The title of this post hits home for a lot of people who live in my home town of Minden, La, and the surrounding areas such as, Shreveport and Bossier City, just to name a few.

Here on my website I usually talk about small business marketing, local marketing and just merely how to grow a business to the massive. But today, I wanted to open you guys eyes on a matter that really hurts to talk about, but I feel as though I’m the one to bring it to life.

What I’m really looking forward to, is how many times this will be shared on our social networks such, as Facebook and Twitter? I say this because every time I’m on there, I see us as people sharing crap that makes absolutely no sense at all.

We share and comment on things so that we can get it out to our friends, so that they can chime in on it to keep the discussion going. Besides that, I’m just looking forward to hearing what people have to say in the comment sections below. Hopefully, what I say hits home in a way that it wake us up, and we start doing better and wanting more out of life.

Hopefully, after you read this post, we will all start taking action getting ourselves out of what we call poverty. Just understand this..

We are all one or two pay checks away from being homeless..think about that for a moment.

The Story

I’m writing this for those people in Minden, La, but this can also be related to anyone in the world no matter the state, city or town. It’s just that I wanted to personally send this out to those that I know, and care about in a city that I’ve been in for the last 32 years.

Our city is no different than the other hundreds or so places that I have visited in my lifetime. I say that we have maybe 15k to 20k people at any given time living here. The history of Minden, La, began back in the 1800’s just as of a lot of local surrounding cites did back in those days.

Over the years, we have managed to grow into somewhat of a small city, and when you hear people from Homer, Sibley, and Cotton Valley say that they’re going to the city to do grocery shopping or something, they’re mostly speaking about Minden.

Even though we have a lot of big brands in town such as Wal-Mart, and a big number of the nation wide fast food places, we are really just an average place to live that has just enough here to keep people around.

We have some manufacturing and distributing businesses in town, such as Firebond and Coca-Cola. There are a number of the family owned places to work at that have been up town for too many years to name. So our city is an “OK” city to live in, but not the place to become successful.

Let Me Explain..

Oh yea, you can go to school here, graduate from high school, and be given three choices:

1. Go to college
2. Go to find a job
3. Start a business

Go to College

Lots of people go to college, and you won’t see them for a couple of years, and the next thing you know they’re right back here. Now, that can be for many reasons, but just know that they’re back here having to make tough decisions.

Most of them go and get crazy amounts of loans that at that time that seemed right, but honestly it’s a trap that will catch up with you in the long run. Now you’re back in good old Minden, La, and already in debt at the age of 21 looking for a job. Yea looking for a job in Minden. Crazy Huh

Let me ask you a question for a moment? Have you ever wondered why there are so many people in Minden, La that own businesses, and they’re not even a part of the American culture? Not saying that they are not American, just saying that a lot of people who are not considered Americans, own businesses not only in our city but all across America. Why is That?

First, you have to look at it on a level of government grants and loans that people can qualify for. If you have a business plan and so-called good credit, you can possibly get funding for a business. So the question is, why are there so many of us not owning these businesses in our city compared to others?

The answer is really simple if you take a moment to sit back and think about. We are taught here in America to go to school, which is college, and get a “GOOD JOB.” So, straight out of high school we go directly into debt by paying for school. At the end of the day, when you include books, loans, and just mere living, you can be into thousands of dollars of debt before you even walk across that stage. Sad Huh

Now as a college student you’re struggling, so you go out and do what..get a job

Got to find a job

Things I’m going to share will probably hit home to most of you, but heck believe me it has happened to all of us. So, living in Minden, La, the job market is 100% bad no matter which way you look at it. Here in a few I will break down the numbers, and you will see why a job in Minden is honestly a waste of time if you want to really be successful.

So you seek out a job, and maybe you find one that’s paying you on average, let’s say $400 a week. This is the medium of the number, and I understand some people make more or less but this is a good number to start from. When it comes to our local market of Minden, LA and the surrounding area, you can expect to see these numbers.

Now you’re working a full time job at 21, 22 or 23 years old. For some reason or another, you’re not in school anymore. This is usually the route for most people who didn’t finish school, but even if they do finish school what I’m about to explain stills hold truth. Basically, we are bringing home about let’s say $1,400 a month after taxes. Yea, you realize real quick that you’re working for yourself and some guy named Uncle Sam.

You have been working for a while, and at this point you still have decent credit. You’re making good money, so you go out and buy that brand new car.

Car – $350 monthly – on average

Insurance – $150 Monthly

That $1,400 now drops down to only $900 measly dollars a month, working full time for someone else. But wait, we ‘re young adults so we want to act, feel and live like so. Now we start listening to the broke people in our family about buying a house early, or we take the road of an apartment.

No matter which route you take on this one, you’re still losing at the end of the day. Why, that mortgage or that rent will run you in today’s market on a simple one bed apartment or house around $550 per month on average.

Home – $550

Wow, now my money drops down to $350. How in world am I going to live off of that crap? But wait I haven’t even included the following:

• House Gas
• Health Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Lights
• Gas
• Cable
• OMG (Food)
• Student Loans
• and just simply living

Hey, you only have $350 left to cover all of this, which is not even near bout possible. There is no way that you can make a living in Minden, or anywhere else with those numbers. But 98% percent of our family and friends live like this, pay check to pay check.

These numbers get even worse the less money you make. Please believe that even if you make a lot more, you’re still spending more so the struggle continues. Plus at the end of the day, you keep running around Minden hoping to find that next big job..Ha Ha Ha

You’re just wasting your time if you think you’re going to find that dream job. It’s not going to happen here due to the fact that the cost of living versus the paying scale evens out. Meaning, that what ever you make will continue to go out as you get your pay check due to wanting to live just like the neighbors down the road.

We have to get that new car, even if the old one that we have is paid off, because we have to show that we’re coming up in the world. Not wanting people to know that you’re struggling at the same time. All this starts from the day we graduate from high school, the years go by, and the next thing we know, we’re 30 years old broke, no job, and hating our job and frustrated.

At the end of the day, life just sucks you up and spits you out. Your credit is bad now because you’ve fallen behind on loans, student loans, car notes, and etc.. For the rest of your life living in Minden, La or even the surrounding areas, you’re doing what I call “Chasing a Ghost.”

You work and search until you find that dream job, but that dream job never comes. For one, the town that we live in, and because we were told wrong a long time ago. Someone told us go to school, get a good education, and get a good job. Yea, thats the way you do it. But, other people taught their kids to start businesses straight out of high school, from opening up Hotels, restaurants, convenience stores, and etc…

How are they able to do this you may ask? For one, they have some form of good credit because they came out the gate not being in debt like we are. So the opportunity to succeed for them becomes greater, and our success drops faster due to the fact we have crushed our credit over the years.

This why you see more and more businesses being owned by other people versus the everyday American.

 

Start a Business

In this section I’m looking to bring all of this home in hopes of you taking some action in your life today. MY goal is to only educate people on what to do, and how to do it if you don’t want to become that old person wishing that you would have made some tougher choices when you were young.

First, I would like to say that I love my home town of Minden, La, and I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else in the world. But, the truth is that if you think you’re going to make a good relaxing living here, then you’re crazy. The only people in Minden living well are those people who you are working for, and those who own businesses.

Realize that having a job is all good, and I’m a big believer in building your foundation first. What you have to do to get to where you want to be. You can have that job in Minden, but after work go out and create something on your own.

If you spend 8 hours making the business owners in Minden rich, then take another 8 hours making yourself wealthy. But, if you’re working 8 hours a day, struggling to pay bills, and trying to live like the Jones’s, then you’re a fool. If you love your job, you’re a fool. I say this because, how can you love something that you don’t even own? Those people can fire you in a heart beat, so make the effort to create something that you own, and I hope to help you with that.

You have to make some changes if you want to be happy with yourself. I can’t tell you how many people I talk to in Minden or the surrounding areas who are waiting for retirement, and can’t wait for that 401k to kick in. People are banking on social security to take care of them once they reach 65 and older.

That’s Crazy

Successful business owners care less about social security and 401k. Only poor broke people care about those big pay days, which honestly are just pennies. I’m 32 years old, and looking for success now, not 33 years down the road when I’m old, wrinkled up, and tired. Who does that?

I care about my people so much that I want to help, and those who live in Minden have to wake up and smell the roses. If you are tired of living check to check to check, then you must make an effort to change your life starting today.

For those of you who don’t know me, and from the class of 2001 of good old Minden High. Just wanted to say I played basketball, and had a pretty good time if I must say so. I met a lot of great people over the years, some good some bad. But no matter what, I love all people because in the business I’m in you have to.

So, from the moment I graduated from high school, I have been educating myself for years on marketing online and offline. I turned that knowledge into a business that I call the Coleman Marketing Group, LLC. I’ve helped thousands of people across the word to become successful by teaching. If you have a business, and it needs marketing, I’m the guy most people turn to online. Hundreds of people visit my website every single week to read my marketing materiel, and take advantage of my services.

I’m even one of the top writers for the #1 real estate website in the world, called BiggerPockets. Check me out.

Understand that knowledge is power in this world, and if you have it, then people will pay you for it. But, you first have to get off of your lazy butt and make something happen if you hate your job. It’s not going to get better. That boss is not going to all of a sudden start being your friend. Your raise will still be a piece of crap that’s pretty much disrespectful.

I’m willing to educate people on how to be successful even if you stay in our small town of Minden, La. Yes, people say all of the time that there are no jobs here, but I could care less because I’m not trying find another job in Minden. Stop thinking on the level of finding some income to take care of you. Take the approach of controlling your on world by making your own money.

Finally, I would like to say that I wish the best for the people of Minden, La. Teach your kids about business versus working for someone else if you want them to be successful. I take pride of owning something that no one can take away from me, which is a really good feeling.

My hope is that this gets shared all over social media just like the crazy videos that y’all share that has nothing to do with having success. We share things on social media that doesn’t add value to our lives, but we over look things that can change our lives.

Let me leave you with two audio books that changed my life forever, and the reason why I’m always working my ass off every single day to grow not only my business, but the clients and business owners I’m working with. I’m grinding every single day, not wasting a minute on dumb crap, not taking a day off because I need that success, and the only way to get it is by taking action.

Feel free to leave a comment, and share this with your family and friends. We all know some one who needs to read this, but it starts with us first.

Here are the two audio books…

Rich Dad Poor Dad

The Millionaire Next Door