About

Hello and welcome to my ‘About' Page.

I am glad you are here because it tells me you are very particular about who you choose to listen to or are dealing with via the internet, and as far as I am concerned that's a good step. (You may love me or hate me after you finish reading this, I can't control that, but at least you know who or what you are dealing with 🙂 )

Reader Warning…
I warn you now, I'm not going to hold back on this section…. I have a lot to share, a lot of value to offer the world, and a purpose to fulfil (I have left but haven't arrived yet) so this is going to be a rather long and possibly …an involving section. If you prefer to skim read and revisit later, i.e. you're a headline (“get to the point”/” hurry up and spit it out”) type of personality, I'll do my best to write this in a style that will not frustrate you (can't promise anything); however, if you are the type of person who prefers the ‘nitty gritty' details, then trust me when I say you will not be disappointed.

So Where Do I Start….

The thing regarding blogs and ‘About' pages, is that I always seem to struggled on knowing where or how to start. I have now come to the conclusion, finally, in this blog, that I am going to do what I like… and I couldn't care about the conventions of where or how to start… it's my blog!

I am currently at a place (at the time of writing which is 30th August 2016) in my life where I am in a very spontaneous and eruptible situation or volition. I have heard someone call it a Mid Life Crisis??? Not sure I would call it that, but I am certainly in a scenario where I am not satisfied with my life and I am at the boiling point of taking drastic action.
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I have always been the ‘drastic action' type of guy and I'll come back to this point a little later, however right now, in this moment… I am unsatisfied.

SO what Am I UNSATISFIED with? I here you ask…
I'm going to be 41 this year, I am happily married to a woman who is beautiful in every way, and loves me whole heatedly. I have two beautiful children who are rapidly growing and I couldn't ask for any other child because they are both Awesome. One boy, one Girl – perfect! As far as family are concerned, I am living a dream. I dreamed of being the best dad, the awesome husband; I even remember drawing pictures of getting married and having a family when I was really young, like 6 or 7 years old…

But, I do not feel (very emotional word) or even in reflection, as far as my standards are concerned, I have not given them the best. Albeit my children have lived a better life, have accomplished more things in their relatively short ‘term' in this world, especially in comparison to what I ever achieved within the first 20 years of my life. But I am not happy with this. My wife, she has been extremely patient with me, If I were her, I may have left ‘me' by now. (i'll explain why later, keep reading)

I've always been a Go Getter

I am someone who gives it a go! I tend to be a ready, fire then aim type of guy, I tend not to over think things or be too careful, I make a decision, take action and then deal with the consequences later. So… needless to say, I have failed many, many times (as well as succeeded at certain points of my life as well).

However, of late, I think I have failed more times lately and am ready for my next BIG success. But I have been very guilty of the “stinking thinking”, “I'm a failure”, “will ‘they' ever forgive me?”, “What will they think?” mindset for some time now, probably the last 3 years or so. and it's only within the last two weeks have I realized that I have allowed failure to hold me back!

What Could Be Such A Big Deal To Make You Believe You Were A Failure, Richard?

Ok, so they say talking/ confession (or blogging in this instance)… is healing or good for the soul.
Even now, just mustering the courage to type the words, it hurts! But I am not going to let it stop me!

BANKRUPTCY!

Ok, alright I said it! I was MADE bankrupt (I didn't declare bankruptcy) back in 2013 and up until two weeks ago, I never realized how this word has held me back.

Overall it was a blessing in disguise, but I still had an overall sense of failure or being beaten.
Since then until now, I have not really accomplished anything…significant. My goals have been all over the place, and my boldness… just disappeared. I've been searching, and searching and then two weeks ago, everything stopped (and here I am).

What happened two weeks ago … I'll come to that in a bit, but needless to say, it's the reason why I am now taking drastic and massive action.

I just wish my wife and children lived a comfortable life!
I know it's wrong to compare, but just in terms of my own expectations… I would have expected to provide my family with a beautiful house (you know… the nice detached house, with at least 4/5 bedrooms and massive garden, 2 cars in the drive, lovely suburban area, quiet, with an awesome school. Holiday every year… Children ‘wanting for nothing' whatsoever… that's my expectation. The reality is drastically different!

I'm am in no way happy with where we live, I believe we have taken steps backward (and struggle to justify as an investment or sacrifice), It certainly isn't suburbia and where we used to live was much bigger! But thank God I have life to live and a healthy family, things could be far, far worse – however, I am not planning on parking at this station for the rest of my life…. things have got to change!

How My Life Was Before May 2013 – the ‘Actual' about me bit 🙂

Well.. Where do I start…

I was born in London, I am first generation British.

My father is from West Africa and my mother is from the Caribbean; however I was raised by my mother. I am the oldest of three siblings and pretty much .. I had to learn to be independant from a young age.

I was determined to make something of my life… and my number one priority (as I eluded to earlier), is that I was determined to be the best dad and the best husband ( I am trying)

Prety much it was me, my mum and sisters throughout growing up, and my mum showed me the importance of working hard, and it was pretty much ingrained in me 9it's a cultural trhing i reckon) to go to school, get good grades and then go to university and then you will get a good job! In my opinion… that's a load of rubbish (another subject for another time) but in all fairness to my mum, she was only doing the best she could and I am very thankful for that.

So to date, I have been married for sixteen years and I celebrate my 17th wedding anniversary in January 2017.

I always say I was a ‘perpetual student'

I left University at age 28 with ‘half of a PhD' – (That's another story for another time)

I have two master's degrees in engineering, My MSc was in a subject called CFD (Can you guess what CFD) stands for?? My first degree, I read Mechanical Engineering with North American Studies.

I am a Sussex University and also a Leeds University graduate, and I believe I made my parents proud of my accomplishments in how much study I did. I was convinced that the only way to wealth and riches was by accumulating as many degrees as possible???? (like I said for before… the number of degrees or what you study is not commensurate to the financial success one will have)

Although my background was in engineering, I loved sales and I loved problem solving so I got involved in the finance industry.
I have over 15 years experience in Banking and Finance… I specialized as a Mortgage Consultant and was extremely good at being a broker! Made a lot of money, and gave my family a good life.. my wife didn't HAVE to work, she was able to focus on our family and give them stability (something that our government are trying their best to disrupt (don't get me started).
It started with a book called Rich Dad Poor Dad…

I started life in banking, I then made my first BOLD step in October 2005, I quit my secure, graduate banking job at age 30 and started my dream of running my own business and literally from nothing, started my own brokerage company, working in the City of London. I had no ‘hook ups' or connections… I started from scratch…. it took me three years to see any fruit…but it paid off as you have read in the previous paragraph.

Literally, I read a book called Rich Dad Poor Dad (You may have heard of it…), I remember it vividly because my wife was in heavy labor (4 days) with our first child, and when she was able to catch a wink or two of sleep, I literally devoured the book. It was that book that ‘pushed me over the edge' and I ‘fired my boss' and incorporated two businesses. The Financial Ansah ltd and the Property Ansah Ltd. And that was the start of my journey to reach financial independence and give my family everything.

Then….

2008 happened – the Credit Crunch!

In 2007 I was so busy, I was in the position to grow my business and I recruited an Administrator and another Broker. Good times… however, in 2008 I had to ‘let them go' and liquidate the business!

My first MAJOR mistake – I kept all my eggs in one basket rather than spreading my earning risks.

At this point (fro memory) between my wife and I we had accumulated about 28 houses as part of a property portfolio… and I had real plans to expand my business and open another site elsewhere…. but those dreams ended.

Then the real bombshell hit….

Incidentally, in case you are still figuring out what CFD means, it stands for Computational Fluid Dynamics – it's a really exciting subject where I exercise computational modelling methods to predict behavior of fluid flow.

So back to the bombshell!

So I'm stuck between a ‘rock and a hard place' – I accumulated lots of debt (which I thought was ‘good debt' because someone else was paying it) – but then I discovered some hard hitting facts that quite frankly got me REAL angry and left me feeling quit hurt.

Now bearing in mind, I said I was a very good broker, I won deals that most brokers failed to win, because I was very knowledgeable, I made it a matter of personal pride to be a subject matter expert in my field.

Then My whole financial world collapsed because I just found out (back of 2008) that:

1. Money was not real

2. banks do not have ANY money of their own to lend out (that's why they never lose!, they have nothing TOO Lose!)

So what?? you are probably asking…

Well, I wrote nearly £8M (milllion) of mortgage business in 2007/2008! That's a lot of mortgage and a lot of people! I am one of those sales people who care!

Everyone in debt! Back in those days you could get mortgage loans upto 125% of the true value of the home plus that was the back end of a massive housing bubble where price where astronomically inflated. That's a massive amount of leverage. The ones in the ‘know' got out before the bubble burst (2007 crash) – I couldn't see the wood for the trees back then!

I had people thanking me for helping turn their lives around and buying a bigger house, and smashing their fears of never being able to buy a house of their own… to then realise that the finance industry and money was just a game! It really hurt me. I guess it was a pride thing, I don't know… but I was flabbergasted.

So much so I decided to make it my mission to help others learn about money, debt and finances and launched a business called Wealth Guardian Education…

My mentors where people like Robert Kiyosaki, T.Harv Ekher and many others (I never could get into Donald Trump for some reason… bought his books but never read them… Explains a lot) and also a massive fan of the BIBLE!

Cutting an already long story short, I made it my life mission to help others financially. And I also made it my prerogative to destroy debt predators, bailiffs and corporate companies/ thieves that made a profit in harassing others for money. I was literally a ‘hard nut' and very unforgiving towards any type of bailiff or debt collector and even certain types of solicitors and Barristers and I took them all on… and won more battles than I lost – but at a cost!

That's why I felt like I was Beaten…

So now you can probably understand why I felt like a failure…perhaps???

Teaching people about money and finances – the real secrets that schools, banks and governments do not want you to know…

I had successes in eliminating debt and debt predators and I encouraged others to live without debt and eliminate fear of debt predators.

Then due to a technicality and a bit of ganging up (my opinion), the very same people who I enjoyed kicking to the proverbial kerb… got to me…finally – I was made bankrupt.

Even today… my children (in their innocence) remind me of how the ‘horrible people' took mummy's car away – they are referring to a very dark night on January 2nd, the day after News Years Day in 2010, when a bailiff came to take away my wife's precious BMW X5 – I bought it as a birthday gift for her, it was her dream car. My children loved that car, my wife loved that car! It had a dvd player in the back and each child had their own head phones and screen to watch their favourite movies while mummy was driving. It was shiny black, with black leather seats and it drove like a dream.

And with all of the pleading and law and everything else I could plead, the police and bailiff with his massive truck, lifted the car from the road onto the truck in front of all the neighbors. If they had Facebook live back then, someone probably would have posted the Scene on their Facebook feed.

I was embarrassed! Needles to say my wife never spoke to me for days. My children were confused and wondering what was going on, to the point that they still remember to this day….

That's what gets me upset! That's one of the many reasons I would have left ‘me' if I was my wife…. she has put up with a lot and she deserves much, much more… But I never gave up.. in fact it made me even more determined.

What I enjoyed the most….

I could share a lot more stories but you get the picture so far (I hope)

However, let me tell you what I enjoyed the most about my journey with Wealth Guardian Education…

I always said to my wife, my friends and colleagues… I was living my best life now! obviously that was back then. I was in my element! I believed I was literally sent by God himself to help others from the injustice of debt and to spread the message.. there is a ‘higher way to live' (beyond debt).

I enjoyed two elements the most…

1. Teaching

2. Research or problem solving

I have always, dreamed of teaching in some way shape or form… and when I was either conducting webinars or conducting live workshops – man, I could do it for days and days. It was so fulfilling to be able to break down, complex problems into simple concepts. That was my gift. always has been, even when I was a broker, that is what made me successful!

I produced 11 products within Wealth Guardian Education focusing on financial intelligence and helping people raising their financial awareness and knowledge.

I was (may be still am) an expert in administrating an Expressed Private Trust and was at the cutting edge of a lot of financial technologies within the UK .. .it attracted a lot of attention both positive and negative… I was not afraid to put myself above the parapet, but going through the Bankruptcy made me re-evaluate some things….

Although I did blaze a trail in some respects (the main reason why I had a reputation because I never taught anything that I hadn't experienced and trialed for myself – this was unusual for many people) – it wasn't just me! My family experienced the highs but they also experienced the low's and I was not prepared to drag them through that pain any longer….

So once I was discharged in 2014 – I have literally kept a very low head and fallen off the radar… until now that is!

So What Now…

Well, now that I am fed up of being fed up… I am back!

I have pretended to be back on the scene for the last 12 months but I have already shared what was stopping me.

However, Wealth Guardian Education is not dead, in fact I have renamed it Wealth Guardian Education REVAMPED or WGE Revamped. And I am all about helping people realise their financial potential.

The system is what it is and I can't change it. In fact my goal was never really to change it, but to help people realise they have a choice of how they interact within it.

As i said before, it's all a game, however, you have probably realised that many people are not aware of the rules… How can you play a game that you have no awareness of the rules… it means either you are not playing the game or you are being played i.e. used as a pawn.

You have heard the phrase – Either you have your own plan or by default you will be living within someone else's plan. That's what I believe is going on financially in this world.

Returning Back to a J-O-B after being in Business for so Long

After the bankruptcy, things were really, really tough!

I have lost count how many times I have been to court to stave off a repossession (of my family home) – Bearing in mind (I forgot to mention this part of my life journey) that 27 of the 28 properties that we owned had been repossessed by the banks (most of it was a business decision as I wasn't prepared to fund a business that wasn't producing an income) .

I got involved in a Direct sales role, helping to raise funds for Charities by becoming a Door to Door specialist – it was fun but I never really earned the income I desired and it was yet another dream that was too taxing for my family… they were very patient with me… I lasted 2 years in the direct sales industry.

Finally I had to swallow my pride and GET A J-O-B!

In terms of the cash flow quadrant and risk etc etc.. it was a short term quick fix but probably the worst way to realize a dream. I have nothing against JOBS or people who have JOBS but if you want to progress in life… I am super convinced it can not happen if you are employed!… You will always be living within someone else's plan and it stops one from dreaming, thinking big, taking action and taking control of their own destiny's

It's been about 16 months, and even though I earn a reasonable income… I am still stuck!
So what Happened ‘Two Weeks Ago?'

Quite frankly, I reached the end of my tether!
I got to the point I just said…No More!

I looked at my life, I evaluated everything and literally reached a place mentally where I felt so dissapointed with myself.

Literally the days and weeks leading up to that point, all I was hearing, everything that was in my frame of reference: from church to books I was reading, to emails I was receiving…everything was screaming at me….

“Do Not Let Your Past Failures Dictate Your Future Success!”

And since then I have struggled to stay focused and motivated on my daily routine. Everything from my health, my family, finances…everything I have re-evaluated and something has to change.

There was also two deaths in my friend and family circles, and again, this opened my eyes and I really had to think about where my life was heading.

When my children read my Eulogy in sixty years time, I certainly do not want it to read…..'And Richard was a great sales person and he sold lots of van hire deals'

Really! No Way

I want to stand for something and it has to be on my terms.

I love teaching, I love helping others and I want to…

No, correction…

I will make a difference in my life and in others' lives too. For me it's about adding value and leaving an indelible mark on my generation that can not be erased.

I have realized that chasing money or commission does not define me and is not my standard to which I will define success. Making a difference, leaving a legacy that will proceed beyond me, that's what matters.

One thing I have learnt, is that money will follow those who are making a true difference in the lives of others and not the other way round.

So watch this space.

PS –

Since you got this far, please do me a favour and leave a comment below. Many thanks in advance.

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