The 5 secrets of making wealth

R A Krishna | August 23, 2006 | 09:34 IST

What does one do to become wealthy? Save a lot, spend less, invest well and in time you will become wealthy. Right? Well, yes, but. . . But what?

This is not a game. There is a secret to creating wealth that is far more than saving more, spending less and investing well. All these are external actions and involve, well, actions.

This is like saying that a building or an automobile or a ship will come up just by giving a few masons or blacksmiths or workers some tools and saying 'Go!' I am sure you would agree with me that these are nowhere near enough. So what is the missing piece in the puzzle? It is a concept.

First it's in the mind of one person and then it leads to actions to create the object in 'reality.' The aggregation of men and material occurs thus and the concept acquires a physical dimension.

This is not 'planning.' It is creation and this occurs in the right hemisphere of the brain. It is our connection to the universal life force, God, or whatever you may term it. It is the power and infinite intelligence that runs your body.

I have heard of people saying that the cosmos is just a random occurrence, that there is no infinite intelligence that operates the engine of the world. Try, however, to create a grain of rice with all the properties of a grain of rice and you will fall short even with the best tools in the best lab!

Okay, remember when you were last doing something creative? Did you feel energised? Did you feel excited? I am sure you did! Because life is creation and life is in creation. The best works come out when one does something without making any 'effort' whatsoever.

Thoughts flow easily and action becomes an extension of thought.

Okay, buddy, you are getting vague and philosophical. What does all this have to do with becoming rich? Just get to the point! The point here is that you become rich through creation rather than planning only.

Sure, but read on just a bit, till you come to my five-step formula for achieving health, wealth and happiness.

My previous articles have dealt with the process, but not the creation. So what is this creation? Thought is the beginning of manifestation in the physical realm. As mentioned in the first para, creation is not construction. It is not a random event. It is preceded by a desire or a dream.

From there the mind weaves its magic. It starts imagining how it can fulfil the dream. The next step is creation of a concept. There was a serial called Mungerilal Ke Haseen Sapnein which loosely translated means 'The Wishful Thinking of Mungerilal.' Mungerilal spun roseate dreams of riches and the good life that never ever came true.

So what separates Mungerilal from Dhirubhai Ambani? It is the steadfastness or holding on to the dream, being open to doing what it takes to make the dream come true and finally taking the right actions.

When Dhirubhai started as a small trader in Aden, did he imagine that he would be one of the greatest tycoons in the history of the world? Did he think that his empire would be as vast as it was at the time of his passing away? Did he dream that thousands of people would get jobs because of him? These questions can only be rhetorical as of now.

Do you get the drift? By starting the process of creation and believing in the power of your dreams, you will become far wealthier and satisfied in life than by just squirelling away a part of your income and allowing it to be grown by other people, however good they are at their job.

Does this seem to be a contradiction to what I wrote earlier? Maybe. But, imagine, one person was unable to comprehend the power of compounding of growth in income over a 25-year period.

For instance, is it possible for you to imagine that Rs 12 lakh (Rs 1.2 million) income per annum will be common place in India by about 2015! Or that if you get a growth of 10% in your income every year a person earning Rs 15,000 per month would be earning Rs 62,000 in 15 years. Do you believe that you would be getting a hike of only 10% every year? Young people expect more and get more these days or they switch jobs.

Here then is a very important concept. Your increase in income will be in direct proportion to your aspirational levels, your belief in yourself, your willingness to change and your openness to accepting that money could come from any source or sources which you may not even be aware of. Only through ethical means.

There are some unfavourable signals you give the Universe if you apply dishonest or harmful means. You will sabotage yourself!

I have experienced umpteens of instances when money came to me at the right time from sources totally unexpected, an old debt paid back, some payment I was not even aware of, and so on. May not have been huge money but just enough for the time.

I did not have to do anything except to be open to random occurrences. Rack your brains and you will recall instances when this has happened in your life. Can we make the process automatic rather than random? Sure.

Oh, but there is a 'but'! But make sure that your faith in the process does not waver. What did I say about an open mind! Also understand that the clock of the Universe operates on a different scale.

You can bring it to your scale by being more specific in wording your requests. So, does it mean that one makes a request to the Universe, sits back and waits for it to do its bit? Yeah sure, if you are willing to go according to its clock. Unfortunately, we have our urgent needs and also desires that do not wait. We also know how a wish can be fulfilled in a way that actually harms us. All this is starting to sound like mumbo jumbo. Let us get to specifics.

The process of creation in any field starts with a concept, a thought. This thought takes energy and becomes stronger. The energy increases to seeing the created entity as real in the creator's mind. A mental picture� is conceived in three dimensional 'virtual' reality. Finally it culminates in action to realise the dream in concrete or wood or metal or whatever.

Please note that action is the last step and action comes after a number of mental iterations occur. In effect you create your reality. Your ability to 'see' the picture and give it the energy to manifest, results in its realisation. For sure you may have to slog to achieve.

Even then, the picture in front of you will propel you to realise and manifest your dreams and the process will become pleasurable. This is just as an athlete pushes his body forward beyond its apparent capacity. At the time of running or jumping or swimming, the athlete's thoughts are focused on running the race, not the rewards, not the pain nor any other thought.

So also when you are pressed and pushed just stay focussed on the job at hand and it will seem to be effortless.

If you have felt the sheer exhilaration of doing something to the exclusion of all other thought, you will know what I mean. Okay, let us take a totally passive activity such as watching an interesting cricket or football match where the two teams are almost equally placed and the end of the game is near.

For one example, Sachin bowling the last over of the Hero Cup match against South Africa sometime in 1994 or so. Anyone who saw that match live will vouch for the fact that they had no thought other than the event unfolding on the TV. To take a more prosaic example, remember catching a train or a plane. You are sure that you will catch it come what may. How is this so?

Well, we always are sure of catching the train or plane. Were we to approach each of our goals thus, we would unfailingly achieve them. All our failures stem from the element of doubt that creeps in like a malignant shadow.

So here is my five step formula for achieving your health, wealth and happiness goals:

1. Start out with a clear idea of what you want, the clearer the idea the better your chances of achievement. Write it down clearly in a positive way and in the present tense. For example, if you want a car, clearly spell out what kind of car, what colour, what d�cor, and so on.

Let us say a Honda City in blue colour with beige faux leather interiors. Write down: 'I have a blue Honda City with beige faux leather interiors. It has a stereo system of the best quality from xyz, a television monitor, a DVD player, etc'

2. Picture yourself achieving your goal. If you are thinking of the car, picture yourself driving this car. See it in your driveway or parking lot. Give the picture a lot of colour and atmosphere such as smell (those who know will tell you that new cars smell different. For me it is an intoxicating smell), sound, etc. The better your visualisation, the faster you will get there.

3. Convince yourself of the definiteness of achieving your goal however absurd it appears initially. Dream big and see it as absolutely real. Conviction carries the day. Belief is all.

4. To assist you in your visualisation, prepare a scrapbook or a sheet of card paper and stick pictures of all the things you want in life. Only do not put people in it. For instance, you want a good partner, visualise your getting a good partner, the kind of person, his or her qualities and so on. Do not expect Marilyn Monroe to drop into your life, she is long since gone! If you are lucky and you desire it, someone who looks like her just might. . . so all the best!

5. Last of all there are two very important principles:

Be grateful for what you have and are getting everyday. Enjoy the sunrise and the sunset, the smell of flowers, the internet or whatever else you have, and say a silent thanks to all those who made this possible.

Do not badmouth the rich or famous or those with the traits that you seek to acquire. For instance if you want to be rich, revel in the riches of others. Let go of your programming that tells you that all rich people are greedy or evil or both. That they got there by cheating others. True or otherwise, stay away from these thoughts and from voicing them. (Anyway this is not true in the present world where honest persons like N R Narayana Murthy or Azim Premji or Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and many others have made it by the dint of their ideas and by acting on them.

Do not generalise. There are rich and dishonest people just as there are poor and dishonest people or dishonest middle class people.) Attract good experiences in your life by focussing on these rather than the bad ones. Believe in your power to attract good and desirable experiences through honest means and for your highest good. Use this caveat always, for my highest good.

I wish to mention that many of my dreams have come true in my life of five decades plus. Seven years back I never dreamt that I would ever be able to afford a new car. I drove a 1970 model Fiat. Since then I have had two new cars.

My income has increased so much that I say a silent prayer of thanks to Goddess Laxmi everyday. Sometimes when I feel down, I am able to see it as a passing blip.

All the best in your endeavours. May your fondest wishes come true. Also be careful what you wish for as it just might come true!

The author, who is based in Bangalore, is a former banker who is now a consultant for banking and finance. He can be contacted at rakrishna1952@gmail.com

India’s Prime Minister Scolds Pakistan

By SOMINI SENGUPTA

Published: July 15, 2006

MUMBAI, India, July 14 — The Indian prime minister scolded Pakistan on Friday, saying its failure to rein in terrorism was threatening the peace process, his toughest remarks yet since the Mumbai train bombings and a marked shift in relations between the countries.

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Gurinder Osan/Associated Press

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India, left, at King Edward Memorial Hospital in Mumbai, India, visiting bombing victims Friday.

“These terrorist modules are instigated, inspired and supported by elements across the border without which they cannot act with such devastating effect,” India’s prime minister, Manmohan Singh, said at a press briefing in Mumbai, which is India’s largest city and is also known as Bombay, three days after bombs tore through seven rush-hour trains, killing 181 people.

“I have explained it to the government of Pakistan at the highest level that if the acts of terrorism are not controlled, it is exceedingly difficult for any government to carry forward what may be called a normalization and peace process,” he added.

Indian authorities have not offered concrete evidence linking the bombings to any particular organization. But the local police and senior government officials have suggested involvement by Lashkar-e-Taiba, a banned Pakistan-based militant group active in the anti-Indian insurgency in Kashmir, a territory both India and Pakistan claim.

The group is blamed for several attacks on Indian soil in recent years, though it has denied responsibility for them, including the bombings this week.

India and Pakistan have been engaged in peace talks for four years, since the end of a military standoff over a terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament in December 2001, which was also attributed to Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Earlier this week, Pakistan rejected Indian finger-pointing over the Mumbai attacks. The Pakistani president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, offered late Thursday to help in the investigation of the bombings, which also wounded 700.

Friday evening, Pakistan’s Foreign Office dismissed Mr. Singh’s allusion to a Pakistani link to the bombings. “In the past two days, India has not given us anything in writing or talked of any evidence,” said Tasnim Aslam, the Foreign Office spokeswoman, according to Pakistani state media. The next round of talks, between the foreign secretaries of both countries, is scheduled to begin next week.

Mr. Singh’s comments underscored the political pressures and opportunities that the bombings present to both governments.

On the one hand, Mr. Singh, who has been a stubborn proponent of engaging Pakistan, faces criticism from the opposition Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, as well as from parts of the Indian public, for being too lenient on Pakistan and on the militant groups it is accused of harboring.

On Friday, an editorial in a Mumbai-based English daily, DNA, hectored the prime minister, urging him to bring more than consolation on his visit to the city. “Welcome, Prime Minister,” the headline read. “Now let’s have some action.”

The editorial concluded pointedly: “The time may have come to let terrorists and their backers know that India is a country with millennial patience, but angered and aroused, can play hardball. Will the prime minister oblige?”

At the same time, the Mumbai blasts present Mr. Singh’s government with a well of international sympathy to draw on, to exert pressure on its rival next door.

“I think in the wake of the Bombay bombings, especially if there is indeed some foreign link that emerges, Bombay will inevitably be seen as being a victim of Islamic terror as New York, Madrid or London,” said Sumit Ganguly, a professor of politics at Indiana University in Bloomington. “It cannot but help India’s cause in Kashmir.”

Across the fortified border, General Musharraf confronts domestic and international challenges of his own. From his supporters abroad, namely the United States, which has edged ever closer to New Delhi, he risks receiving added pressure to crack down on militant groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba.

But any such crackdown, observed Hasan-Askari Rizvi, a political analyst based in Lahore, Pakistan, would risk forfeiting the tepid support the general has from his country’s religious radicals, an important and volatile constituency.

The Mumbai bombings complicate his ability to sell peace with India as well. “The Islamists will argue that they knew that the dialogue would not work,” Mr. Rizvi said. “Others who favor the continuation of the dialogue will criticize him for letting the Islamic extremists undermine the dialogue.”

Talks between the countries have yielded bus and train links across divided Kashmir, increased the volume of tourist visas issued to citizens of each country, and prompted the release of prisoners. But they have not produced any concrete deal on Kashmir, the Himalayan territory over which the two countries have fought two wars.

Pakistan has grown increasingly frustrated by what it regards as Indian reticence on Kashmir. Frustration among the country’s religious radical allies and the military has increased pressure on General Musharraf. That pressure is particularly heavy as Pakistan approaches elections next year. General Musharraf is expected to run for re-election.

India denies stalling on the issue and accuses Pakistan of providing training, arms and sanctuary to guerrillas fighting Indian rule in Kashmir since 1989. Pakistan says it offers only political and moral support.

Since the peace talks began, violence has declined. But there has been a rise in attacks on Indian military forces and civilians in Kashmir in recent weeks. Among the most brazen was a grenade explosion that hit a tourist bus, killing 8 and injuring 40, both visitors and residents.

Despite the parallels of the Mumbai blasts to the London and Madrid bombings, there is widespread agreement in this country that the roots of India’s recent experience with terrorism are local, not global.

“They were intended to undermine the peace process, not only between India and Pakistan but between India and alienated Kashmiris,” said Radha Kumar, a historian who studies the Kashmir conflict, “and they were vile and despicable even in the vile and despicable history of terrorism in South Asia.”

Still, judging by the consolation and outrage that the Mumbai bombings have prompted worldwide, there is no question that they underscore India’s vulnerability. Whether that helps or hurts India in the long run is a matter of debate.

Whatever diplomatic benefits are accrued would have to be balanced with the new risks the country could face.

“At a superficial level it helps India’s position because the international community grows more aware of the dimension of the problem in Pakistan,” Ms. Kumar said. “At a deeper level, however, it hurts India’s position because it prevents India from making peace with alienated Kashmiri groups, and with Pakistan.”

Salman Masood contributed reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan, for this article, and Hari Kumar from New Delhi.