Plan Your Own Powerball: 5 Principles of Attracting Wealth

Suddenly having millions would seem to solve all your problems, but it’s more important to understand the principles that attract wealth.

I’ve never played the lottery, but I certainly share many of the desires of those who do. People flock to play Powerball because suddenly having access to millions seems like it would solve all your problems. And yet, according to the National Endowment for Financial Education, “Seventy percent of people who receive a windfall of cash will lose it within a few years.”

So rather than seek a windfall of cash, understand the principles that attract wealth. Recently, I connected with LaShawne Holland, who is a wealth coach and nonprofit strategist who specializes in helping professional women be financially educated and empowered by teaching proven, wealth-mapping techniques.

Holland puts it this way, “To win in the game of money and create your own Powerball, you have to become a master of your money, and not just a manager of money.” She is a big believer that most people only manage their money, but the real financial winners learn how to multiply it. There are five principles we must understand to master money, she says, and manifest the financial outcomes we associate with winning the lottery.

Powerball Principle No. 1: Segment your money
Holland believes that most people operate from one bank account and live from paycheck to paycheck; that we spend nearly 100 percent of the income we make.

“To create your own wealth,” she says, “you have to segment your money. Wealthy people operate very differently. They understand the power of separating your money into at least six accounts with distinctive classifications of use. They further prioritize the use of each account. I call this the Millionaires Money Mastery Method, and it includes: (1) Retirement Account, (2) Fun Money Account, (3) Tithe Account or Charitable Contribution Account, (4) Life Expenses Account, (5) Planned Savings for Spending Account, and (6) Invest in Me/Education Account.”

The thought here is that by segmenting your money, you have a strategic plan to implement and create wealth. It takes discipline and determination to engage in this type of behavior. Without these segments, you lose the opportunity for compounding and the multiplication effect of your finances. To more strategically use what you earn requires living on less than what you make and being intentional with where your investments are placed.

Powerball Principle No. 2: Focus on the power of vision
You need a compelling future to change your current reality. Just getting by and surviving the day-to-day is not enough.

“When you focus on getting by, you see only the limits of why you can’t do something,” explains Holland. “When you focus and operate from a place of vision, you become resourceful, and you create ways to afford the things you really want. If you’re going to create money momentum in your life, you have to create a financial vision. Then you have to think and act from that vision. Most people don’t create a vision. They create financial goals or wishing boards. Having financial goals isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it only accomplishes one thing, and that is, “How much money do I want to make?”

Holland explains that there are going to be obstacles and blind spots, not to mention the blocks we have mentally where our money is concerned–but that’s all part of life. When we create a compelling future, the vision is bigger than we are today. The vision becomes superior to all of the obstacles, and this is a critical piece of the puzzle, because as she puts it, “If you don’t create a vision that is larger than you are currently living today, then you simply won’t grow.”

Financial mastery, therefore, comes at a cost. “Most people aren’t willing to pay the cost of being financially free,” Holland says. “Wealthy people go after freedom; poverty-minded people go after money. When you work from the vision, you operate as though you already have it. Provision follows vision, because wealth follows purpose. This positions you for a freedom-based lifestyle.”

Powerball Principle No. 3: Invest your time and resources in things that multiply
The next principle of wealth has to do with creating an environment for wealth to flow to you. “You have to invest in things that multiply and people that multiply,” says Holland. “The majority of the masses invest in things that depreciate and don’t cause their money, knowledge, or skill set to grow. If you want to create your own Powerball, you have to put your money and your time in assets that increase in value or increase your value through personal development and increased skill set.”

In other words, if your money is not going into things that multiply, then it’s really difficult to create wealth. The wealthy know the power of compounding, and they invest their time and resources into people that can help them grow. Likewise, expanding your own knowledge generates new options and further multiplies your resources.

Powerball Principle No. 4: Prepare and position yourself for cyclical economy
The economy flows in cycles, and you have to prepare and position for each new phase in the cycle. Wealthy people understand that the economy expands and shrinks in cycles, and they prepare for the upside and the downside of the market fluctuation. “Most people think and see the economy as being linear, and this is the deception of the poor,” says Holland. “How things moved in the past is not necessarily how they will continue to move and work. If you want to create your own Powerball, you have to learn how to adjust to the shifts in the economy and thrive in times of economic expansion, recession, or even an economic depression.”