My friend, if by chance you are having serious money problems, I hope you will really tune me in today, as I have a proven idea that could help you get your finances in better shape.

To begin, allow me to tell you a true story that could help you get your finances in better condition. One year at tax time, my friend Rodger the Plumber came over to our house, and we were kind of comparing notes. He saw my income and then told me what his was. Even though my income was not that great, his was considerably less.

During our discussion that followed, he told me, “There is no way I can increase my income very much and stay competitive.” Now here is the reason for his statement and it’s what I want you to think about. Like millions of Americans, Rodger is self-employed, and his wife keeps the books. In terms of production, in actuality, he is a one-man business. Because of this fact he has only so much time each day and can charge just so much for that time. That is, if he wants to stay competitive. He may earn a little profit from the parts he installs, but you see, he must be there in person to install them.

Now, hopefully you can see this picture in your mind’s eye, and the principle I am going to share is the same whether a person is self-employed or works for someone else. It may not be the best example, but let’s take my situation here as a syndicated newspaper columnist. When I write a series of 13 columns, to last a quarter, my editor Colleen Holt takes them and edits them. She then places them on my website, for all our papers across the country to take them down, one at a time, and run them in their paper.

My point is simple. Once the column is on the website, it does not matter if there is one paper running it or a thousand, as the work has been done on the front end, and the time used is at my discretion, so long as it’s done in a timely fashion. Now granted, this is different from a plumber who must be there in person to do the work. But so long as the work gets done in a professional manner, in most cases it does not matter who does the work, so long as it’s done right. Just look around your community and you will see this principle being used every day.

Here at our home we just had a problem with our air conditioner. To fix it, our heating and air man had to order a part. He then had one of this technicians come back and install it. What Rodger needs to do is spend some of his time thinking and learning to use the principle of “Duplication,” as this is what business people use every day to make them successful. To see this principle in everyday practice, just think about all the “chains” in every area of our economy, whether it might be a restaurant, clothing store, grocery store, motel, or you name it.

The key to business success is to find a need and fill that need. When the demand is great, the opportunity for success is also great. When a business is truly successful, they can pay their employees more money. As I have said so often, it is not so much what we earn, it is what we do with it that really counts. Not to pick on him, but what Rodger the Plumber really needs is a better understanding of the American economy. When we take the time to study and really understand it, there is no greater opportunity in the world than right here in the good-ole United States of America. Rodger is my friend and I wish him the best. The only way this is possible is because of our freedom, and we must never take it for granted.

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(Editor’s Note: For a personally signed copy of my new book ‘Your Future Begins Today’ send $20, which includes postage and handling, to Jim Davidson, 2 Bentley Drive, Conway, AR 72034.)