Play Room

Hey Mom and Dad! Guess What? I'm going to Harvard!!!

A generation ago, the above statement uttered by a young seventeen year-old son or daughter would have been greeted by his/her parents with astonishment, hugs and kissses, and a generous dose of puffery and bravado as they announced to their neighbors (The "Joneses") that their child was one of the few annointed, chosen ones----a Haaavard student.  Even better would have been if the Joneses would have responded, "Wow....that's...that's really great.  My son hasn't heard back from Upper Eastern Montana State yet.  But, hey, he's gotten into The U of Tijuana---and no, it's not a party school like everyone says!"  Yes, twenty to thirty years ago, even the middle class seemed to be advancing, college costs were steep, but relatively reasonable---and since most parents had their kids while they were in their twenties, they still had many years until retirement to recover from the potential financial hangover.

Flash forward to today.  That same excited statement might be greeted with initial astonishment----followed by confusion, if not outright terror.  As middle (even upper middle) classes wages have stagnated since the late seventies, college costs have taken a turn for the stratosphere.  Not to mention the fact that most parents have had their kids later these days (in their thirties, if not early forties), and the savings rate compared to yesteryear has plummeted below sea level.  Yes, now that enthusiastic announcement from their youngster creates visions of a "luxurious" retirement of nightly dinners of mashed potato sandwiches, eaten on a "beutiful" veranda just outside their tenement apartment, overlooking an alleyway with a drifter below looking up and saying, "Hey Grandma, nice legs!"  But wait!  The Harvard grad will graduate Summa Cum Laude and become a top executive!  He or she will bankroll his parents wonderful retirement!  Nice try.  The odds are far greater he or she will be saddled with over 100 grand in debt and spend the first five years out of college shacking up with good ol Mom and Dad!  And The Joneses?  Odds are good that sending your kids anywhere in the state of Montana will leave them with surplus cash enough to travel the world several times over.

Seriously, if you're a parent, or ever think of becoming one, you will soon be greeted with the painful financial burden of paying for college.  And this financial burden is real----even parents who earn household incomes two, three, even four times the national average, will ever be able to save enough to pay the entire bill.  The situation becomes even more daunting with every additional child.  So, what's a parent to do?  We'll, my good friend Dave Kuenstle has already introduced you (see his blog entries below) to an incredible new program from financial expert, Kelvin Boston.  In his all-new program, The Confident Millionaire, he will give you an assortment of financial strategies to start or accelerate your college savings plan.  But, here's one key idea from Kelvin that is worth the entire price of the program:  Due to our modern financial realities, every family should only plan to cover 50% of college expenses.  The rest should be covered by the child and/or financial aid.  Kelvin explains that this is a realistic, achievable plan that serves both the parent and the child.  In fact, for the vast majority of the population, it is the only realistic plan.  What's more, it will force your child to establish positive financial habits early on, preparing him/her for the increased financial responsibility and entrepreneurial skill that will be required in the 21st Century. 

And, who knows, with this plan, even that potential Harvard child might long for that beautiful countryside in Montana!

PS----An additional resource for your college savings options is http://www.savingforcollege.com/.

You must learn things for yourself! (and no one else)

I am in the process of editing a program titled The Confident Millionaire by a gentleman named Kelvin Boston. I mentioned him before, check out his site, he's worked with some great folks. As with many N-C authors, I learned a lot by working with him. The valuable lesson I learned from Kelvin is that you must learn things for yourself, not just take somebody's word for it or their interpretation. That's actually something that's helped me my whole life. Kelvin tells a really funny story in the program about why this is so important.  He also tells this story in front of a live audience and it's even funnier, but you'll have to wait 'til the program comes out to hear that version. Take it away, Mr. Boston!

The Coalition of 4 is Out to Get You! (Got You)

Every day, money is being siphoned right out of your wallet (or purse) right into the pockets of one or even more of four entities shaking you down. You've heard of the notorious Gang of 4? Well, welcome the new enemy, the Coalition of 4. They're taking your money and you're probably smiling right through the process. Here's a friend of mine to explain. Hope you're sitting down. 

Welcome Play Room visitors!

Thanks for stopping by the newest star in the Nightingale-Conant universe -- our brand-new blog, the Play Room. We hope you're enjoying yourself! We sure are.

The Play Room is 1) a work in progress, and 2) all about YOU, our readers. We want this to be a place you come back to again and again, finding something new and valuable each time you do. So if you've got any ideas for how we can make it more engaging, more interesting, or all-around better, we would LOVE to hear them!

Is there something you'd like to see here in the Play Room? Something you want to hear about or discuss? Send us your thoughts at playroom@nightingale.com, or leave a comment below.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Do You Know Where Your Money REALLY Goes?

Every day, your money is being siphoned off and funneled to an entity that you know of, but are  completely unaware it's happening. This is not a conspiracy theory, it's being done completely with your knowledge and permission and these folks are getting rich, rich, rich. I've got a guy who will explain this and you'll be shocked if not embarrassed.

I've got to go now, more to come . . . . . .

(Motivational) music to my ears

Da Coach and I had an (unlinkable) email exchange yesterday that hearkened back to the comments he made on this post, in which he cataloged Bruce Springsteen's critical yet unsung (so to speak) contributions to the field of personal coaching.

Since then, I've been hearing rock 'n roll motivational masters all over the place. Just this morning on the way into work, this little gem blasted its way through my speakers and into my awareness:

So often times it happens
That we live our lives in chains
And we never even know we have the key

Simple, powerful, and -- if it caught you at the right moment -- potentially life changing. Questionable grammar aside ("So often times"??? Someone get me a comma.)this could have come right out of Earl Nightingale's esteemed mouth.  But I believe Eagles frontman Glenn Frey provided the vocals on this one. Lead the Field? Uh-uh -- try On the Border.

Even the darker end of the rock spectrum has its inspiring moments. I found myself getting pretty fired up (and even a bit misty) the other day listening to -- dare I admit it? -- Eminem's "Lose Yourself", the lyrics of which I cannot reprint because the Play Room does not come equipped with a Parental Advisory warning. But if you can handle the moderate-for-Eminem-but-still-pretty-bad language and you're in the mood for some unorthodox success advice, go listen to it. It's really rather awesome!

I don't know that it's possible to compile an official Nightingale-Conant compendium of Rock 'n Roll motivation (a personal development audio program by Eminem would give us an awfully sharp edge -- a fatal one, I'm thinking.)

But I do know this: if your mind is open to the kinds of great ideas you get from N-C's programs, you'll start to hear those ideas everywhere.

What about you? Got any rock 'n roll "coaches" you call on when you need a motivational shot in the arm -- or ear, as the case may be? Who are they, and what are the lines that lift you up and make you better?

Makin' my way through the BEA!

I just got back from our two annual industry showcases---the APAC (Audio Publishers Assocation Conference) and the BEA (Book Expo America).  As I attended the "networking" meals and seminars, perused the numerous booths of books and audios looking for what's "hot," and rubbed shoulders with industry "insiders," I detected a distinct mood in the air that permeated every attendee--the mood could only be described with the paradoxical juxtaposition of two words:  Excited/Terrified.

The paradox is this:  Because of the impending new technologies and terms invading the publishing world (namely, the internet, podcasting, downloading, streaming, beaming, flash, bits, bytes, aggregation, disaggregation, blogs, posts, digitization, scanning, texting, "IM--ing"....need I go on?) never has there been a greater opportunity to make your mark in publishing.  Now, take that last sentence up and repeat it right until you get to the last parentheses, and replace the ending with this statement "....never has there been a greater opportunity to lose your shirt in publishing."  Both of those statements are equally true.  Hence, the mood of me and my schizophrenic fellow attendees----excited/terrified.

As one publishing executive told us at the "Future of Publishing" seminar:  "We have left the world of 'read, think and re-read,' or 'listen, think and relisten'.......and have now entered the world of 'search, scan and sample.' "

Hey, man, easy for you to say!  But, last time I checked Sam's Club and Costco don't make their money on the food samples!  But, they do use the samples, to entice people to buy the "whole enchilada."

Hmmmm.....well, friends, I've got to go.  We've got a business model to work on!

Danno

An explosive combination?

I'm sick of all these inferior tv shows being discussed here in the Play Room. "24", people, "24" --that's where it's at!!! Start watching, please, so that we can all stand around the coffee machine on Tuesday mornings and talk about the last night's episode. If I could do that, my life here at NC would be well nigh perfect.

But Dave's post below did get me thinking: What we should really do is broker a deal between "24" AND "American Inventor", to get all of those awesome gadgets Agent Jack Bauer uses to thwart the bad guys out into the mainstream. I mean, the thing he put into the German spy's Blackberry that destroyed the terrorist watch list? The thing that made the gas pipes explode? Who couldn't use nifty little numbers like those on a daily basis?

Quick, somebody get Doug Hall on the phone ... and FedEx Kiefer Sutherland a copy of Jump Start Your Brain, pronto!

Never, never, ever, never again! (never)

Let me say it here first and hold me accountable - I am never, ever, never, ever, ever watching Survivor again.  This has to have been the lamest one yet.  Just when you think Romber from a couple ago was the worst, the final two on this Survivor was just as bad. As soon as Danielle made her decision that Aras was going with her to the final two, I sprang up and went to play Madden NFL on my son's Game Cube. I'm usually the Packers, but I was in such a tizzy, I ended up being the 49ers (well that's not too bad, I could have been so out of it, I could have picked the Bears! Yikes!) Anyway, in the words of Aerosmith "No more, no more!"

I'm pulling for Ed on American Inventor - cool game he invented!  However, if someone else wins, that's OK too, my reaction will most definitely NOT be as bad as Survivor. I'd be thrilled for any of them. Each of the guys on American Inventor have been awesome. Already looking forward to the next season.