You’ve heard the term "put your money where your mouth is”, meaning back up what you say and don’t just dish out advice that you don’t follow yourself, or spew an opinion that you can’t or won’t stand behind. However, I think there is a key word that needs to be replaced in this phrase — money doesn’t back up what you say; action does. Let me explain.

With all the training and endeavors I’ve been a part of up to this point in my life, I’ve seen plenty of people "put their money where their mouth is” by paying huge amounts of money to start a business or go through educational courses to learn how to make money in various industries. The problem is, they think that paying the money for the education is what will solve their issues and will make them successful. This could not be further from the truth. You could pay a million dollars for education from the best educators and most prominent leaders in whatever industry you’d like to be successful in, but paying the money doesn’t do anything for you. It’s not paying for the training that gets you anywhere; it’s the action that follows it.

So many people think that somehow paying money for something will be what gets them the results, or that it will be easy once they get into whatever programme they are starting. Sorry to burst your bubble, but there is no educational programme or business system in the world that you pay for and then just sit back and watch the money roll in. Success is not easy! It is hard work and takes a dedication to learning whatever endeavour you choose. Success is a process. It will not happen overnight and will not happen without you putting in the effort (and if anyone tells you that it will, run… fast). If you want success, if you want to reach your goals, you are going to have to make it happen, and that means taking action, not just paying for a "magic formula”. It makes me sad to see so many people thinking they can buy their way into prosperity.

Now I’m not trying to be negative, I’m just trying to be realistic. If you are going to back something up with your money, you have to be prepared to back it up with action. In reality, the action part is what really matters, and is the only part that will get you ‘there’. Without action, you are stagnant, and you will always be where you are right now. To progress, to move towards your goals and dreams, you have to take action. Go out there and put your money where your mouth is, but make sure you are also putting action where your mouth is. Without that final component, your money will just be wasted.