Financial expectations

Legend has it that nearly five thousand years ago a weary traveller met Bansir, a wise old man at the outskirts of Babylon. He said to him, ‘Sir, I have heard that the people of this city are unfriendly, wicked and inhospitable to strangers.” The old man replied, ‘That is correct. These are the kind of people you will meet here.’ The traveller continued on his journey.

Several hours later another traveller met Bansir at the same spot. He also enquired from him, ‘Old man, I am new to this city and I have heard that the people are caring and compassionate towards strangers.’ The wise old man replied, “Yes you are correct. These are the people you will meet here.”

Now Bansir’s response to both travellers was correct because this story highlights an extremely important aspect in our race to wealth and success, which is expectation. In the above story each person had a different expectation about Babylon’s citizens, and what they expected was definitely their experience…

Expectations can be defined as the act or state of looking forward to or anticipating something. It also is the degree of probability that something will occur. They are extremely powerful because many times successful/failed outcomes that are experienced in our lives are as a result of what we expected to happen. In other words if we expect wealth and success we eventually get what we expect.

This innate trait can be found predominantly in the life of many of the wealthy and successful. As they set out to achieve their life’s goals they do not expect not to achieve them! An encounter with the richest and wealthiest people always makes those who lack wonder because they are always upbeat and positive. They are this way because they expect things to go their way all the time. Eventually events start to mold themselves and begin to comply with their inner desires and eventually they get the desired result.

Positive expectations act like an invisible magnet that draws you towards your goals. The benefits of expectations are manifold – they build your faith and belief once you have set your goals; they activate a trigger mechanism that forces you to reject negative outcomes and keep striving till you get positive outcomes; they help one to focus on your goals as you work from the inside out and they keep you inspired and motivated.

Many people use expectations in their relationships and social life, but rarely use this tool in light of their finances and in building wealth. Deploy the tool of expectations in your financial goals by affirming what you expect to see happen to you financially in 2015. For example if your goal is to make Ten Million Naira, you can affirm and also write it down that, ‘I expect to make Ten Million Naira this year’ or ‘I expect to receive winning ideas that will cause me to earn Ten Million Naira in 2015!’

It is equally important to point out that having positive expectations means that things will work out eventually over a period of time. It does not mean things will always work out according to plan, which is perfection, a state that one can only aspire to, but never attain. Expectation builds your tenacity to go out there and try again, to never give up until things change for the better! The rich and wealthy have failed many times, yet they refused to stay in lack or poverty. Instead they brushed themselves and got up after every failure expecting to see success at the next junction, and eventually they did!

I want you to know that 2015 is not a peculiar year! In 2015 fortunes would be made and fortunes would be lost! The current economic situation will make billionaires of some and paupers of others! These outcomes are as constant as the sun rising in the east and setting in the west. The good news is that you can choose what you intend to aspire to and work towards. Even in times of uncertainty people continue to see opportunity which birth ideas that lead to fortune! Expect to be one of them!

Kenneth Doghudge