Though it is wise to be prepared for all kinds of difficulties, it is equally important to have a positive attitude to keep up your spirits and strengthen your resolve to quit smoking. As the old adage goes ‘Hope for the best and be prepared for the worst.’ You should be aware of the pitfalls but don’t wait for them. Cross the bridge when you come to it. So, in a sense, talking about the possibility of relapses while trying to quit smoking is almost inviting them.

If you are thinking about quitting smoking, do not make plans for, nor allow for any ’slips’, ‘just ones’ or any ‘accidents’ for that matter. The old saying goes - ‘If you fail to plan, you plan to fail’ but I would also like to add to that the advice of ‘If you plan for slips or accidents, you are more likely to have one as opposed to if you adamantly tell yourself that there will be no allowance for moments of weakness.’

Having said that, it does happen, so here is what I recommend you do. Chastise yourself until you feel completely guilty. Realistically I don’t have to tell you this part because you will automatically do it to yourself anyway. Then once you have raked yourself over the coals, contact your support group (you do have a support group, don’t you?) and let them know what has happened. Use their strength to rebuild your resolve.

If by chance you have had more than one ’slip’ or have repeated ’slips’, it is time to be honest with yourself. I know that a lot of people are going to disagree with me on this, but please don’t send me any letters because I have probably spoken to more smokers and non-smokers about this subject than most people. My advice is this. Stop trying to fool yourself into thinking that these occasional slips are fine and are just part of the normal quitting process - they aren’t!

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“Working 9 to 5, it’s a way to make a living”, Dolly Parton sang these words and are true - but is it the ONLY way to make a living. What would you do if you had passive income to support you - would you still be doing the job you are doing? Or would you be out with the family, travelling or buy that new house you dream of? Life is for living, so why not give it ago! What would you do if someone gave you 5 starting points to achieve this - would you consider aiming to live your life?

5 options to take into account and ponder - each has the opportunity to help you out of the rat race:

PROPERTY - Yes, I can hear you say - property NOW? In this economy! To be honest, yes property is a great one. Do the research, look in the papers, talk to real estate agents, and your bank. There are many ways of making money in property - a fantastic book to read is “0 to 150 properties in 3.5 years” by Steve McKnight. It shows you many different ways in an easy to read format! Follow this and you will be on your way!

STOCKS - Ouch - you mean now, when it seems so volatile. All i can say to this is read the article “Buy American, I am” in New York Times, by Warren Buffet. One of THE most successful investors in the stock market and he is investing - he must know something. Again research, speak to other brokers and investors and find what is best for you! Right now could be your chance to shine in this area.

Stress just seems to be part of our lives like eating and breathing. There are more demands placed on us over shorter time periods than perhaps ever in the history of mankind. In the days of old, stress was usually from physical danger. If you were a pioneer for example, then the seeing of indians would definitely cause stress as the pioneer surely feared physical harm. This type of stress is called the flight or fight reaction. However, in modern times most of our stress is mental and not physical. Yet our bodies have the same reaction to mental stress as they do to physical stress.

When we come under stress our bodies prepare us for action in the following ways: Adrenaline is released to boost the energy and strength of the body. This increases our heart rate and breathing. Our major organs will direct their efforts to only those that immediately serve supporting physical action. This adrenaline rush causes us to feel tension and perhaps nervous as we anticipate taking some type of action. There is a great release of chemicals and a redirection of bodily activity to support our reaction to stress.

Stress comes from so many different situations, that we are not able to eliminate its causes. Rather we need effective stress management techniques. Professional athletes are able to redirect the build up of stress into ways to enhance their performance. This is a very positive way to deal with the build up of stress. The only downside for most of us, is where professional athletes have a physical release of the stress from their bodies with physical exertion, but we may not.

When I was starting out without any money, this is what I did.

Now, if you don’t have a job and don’t know anything about wholesaling real estate and have no money, then you need to get to work. Make some cash somehow through a job so you can live, and then work to build into full time real estate.

I recommend to start talking to real estate investors in your area. Find your real estate clubs and start networking and meeting people. Be bold, tell people you are new and eager to learn and help. Start asking each investor this question: “Is there any way we can do some business together?” Then shut up and listen. Most will say yes. Then find out exactly how you can help the investor either buy properties or sell them and make some money.

The key when you first start is to concentrate on the learning process, not on doing your first deal; and the only way to learn is to “jump in amongst it”. If you will ask this question to every investor you meet, sooner or later you are going to find someone whom you will be able to help and to learn from.

It’s very important: once you start, you will soon find a way to flip your first deal. You will meet sellers and you will meet buyers through your connections. It is very easy and cost nothing but time.

This way I met a lot of my mentors in the business. As I was doing that I was developing the skills necessary to get into the business full time.

Imagine over the years your debts have somehow piled up to an unmanageable level. And now amongst unpaid bills and dealing with angry creditors, you feel the only solution for you is to get some help to clean up the mess. That is all well and good, but where exactly do you go to find this help?

Now imagine this: tired of the growing debts and with no way out you decide to consult a ‘professional’. You go to a credit counsellor and let that person try to help you out of your debts only to find that they have put you in more trouble than you already were in when you started.

Needless to say, over the years because of changes in lifestyles and spending habits, many individuals have found themselves in a situation where they are too deep in debt. Unfortunately, at the same time there has also been an increase in the number of abusive practitioners who pose as credit counsellors only to make the situation much worse than it was in the beginning.

The traditional credit counselling agencies were small and local services whose main function was to lend a hand to consumers with guidance and education about budgeting and how to manage their debts. Each case is studied individually and depending on the individual consumer’s situation they will be directed towards debt management, or at the worst case, filing for bankruptcy.

However, there has been a shift in the nature of these small agencies. For a start, a lot of them are not small anymore. Nor are they local. The trend in credit counselling agencies finds organizations that operate at a national level and adopt aggressive marketing strategies to break through to the public. It is not unusual to see these credit counselling agencies selling their pitch by advertising through television, magazines, radio and the internet.