If you have read advertising for almost any guru of finances, home-based business, Internet marketing or success recently, one of the claims that jumps out is that he 'made his first million [emphasis on the first] before the age of 30'. Fantastic! I'm happy for him! But I'm a baby-boomer. I didn't make my first million before the age of 30. In fact, I haven't made it yet. What does that say about me? Is it too late? The power of a self-limiting belief is such that it can literally be a self-fulfilling prophecy. When we tell ourselves it's too late to achieve our dreams, that is the truth. By the same token, replacing that self-limiting belief with an empowering belief also replaces the old truth with a new one: it's never too late. If you are over 40, you were most likely raised with a few self-limiting beliefs: children should be seen and not heard, money doesn't grow on trees, don't touch that...you might break it, get a good job so you'll be financially secure. Don't blame your parents, they were raised the same way. But in the last 30-40 years, the world has changed faster and more dramatically than ever before in history. These "truths" are no longer useful to us, if they ever were. As the largest generation in history, baby boomers are driving the markets in almost every industry. We are seeking health, longevity, financial success, and increasingly we are seeking more fulfillment in our personal lives, our relationships and in our spiritual lives. Four out of the top five hardcover books on the New York Times bestseller list are about health, being youthful longer, spirituality or success. Clearly we hope it isn't too late. What if we have failed before? Does past failure indicate future failure? Of course not! Life is a series of ups and downs. If you look back, you'll realize that you have had successes as well as failures throughout your life. Brian Tracy has this advice: "Be prepared to ride the cycles and trends of life; success is never permanent and failure is never final." Maybe it is an example of the well-known phenomenon that interest in a subject causes one to see the subject everywhere. Or maybe it is genuinely a growing movement. I see more and more people who are seeking what they are just now beginning to expect as their right: success, at last! Whatever your definition of success (and there are many aspects of it), by joining forces we can raise our level of empowering belief and create new truth for ourselves. This forum is a place to discuss many aspects of success: 1. Financial 2. Health and Fitness 3. Home and Family/Relationships 4. Spiritual 5. Community/Giving Back I will be initiating threads for each aspect. Please add your thoughts, affirmations, success stories, and encouragement for others. I hope you'll visit often! Empowerment is a function of positive attitude, so let's remain positive. --------------------------- Cheri Merz is a real estate broker and home-based business entrepreneur. She also publishes a web-based ezine that explores the pathways to success at any age. Visit Never2Late4Success for more articles, stories and celebrations of subscribers' success. These are some of my favorite success books. Please also visit My Offers.

Cheri, This is a great article you have written. Couldn't have said it better myself. LOL. This is a great way to segway into the Forum set-up (as advised by Clay). Now I need go go set mine up. It seems our thoughts are running in the same vain. Great work. It is truly "Never Too Late" unless we think it is. Our Thoughts do limit us if we let them. One book that helped me many years ago was "The Magic of Thinking Big". Looking forward to your future posts. Thanks for sharing.

Kathy, Thanks for stopping by, and for your kind words. I think there are many of us thinking in the same vein, so I hope you will invite other like-minded friends to join us here. One of my near-future posts will be a reading list of the top 10 books I've studied in the past few months. I am currently working my way through both "The Success Principles" by Jack Canfield and "Cracking the Millionaire Code" by Robert G. Allen and Mark Victor Hansen. I say 'working' because I have learned there is little value in just reading and not immediately putting what one has read into action! I'm just brimming with excitement and ideas about this venture Clay started me on, and it will help with my website, too. What fun!!! For those who got here other than through Clay's link, please visit his Expert forum The Science of Advertising to find truly valuable insight and advice for using your AdlandPro resources: http://community.adlandpro.com/forumShow.aspx?ForumID=5795 Kathy, thanks again for visiting. Come back often! Cheri

Cheryl, Looking forward to your book list. Have you read "One Minute Millionaire" by Mark Victor Hansen? I love that book. It is really a different type of book. It is too bad more people don't know about Clay's teaching. This AdlandPro Program is so extensive that it is hard to take advantage of all of its qualities without a guide. I have been a member of AdlandPro for a long time, but didn't realize until just recently what a huge resource it is. I will be watching to see what all you do with your Forums, etc. You are doing great!

Thanks again, Kathy! Yes, I read "One Minute Millionaire" last year, but took longer than a minute to think about it! Just as I read "Magic of Thinking Big" several years ago, and didn't think big enough. I guess some of us are just slow learners, lol. I think that people DO know about Clay, but relatively few are willing to take the time and effort to follow what he has to teach. And that's too bad, because the ones who won't do this or something else to really learn how to market on the internet will wait a few more years for success. BUT...it's never too late! Have a great weekend. Cheri