Tuesday, October 17, 2017
The Master of Motivation: Tony Robbins
Most of us have days where we just don’t feel like doing anything. For some, this is the feeling all the time. Others have no direction or feel lost. Tony Robbins is well known for his motivational prowess. His speeches even move me, and I’m fairly hard to move. Early on he focused on motivating his audience to energize their lives. Being the best person that you can be on a daily basis was his goal. I feel that this correlates directly to one’s finances. From firsthand experience, I know that when you are feeling your best, you usually make better financial decisions. A problem people often encounter is the lack of ambition to fix their financial problems, always putting it off till later. Tony preaches goal-setting, dedication, and perseverance. I know for me, it was those principles that helped me get out of debt and start investing. In today post, I will profile Tony Robbins and show some of the things I love about him and a few that I don’t like that much. Tony has made of career out of helping others and getting rich while doing that is the ultimate success.
Bio
Born: February 29, 1960, North Hollywood, California (Born Anthony J. Mahavoric)
Occupations: Handyman, Janitor, Entrepreneur, Author, Philanthropist, Motivational Speaker
Tony describes his childhood as abusive and chaotic. His parents divorced when he was 7 which left him and his 2 siblings reeling. During his younger years, Tony worked as a handyman to help provide for the family. He was eventually adopted by Jim Robbins, one of his mother’s several husbands, and took his last name. When Tony was 17 he left home and never returned. He never attended college and instead picked up work as a janitor. It was at this time that Tony began promoting seminars for motivational speaker Jim Rohn. As time went on Tony began incorporating hypnosis and fire walking into his own seminars. It was then that Tony began his career as a motivational speaker. He had several infomercials focusing on Peak Performance in daily lives. Gaining popularity, Tony later began the Leadership Academy seminar and began focusing many of his efforts on philanthropy. He co-founded the Robbins-Madanes Center for intervention which focuses on helping people and families dealing with addiction.
An author of 5 books, Tony wrote, “Money: Master the Games” after the 2008 financial crisis inspired him. It reached #1 on the New York Times Best Sellers List. He has since taken a more financial empowerment slant in his seminars and teachings and that is what I will focus on. Being healthy, motivated and hopefully wealthy is the goal, and Tony does a great job of helping people see their own potential.
What I like
I have written several posts on the importance of health in relation to one’s finances. I think the two are intrinsically linked. Tony with his seminars promotes a healthy lifestyle that in turn will produce a wealthy lifestyle. Also, Tony promotes the emergency fund to cover minimum 3-6 months living expenses. I agree with that wholeheartedly but think it should be closer to the one year range. This is to cover unexpected events such as getting laid off work or getting injured. He states that getting out of debt and saving for the emergency fund should be started before you start investing which I also agree with. A caveat to that point, I do think some savings should begin even while in debt to provide a sense of fullness once out of debt but I agree that the primary focus should be on debt reduction and emergency savings. Tony is big into the power of self-realization which in my opinion is the biggest obstacle in life. We all have a peak potential that we are more than likely not realizing and to find that zone would be massive.
Other things Tony believes that I agree with:
1) Utilize compound interest at an early age
Tony believes that you should make use of the power of compound interest at an early age. In his book “Unshakable” he gives this example:
There are two friends who are the same age, Joe and Bob. Joe begins investing $300 in the stock market every month from age 19 to 27, saving a total of $28,000. Bob does the same, but from age 27 to 65, for a total of $140,000. The stock market in this example grows 10% annually, a number chosen for its simplicity. By age 65, Joe has $1,863,287 and Bob has $1,589,733.
This shows the power of time when it comes to compound interest and Tony believes the earlier you start, the better. I couldn’t agree more.
2) Diversify
Tony is a big believer in having a diversified portfolio of investments. I agree. Having a mix of stocks, bonds, and real estate will get you great results over the long term. Getting started, Tony recommends having exposure to the index as you begin to build your savings. Working with a fiduciary will help you determine the best portfolio for your needs.
3) Automate Your Investments
I am a strong believer in putting your investments on auto-pilot. Having contributions coming out regularly is the key to taking advantage of the effects of dollar-cost averaging. Tony is a strong advocate of this as well as he believes it is a painless way to grow your savings. He also believes that anyone who doesn’t take advantage of company matching in their 401K (America’s equivalent of the RRSP) is wasting a golden opportunity. This something I agree with vehemently as I have always said free money is the best money.
What I don’t like
I feel that sometimes Tony dives into the realm of the TV personality rather than money motivator. It sometimes has a feel of internet influencer rather than life coach. I do understand that often times this is the best way to reach certain people and get them engaged so it may be why he approaches some of his content this way. I also understand that I am motivated by different things than other people so if he doesn’t fully motivate me, it may be more my “fault” than his.
I also don’t fully agree with Tony’s stance on investing solely in index funds rather than mutual funds. I feel that have a well-balanced portfolio that includes many different investments is what’s important. Focusing on fees rather than saving the money in the first place get people lost to what’s actually important. A 1% fee on $1000 is $10 annually. A 2% fee is $20 annually. If you are worried about an extra 80 cents a month that this fee is costing you rather than the sound advice you are getting than you have lost the battle. For most, just saving the money in the first place is the battle, so starting the savings plan to realize your potential is fundamental. Millions of people have been using mutual funds for decades to retire wealthy, that’s a fact.
My Grade: B+
Tony is a master of the power of motivation. His speeches are intelligent, strong and immensely inspiring. He has helped many people overcome the doubts that cloud their minds and realize their potential. He has also donated his time and money to many charities including providing care baskets to low-income families and clean drinking water to the poor in India. He even donated the profits of his best-seller book “Unshakable” to Feeding America. His focus on personal growth, a healthy lifestyle and sound financial choices make him a Guru in my eyes. I have always thought that realizing my own potential would bring me great wealth, and Tony has accomplished just that.
Thanks for tuning in today and come back tomorrow as I profile another Guru that may be able to inspire you like they have inspired me. If you have questions you can reach me at joe@budgetboss.ca. Have a great day!
Tony Robbins Quotes:
“Only those who have learned the power of sincere and selfless contribution experience life’s deepest joy: true fulfillment.”
“People are not lazy. They simply have impotent goals – that is, goals that do not inspire them.”
“Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible.”
Email – joe@budgetboss.ca
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