Cyprus was, it is true, a financial fund fortress which hosted some oligarchs and especially Russian secret funds. But this is not the essential thing. Cyprus is the hub of many commercial capital which are entirely lawful and clear from Russia. Russia uses Cyprus commercial capital movements that can be estimated 300 to 400 billion per year.

It is obvious that the Russians need a place like that. It is a matter of sovereignty and national independence. The knock that was led to the financial Cypriot system during the weekend, restructuring the Cypriot banks under European control, goes against the interest and Russian sovereignty. The levy may be 30% on deposits of more than 100,000 euros but this is almost trivial compared to other problems that this inflicts to the Russians.

There is a shift in Russia's position with the hit of the ECB (European Central Bank). The ECB has in fact declared a currency war in Cyprus and then to Russia. This is the true meaning that can be given to the expression "Currency Wars." The real "currency wars", the first episode, which has a geopolitical connotation, was declared by the ECB. Note that this blockade was not imposed by the European political authorities, but by the ECB, which is incredible. The Russian change of tone  shows that one enters into matter of State interests rather than particular problems. The Russians are not stupid, they know how to take a declaration of war for what it is. A slap is not a caress.

So now we get into what I do not hesitate to call "currency war". Personal reflections of Medvedev and Putin are replacing diplomatic language. Provided, if you follow well, that diplomacy is "the continuation of war by other means".

The Russians are fantastic chess players, that is why they are calm, they think and meditate before moving pawns.

Many people think that if they put all their intelligence and all their efforts, and take seriously the objectives and values ​​of the company and engage fully into the action they will achieve exceptional results.
Well, this is true and this strategy will allow them to earn more money or get a promotion, but that takes a lot of energy.

They are giving themselves more and more to their work making business life their only system beliefs.
Business life values ​​are taking the place of human values ​​and the place of family life, which is degraded.

Then negative stress begins to appear and exhaustion, health problems and a feeling of being burned-out.
Their mental and emotional system pay the price of the endless rat race.

But, did they ever wonder if life is just about that?

All that effort, years of study and preparation just to find themselves working more and more.

But who will be by their side on their deathbed? The boss? The co-workers? The customers? I think they won't give a damn!

When the working atmosphere it’s your only atmosphere

Image courtesy: [D. Castillo Dominici] /
FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Work environment is amazing, everyone follows the norms of the business rules that may be established or adopted by the main behavior tribe.
For example, everyone decides that the coffee machine should be in a certain place and no other. Or that no one should have plants  (or that they should have them), or that every body accepts that nobody actually says what he thinks to preserve the "good atmosphere".

In the tribe there are favorites and black sheep and when something interesting happens, a wedding or a trip, everyone open their ears to be informed.

If something less interesting happens, like somebody getting sick or somebody is quitting the company, they listen a moment and then close all their ears so that nothing will disturb the routine and good atmosphere.

There may also be a great teams who complete major projects with a great symbiosis, people who understand well each other and enjoy work.

But in fact, all this is of little importance. What is truly important is that these things occupy most of your thoughts.

You wake up thinking about what happens in your tribe work? Do you go to sleep planning meetings and work projects, wondering if you'd reach the monthly goals?

Change your attitude

You might think about changing jobs to end this situation, but frankly I don’t  think this is the solution, because you will put into practice the same schemes again and fall into the same routines.

The only solution is to change your attitude towards work now and put it in its proper place.

If you receive criticism, listen and correct things. If you get praised for something you’ve done well, say thanks and pass onto something else.

In any case, just put work in its right place. You will be much more effective and creative being calm and balanced, looking at things from the good perspective.
There you can find the answer to your questions, the real path to success, the path that maybe you were expecting to see from a long time ago.

To change our behavior when setting up to work is just to change the way we approach to a work day, the way we make our decisions and how we treat our tasks.

If you want to change your life, your location, your income or increase your quality of life, then it is inevitable to talk about efficiency.

We can change things just to reduce stress, organize tasks by priority and learn to not leave things for later,not to procrastinate.

Effectiveness and money

They have one thing in common and that is  that in order to improve your finances and your productivity you need behavioral changes. But the word "change" creates this kind of resistance:

•      I've always managed well.
•      I do not want to work without stop.
•      Now I have too many responsibilities.

Efficiency and experience

Experience is not necessarily the time you spent performing certain tasks. Some people

"work forty years in the pharmacy and they don't even know where are aspirins."

And is it just the monotony that stagnates them brain. So a good experience depends on the intensity, frequency and variety of tasks performed.

Experience is what improves your quality of life.

How is it possible? For example, let's say if you finish your work at 5 in the afternoon instead of at 7, you can spend more time with your family or on other things that you enjoy doing.

Those who are inefficient miss a great opportunity

It is all about acting and remaining calm to not let the formula one crash, just because we are the pilots on the steering wheel.

It is not about running or going fast anymore, and there are cases of professional burnout increasing frequently.

Calm is the only way to regulate things, to enjoy them, to do them all and the key to success.

What do you think?

Richness and abundance are not the same thing, there some people who are really wealthy and nevertheless they are much more debt slaves than you and I. Those who have great salaries and live a lifestyle of madness, creating themselves more material responsibilities.

My goals are simple, my goals are to become completely debt free and then financially free. I'm getting closer and closer to that goal.

In recent months, we have drastically reduced expenses without necessarily have to live like the poor. To reach these goals, we have performed a detailed plan that we carried out with discipline, also trying to be frugal and keeping a tighter budget control and before the end of the year we'll be able to pay one of our great debts.

Watch your wishes

I'm on the right path to get out of debt and become rich. I'm doing all the right things. But why? Why I want to be debt free? Why do I want a lot of money?

I know that intellectually money does not always bring happiness, but when we all strive to have more and more of the same stuff and sometimes we sacrifice our time with our families just to get more.

I know some who have built very successful businesses and have earned a lot of money and in the meantime they abandon their families. They wanted to be rich so wealth wiped them out.

They've got extraordinary houses and cars and yet they are alone in the world, as is the case with many celebrities.

Money issues cause major conflicts at home. For example to get out of debt: in a couple one can become a fool of frugality, while the other is a spendthrift.

So what is the point?

Say that I can achieve my goal of being completely free of debt. Then what?

What do I do with all that extra money? It would make sense to save it for retirement, right? But everything seems so superficial. It turns out that I will spend my whole life working so I can relax and do what I like the last 10-20 years of my life? Something is wrong there.

I want more purpose in my life and more sense now because time is so valuable, even so much more than money!

My purpose

My purpose is to express creativity, to write and tell others how to live financially free, at least financially secure, which I think we all deserve. Some of you have contacted me asking for advice, I do not give advice to anyone, what you read here is simply based on my experiences and observations, but I have found that this can be an inspiration to others who look for a different and better life like me.

With all this I can feel "rich", at least it gives me more satisfaction than knowing I've reduced 1000 euros of debt. But do not get me wrong, it is clear that financial freedom is the most important objective, but without a real purpose behind it doesn't really matter. Do not sacrifice your life today to get your goals.

If you are starting a business or trying to pay important debts, it is normal that at first you have to strive to build momentum, but it should not be that way all the time, not at the cost of your life, your health, your family or your integrity.

The German economist Daniel Stelte is doing a tour of Europe since January with the slogan: Ending the era of Ponzi finance

But who was Ponzi? Ponzi was this rotten Italian-American in the 20s who created a sophisticated benefits chain. And then the name Ponzi has lasted to posterity. The Ponzi scheme has become a "financial arrangement consisting in paying fraudulent benefits to clients mainly by funds contributed by new commers." Sooner or later, the deception comes to the surface and the castle collapses: the newcomers are those who pay the piper.

In 1920, Charles Ponzi was able to steal off thousands of people for the equivalent of $ 5 million of our days promising a 50% profit in 45 days.

What is the Ponzi scheme?

It's very simple really.

The manager will promise a very high performance return for your investment. Something really exaggerated, "the bigger the lie, the easier it passes through."
Greedy customers trust their money in and get their first profits. From there on, word of mouth is usually enough to convince other people to put their money in. In the end, the last coming in to invest are the ones paying the interests of the others.

The idea is to go away with the money generated when the sum is important.

The system is based on the accumulation and the snowball effect (something that can be used wisely to pay your debts).

For example, imagine that I promised you a 20% fund benefits on a financial product and ask you to invest 100,000 euros.

At first, I've got three customers who agree to invest 100,000 euros each because of my reputation and the fact that the amount requested is not very important (relatively speaking ...).

With 300,000 euros, the payment of 20% of promised return is 60,000 euros the first year and I'm still keeping 240,000 in my pocket. Customers are happy and believe they have found the goose that lays the golden eggs. The news spread quickly and the second year and I have 20 customers and 2 million to manage.

At the end of the year, I have to pay the promised 20% of this amount: 400,000 euros. And I've got 1,600,000 in my pocket. And so on ...

Note that in the meantime I can put the money into a safe investment that could return from 4% to 5% to enjoy while I'm waiting.

Then time goes by and after 5 years, I find myself with 8,000,000 million euros that I've got after paying interests to people: it is time to move to a tax haven :)
I'm just going away with all.

The first customers gained back some of their money, those which came at the moment of scam a small part and the newcomers lost a lot.

Therefore it is called the "chain of Ponzi" because latecomers pay the interest of those who came first.

So these are some things to remember when investing:

• If it sounds too good to be true, then it is probably not true.
• There is no way to have astronomical interest returns (over 7%) without risk.
• To become quickly rich is not possible and should not be your goal.
• If you do not understand how the investment works do not invest.

We use the phrase "it is normal" without thinking when we really want to say that something is usual.
If something goes wrong, if we suffer, or if life is hard, then "it is normal" and we could really say that it is common but not normal.
So we accept it and take every burden on us, without thinking that there are other ways of doing things, because it is "normal".
And so it is, like everyone else.

But, are you going to be like everyone else?

• I get up in the morning to go to work in a hurry and I have no time for a coffee and kiss my wife (or husband).
  It is common but not normal.
• I'm stressed and I get upset easily, but I do nothing to change my habits to avoid stress.
  It is common, but not normal.
• I eat fast food and pre-cooked meals as usual to not spend time on cooking. Then I feel tired and I go to the pharmacy to buy vitamins to maintain the tonus.
  It is common, but not normal.
• I watch violent movies on television, aggressive ads and read all the news that speak of war and conflicts. Then I proclaim that what this world needs is peace.
  It is common, but not normal.
• In my conversations I talk about all the economic problems that I have, of scarcity in the world and I'm always saying that I need money, but my real goals are to live in prosperity and increase my quality of life.
  It is common, but not normal.

Should I go on?

What to do to get out of this vicious circle?

• Watch your conversations, conversations with yourself and with others, and talk free from history.
• Take a step and get new habits, eve if they are small things like getting ten or fifteen minutes early to avoid hurrying up and start the day without stress.
• Stop feeding your mind from television and other garbage media. Look for good news and you will find them.
• Start taking better care of yourself.

This is normal and usual, I hope.

It is the first time you invest your money and you have no idea of what is an investment?

An investment is an asset that produces money back for you. Basically it  means that in return of your capital the assets produce more money. Depending on the asset and performance you get, you expose your capital to a level of risk and the theory is the higher the risk, the higher is the return you'll get back.

These are basic features that an investor you should consider for your first investment:

1. Control: Should I control my investments or should I go through intermediaries? How much this controls costs me?
2. Risk: How much money I can lose?
3. Volatility: The price of the asset has many variations? (Something very common in higher risk products)
4. Liquidity: how quickly could sell the asset?
5. Costs: The cost of buying, selling and managing the investment?

An investment can produce two types of income:

1. Capital: When the price of the investment goes up in value.
2. Income: When you receive dividends.

In any case I always recommend products that you can control with Internet through the online banking for three simple reasons:

1. You get more interest
2. They have less expenses
3. You can control it at all times

Create passive income

Making a living from passive income is to control assets and create a system that operates automatically without any intervention on your part. But passive income will not get started "passively", unless you get an inheritance, of course.

We must begin to acquire assets and passive income will be the result. Before you make your first investment you must get the most important asset of all: your financial training. This the foundation that will allow you to build your system.

More tips for your first investment

Image courtesy of [Sujin Jetkasettakorn] / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

To decide which financial product purchase start by study its evolution and seek for historical information. Look at the products that have evolved better in downturns in the financial markets, if it worked well in hard times, those are the good ones!.

When buying do not lean in prices: a lower-priced product can be at their most expensive moment. Do not rush, if in doubt choose safe funds to ensure a minimum return and in any case you will be putting your money back to work for you.

Many recommend diversifying to many financial product to minimize risks, but I see this as a problem that will hinder you from managing effectively your assets.

And finally, even if it is your first investment, do not get into the hands of a bank manager: he or she is there to collect their fees and make their own money, so their recommendations will remain influenced by their own interests.

How much should I invest?

I could not tell you much you should invest, just say what you can save the rest of the money into an emergency fund, which is always an investment anyway, but it will allow you to have enough cash for a project or something you want to buy without asking for a credit to get it.

Are you ready for your first investment?

I'm sure you've already been in love. Or maybe you are. And at first everything seems to be beautiful and possible. You've got a positive energy that minimizes all obstacles and trials. You feel calm and happy.

This is simply because the magic of the wonderful meeting has filled your mind, and your spirit is full of satisfaction and joy.

So if we stay in love for our entire life, we would be happy and peaceful all the time.

Yes, except that this emotional love state does not last forever, even if we always love our loved one, that first time feeling eventually loses its power and influence and we become sensitive to situations again.

Extend love so it becomes a background emotion

But imagine that you've got, besides the love for your wife or husband, a good life, and that you're surrounded by good friends, and that your children are growing beautifully, that each week you practice your favorite activities, etc.. Then you can maintain this feeling of seamless happiness inside you.

These good things will saturate the brain with positive experiences to install this background emotion of joy to stay.

To do this, we will see four major areas to improve:

1. The activities related our body: walking in nature, practicing individual sports without competition, massage, sunbathing, swimming, body contact with other people, sexual activity, tenderness, good eating pleasures, etc. A long walk in nature or near water has the same physiological effects that antidepressant.

2. Activities and feelings related to relationships: Having pets, enjoying a family, and keeping a good professional and social lifestyle. Practicing team sports.

Productivity and repetitive tasks at work and the time spent in front of screens, reduces the number and quality of these informal activities where we have the pleasure of being together just for sharing.

• It is not the same to hug a friend and have a coffee together than to put a message on the his Facebook wall.
• It is not the same getting a phone call to learn that you're grandma, than to learn it out from the Facebook wall.
• It is not the same to see a sunrise on the mountains than to watch it on a video.

3. Activities and feelings related to the intellect: creativity and arts, learning and discovering, meditating, training, imagination to create new projects and philosophical aesthetical pleasures.

Repetitive daily tasks and handling only known results can cause the reduction of brain connections. Confronting things and trying to innovate strenghts our personality and stimulates our creative side.

4. Activities and feelings related to the spiritual: to enable human beings to rise above their condition, to understand the underlying mechanisms of the world, to connect with something that is bigger than oneself, to discover the meaning of existence, prayer, meditation. In our increasingly materialistic society, the importance given to these elements is mixed with suspected sectarian mechanisms.

However, spirituality is a hallmark of the human species in the animal world and is found in various forms in all peoples and latitudes.

The "recipe" is to create a world in which we should maximize this kind of activities and good emotions. To do this change can be difficult and may have to use som "surgery" (change of job, change of residence, change of husband ...). It is not always easy.

So, go slowly: when I start to not feel good, the right question is "How can I feel a little better here and now", so you can find your own answers right now what is good for us to evolve into good background emotions. This is one of the basic principles of emotional intelligence: to deal with the emotion, and then deal with the situation.