Steven Paul “Steve” Jobs
October 20th, 2011

Many a great man and woman have passed, but most recently an amazingly talented and inspirational man left us, but not completely, for he has forever changed our world and I am sure will forever continue to change our world. His name is Steve Jobs, Co-Founder of Apple Inc.

Steven Paul “Steve” Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011) was an American business magnate and inventor. He was co-founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Apple Inc. Jobs was co-founder and previously served as chief executive of Pixar Animation Studios; he became a member of the board of directors of the Walt Disney Company in 2006, following the acquisition of Pixar by Disney. – Wikipedia

On June 12 2005 Steve Jobs spoke at Stanford University where he drew from some of the most pivotal moments in his life. Today I want to share some of these moments with you in the hope that his wise words and learnings from his life may have some impact on you and your life. Below is an excerpt from Commencement address delivered by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, on June 12, 2005. Enjoy:

“I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.
I really didn’t know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down - that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.
I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.
During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I returned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple’s current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.
I’m pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn’t been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.”….

“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”…..

“No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.
Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

I hope that these wise words from a wise man have got you thinking. They certainly had me thinking. Well lets not waste anymore time, in the words of a great man, “your time is limited” so get out there and make the most of it doing what you love with the ones you love!

Kylee van der Torre
General Manager
CCORP

Filed under: Kylee Van Der Torre — Kylee van der Torre @ 1:55 pm
Important Changes to First Home Buyer Concessions in NSW
October 10th, 2011

The revised First Home Plus and First Home Plus One schemes will provide full transfer duty exemptions for newly built homes costing up to $500,000, and partial duty exemptions for homes worth between $500,000 and $600,000.

The $7000 first-home-buyer grant will continue to be available to all eligible first-timers.

The Home Builders’ Bonus for over-55s who buy a newly built home costing up to $600,000 has also been extended so they are exempt from paying stamp duty until July 1, 2012.

This means:

From January 1, 2012, first-timers in the property market will no longer be able to avoid having to pay transfer title charges on existing homes under $600,000.

This is a big change and I am surprised that more people do not know about it. If you are looking to buy your first home and it will be in NSW or if you know someone who this applies to then this affects YOU.

For example: on a purchase price of $350,000 for an existing dwelling there is no stamp duty payable if the property is purchased this year. If it is purchased on the 1/1/12 or later however there will be $11,240 of stamp duty payable. This is not money that can be capitalised onto the purchase price either. On a purchase price of $450,000 the stamp duty payable will be $15,740.

This is a significant change as this is money that first home buyers will need to have available at the time of purchase (in addition to deposit requirements, money for conveyancing etc.)

I have included a full article below:

Stamp-duty exemptions for first-home buyers in NSW have been tightened in a bid to spur building activity.

September 6th 2011
Source: Stephen Johnson - The Sydney Morning Herald

From January 1, 2012, first-timers in the property market will no longer be able to avoid having to pay transfer title charges on existing homes under $600,000.

Property developers welcomed the NSW coalition government’s 2011-12 budget measure, which will see stamp-duty exemptions restricted to newly built and “off the plan” homes, in an effort to stimulate building activity.
But the Labor opposition says it will leave young families tens of thousands of dollars worse off, while the Real Estate Institute of NSW warns it will make home ownership less achievable.

It was Bob Carr’s state Labor government which, in 2000, introduced the First Home Plus scheme of stamp-duty exemptions.
A decade later, Treasurer Mike Baird has axed the scheme’s exemption for first-home buyers who snap up existing properties.

“With new housing at historically weak levels, and a weak fiscal position, we need to target our assistance to home-buyers to where it is most needed in the economy,” Mr Baird told parliament after handing down his first budget on Tuesday.
“We recognise this is a difficult decision, but we believe it is necessary to make buying a new home relatively more attractive than buying an existing dwelling for first-home buyers.”

However, Urban Taskforce, the peak body for property developers, said the move would improve housing affordability.
“This reform will make housing more affordable for first-home buyers by boosting the new housing supply,” chief executive Aaron Gadiel told reporters.

Opposition Leader John Robertson said the axing of stamp-duty concessions for existing homes would hurt young families.
“It’s going to see a significant number of new home-buyers, and in particular young families buying their first home, thousands of dollars worse off,” Mr Robertson told reporters.

The Real Estate Institute of NSW said the tightening of stamp-duty exemptions would end the great Australian dream for many in the state.
“This is really disappointing news for families, essential workers and all those trying to buy their first home,” institute president Wayne Stewart said.
“Unfortunately for some, the dream of home ownership will now become simply unachievable.”

Mr Stewart said while the coalition had promised 10,000 new housing lots in western Sydney over four years, most would be beyond the price reach of many first-time home-buyers.
He predicted an increase in house prices in late 2011.
“It is inevitable that as first-home buyers scramble to beat the January 1st deadline, we will see prices increase as demand exceeds supply,” Mr Stewart said.

But the Property Council of Australia said the axing of stamp-duty concessions for existing homes would be unlikely to have a long-lasting effect on housing prices.
“Any market reaction in the short term won’t radically alter the market - it will be at the margins,” NSW executive director Glenn Byres told AAP.

The revised First Home Plus and First Home Plus One schemes will provide full transfer duty exemptions for newly built home costing up to $500,000, and partial duty exemptions for homes worth between $500,000 and $600,000.

The $7000 first-home-buyer grant will continue to be available to all eligible first-timers.
The Home Builders’ Bonus for over-55s who buy a newly built home costing up to $600,000 has also been extended so they are exempt from paying stamp duty until July 1, 2012.

Filed under: Andrew McAulay — Support Team @ 4:39 pm
Repairs v Improvement to a Property
October 6th, 2011

Hi Everyone,

This is the CCORP Team here !

We thought that you would find this article really interesting as it discusses the meaning of “repair” versus “improvement” from a tax angle.

We know that we have a lot of clients that are budding renovators and like to know the view that the ATO has about re-furbishments and renovations of properties and which Tax category they fall into.

The article starts off with a question to a tax advisor wanting clarification on how expenditure on an apartment complex is classified.

QUESTION:
Our client owns a major apartment complex. It has incurred substantial expenditure on the items listed below and would like clarification on whether it is on repairs or is of a capital nature:

* A new hot water system - this is an entirely new system and not a replacement of the element in the old hot water system;

* Painting all internal surfaces of the complex (ie full refurbishment of reception and common areas at a substantial cost and not just a touch up of worn surfaces); and

* Replacement of 7 out of 15 emergency lights in the complex, which have deteriorated over the past few years - the new lights will be the same type as the existing lights.

ANSWER:
Expenditure on repairs to premises (that are used for income producing purposes) is specifically deductible under s 25-10 of ITAA 1997 (the section also allows a deduction for expenditure on repairs to a depreciating asset used for income producing purposes). If the expenditure is of a capital nature (eg an improvement), it will only be deductible in accordance with the capital allowance rules (Div 40 of the ITAA 1997). The question of whether an item is a repair or a capital item (eg an improvement) is a difficult (and vexed) question and will depend on the particular circumstances.

Basic principles:

Taxation Ruling TR 97/23 discusses the meaning of ‘repair’ in the context of s 25-10. The relevant points of the ruling are set out below.

The word ‘repairs’ has its ordinary meaning. It ordinarily means the remedying or making good of defects in, damage to, or deterioration of, the property to be repaired (being defects, damage or deterioration in a mechanical and physical sense) and contemplates the continued existence of the property (para 13).

A repair involves restoration of the efficiency of function of the property being repaired without changing its character and may include restoration to its former appearance, form, state or condition. A repair merely replaces a part of something or corrects something that is already there and has become worn out or dilapidated (para 15).

The work may go beyond ‘repairs’ in terms of s 25-10 if it: (a) changes the character of the property; or (b) does more than restore its efficiency of function (para 22). See also ATO ID 2003/222.

In certain situations, expenditure for repairs to property is considered to be capital expenditure:

* Where the expenditure, rather than being for work done to restore the property by renewal or replacement of subsidiary parts of a whole, is for work that is a renewal on the sense of reconstruction of the entirety (para 32); or

* Where renewal or reconstruction, as distinguished from repair, is restoration of the entirety (para 36).

The term ‘entirety’ is used by the courts in repair cases to refer to something ’separately identifiable as a principal item of capital equipment’ (Lindsay v FCT (1960) 106 CLR 377 at 385), ‘a physical thing which satisfies a particular notion’ (the Lindsay case at 384)) and ‘not necessarily the whole, but substantially the whole of the [property] under discussion’ (the Lindsay case at 383-4) (para 37).

Property is more likely to be an entirety if:

(a) the property is separately identifiable as a principal item of capital equipment; or

(b) the thing or structure is an integral part, but only a part, of entire premises and is capable of providing a useful function without regard to any other part of the premises; or

(c) the thing or structure is a separate and distinct item of plant in itself from the thing or structure which it serves (para 38).

Application of these principles

New hot water system - the replacement of a depreciable asset such as a hot water system would not be considered a repair for tax purposes. Accordingly, the new hot water system would be depreciable under Div 40.

Painting internal surfaces - if the painting involves a full refurbishment, which results in the interiors being changed, updated, upgraded or otherwise improved (ie the new asset is different either in form, quality or functionality than the original), the costs would be on capital account. Note that the refurbishment costs should be capitalised as structural improvements where they are integral to the structure and should be depreciated if they relate to fixtures, fittings or generally anything removable intact. Otherwise, if the painting merely puts the internal surfaces back to the condition that they were in, eg before the surface was damaged, the costs should be deductible as repair costs.

Replacing emergency lights - as with the hot water system, the new lights would generally be considered to be the replacement of depreciable assets and therefore not repairs.

Hope you have enjoyed this blog post.

Cheers,
The CCLUB Team.

Filed under: The CCLUB Team — Support Team @ 5:11 pm
Setting Yourself Up For Success
September 14th, 2011

George Foreman is a former Heavyweight Boxing Champion, Olympic gold medalist, ordained Baptist minister, author and successful entrepreneur. He is ranked number 9 on Ring magazine’s “100 greatest punchers of all time” and is also known for the George Foreman Grill. ‘God in my Corner’ – by George Foreman, Ken Abraham - is the amazing story of his life, it demonstrates so many qualities relevant to achieving success.

Some of the lessons that come to mind are:

• an unwavering belief in the end goal,
• support from a partner,
• the power of affirmations,
• persistence, and
• starting on a gradient (progressing from where you are and slowly ramping it up).
For this blog I have chosen to focus on this last point, starting on a gradient (or in this case re-starting). It is one of the best ways I know to set yourself up for success. Vince Lombardi (head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s, where he led the team to four straight league championships) says: ‘Winning is a habit, unfortunately so is losing.’ Isn’t it time you started a winning habit? 

Having previously been World Heavyweight Champion George Foreman’s wife had a dream that he would be champion again. George started this comeback at 38 years of age, it had been 10 years since he had been in the ring, and he was very out of shape. He had been working as a minister in a church and his first wife had left him.

Boxing is known for comebacks, so many have tried, not so many have succeeded. George approached his comeback differently. Many boxers will fight the highest-level opponent that they can thinking that it will provide a shortcut on their way to the top or take them closer to their end goal in less steps. George realized that he needed to take on opponents at the right level so that he could succeed on the way up. It is not a shortcut if you take on someone (or something) out of your depth, it could be the last time you try to take on something in that field, you could have just set yourself up for failure.

George started out by fighting against many people who were considered by some to be lowly opponents, and he slowly progressed. Along the way he learned many skills, and improved his fitness and tolerance so that he could take on more difficult opponents on the way to his end goal (to be World Champion).

One time in an interview, David Letterman told George (and all the audience) that he had heard that his next scheduled opponent was a chump (not good), and asked him if this was the case.

George replied “I sure hope so”

To which everyone laughed. 

George Foreman had previously been the Heavyweight Champion of the World, but he knew that he needed to take on challenges (in this case opponents) that set him up for success. He knew that if he kept following the path and improving and focusing on the end goal that the next step would appear and other opponents to take him to that goal (start at a level that you can handle and then gradually progress in the direction you need to go, always maintain the vision of your end goal). You do not need to take every potential opportunity that comes your way, there will be others. There is no need to skip steps just because the rung 4 above you ‘presents itself’ to you. You need to start at a level appropriate to where your skills and resources are at now, and progress in accordance with your own progression.

I don’t want to give away the ending, but can recommend the book as definitely worth a read.

Most of our successful clients in property that I know started with small deals e.g. 3 cottages, 2 houses, 1 house, a duplex.

Most of the people I know who gave up at tasks (including but not limited to property) tried to take on too much too soon. This is not a coincidence.

It is best to have a clear end goal and to just take daily baby steps towards that goal. Always keep the end goal in sight and always keep taking those baby steps. Don’t feel like you need to make big steps towards your goal, just keep the end in mind and keep taking those baby steps. In order to change your life you will need to stretch your comfort zone, but you don’t need to do it all at once 

And always remember… enjoy the journey (and smell the roses)

Filed under: Andrew McAulay — Support Team @ 3:32 pm
Australian Instalment Contract History
September 1st, 2011

Here is a little information I found on Instalment Contracts that I thought you might find interesting. These deals are out there and they do happen. This is just one form of Vendor Finance.

Australian Instalment Contract History

Instalment Contracts have been used in Australia since the 1870’s. They are a form of Vendor Finance, i.e. the Seller (Vendor) helps the Buyer to purchase the property by allowing a proportion of the price to be paid off over time.

They were initially used by land developers who subdivided land and sold the resulting blocks, with a small deposit and a payment plan over a number of years. Large parts of well known suburbs such as North Sydney and Chatswood were sold in the early 1900’s using Instalment Contracts.

The legality of the Instalment Contract was established by the High Court of Australia in 1927 in the case of The Federal Commissioner of Taxation versus Thorogood.

They became popular again in the 1950’s and 60’s when banks became reluctant to lend on housing blocks. During this period it was common for people to buy their land with an Instalment Contract, pay it off over time and then get the bank to lend to build their home.

Since the 1970’s the NSW Dept of Housing has used Instalment Contracts to sell properties to its tenants.

All Australian States (excepting SA) make the First Home Owner Grant available to first homeowners, buying their first home with an Instalment Contract.

The Australian Government recognised Vendor Finance when the 2006 Census established that 1.2% of homes in Australia were being bought with Vendor Finance.

Filed under: Andrew McAulay — Support Team @ 3:30 pm
16 Ways to Get Motivated
August 25th, 2011

There are just sometimes in life where even the most motivated of us can feel unmotivated at times. I know because I’ve been there before as I’m sure that most of us have been there at some stage or another in our lives. In fact, sometimes we get into such a slump that even thinking about making positive changes can seem too difficult.

But it’s not hopeless: with some small steps, baby ones in fact, you can get started down the road to positive change.
So when I came across this article I knew it would be great to share with you.

1). ONE GOAL
Whenever I’ve been in a slump, I’ve discovered that it’s often because I have too much going on in my life. I’m trying to do too much and it saps my energy and motivation. It’s probably the most common mistake that people make: they try to take on too much, try to accomplish too many goals at once. You cannot maintain energy and focus (the two most important things in accomplishing a goal) if you are trying to do two or more goals at once. You have to choose one goal, for now, and focus on it completely. I know that’s hard. Still, I speak from experience. You can always do your other goals when you’ve accomplished your One Goal.

2). FIND INSPIRATION
Inspiration for me, comes from others who have achieved what I want to achieve, or who are currently doing it. I read other blogs, books, magazines. I also Google my goal and read success stories.

3). GET EXCITED
This sounds obvious, but most people don’t think about it much: if you want to break out of a slump, get yourself excited about a goal. But how can you do that when you don’t feel motivated? Well, it starts with inspiration from others (see above), but you have to take that excitement and build on it. For me, I’ve learned that by talking to my wife about it, to others, reading as much about it as possible, and visualizing what it would be like to be successful (seeing the benefits of the goal in my head). That makes me excited about the goal. Once I’ve done that, it’s just a matter of carrying that energy forward and keeping it going.

4). BUILD ANTICIPATION
This will sound hard, and many people will skip this tip. But it really works. It helped me quit smoking after many failed attempts. If you find inspiration and want to do a goal, don’t start right away. Many of us will get excited and want to start today. That’s a mistake. Set a date in the future — a week or two, or even a month — and make that your Start Date. Mark it on the calendar. Get excited about that date. Make it the most important date in your life. In the meantime, start writing out a plan and do some of the steps below because by delaying your start, you are building anticipation, and increasing your focus and energy for your goal.

5). POST YOUR GOAL.
Print out your goal in big words. Make your goal just a few words long, like a mantra (“Exercise 15 mins. Daily”). Post it up on your wall or refrigerator. Post it at home and work. Put it on your computer desktop. You want to have big reminders about your goal, to keep your focus and keep your excitement going. A picture of your goal (like a model with sexy abs, for example) also helps.

6). COMMIT PUBLICLY
None of us likes to look bad in front of others. We will go the extra mile to do something we’ve said publicly. For example, when I wanted to run my first marathon, I started writing a column about it in my local daily newspaper. The entire island of Guam (pop. 160K) knew about my goal. I couldn’t back down, and even though my motivation came and went, I stuck with it and completed it. Now, you don’t have to commit to your goal in your daily newspaper, but you can do it with friends and family and co-workers, and you can do it on your blog if you have one. Hold yourself accountable — don’t just commit once, but commit to giving progress updates to everyone every week or so.

7). THINK ABOUT IT DAILY
If you think about your goal every day, it is much more likely to become true. To this end, posting the goal on your wall or computer desktop (as mentioned above) helps a lot. Sending yourself daily reminders also helps. Also if you can commit to doing one small thing to further your goal (even just 5 minutes) every single day, your goal will almost certainly come true.

8). GET SUPPORT
It’s hard to accomplish something alone. When I decided to run my marathon, I had the help of friends and family, and I had a great running community on Guam who encouraged me at 5 klm races and did long runs with me. When I decided to quit smoking, I joined an online forum and that helped tremendously. And of course, my wife helped every step of the way. Find your support network, either in the real world or online, or both.

9). REALIZE THAT THERE IS AN EBB & FLOW
Motivation is not a constant thing that is always there for you. It comes and goes, and comes and goes again, like the tide. But realize that while it may go away, it doesn’t do so permanently. It will come back. Just stick it out and wait for that motivation to come back. In the meantime, read about your goal (see below), ask for help (see below), and do some of the other things listed here until your motivation comes back.

10). STICK WITH IT
Whatever you do, don’t give up. Even if you aren’t feeling any motivation today, or this week, don’t give up. Again, that motivation will come back. Think of your goal as a long journey, and your slump is just a little bump in the road. You can’t give up with every little bump. Stay with it for the long term, ride out the ebbs and surf on the flows, and you’ll get there.

11). START SMALL. REALLY SMALL
If you are having a hard time getting started it may be because you’re thinking too big. If you want to exercise, for example, you may be thinking that you have to do these intense workouts 5 days a week. No — instead, do small, tiny, baby steps. Just do 2 minutes of exercise. I know, that sounds wimpy. But it works. Commit to 2 minutes of exercise for one week. You may want to do more, but just stick to 2 minutes. It’s so easy, you can’t fail. Do it at the same time, every day. Just some crunches, 2 pushups, and some jogging in one spot. Once you’ve done 2 minutes a day for a week, increase it to 5, and stick with that for a week. In a month, you’ll be doing 15-20 minutes. Want to wake up early? Don’t think about waking at 5 a.m. Instead, think about waking 10 minutes earlier for a week. That’s all. Once you’ve done that, wake 10 minutes earlier than that - Baby steps.

12). BUILD ON SMALL SUCCESSES
Again, if you start small for a week, you’re going to be successful. You can’t fail if you start with something ridiculously easy. Who can’t exercise for 2 minutes? (If that’s you, I apologize.), you’ll feel successful, and good about yourself. Take that successful feeling and build on it, with another baby step. Add 2-3 minutes to your exercise routine, for example. With each step (and each step should last about a week), you will feel even more successful. Make each step really, really small, and you won’t fail. After a couple of months, your tiny steps will add up to a lot of progress and a lot of success.

13). READ ABOUT IT DAILY
When I lose motivation, I just read a book or blog about my goal. It inspires me and reinvigorates me. For some reason, reading helps motivate and focus you on whatever you’re reading about. So read about your goal every day, if you can, especially when you’re not feeling motivated.

14). CALL FOR HELP WHEN YOUR MOTIVATION EBBS
Having trouble? Ask for help. Join an online forum. Get a partner to join you. Call your mom. It doesn’t matter who, just tell them your problems, and talking about it will help. Ask them for advice. Ask them to help you overcome your slump. It works.

15). THINK ABOUT THE BENEFITS NOT THE DIFFICULITIES
One common problem is that we think about how hard something is. Exercise sounds so hard! Just thinking about it makes you tired. But instead of thinking about how hard something is, think about what you will get out of it. For example, instead of thinking about how tiring exercise can be, focus on how good you’ll feel when you’re done, and how you’ll be healthier and slimmer over the long run. The benefits of thinking about what you will get out of it will help energize you.

16). SQUASH NEGATIVE THOUGHTS; REPLACE THEM WITH POSITIVE ONES
Along those lines, it’s important to start monitoring your thoughts. Recognize negative self-talk, which is really what’s causing your slump. Just spend a few days becoming aware of every negative thought. Then, after a few days, try squashing those negative thoughts like a bug, and then replacing them with a corresponding positive thought. Thought: “This is too hard!” SQUASH ! and replace it with, “I can do this! If that wimp Leo can do it, so can I!” It sounds corny, but it works. Really.

Filed under: Clifton Latter — Support Team @ 3:26 pm
Circle of Competency
August 18th, 2011

Warren Buffet has been one of the biggest role models in my investing life. He is the world’s most successful investor and one of the biggest givers to charitable foundations.
One of Warren Buffet’s greatest strengths is his ability to stay within his ‘circle of competency’. You can see Warren’s thoughts on this topic from his 1996 letter to shareholders: “You don’t have to be an expert on every company, or even many. You only have to be able to evaluate companies within your circle of competence. The size of that circle is not very important; knowing its boundaries, however, is vital.”

This is so true of life and property as well. Now is the time to ask yourself:

Are you focusing on your strengths (competencies) in life? Do you focus your efforts on activities that use your greatest strengths, knowledge and abilities? Or do you go around trying a bit of this and a bit of that and checking out this deal here because it was presented to you and that deal there because you heard something from someone.

You don’t need to be good at many things, you just need to know what you are good at (and have chosen to focus on) and what you are not as good at (and by default have chosen not to focus on). You then need to make decisions on opportunities in the areas that you are good at, and leave all the others alone. The key is to know the difference between the two.

It is an important distinction. Research and due diligence done within your circle of competence will add to your relevant knowledge base and strengthen your circle of competence for future opportunities as well. Research and due diligence done outside of your circle of competence (either because it is not your chosen strategy or because the deal is not in your chosen area) will chew up useful time that could have been used more profitably focusing on deals in areas that you are already good at and knowledgeable in. Are you in danger of being a ‘jack of all trades and a master of none?’

It is vitally important to have an investing strategy, it is equally important that the chosen strategy sits within your circle of competency. I understand that when moving into something new (a new strategy or geographical area) that it will not be within your circle of competency. It is then important to ask yourself : Do you like this strategy and area enough to commit to it until it is within your circle of competency (and to commit to the effort to keep it there)?

If you cannot wholeheartedly commit, LEAVE IT ALONE! You must be selective.

To re-visit Warren Buffet’s quote: “You don’t have to be an expert on every company, or even many. You only have to be able to evaluate companies within your circle of competence. The size of that circle is not very important; knowing its boundaries, however, is vital.”

In closing: You don’t need to be an expert on many strategies and you don’t need to know about many areas, you just need to be good at one strategy and one area (and to focus on these).

“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who had practiced one kick 10,000 times.”
— Bruce Lee

Filed under: Andrew McAulay — Support Team @ 3:28 pm
2 Day Event
August 11th, 2011

I am delighted to be organizing one of CCORP’s biggest free events of the year which is coming up on August 20th & 21st.

For 2 days we will be providing attendees with content on property development that goes deep into explaining the 7 stages of property development and also certain strategies that the successful professional property developers use. As well as teaching the ins and outs of property development, this event will also look at some of the deals that clients of CCORP are currently working on or have recently completed for tidy profits.

If you are free on August 20th & 21st then you should definitely snap up some tickets for this event as there aren’t many left. If you aren’t free that weekend then I do recommend that you get free
This event will teach you strategies that you didn’t think was possible and it will also allow you to get started a lot sooner than you thought possible. It really does have the ability to be the key to the rest of your life.

A lot of the CCORP staff will be attending this event too, we love getting involved in making these events a success and it is very rewarding seeing just how much people always get out of them. I would love to see you there, if you do make it, please come say hi

I will make sure to keep you updated on how the event went, what people thought of it and make even upload a few photos from it for you too.

Hopefully I’ll see you there,

Laura Hanley
CCORP Operations Manager

Filed under: Laura Hanley — admin @ 3:24 pm
45 Lessons in Life
August 9th, 2011

Hi guys,

This is my very first blog for CCORP and I have decided to share with you, an email I received some years ago that still remains my favourite email of all time. I think that it’s something that we should all keep close to us and when life gets stressful, when we feel there is not enough time for everything, when the stress gets in the way of family and friends and in hard times, this is something that is definitely worth reflecting on. It is definitely something we should all read at least once a week! Ok, enough explaining, here it is;

Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland ,
Ohio .

“To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
It is the most requested column I’ve ever written.

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.

8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first pay check.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.

12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks.

16.. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ‘In five years, will this matter?’

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.

35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. The best is yet to come…

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.”

Filed under: Laura Hanley — admin @ 3:18 pm
CCORP’s Property Development Boot Camp hits the Goldie
August 5th, 2011

CCORP hit Queensland over the last weekend to bring its Property Development Boot Camp to the Gold Coast.

4th July, 2011.

Our students from all over Australia attended this fantastic weekend fronted by Carly Crutchfield. Carly also invited expert guests, like builders, Architects and Project Marketers to share their expertise with the property enthusiasts in attendance. Participants learned how they could; Find a development site, Analyse that site, use Property Options, and get involved in Vendor Finance. Vendor finance allows people to develop property using other people’s equity in the property meaning that they may not have to put much of their own money into the development. This allows people to get started developing property using little of their own money.

Carly showed the Boot Camp audience how Vendor Finance can be used when she was demonstrating how to approach a vendor or real estate agent about a possible property suitable for development. While calling about development sites for sale, Carly rang some adverts in that weekend’s Gold Coast newspaper. A student picked out a possible site that Carly then called and that person was interested in Carly buying the site using Vendor Finance methods. This would mean that Carly could get involved in the deal without having to have a substantial amount of money to put into the deal upfront.

Carly also walked students through some of her deals that she is currently working on, making sure that the students understood how deals can be structured and that they realised how much profit could be made!

If you would like a free DVD which will show you some of these powerful Property Strategies please click here and we will get one out straight away to you. Also don’t miss our next Property Development Boot Camp which is in Melbourne on 14th – 16th October, this one is going to be massive!

Filed under: Tom Parkinson — Tom Parkinson @ 3:17 pm
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