can see this is evident all throughout history as well. Love always seems to come and go, sometimes very easily.

But earning someone’s respect is much harder to come by. The definition of respect itself is the feeling of deep admiration for someone because of their abilities, qualities, or achievements. And most people are not proud of their abilities, qualities, or achievements because they’ve lived a mediocre life.

4. A Work-Life Balance Does Not Exist

If you take a look at all the high-performers today like Elon Musk, Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, and the late Steve Jobs, what do you notice?

They do not hang out or chill as Daniel calls it. You will not find them going to the World Cup, the Super Bowl, or the World Series. They just don’t go. Why?

Because they are constantly working all the time. They work on New Year’s Eve. They work on Christmas Day. And every year it’s the same routine. But understand that it’s not “work” to them and they don’t see it that way. Their work is an integral part of their life. There is no separation. It’s part of their enjoyment and obsession. The reason is because they are thinking about their work and their business all the time – 24/7.

One the biggest struggles for the snowflake generation is they believe in a work-life balance that does not exist. There is no work-life balance. And Jack Welch said it best, “There are work-life choices and they have consequences.”

You have to make the choice to achieve success. When you have an unbreakable will to pursue your dreams, then you will take the necessary actions to make it happen. But there is no shortcut. It’s a long, dangerous path full of pitfalls and traps. So if you don’t have the confidence, self-esteem, tough-mindedness, and skillsets to endure the journey. Chances are, you will not make it to the top.

How Will You Transform Your Mistakes Into Seeds For Wealth, Success, and Significance?

You see, one of the main differences I didn’t discuss above that separates successful high-performers from the rest of society is their execution. It’s their ability to take action even when it’s hard.

It’s their conviction to do whatever it takes even in the face of fear. They don’t make excuses. And they don’t whine and complain. They just take immediate action. Because as you may know, action drives out thought.

At the time before I decided to attend the castle seminar, like many people, I was scared. But I knew that it would cost me more not to take action. Maybe you’re facing this same dilemma. Your ego and insecurities may be getting in the way of your success. But if you are ready to make a change and you want to learn how you can unlock the door to reach your full potential, then click here to order my new book, Unlock It.

Is Investing In Real Estate A Good Idea?

February 8, 2020 by Dan Lok Leave a Comment

When I was a younger entrepreneur, I couldn’t help but wonder if investing in real estate was a good idea.

I was raised like a typical Asian. In Hong Kong, which is where I’m from, a lot of people dream of owning a home. I was taught to believe owning a home was an ideal goal. If you want to do what you were raised to do, then you would buy a home, whether it’s a house or a condo. But if you want to have more mobility because your job is not stable and you don’t have a steady income, renting might be wiser.

Which would you rather choose: an unachievable dream or financial suicide? Click To Tweet

Both seem unpleasant, especially in a high-priced real estate market like Vancouver.

People say if you rent, you’re making somebody else rich. You’re paying someone else’s mortgage. You’re throwing money out the window instead of investing in real estate that will be yours.

If you’re from an Asian background, you were taught from a young age to own your home. You want to own the roof over your head, no matter what the cost. If the mortgage was barely affordable, you just worked longer hours or got a second job.

You became what they call “house poor.” You had a beautiful home you could be proud of, but it was also the black hole all your savings disappeared into.

I couldn’t help but wonder if this was at all a good investment.

So, should you buy or should you rent? Now, I believe it’s the wrong question to ask.

Here’s why: It depends on where you are at in life, your income, and also your goal. It’s like asking, “Well, should I buy a condo, or I should I buy a house?” It depends on whether you want a garden. If you want to have a gym. If you want a condo lifestyle, so you deal with less maintenance. Or if you love to spend your spare time gardening and lounging outside.

Investing in real estate and buying a home is a major decision, probably the most important investment that you’ll ever make in your life.

So today I’m going to give you some principles that will help you to make these decisions wisely. I’m going to share some insights with you based on my experience as an entrepreneur and investor.

Watch this video about whether you should rent or buy.

Question 1: Can You Really Afford To Be Investing In Real Estate?

Consider the cost of renting versus buying. If you live in any of the major cities, you know prices of real estate can be very expensive.

With your current income you may not be able to buy at all. It might take you years, maybe decades to save up enough money just for the down payment. And then after that, it’s a stretch to make the monthly mortgage payment.

In this situation, there is too much risk involved. If you can barely afford the mortgage payments, then an emergency, such as a leaky roof, could get you into deep financial trouble.

In this case, don’t buy, rent.

Question 2: Is It Cheaper To Rent Than To Buy?

In a city like Vancouver, the housing prices are so expensive they say you need an income of over $100,000 to buy property there. The mortgage payments and property taxes would be so high that maybe it’s better for you to rent and then buy later when you have more savings.

You might be wondering if you could buy property and make money from it, to help with your mortgage payments. In that case, you would be a landlord renting out a piece of property. Next you would have to decide how much to charge the renter to cover your mortgage. If the rent you charge is not enough to cover your mortgage payments, that’s called negative cash flow.

For a lot of real estate investment properties, there is actually a negative cash flow. You can calculate it. If your monthly mortgage payment is $3500, but you rent out the place for only $2800, as the landlord, you’re losing money. Every month the tenant lives there, you’re losing money. You could raise the rent, but you may also lose the renter, who may not want to pay more.

What you’re counting on is the appreciation of the property over time so by investing in real estate you would get your investment back when you sell it.

As a tenant in Vancouver, you save a few dollars. You don’t have to make a down payment, so you can rent a place that’s not so nice but saves you money. You can use that money towards something else, maybe starting a business, or developing a side hustle so that you can afford to buy in the future.

Question 3: Should You Rent If You Are Still Earning And Learning?

Maybe you just graduated, maybe you just started your own business. You’re trying to figure out out your career, your strengths, the ideal location for you to prosper. You never know, because there may be an opportunity in another city, and then you’ll have to move.

In that situation, I recommend that you rent because you want to be mobile. You want to be flexible, especially if you’re a millennial, and instead of investing in real estate just save that down payment to invest in yourself.

Or if you’re an entrepreneur starting a business, invest that amount in your business, so you can grow it. When that business makes you more money, look into buying. But for now, rent if you’re still earning and you’re still learning.

Question 4: Should You Buy If You’re Stable And Established?

Let’s say you’re close to or over 30 years old, and you have a stable career with a good income. You don’t expect to change your work situation anytime soon, and you won’t be moving from the city you plan to live in. You can afford to buy a home in a good neighborhood, and still have money left over after you buy. In this case, you can afford to buy a home, especially if your mortgage doesn’t exceed 25% of your monthly income.

If you have a significant other, and you and your partner are working on this purchase together, you can think about how much you can spend on a home. If you both have a reliable source of income, either from a job or from the business you’re working on together, then you should buy. Buy because you are starting a family, and you want to have a place where you can watch your kids grow up.

Question 5: Should You Buy If You Are An Entrepreneur And Not Yet An Investor?

Entrepreneurs like to take risks. So do investors. The difference is investors only invest money in an opportunity or business but an entrepreneur invests ideas, time, passion and in some cases, money, in a business.

If you’re an entrepreneur or business owner, you want to look at your home as not an investment, but a savings plan. Your primary residence is your savings account. If you look at it that way, it is a forced savings plan for you. So, in case your business goes through financial ups and downs you’re still putting money aside in your savings account. You’re not betting everything you have on your business.

If you stop paying your mortgage, you’ll be out on the street very quickly, but somehow, as an entrepreneur, you’ll be creative enough that you will find the money. Every month you’re putting money in your mortgage, your savings account, in case something happens to your business. It’s a bit of a buffer so at least you have some equity.

I learned this the hard way. Entrepreneurs are sometimes overly optimistic. We think everything is going to be good, everything is going well, but sometimes you never know. So, if you are an entrepreneur, buy the home that will be your savings plan.

Question 6: Do You Buy If You’re Financially Successful?

If you’re stable and you’re financially successful, buy. I believe when you have your own home, there is a psychological benefit to that.

Knowing that you’ve got a place, and you can design the home exactly the way you want to maximize your productivity. At the same time, your home is your sanctuary, your primary residence. But it’s not an investment, and I’ll explain why in a moment.

If you’re financially successful, I would recommend you spend no more than 20% of your net worth on that primary residence. Some people may say up to 30%. So how would you calculate that amount?

Let’s say your net worth is two million dollars. You wouldn’t spend more than $400,000 on your primary residence because your home is not an investment. You don’t buy your home because you intend to make money from selling it. So you spend 20% of your net worth on a house, and use your extra money to buy more investments, such as real estate.

I spend a very tiny percentage of my overall net worth for my primary residence. That’s my home where I have my sauna, massage chair, home theater, library, man cave, and gym. I have everything in one place, when I designed the ideal home for me. That’s where I feel relaxed and that’s where I recharge.

So if you’re still undecided about renting or buying, ask yourself these questions which I covered in this article:

Can you afford it? No = rent
Is it cheaper to rent or buy? Not enough savings = rent
Should you buy if you’re still learning? Not stable in life = rent
Should you buy if you’re established? Enough savings = buy
Should you buy if you’re an entrepreneur? Have savings account = buy
Should you buy if you’re financially successful? Property is 20% of your net worth = buy

Your home shouldn’t cause you financial ruin. It also shouldn’t be a dream you can never attain. As long as you make wise decisions about your finances and investments, you can become a homeowner.

Grow Your Savings Predictably and Sustainably

If you want to discover how to multiply your savings without losing to inflation, risking your finances to short-term opportunities, and without keeping it in your low-return savings account when investing in real estate, you’re invited to my event in Las Vegas on February 23-24, 2020.

Take control of your financial literacy and reserve your seat before spots run out.

Wealth Building & Investing

Take Time to Learn The Types of Investors

1. Banks

2. Angel Investors

3. Venture Capitalists

4. Peer-To-Peer Lenders

5. Personal Investors

6. Corporate Investors

7. Accelerators and Incubators

Building an Investment Portfolio

Have a Purpose and Stay Committed

Solid Understanding of The Fundamentals

Give Yourself Some Time to Build

Focus on Things You Can Control

Be Realistic With Your Goals

What You Invest is an Indication of Your Financial Confidence

Level 0: Non-Existent Investor

Level 1: The Borrower

Level 2: The Saver

Level 3a: Passive Investor

Level 3b: Passive Investor Gambler

Level 4: Automatic Investor

Level 5: Active Investor

Level 6: The Capitalist

Discover The Secrets of The Rich

What Exactly Is The Difference Between Cash Flow And Revenue?

Why Cash Flow Is Even More Important In Times Of Recession

How Can You Understand Your Cash Flow?

Know Your Data And Create A Plan

Evaluate Your Resources

What To Include In Your Plan?

Should You Cut Your Marketing?

How To Increase Cash Flow

Add A Strong Guarantee

Engage New Customers

Dare To Release Beta Products

Alternative Pricing Structures

Want More Money Habit Secrets?

High Return Investments Do Not Have To Be High Risk

1. Peer-to-Peer Lending

2. Dividend-Paying Stocks

3. Preferred Stocks

4. Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT)

5. Tax Lien Certificates

The Wealth Builders Of The 21st Century

Investigate Before You Invest

Uncovering The Secrets Of The Rich

Who Is Dan Pena?

Dan Pena’s Way To Generational Wealth: The “Quantum Leap Advantage” (QLA)

How Does QLA Work?

Create Generational Wealth by Changing Your Mindset

Your Self-Esteem Needs Some Work

How Have You Been Programmed?

Smell The Leather

Tough Love

Generational Wealth Doesn’t Come Easy

Absolute High Performance

What Gets Measured, Gets Accomplished

Your Emotional Bank Account

Why QLA Works

7 Steps To Mega-Success

Ready to Unlock Your Wealth?

The Decision That Changed The Course of My Life Forever

Why is Daniel Pena Giving Away All of His QLA Products for Free?

What is The Quantum Leap Advantage Actually About?

Daniel Pena’s QLA Methodology is The Gateway to Generational Wealth

1. You Were Programmed For Poverty, Not Success

2. People Who Pretend To Be Successful Never Achieve Any Level Of Success

3. Tough Love is What You Need But May Not Like

4. A Work-Life Balance Does Not Exist

How Will You Transform Your Mistakes Into Seeds For Wealth, Success, and Significance?

Question 1: Can You Really Afford To Be Investing In Real Estate?

Question 2: Is It Cheaper To Rent Than To Buy?

Question 3: Should You Rent If You Are Still Earning And Learning?

Question 4: Should You Buy If You’re Stable And Established?

Question 5: Should You Buy If You Are An Entrepreneur And Not Yet An Investor?

Question 6: Do You Buy If You’re Financially Successful?

Grow Your Savings Predictably and Sustainably

I hope you enjoy reading this blog post.