It's extremely frightening. 26% of all Americans have no savings at all. 7% have no savings account at all! The average American has $4,436 saved up, and 76% of families live paycheck to paycheck. The average person in their 60s has less than $200,000 in retirement savings. It's not surprising that the majority of people don't believe they can become millionaires. But what if I showed you how? What if I told you that if you invested an extra $2,000 per month for 20 years, you could easily turn it into $1,000,000+? Would you go through with it? If you answered YES, continue reading.
Let's look at a real-world example I just set up for my personal trainer Josh. It's an excellent demonstration of how he, you, or anyone else can do it. Josh charged $50 per session and had 15 weekly clients who worked out with him an average of three times per week. That works out to be $2,250 per week or $9,000 per month. When I presented the $2,000 = $1,000,000 concept to him, he liked it but didn't think he could spare the extra $2,000 per month to invest. To him, it seemed like a pipe dream. He already had a mutual fund set up that earned 6% per year, but it only had less than $1,000 in it and he was only contributing $100 per month to it. That is the issue, folks. Many of us have set up retirement accounts, but the deposits we make are insufficient to move the needle on our net worth. That is why we need to have at least $2,000 extra cash per month to start moving the needle. Here's the plan I devised for Josh to earn an extra $2,000+ per month. ""How many total extra hours per week will I need to work?"" was the big question. What is the solution? Two. Yes, two extra hours per week will make him a millionaire. I'm sure the same could be said for your company. Regardless of your line of work.
The following is the road map:
Step #1:
Boost the value you bring. Josh's only contribution was to work people out. There are no meal plans, videos, body fat index testing, or nutritional or meal prep advice. In a nutshell, he provided his clients with limited (really zero) EXTRA value. You can't raise prices without also raising value. So he and I developed the following value-added programs, which he implemented in less than a week. Josh signed up for an email program (there are numerous options, such as Constant Contact or MailChimp), entered his clients' email addresses, and presto! He had a platform to send value-added messages to them at any time. He then developed content for a simple, one-page weekly newsletter, which was emailed out every Monday at 6 a.m. He provided great recipes for quick and easy meals in the newsletter. He discussed nutritional advice as well as vitamin and supplement recommendations. He told his readers about local farmer's markets and what was in season to buy and eat at them. He even included a DATE NIGHT SUGGESTION section in which he recommended that his clients go on a date night and explain why it was important for their marriage and mental health, as well as great locations and destinations to make it extra special. Finally, he began recording himself doing workouts and incorporating them into the newsletter so that his clients could do them on their off days. Do you see what I mean? He began by laying the groundwork for a foundation of value-added services that informed, educated, and entertained his clientele. Total time per week: 2 extra hours.
Step #2:
Increase the price. We increased his fee from $50 to $60 per session. It's only ten dollars. However, not all clients agreed.
Step #3:
What did his client have to say? He lost some customers who were unwilling to pay the extra $10. They didn't see the newsletter's value because they didn't have it in the first place. They simply desired a lower price. No problem... that is the purpose of step #3- to put your client base and the value you provide to them to the test. In Josh's case, he had some cheap clients AND he wasn't providing them with enough value. As a result, they abandoned him. Some customers will leave you if you raise your prices without providing enough value. They certainly should! In today's crowded and cloudy marketplace, value is everything. You must provide value that is greater than the price you charge.
Step #4:
Put on your sales hat. Josh had lost some clients and needed to sell to find replacements and a few more. But he was starting from scratch this time, with a new price ($60) and a new product offering. This time it was """"Josh aka The Super Trainer"""", who cares more about his clients than anyone else, and he proves it every week through the content he includes in his newsletter. He was now concentrating on your muscles, mind, food intake, and even your relationship. He began asking his existing clients for referrals and asked them to reach out to their family, friends, and coworkers. I also had him speak with some of his gym's busiest trainers and ask for their overflow, the clients they were simply too busy to take on. Within two weeks, he had replaced the clients who had left after he raised his prices. It was ridiculously simple to replace them, and he actually added three more for a total of 18 new clients.
The end result is as follows:
Josh now has 18 very happy clients who receive his weekly newsletter and can watch his specific workouts on their off days. His new clientele are all paying $60 per session times three sessions per week, for a total of $12,960 per month. A $3,960 increase over his previous income level.
I almost forgot... how will Josh's extra two hours per week help him make over a million dollars, and why should you change your business to find $2,000 per month to invest? Here's how Josh's situation will play out. He is thirty years old. He will now increase his monthly investment from $100 to $2,000 because he has $3,960 more money coming in each month. Even after saving $2,000, he still has $1,960 more money than he did last month! His $2,000 will be invested in the same mutual fund, which has a 6% average annual return. It will be worth $1,017,000 after 21 years. He'll be 51 years old and have more than $1,000,000 in his retirement account! Josh will have $2,011,000 if he continues this until he is 60 years old. It is possible if you simply begin. It's easier if you start in your 20s or 30s, but it's possible to start in your 40s, 50s, or even 60s.
2 hours per week and $2,000 per month are magical.
Bring some magic into your life!"""
