Once upon a time there was a rat. He was an ordinary rat, not particularly intelligent - but he had an appetite, and a nose, for cheese.

One day the air was pungent with the odor of good cheese. He sat up on his hind legs, nose twitching. "Where is that cheese?" he asked himself.

In front of him were four tunnels. Down he scurried into the closest tunnel. No cheese. Down into the second tunnel. No cheese. Into tunnel three he scampered. Still no cheese. One tunnel left. Down tunnel number four. There it was - a big succulent hunk of cheese! And it tasted just as good as it smelled.

The next day, there was that smell again. Down tunnel number four he ran. Cheese! And the next day, and the next day, and the next. He was a very contented rat, for he knew where to find the cheese.

One day he smelled cheese, but no cheese could be found in the rat's favorite tunnel. He raced out, checked again. Yep, tunnel number for. Back in he ran. Still no cheese. Back out and back in again for one more try. No cheese!

But wait a minute. He could still smell cheese. Maybe it was in tunnel number three? He checked. No cheese. Tunnel number two? No cheese. Tunnel number one? Cheese! And with a sense of satisfaction he ate his cheese.

In some ways we humans are like that rat. We smell cheese, we set our sights and our sniffers for the goal, and after some searching we find the tunnel where the cheese is. And it usually tastes pretty good. But what happens on the day the cheese isn't there anymore? We head down the tunnel again, looking and sniffing. No cheese. We try again. And again.

At this point the rat starts trying out the other tunnels. But what do we humans do? We keep going down tunnel number four, and again down tunnel number four, and again down tunnel number four.

What then, is the difference between rats and humans? Rats are interested only in cheese. Humans are more interested in looking good, being right, keeping up appearances, keeping up with the Joneses, tradition, self-esteem, doing it the way it's always been done. "I've got to prove myself", "Everyone has one", "The government will fix it".

As a matter of fact, after a certain point we may not even be concerned that the cheese isn't there anymore. Whether through habit or stubbornness, we often won't give up our old ways of thinking, even if it kills us...which it just might.

Financially Independent Thinking

One of the keys to creating your new road map is what we call "Financially Independent Thinking". This is the process of examining those basic assumptions that you have unconsciously adopted, of evaluating you old road map.

Financially Independent thinking is about making your own map, one that accurately depicts the terrain of your life as it actually is today. This map will allow you to choose your own path through the territory of your earning and spending - and to integrate that path with the rest of your life.

Financially Independent thinking is essential for anyone who wants a clear, relaxed relationship with money. Until you can think independently, you can't be independent. Until you can deliberately and dispassionately question your own inner road map for money, you will be stuck in classic financial dead ends, such as:

• spending more than you earn
• buying high and selling low
• not liking your job, but not having a way out
• needing two paychecks to make ends meet
• just when you get ends to meet, seeing someone (your boss, the government) move the other end
• being so confused by money that you leave it to the experts, who in turn feed on your ignorance.

Financially Independent thinking will naturally lead to:

• Financial Intelligence ,
  
• Financial Integrity and
  
• Financial Independence .

Financial Independence: having enough and then some

At the Crossover Point, where income from your invested capital surpasses your monthly expenses, your basic life necessities and all the components of your chosen lifestyle are covered by  your monthly investment income.

At the Crossover Point you have enough – and then some.

You know with certainty that spending any more money would leave you cold.  It’s not that you’ve whittled your expenses down to bare subsistence. You’ve simply brought your life into harmony, and you just happen to know, to the cent, how much harmony costs.  You are certain that your monthly investment income is enough – not out of wishful thinking, but out of hard evidence.

Celebrating Financial Independence

It’s time to celebrate.  You have accomplished a mighty feat.  You have restructured your life around what is most fulfilling and valuable to you.  You have dedicated yourself to replacing financial fictions with financial facts, challenging many old beliefs about yourself, your money and your life.