Turning that Fear to Focus

On Thursday, October 30, Sharon appeared on ABC 15’s Sonoran Living to speak about turning fear to focus in this tough economic time. Below is the post from ABC 15 reporter Jennifer Harrington.

You can’t turn on the television these days without hearing about the economy. The stock market is fluctuating more each day with the numbers reported on the daily news. It has created fear and panic for a lot of people. You have probably heard the blame game being played as to whose fault it is, but is it possible that it was fueled by people realizing that they were out of control in their financial lives? Financial expert Sharon Lechter thinks so. She is a member of the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Literacy and Rich Dad, Poor Dad co-author. She says this financial hardship should be your wake up call. Here are the 5 things Lechter says you can do now to help you financial health during these top economic times: 1. Determine what you CAN control and control it. We cannot necessarily control the world economy, but we can control our own decisions about money. Thinking of ways to reduce spending and save money will empower you and put you back in control. 2. How do you spend your time? Spare time is the breeding ground for fear and worry. Use your spare time to be active, don’t be frozen by fear. By spending your time in physical activity or doing something you love, you will have less time to worry and fret. Productivity is what turns economies around. 3. Turn your hobby into a part-time business. That hobby of yours could be your financial future. Entrepreneurship is the surest path out of a downturn in the economy. 4. Prepare to take advantage and profit from the upswing. You can also spend time educating yourself on the ‘fundamentals’ of investing. This could be the beginning of your successful investing career; there are many companies that are currently trading well below their true value due to panic selling. This is depressing their market value and creating an opportunity for you! 5. Demand financial education for our children and stop the fear! We must demand financial education in our schools so our children can be better prepared to control their financial lives than we are today.

You can view the whole story and video interview at: http://www.abc15.com/content/living/familylife/story.aspx?content_id=1914aabd-b137-4ef8-a8ca-5a77f5fb360d