REINVENT TO REINVEST: The Man Called "50 Cent" Curled from Farrah Gray's Book "THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU RICH

If you can visualize your goals, even if they are just a few short-term ones at the start, then there's a strong probability that you can achieve them.

Good plans don't have to be a hundred pages long with endless detail, but every plan should start out with a basic list of aims and a reasonable idea about how to accomplish those aims. The most important thing to remember is that plans are not set in stones. You can change them at any time based on experiences that you learn along the way.

Let's talk about the rapper 50 Cent (aka Curtis Jackson). Here's a man who thinks more like a businessman than a celebrity. When Curtis Jackson first received an advance in the music industry, he didn't rush out to spend it all on trinkets and toys. That would not have lasted long. Instead, he invested in buying a trademark to his stage name, 50 Cent. That name is now worth millions. And don't be too quick to think that all comes from his singing and acting career. Indeed, he qualifies as a bona fide rap star now, but the decisions he made from his initial launch led to a sustainable fortune unheard of in the music industry.

While many may not agree with what "50" (as many call him) often represents in his music and videos, we all can appreciate the struggle he faced as a young man. To go from violence and strife of the South Jamaica section of Queens, New York (and his well-publicized history of drug dealing and having survived being shot nine times), to owning licensing and endorsement contracts, plus shares in a company, took grit, focus, and determination. He truly lives up to the title of his popular semi autobiography film: 'Get Rich or Die Tryin'.

As a youth, 50 Cent represented legions or urban youth who saw their circumstances as their all-encompassing reality and realm of possibility. The urban environment island in and of itself. There are walls all around this island with mirrors on the inside. people living there typically are growing up to understand that they only can be what they can see. %0 Cent manged to see beyond the island and break through those self-destructive mirrors. He also was able to look beyond the lottery mentality that hangs around the music industry and hip-hop culture in general. This ultimately allowed him to spot and capture new business ideas; the endorsement deals and licensing agreements that he has secured over the last couple of years arguably are doing more him than his musical talent. He's been re-inventing himself since that very day the music world honored him with a check, delving into ventures such as fashion, footwear, entertainment, record labels, ringtones, videos, and even water with vitamins. These ventures amassed revenues of about $50 million in one year. But wait, here's the kicker: Of all the ventures in his pocket, the one that has produced the most returns has been a growing energy drink company. As a 10 percent shareholder in Glaceau, a queens-based manufacturer of bottled water infused with vitamins, he received about $400 million from a single deal. In 2007 Coca-Cola offered the company $4.1 billion in a buyout, just three years after 50 Cent agreed to endorse Glaceau's new grape flavoured line of vitamin water, Formula 50 (50 in honour of 50 Cent, but also because it contains 50 percent of the Food and Drug Administration's daily recommended vitamins).

Who knew a rapper and water would be such a lucrative mix? I doubt 50 cent just takes the money and spends it widely. He can now continue to reinvent himself and reinvest in new ventures that beget more deals. Opportunities and new conversations abound.

What are your plans?
Where are you in your plans?
Please, share with me.

Cheers!
I am @isaaceko