Heat in July, not much news there!

Man the news sucks! I'm not sure how to say it in blog-speak or how to "properly" do it but the news media just sucks sometimes. Whether it's propagating negativity about our "poor" economy or making us all believe that we should be affected by something completely unrelated, they continually choose to focus on negativity.

News is news and we realize a lot of people aren't completely jazzed by what they do everyday and need something to chew on over dinner, but we at the fish market are not like that. We are who we are because we acknowledge these things as elements that make up the whole thing and choose a more positive and fun path. Back in December when the city of Seattle was held hostage by ice and snow and all the reporters couldn't write about anything but our mayor's apparent inability to act, we were doing jumping jacks in our Grundens, driving to the airport and creating a package brigade so people got their fish for the holidays.

Today it was pushing 103 degrees and we were opening up our cooler for local businesses supplying them with ice, having oyster shooter parties out front,(even Mariner's First Baseman Russell Branyan showed up yesterday to hang out and throw a fish( and selling fish like it's July and we are world famous Pike Place Fish. The local news station was down the way at our competitors spot drying their tears because their apparent "woes" for the heat was news. Guess what, they didn't come to us because we were too busy selling! "Oh, Pike Place Fish has a crowd and they're throwing fish because they're selling fish, let's go and report on how lame business is down the way because of the heat!" Wow. Once again, generating what we want and how we want to experience the day will always win. The weather will do what it wants (shovel more ice!), whether it's icey and 4 degrees or sweltering and 103, we only have the choice to be who we want when it happens. We separated ourselves again today and man did the beer taste good at 6:30 when we closed!

Talking Furniture?

We're on the radio........in Montana! Anders and Scotty did a three part interview with the AM radio crew outside Bozeman and now it's available online to hear. Johnny also did a two part interview the week before so check them all out right here:

http://liveandloverichly.com/LiveRichlyRadioShow.php

Here is some info about Leslie and her organization in Montana:

About Leslie

Leslie Cunningham, CTACC Coach Training Alliance Certified Coach

How My Husband and I Got Out of Debt, Got on the Same Page and Started Building Wealth

I came into this work shortly after my husband and I were married. Like many newlyweds, we did many things that caused us to go into debt. I quit my secure job to spend time on the road with my husband, who is a professional singer/songwriter.

This was an amazing time for both of us. We then honeymooned in New Zealand and had some wonderful adventures that still cause me to laugh and fill me with joy when I think about them.

Eight months later, when we came home, I remember walking back to the house after collecting the afternoon mail. I started flipping through the envelopes. I saw a credit card statement, another credit card statement and our bank statements. It was in that moment that I felt a deep tension in the pit of my stomach.

I realized that even though I had married the man that I absolutely loved and adored, I really didn’t have a clear sense of how he handled money and how the two of us were going to blend our different approaches to handling money in our marriage. I was very organized, detailed and more frugal with money. He was more of a laid-back free spirit type. I also knew that getting on the same financial page was a key factor in creating a successful marriage and financial future.

Going Out On a Limb

I asked my husband if he would be willing to set up a time each week to talk about our finances and develop a plan for getting rid of our credit card debt (we had acquired over $43,300 in credit card debt over a three year period). My husband said he would be willing to do this. He was skeptical—but willing.

We came to refer to our weekly meetings with each other as our Financial Dates. After we would complete a Financial Date, both of us felt surprisingly uplifted and empowered.

As a result of having our Dates we completely paid off all of our credit card debt within two years, started funding our retirement accounts, quit arguing about money, gained a solid understanding of our cash flow and created a spending plan that both of us were motivated to stick to. That was just the tip of the iceberg. And you know what—those changes didn’t really surprise me that much.

What completely surprised me was the synergy that my husband and I experienced when working together to achieve our financial goals and dreams. We wouldn’t have experienced this in our relationship had we not come together with a unified goal of improving our finances as a team—not individually, but as a team. This added an entirely new dimension to our relationship. I began to think of these Financial Dates as our own holistic approach to money and marriage success.

“Leslie, It’s Imperative That You Share This with the World!”

I was sharing the details of one of our Financial Dates with my mentor coach at the time, and she stopped me in mid-sentence, and exclaimed, “Leslie, you have so much excitement and passion around this Financial Dating concept and it’s an amazing idea. You have got to share it with the world!”

So with her encouragement, I completed my training to become a professional certified coach so that I could teach this process to others. I received my credentials through Coach Training Alliance, which is accredited through the International Coaching Federation. I then began to teach our Financial Dating Process to other couples.

Financial Dating® Created Financial Success for Other Couples

I remember one particular call I received from a man on a cold Montana day. He sounded overwhelmed and frustrated. He said, “Leslie, I heard about you through a friend of mine and you sound exactly like the person that we’re looking for. I really want to talk to you about finances and how to make this work in our marriage.” I invited him to attend a Financial Dating class I was teaching.

After the class he walked me outside and said, “You are the person that we’ve been praying for. I walked out of the house last week and it was the worst fight that my wife and I had had, and I swore to her, I promised her that I would find somebody who could help us, and you’re that person.”

I put together a Financial Dating class and he got together several other couples and I started teaching them how to have Financial Dates. One year later he shared with me that for the first time in 14 years he and his wife had finally put a clamp on the internal hemorrhaging in their finances. They willingly changed their destructive money behaviors, stopped charging to their credit cards, paid off $13,779 of debt, put $4,879 into an emergency savings account and saved over $51,200 in interest by transferring a personal loan. He also shared that he felt significantly closer to his wife. If they could do it, you can too.

Living a Fulfilling Life that’s in Alignment with Our Deeply Held Values

I have come to realize that successful money management is so much more than just paying off debt, buying a new home and stashing more money away in our retirement accounts. True financial success is about living a life that is in alignment with our most cherished values. It’s easy to say that we value our health, marriage, children, friends and family. But when we step back and look at how we spend our time and money, we’ll see that we often don’t spend it on the things that are most important to us. There’s nothing like money to easily pull us off track.

We have to stop and define what financial success means to us. I believe that true financial success is about having a life that is filled with life enriching experiences and time for the relationships that really matter. That means slowing down and not working so hard. Financial success is about the lives we touch and the lasting memories we make. It’s about spending less, giving more and living more.

The Financial Dating® Success Program

Leslie Cunningham is the creator of Financial Dating, a proven and revolutionary money management system that helps couples create financial freedom, connection, and success. When we are able to move beyond our limiting beliefs, limiting money behaviors and our reactive way of interacting with our partners, we find that it is possible to get rid of debt, get on the same page and build wealth with our partners.

Leslie helps clients get in touch with their deepest values and use those values to manage their finances in a holistic way—so they end up not just with more money, but also with a richer experience of life. The Financial Dating Success Program empowers couples to get their finances in order and start living their ideal lifestyle now—instead of putting it off until they’ve obtained wealth at some future date.

Leslie is a sought after speaker and dynamic coach who specializes in teaching couples how to transform their financial weaknesses into strengths. She is passionate about helping couples live richly by turning their financial and lifestyle stress into inspired action.

Your Next Step

Click here to read What Clients Say and learn about the break-through results they've achieved with Leslie's private coaching and programs.