Teach Kids to Avoid Debt and Invest

How do we teach our kids how to invest and how to avoid debt? For me, this was really important because I used to be in a lot of debt, and I used to be scared to death of investing. If you feel like that, and if you’re wondering, “how can I get help with that?”, come check us out at a TRADEway event. We’ll help you out. But then we still have to transfer that to the kids, right? We want to teach them this skillset. So, how do we do that?

Here’s how I started. First, I let my kids get in debt. Oh, that’s a horrible idea, right? No! It’s actually a really good idea and here’s why. First, I let my kids say, “Hey Daddy, I want this. I want that.” And I said, “Okay, great. You’re going to use your own money.” “What?” “Yeah, use your own money.” So, they’d have to work a little bit and make a little bit of money and that taught them that money was not infinite. They’ve got to figure out how to get more of it.
Next, we went to the store and it was time to make their purchase. When they found out how much it was, they said, “I don’t have enough Daddy.” Well, guess what, I didn’t just give it to them. I made them go back and work for more. It’s terrible; I know. You’re going to feel like a horrible parent. But, it’s going to be awesome for the kids.
Now if that’s just too mean, there is an alternative. Go ahead and loan them a little bit of money, which gets them in debt. Then make them pay you back. It’s a good idea because you can control the consequences for them. It will make that kid think, “I do not like debt.” My kids hate it. I made them get in debt to me once, and they despise it now. My little girl says, “I don’t want debt, Daddy. I’ll save up my own money.” And my reply is, “Good job. Good idea.” So, this gives you a great foundation for preparing them for later in life. They can see that debt can be used to get the things they want, but they’re going to have to work to get that debt paid off.
Next is investing. How do we teach them about this? First, help them set large goals. Help them set goals that are just really way up there so that it will take them a lot of time to reach them. For my little girl, it was gymnastics equipment. She’s into gymnastics, and she wanted those uneven bars that she could swing on. She loves it, so that’s what we were going for. It cost $300. I said, “Maddie Grace, use your money.” “It’s gonna take forever, Daddy.” I said, “Yeah, would you like to learn how to make it go faster?” “How?” “Well, use your money to work for more money.” And she said, “How do I do that?” Now it’s time to teach her stock trading. She’s only nine but she’s already starting to understand it.
So, if you want to teach your kids how to invest, give them those big goals that seem hard to reach and then ask them, “Do you want to reach them faster? If you want to reach your goals faster, you need a way to leverage.” This gives all kinds of opportunities to teach your kids about how to invest.
So, get them into debt and then get them into investing. Just let them experience it with you in control and making sure that they’re safe the whole way. When you do that, you’re a rockstar of a parent.

This will make you want to be perpetually joyful

“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say rejoice.” This is Philippians 4:4. You’ve heard it before. You’ve probably quoted it, but did you know it can actually help you be perpetually joyful? All you have to do is understand what it means and how it affects you as a Christian.

The Meaning
Paul, in this scripture, is telling us that we should not just be joyful. We should be joyful again, and again, and again, and again. It should be a perpetual joy.
The Context
You might be thinking, “How can I be perpetually joyful?” Skip up a few verses and you’ll find that in the beginning of the chapter, Paul is telling us to stand steadfast in the Lord, and also to have a like mind with the Lord.
The Method
In order to be perpetually joyful, you must first have the strength to do it. Connect with the mind of the Lord. You can find the mind of Christ in scripture. Read your Bible. He’ll give you the strength to become perpetually joyful so that you can again be joyful, always in the Lord.
Are you ready to experience perpetual joy?

How Making Money A Priority Can Strengthen the Christian Family

Making money a priority can strengthen the Christian family.

Proverbs 10:4 “He becometh poor, that dealeth with a slack hand, but, the hand of the diligent maketh rich.”  God blesses those who are willing to work. His people are created for a purpose, and each member of the family should use their gifts to build the family business. When you own your own family business, you don’t stop working at 5pm, but everything you’re doing is benefiting the whole family.
Proverbs 10:22 “The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich and he addeth no sorrow with it.” The Bible gives guidelines for how money should be used. It should be used to benefit the family and as a tool to help others. Christian business owners should understand the importance of stewardship. If you’re walking with the Lord and being good stewards, God will bless you with more money, and he doesn’t bring sorrow with it. Your children will actually benefit from wealth.
Proverbs 24:3-5, “Through wisdom is a house built, And, by understanding is it established. With knowledge shall thy chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches. A wise man is strong, yet a man of knowledge increases strength.” Wisdom will bring wealth to the family, but this is a conditional promise. We must gain skill sets and have a desire to learn. Gaining wisdom is what strengthens our family and leads to wealth.
When Christian families strive for business and financial success, each member is able to focus on God’s will for them within the business. They learn to use money as a tool to serve God. It will also strengthen family relationships. When increasing wealth is a priority for Christian families, everyone benefits.

Gold & the Economy

Gold is one of the best gauges for determining the health of the current economy or other market cycles.

When people begin to see that the economy may not be doing well, you’ll see the price of gold start climbing because that is a ‘safe haven asset’ that people use to protect their money. When the health of the economy starts getting better and the outlook for the future starts improving, gold goes down because it is not a way to make money, it’s a way to protect money. People start moving those funds out of gold and putting them back in the stock market and other equities.
Let’s take a look at some specific examples:
One of the most important days in gold price history was when President Nixon detached the US dollar from the Gold Standard, 1971. Gold prices skyrocketed from $42 to $122 an ounce very quickly.
In 2009, the price of gold rose to $1,000. Less than two years later, it doubled.
On September 6, 2011, gold reached its record of $1,921 an ounce. Many variables contributed to this, including weak jobs reports, the lingering Eurozone debt crisis, and continued uncertainty around the US debt ceiling crisis. This led to the peak price of gold, $1,921.
In 2016, gold prices rose $100 an ounce in just six hours. This was due to the shocking Brexit vote, which led investors to panic. Prices rose from $1,254.96 at 4:00pm on June 23rd, which was the evening of the Brexit vote, to $1,347.12 by midnight. That’s because investors bought gold as a hedge against declining currencies such as the pound and the euro.
Market conditions play a huge role in determining when it’s a good time to buy gold or sell gold. We teach that in Safety Step: Protect Your Future, our online course about precious metals investing.You can learn how to use the market conditions in your favor. That is one of the most important factors when it comes to investing in gold and silver.

Can You Guess David’s Favorite Stock Pattern?

At TRADEway we started out teaching short-term trades. We never teach day trades. These short term trades we teach are typically two to three weeks. Many people are surprised when they hear that David Mitchell’s favorite trade is a longer term trade. We call it “Writing Covered Calls.

In the course, “Putting on a Play”, you can learn this trading strategy. It is a six to nine month trade, and you lower the risk slightly by going out longer term. We teach you how to put stop losses at the bottom of the basis rather than letting it follow the stock all the way up, and it creates a great way to play. You can even add writing covered calls to that when the stock dips, because they never go straight up. Every time it dips, you can write or sell a call, and create cash flow. While the stock is moving up, that’s going to help your balance sheet, because that’s like an asset appreciating.
This trading strategy helps your balance sheet on the one hand. It helps your cash flow or your income statement on the other hand. It’s like a business all in itself.

Nine Nation-Strengthening Accomplishments of President Trump

Regardless of where you stand with politics, there are certain facts about the current presidency that can not be denied. There are things President Trump has done that are very good for our country. From a Christian and business standpoint, he has made positive progress.

Review These Nine Nation-Strengthening Accomplishments of President Trump:
  • He took on the news media and exposed their political bias.
  • He ended the corrupt Clinton machine by simply winning the presidency.
  • He has put into place a couple of pro-life Supreme Court justices and many federal judges.
  • He made Jerusalem the capital of Israel. Four different presidents had promised to do that and never did.
  • He has taken a great step towards protecting our borders by simply keeping the current laws that we have, and enforcing those laws on people who are unlawfully crossing the border.
  • He withdrew from the Paris Climate Accord, which was wasting American money and resources.
  • He has done historic regulatory reform and tax reform that has made a positive impact on our economy.
  • America had over three million jobs created, and the unemployment rate has gone down to 3.9%. That’s the lowest it has been since the year 2000.
  • He stopped the Iran Nuclear Deal. He put a stop to giving billions of dollars to the country that backs more terrorist events than anyone in the world.
We didn’t vote for Donald Trump to be our pastor. We voted for a man who could turn us back into a more socially, politically and economically stable nation. Many people are trying to find every little thing wrong with this President, when what people really should do is focus on the positive changes that have been made to keep America the greatest nation on Earth.

This will make you want to be an entrepreneur

he average American works for an employer. They are told when to work, how much they will be paid, and when they can spend time off with family. They have little control over their schedule. Entrepreneurs live by a different set of rules. They get to decide how long they spend at the office, how much money they get paid, and when they get to be with their families.

One of the main reasons people choose not to start a business is fear. 2 Timothy 1:7 states, “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
What does it mean to have a spirit of power?
You are powerful. You have the opportunity to start something new in your life. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, you have the ability to make business decisions and use your money to make more money. Many people worry that they do not have the resources needed to start a business, but you do not need much money to start a business. Steward your money according to Biblical teachings, and you can have success.
What does it mean to have a spirit of love?
Love is the choice to show affection or fondness. When you have a spirit of love in business, you have a passion to provide a quality product or service. You give of yourself to create or provide something for others, and God can bless that by growing your business.
What does it mean to have a sound mind?
God provides you with financial and business principles in the Bible. He also gives you the ability to read and understand His word. The Holy Spirit equips you with discernment. When you are a child of God, you can learn and understand what business choices are best for you. This understanding can lead you down the path of running a successful business.
If you’re interested in learning how to take an entrepreneurial risk so that you can start a business on a very small budget, come to a TRADEway event. We love teaching others how to live by a different set of rules.

Keys to Transformation: Try Something New

There is a Dr. Suess quote that says: “You’ll never get bored when you try something new. There’s really no limit to what you can do.” This children’s book quote should resonate with anyone wanting to experience transformation. It seems like a simple concept, yet many people struggle with change. If you are tired of the monotony, tired of seeing no results, tired of not meeting your goals, try something new.

Change can be beneficial.
Change might feel difficult. It forces you to leave what feels comfortable. There is some value to routine and consistency, but if you want to transform an area of life, you must try something new. Change has a domino effect. You do not have to make a huge change in your life to bring about transformation.
Change can be subtle. 
Small changes in what you are doing can have a big impact on your future success. Choose any area of life and make a small change. Try a new experience, listen to a new song, find a new Bible study, watch a new video. Go completely outside of what you normally do in one small area of life, and you will find some energy that moves you. That energy is not going to stay in one area. It’s going to spill over into other areas.
Change can be powerful.
When you incorporate small changes into your daily life, the effect can be powerful. If you allow yourself to acquire new information and engage in new activities, you will experience growth. You may not even realize you need to change something you are doing, but as you try new things, you will begin to feel refreshed and inspired to make other changes. This is what will lead to transformation.
Make a subtle change in any area of life and watch how that small change brings about transformation in other areas. Do not be afraid of change.

People Fail at Everything

In every aspect of life there is the possibility of failure: relationships, careers, sports, and the list goes on. Everyone fails. If this is the case, why do people have such an intense fear of failure? Perhaps it is not failure that should be feared, but quitting. In Franklin Delano Roosevelt‘s first inaugural address, he made the famous quote, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” People quit, and lose sight of their goals, because they fear failure. This is not a productive mindset.

Failure is not the opposite of success. Failure is a step in the process that leads to being successful. If you look at failure as part of success, it’s the thing that will help you achieve your goals. When you eliminate the fear associated with failure, you can begin to use your failure as a tool to develop a better strategy for reaching your goals. Failure can become something we are grateful for.
We should not fear failure, because God‘s strength is made perfect in weakness. The Bible is clear that God’s Grace is sufficient. In fact, we should glory in our infirmities. In our times of failure, God’s power can be seen. Those failures remind us of God’s sovereignty and his desire to bless those who belong to Him. Understanding that failure is part of God’s plan further solidifies the idea that we should use our failure to become more successful.
Failure is an opportunity for improvement. Henry Ford is one of the most well known businessman in American history. He once stated that failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently. Anxiety hinders your ability to problem solve. When you allow yourself to worry about failure, you are unable to use that failure to develop a better plan for success. It is important to maintain the right perspective in terms of failure. You must train yourself to view failure as part of success. When you’re able to do that, it will be easy to pick yourself up, make adjustments and proceed down a path of achievement.
Failure is inevitable. Your mindset and what you choose to do as a result of that failure that will determine your success. When you consider it a part of success, see it as something to glory in and use it to improve your goals, failure is a great tool. Your failures and determination not to quit will lead to success.
How will you use your failure to become successful?

Keys to Transformation: Prayer

There are many small things that can lead to transformation. You can learn new things, you can change your mindset, you can spend time and money, you can seek the advice of others, you can work harder than anyone else, but the most impactful element of transformation is prayer.

Nobody is higher. Nobody is greater. Nobody is more powerful than our God. When we connect to Him in prayer, He changes us from the inside out. He does what is best. He does what is right. We have the ability to connect to that power in prayer.
James said that the prayer of the righteous man is powerful and effective. So, of all the things we could do, prayer is the most important . Every challenge we encounter, every burden that is laid on our hearts, every time we encounter a situation in which we need to dig deeper and go farther, it is a call to prayer.
We live in very busy times. We have very busy lives. Make time to go to the Lord in prayer, because prayer is powerful; it’s effective. He is our transformation.