Nine Things More Important than Capital by Jim Rohn

Got this from the late Jim Rohn, world renowned business philosopher and guru.



When starting any enterprise or business, whether it is full-time or
part-time, we all know the value of having plenty of capital (money). But I
bet we both know or at least have heard of people who started with no
capital who went on to make fortunes. How? You may ask.

Well, I believe there are actually some things that are more valuable than
capital that can lead to your entrepreneurial success. Let me give you the
list.

1. Time.
Time is more valuable than capital. The time you set aside not to be wasted,
not to be given away. Time you set aside to be invested in an enterprise
that brings value to the marketplace with the hope of making a profit. Now
we have capital time.

How valuable is time? Time properly invested is worth a fortune. Time wasted
can be devastation. Time invested can perform miracles, so you invest your
time.

2. Desperation.
I have a friend Lydia, whose first major investment in her new enterprise
was desperation. She said, "My kids are hungry, I gotta make this work. If
this doesn't work, what will I do?" So she invested $1 in her enterprise
selling a product she believed in. The $1 was to buy a few fliers so she
could make a sale at retail, collect the money and then buy the product
wholesale to deliver back to the customer.

My friend Bill Bailey went to Chicago as a teenager after he got out of high
school. And the first job he got was as a night janitor. Someone said,
"Bill, why would you settle for night janitor?" He said, "Malnutrition." You
work at whatever you can possibly get when you get hungry. You go to work
somewhere -- night janitor, it doesn't matter where it is. Years later, now
Bill is a recipient of the Horatio Alger award, rich and powerful and one of
the great examples of lifestyle that I know. But, his first job -- night
janitor. Desperation can be a powerful incentive. When you say - I must.

3. Determination.
Determination says I will. First Lydia said, "I must find a customer."
Desperation. Second, she said, "I will find someone before this first day is
over." Sure enough, she found someone. She said, "If it works once, it will
work again." But then the next person said, "No." Now what must you invest?

4. Courage.
Courage is more valuable than capital. If you've only got $1 and a lot of
courage, I'm telling you, you've got a good future ahead of you. Courage in
spite of the circumstances. Humans can do the most incredible things no
matter what happens. Haven't we heard the stories? There are some recent
ones from Kosovo that are some of the most classic, unbelievable stories of
being in the depths of hell and finally making it out. It's humans. You
can't sell humans short. Courage in spite of, not because of, but in spite
of. Now once Lydia has made 3 or 4 sales and gotten going, here's what now
takes over.

5. Ambition.
"Wow! If I can sell 3, I can sell 33. If I can sell 33, I can sell 103."
Wow. Lydia is now dazzled by her own dreams of the future.

6. Faith.
Now she begins to believe she's got a good product. This is probably a good
company. And she then starts to believe in herself. Lydia, single mother, 2
kids, no job. "My gosh, I'm going to pull it off!" Her self-esteem starts to
soar. These are investments that are unmatched. Money can't touch it. What
if you had a million dollars and no faith? You'd be poor. You wouldn't be
rich. Now here is the next one, the reason why she's a millionaire today.

7. Ingenuity.
Putting your brains to work. Probably up until now, you've put about 1/10 of
your brainpower to work. What if you employed the other 9/10? You can't
believe what can happen. Humans can come up with the most intriguing things
to do. Ingenuity. What's ingenuity worth? A fortune. It is more valuable
than money. All you need is a $1 and plenty of ingenuity. Figuring out a way
to make it work, make it work, make it work.

8. Heart and Soul.
What is a substitute for heart and soul? It's not money. Money can't buy
heart and soul. Heart and soul is more valuable than a million dollars. A
million dollars without heart and soul, you have no life. You are
ineffective. But, heart and soul is like the unseen magic that moves people,
moves people to buy, moves people to make decisions, moves people to act,
moves people to respond.

9. Personality.
You've just got to spruce up and sharpen up your own personality. You've got
plenty of personality. Just get it developed to where it is effective every
day, it's effective no matter who you talk to - whether it is a child or
whether it is a business person - whether it is a rich person or a poor
person. A unique personality that is at home anywhere. One of my mentors,
Bill Bailey, taught me, "You've got to learn to be just as comfortable, Mr.
Rohn, whether it is in a little shack in Kentucky having a beer and watching
the fights with Winfred, my old friend or in a Georgian mansion in
Washington, DC as the Senator's guest." Move with ease whether it is with
the rich or whether it is with the poor. And it makes no difference to you
who is rich or who is poor. A chance to have a unique relationship with
whomever. The kind of personality that's comfortable. The kind of
personality that's not bent out of shape.

And lastly, let's not forget charisma and sophistication. Charisma with a
touch of humility. This entire list is more valuable than money. With one
dollar and the list I just gave you, the world is yours. It belongs to you,
whatever piece of it you desire whatever development you wish for your life.
I've given you the secret. Capital. The kind of capital that is more
valuable than money and that can secure your future and fortune. Remember
that you lack not the resources.

To Your Success,
Jim Rohn