What do ninjas and happiness have to do with personal finance? Not much actually However, if you don’t wake up in the morning with a smile on your face, I can pretty much guarantee you that you won’t be raking in the cash that day!

Money usually comes with success and success starts with happiness. I have rarely seen someone who is not happy be very successful over the long haul. Those who succeed in their sadness are just preparing for a bigger fall…

And in order to be happy, you need to be disciplined… much like a ninja! You don’t need anything special (material or otherwise) to be happy in life, you just need to wake up and tell yourself: “today is going to be a good day”. I consider myself a ninja of happiness as I almost always find a way to put a smile on my face. So here are a few lessons to become a ninja of happiness:

Lesson #1: Never quit on a furious opponent

If a real ninja never quits, you shouldn’t do either. Who is your biggest opponent? The big bad SAM! Who is SAM? Sadness, Anger, Melancholy . The brain creates emotional patterns and it will quickly direct your emotions towards what you are used to feeling most often. So if you are a negative person, everything in your life will gravitate towards the negative. Your brain won’t help you much if you don’t tell it to think the any other way.

If you want a few tricks to “redirect” your brain so you can think more positively, I had written an article on how to become more happy and productive at work. This should help you a lot.

Lesson #2: Observe and find the weakness

A ninja is patient; he can crouch and look at his opponent for a while. He will only attack once he knows where to strike. Try doing the same thing by looking at how you react, how you behave and how you see things when they happen.

At the end of the day, try to find out why you react in one way versus another while facing your daily challenges. Take note of alternative thinking and  behaviours that should help you have a better day. Avoid the anger by rehearsing the same mental picture over and over again. Find out why you feel bad and how you can change that. When I don’t feel right about something, I stop everything I do until I find out what is the root cause of my feeling. Once you have found it, it is much easier to start working on thinking differently.

Lesson #3: Practice and discipline

It takes years and years of diligent training to become a ninja and a good one practices everyday. You won’t start to see how beautiful life is tomorrow morning. But you need to persevere and continue no matter what. I know that several people have written books about this but the whole point can be boiled down into one sentence: life is as beautiful as you decide it is. There is no magic, no easy solutions, you just have to see the world differently. Period.

Lesson #4: A ninja helps others before helping himself

Through helping out others, you will generate positive energy around yourself and positive things will happen. People with good vibes attract good things. Yeah, yeah, yeah, the law of attraction and the Secret, I’ve heard about this… visualization and all this… Nope. I don’t say it’s going to happen overnight or that you simply have to think it’s going to happen so it happens. You need to put the effort into it. And the best way to do it is to help other people. Why? Because while you are concentrating on helping others, you don’t think about your own “misery”. Therefore, you force your brain to generate positive thoughts instead of summoning SAM

Now that you know what needs to be done to become a ninja of happiness, go and train yourself!

image source: jonathanb1989, darkpatator, anonymous9000, vincent, D3 San Francisco

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***before we start with this post, please vote for me for the Free Money Finance March Madness. You just have to write “figures” in the comment section of this post. The winner will give $1,000 to a charity (paid by Free money Finance)***.

As you already know, I am looking to increase my income in order to pay back my parents faster. I have spoken to a few head hunters and participated in an interview, while I seem to have a very interesting profile, they all choke on the schedule of 4 days a week  ;-). In fact, I know that I am privileged at my current employer and on top of that, I really like my job. However, this doesn’t mean I can’t make more cash, right?

Due to recent events, I have received a third salary raise in the span of 12 months. I actually jumped my income by another 4.6% last week. How did I accomplish this? Patience please, I am going to tell you in this article. Getting a salary increase is sometimes easier than we think!

To begin with, I would say that asking for a raise is like playing poker, here are a few rules I used:

Know What Your Hand is Worth (you can’t ride the table with a pair of clowns in your pocket!)

Before you start betting, you must know if you have a winning hand or not. So I started to look at what kind of job offer was on the market and what kind of employee profile I have. I soon realized that I could earn more by working downtown and that I fit the financial planner profile sought after in today’s market. This is why I approached my employer and asked to move downtown. For me, it was another way to ask for a raise indirectly (I have already had 2 raises this year based on my performance).

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Know Who Your Opponents Are (talk to a few people before sitting at the table)

During a poker game, you certainly don’t want to make enemies just as you don’t want any specific player to try to nail you more than others. When you are asking for a raise, you better make sure you know who you will ask and how to go about it. Managers react differently to this kind of request and this is why there is a preferred method and time to ask for a raise. The first raise I received was during the time of the year they position each employee according to the salary grid. Then, I asked for another raise at the end of the financial year (in November) based on my overall performance and on the basis that I have finished my MBA. The third one (that I just got!) was provoked by a position opening in downtown Montreal. While it was almost impossible for me to move from one branch to another in the same area (our branch is considered downtown but we don’t get the downtown premium ), I thought of applying and explained that it was because I want to be paid the premium (as the branch  next door is only 10 blocks away!).

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Know When and How To Bluff (you don’t want your employer to give up on you, right?)

When you ask for a raise, you need to put a little bit of pressure on your employer so they realize what life could be without you. This is why it is always good to mention that you recently turned down head hunter offers because you are happy with your current employer and that you believe that you will be able to find a solution to your salary situation. So they know that other companies would like to have you on board but you didn’t threaten them. If your bluff is too cocky, your employer will obviously give up and tell you that you may be happier elsewhere… be careful!

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Know When it is Time to Pull Your Chips off the Table

We all want more money (all the time!) and a raise will keep you happy for only so long. However, at one point, it is important to avoid pushing your luck. I was able to get 3 increases in the same year and they are now looking at the option of giving the downtown premium to our branch (which would become my 4^th raise in a span of 12 months!). However, now that I have pushed the HR machine to the max, I’ll just watch it run and see what comes next. I won’t ask for anything or apply more pressure. It is actually time to pull my chips of the table and start working to show them they were right to give me this raise.

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Play your winning hand till the end (you want to use each card in your hand)

When you ask for a raise, there are not only the market and your performance you can look include. While those 2 aspects will greatly affect  the negotiations, you can also talk with colleagues about their current situation and ask what your direct manager thinks of all of this. If you were not able to sell yourself to your manager, he won’t be able to turn around and ask his boss or the HR department (remember the evil group that holds the purse strings ;-( ) to increase your income. Since he will do most of the hard work, it is important to supply the ammuninition for him to work with, give him argument and keep doing an awesome job. Never let him down, talk behind his back or complain about your situation. Keeping a professional attitude will definitely lead the way to your next raise .

If I am lucky enough, I should also get another income increase this upcoming June. While this one will be modest, it will still be another raise. So if we can have the downtown premium and the summertime raise, this will total 5 increases in the span of 14 months! After that, I better shut my mouth and work hard

One last thing, regardless if you achived what you were asking or not, keep your mouth shut. You don’t want to create inflation in your company as your manager won’t appreciate that you tell others that they can earn more .

Image sources : Boasor Teecareca, Blaine Rumsey, Dupo, Plutor, Tiago Ribeiro

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While my wife was working on her university paper last night, I decided to take a long, hot shower to clear the stress of recent days. I needed time to think, to imagine myself in a few weeks’ time, in a few months… in a few years. While I am still looking to manage a bigger book (read a higher pay check ), I have also started the RRSP rush (yeah, people think it’s during February but I have already started my sprint for RRSP and TFSA contributions as of the 2^nd week of January).

Today, I’ll be working from 8am to 8pm (add blogging and gym before and after work hours ). I can’t really complain because first; I have a job, second; the job pays well. I would be a fool to whine about hours worked while many people are looking for a job or, worse, thousands of Haitians are wondering in the streets looking for food, shelter and lost family members…

However, it doesn’t mean that I can’t think about myself and what I want to do. Therefore, I took a some time to think about my future and look at my different options.

I was raised in a family of entrepreneurs. My grandfather owned a company, 3 of my aunts run or had ran companies for years and my dad has been his own boss for the past 15 years. Me? I am one of those little rats stuck in the rat race deluxe. I certainly have a good sideline with my online company, but hey, I am still working for someone else for most of my waking hours!

Like a baby bird moving its wings in its nest, I am still wondering if I really know how to fly or if I was born to be a dodo. While I was lost in my thoughts, I got a flash about one of my friends who started on his own at the beginning of January. He decided to run websites and he actually made a lot of money this year. So my question today is:

What do you need to become an entrepreneur?

While I have a few answers, I have more questions to ask than anything else…

To become an entrepreneur, you need a whole bunch of stuff that you usually read about in books; courage, tenacity, perseverance, the ability to work countless hours…  But of all these qualities of the good entrepreneur, I think you need most a deep desire to work for yourself. A true feeling of freedom and independence. An entrepreneur, doesn’t mind if he won’t make money today, as long as he is working on his projects, as long as he sees it growing, he knows that he will make it in the end.

I think I have this feeling carved into my bones, I have always wanted to manage, decide, to do what I want, when I want (not in a lazy way though!). However, the problem, as is the case for many people in many situations in their life, is fear.

The worst part of being stuck in the rat race is that it is quite comfortable; everyone  around you is in the same cage, you are fed, have shelter and are so deeply entrenched in the race that you keep running all day without wondering what your life would be if it wasn’t like that. The perception of someone who succeeds is the one who has a spouse, children, a house with a garage and the white picket fence! He relies on a good job with benefits and a decent pension plan. Once you have reached this level, you think that you are “made it”. But in fact, you are just entering the rat race… deluxe!

So sometimes, I open my mind and think about being a full time entrepreneur, about waking up in the morning and working for myself. Knowing that each effort put forth would be profitable… But then, I get hit by the train of reality that reminds me that I have a mortgage and a family that counts on me to bring home the bacon….

Your Take:

So my question to you is: When do you think you should start a business and quit your job? Is there a perfect time? How do you know you are ready?

image source: R ‘eyes’

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The other day, I was writing about looking for a job and what I was looking for. Big surprise here, I am looking to see what is on the market… again

After the great year I just finished, I feel like a free agent after a 40 goal season. I know exactly what I am looking for and I guess you’ll hear about a few job interview stories during the coming  months.

Am I happy where I am? Yup, but I still think I am underpaid (who doesn’t think that anyway? Hahaha!). But seriously, I know that I could get an additional $10,000 per year if I get a bigger portfolio of clients. They usually pay a higher base salary for those books as they require a more experienced planner to take care of these clients. Since I want to pay off the loan from my parents  no later than this year, I need to find more money somewhere, right? Hahaha!

So here I am, writing this article right after my job interview (shhhh it was with a competitor ). I did the first job interview on the phone with the HR girl (evil HR off course ). The first job interview is often to validate if you have the technical skills required for the job and if you know what you have to do. Then, I got a real job interview with the manager and one of his colleagues.

This job interview was definitely to see if I would make a good match with my “potentially future” manager. They ask you questions like:

-         Who are you?

-         What do you like about your job?

-         What do you not like about it?

-         Why are you looking for another job?

-         Why did you choose our company?

-         What drives you at work?

-         What is your career plan?

-         Etc.

The interview went quite well…. Until we hit a very special point;: the famous moment during the job interview where the guy says: “do you have any questions for us?”. This is where it went sour .

When you are asked about your question during a job interview, this is usually the perfect time to show your interviewer that you know something about the job, the company or if you have any special requests.

Most people don’t ask for much because they are stressed by the job interview or because they don’t have anything smart to say (which is a pretty good strategy by itself ). Some are afraid to get cut based on the questions or the requests they make. Since I am not desperately looking for a job, I don’t mind not making the cut during the job interview with my questions.

I actually laugh about the situation since I know exactly what I am looking for and I know it will take time before I find it: I want the perfect job according to my standards and I am not willing to make any sacrifices since I am already there yet.

So this is how I told them that I was looking for a 4 day a week schedule and that this wasn’t negotiable. This is the exact moment where I saw their faces go ballistic:

The first guy was definitely thinking something like: “That is too bad son, you seem to be a good prospect for this job but you will never work for us”.

The funniest was the other person, she stared at me and the look in her eyes was screaming: “You little lazy Y! How dare you come here demanding such a request? I can’t even believe that you work!”

And this is when I realized that I would never work for this employer. I don’t think they are part of a bad company, I am simply realizing that we don’t have the same core values. They value long work hours, face time, to appease your colleagues without regards for how you get the job done.  I am prone to working less while earning more.

During my MBA courses, we saw the concept of Employer-Employee fit. I think this will be a big deal in my case. If I can’t stand my employer’s value, I will not even consider the job. Actually, I could have made $150 to $200K with this job (quite an increase in my pay check, right?). However, I would have to work days and nights, up to 60 hours a week and say goodbye to my other projects (and my quality time with my family….).

So I am on to the next  interview in the job hunt… hopefully I’ll find something interesting before summer!

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If you know me a little bit (or if you have read this blog for the past 3 years), you probably know that I have pretty quick reflexes to pull the plug and start looking for a job. I know exactly what I am looking for and, most importantly, I know exactly what I am worth. The point to consider is that most people know these 2 answers… but they don’t ask for anything and wait in line (perhaps forever) to get the next promotion… sorry guys, it won’t happen! Sometimes, you need to push things a little bit.

So you are looking for a job, do you know at least what you are looking for?

Most people look for a job to pay bills and live. At best, they know what they want to do (I did a bachelor’s degree in engineering, so I wanted to be an engineer). Unfortunately, this was a big mistake. Instead of knowing what you want to do as a job, you should know what you are looking for as a job.

What is a job?

A job is way more than a package of tasks attached to a pay check. It is more than a benefits plan or the provider of college tuition for your children. According to me, a job is:

#1 A Lifestyle

I have discovered throughout the years that your job becomes an integral part of who you are and grows inside of you. Slowly, you become more like your job and the job becomes more like you. You tend to think differently according to your reality at work, you get to discover/like/look for the same things as your colleagues and you definitely start thinking as if you were at your desk even when you are outside of work. This is why it is important to think about which job you are looking for as you may become like the people who work there!

#2 A Second Home

And for some of us, a job is our first home and we have a “pied à terre” (a place to eat and sleep) with our family and children . Since you spend at least 8 hours a day at work, you better like your job, its location, your colleagues and Most importantly: your manager. Worst comes to worst, some co-workers or managers can change through the years overtime, but if you don’t like your office, your life will become filled with melancholy!

#3 A Playground

If I can’t have fun at work, I think I won’t even bother waking up in the morning! When I look for a job, I look for a place where I will be able to have fun even though I work hard. Some people look for peace and quiet… I feel as though I would die a slow death in such environment!

Don’t be afraid to ask questions during the job interview!

When you go for an interview, there is always a moment where they ask you if you have any questions. This is the perfect chance for you to clarify most things about the work environment, day-to-day conditions and how they consider their employees. By asking the questions, the non-verbal expressions will talk for themselves, you won’t even have to hear their answer

What are you considering at when you are looking for a job?

I would be curious to know what is the most important thing for you when you look for a job? Salary? Location? Flexible Schedule?

image source: chrisdlugosz

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