The gap between the have and the have-nots in the U.S. has only widened during the covid pandemic as the top 1% have amassed roughly $34.23 trillion dollars in wealth while the bottom 99% collectively gained $1 trillion.
This gap is becoming expensive, breaking America apart and leading the younger generation to question their fate in this volatile market in one of the unhappiest places on earth.
The crux behind this gap isn’t the level of income they’re earning or luck amongst the rest of the country, rather lack of education. This past year, the somewhat educated top-tier graduates of the middle class have transitioned to the shareholder class taking part in massive gains in the roaring market despite a deadly pandemic as Main Street (blue-collar workers and small businesses), the airline, hospitality, travel, tourism and leisure sectors have been shut down affecting lower to middle income workers the most all while the CEOs of these crippling conglomerates earned millions.
Although paycheck doesn’t matter in terms of net worth as much as one would think it is especially the more you earn as it’s robbed by taxes, higher costs of living, the government, insurance and you tend to spend more when you make more, it’s astounding to see that the richest 500 people in the world and even leaders of disastrous companies still make 50x more than the average minimum wage worker risking their life, health and financial prospects.
If you uncover how someone can become financially proof, you’ll be laughing because it’s so basic only a small percent of people can follow long-term.
Money doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t care what you do or don’t know. All it does is reward those that provide impact and value to society and that starts with understanding how the system works.
#1 Renting vs Owning
Whenever purchasing a property, you need to understand your ROI (Return on Investment).
Simply by following the American Dream of purchasing a property and hoping to sell it for a gain once your kids grow up isn’t a guarantee anymore. With volatile markets, WFH culture, the minimalist less = more mentality and eagerness to get back to real life, earning real cash flow after dealing with the non-refundable costs which you can read here that include renovation to appraisal fees, maintenance, utilities, brokerage fees, you name it, there’s more and always costs more than you think.
Buying won’t always get your bang for your buck especially if you sell at a less opportune time in a location that isn’t in demand.
And the rich understand that best. They want to get the most out of their time and follow the Buy Utility and Rent Luxury principle. They own assets which can include real estate but not always especially since tenants to their own property is a hassle.
Because let’s be real. The average homebuyer only lives in their property for 8 years until they try to sell it.
People are curious, actionable figures. If you want to get rich, you can’t expect to stay in the same place for 10 years!
Let’s say you can’t decide between investing your money or buying a cute cottage.
Invest it into the stock market and since the markets always go up, even during a deadly recession, you’ll earn faster and more guaranteed.
You may ask, how is it guaranteed if the stock market fluctuates?
I never said you had to become an active day trader! Those folks waste their time, mental energy and sanity to only loose money! They follow intra-day activity which no doubt is volatile but depositing your money into the stock market or certain index funds and not touching it will leave you better off.
You can invest in REITS (real estate investment trusts) that are real estate properties managed by a company that act like stocks in the market, ETFs that track major indexes and set up a nice balance between your active vs passive split or get into alternative investments including private equity or artwork sure to make you a return!
People need flexibility to stay agile. Humans aren’t made for sticking to one place like a home.
Yes, renting provides a -$100 return, yet if it means attracting more business, clients and traveling around the world to boost net worth, it sure is providing a better return.
#2 Shut Up
The richest of the rich don’t talk about what they do, don’t want people copying them nor want to get robbed. The more you advertise about your lifestyle, the more people hate you that’s why I’ve adopted the stealth wealth minimalist frugal lifestyle since I was born because outsiders seem to hate New Yorkers and I don’t want to be blamed for nothing!
Don’t talk about what you do because no one cares.
If they did, they would ask.
Do you see Musk or Bezos advertising their Lambos or private jets?
No, you only see the people selling courses and broke millennials doing that.
#3 Do 1 Thing
How do you expect to get better at something if you can’t do anything right?
I thought I needed to be a jack of all trades growing up. I dabbled in tennis to swimming, knitting to painting, horse back riding to rowing and eventually found my sweet spot in neither.
I started paying attention to what I enjoyed instead of what my college application would please.
Being a generalist is underrated and extremely vital. The more unexpected random industries will merge one day and turn into disruptive ones. Being a specialist is no doubt great but to do 1 thing well, you actually have to be a great generalist, mediocre at a few things than an extreme expert at 1 thing.
Focus on experience, consistency and patience.
When you observe the folks on the Forbes 100 List, sure now after amassing massive wealth and taking time to hone their craft, they’ve moved onto several things, mostly space yet they all excelled at 1 thing first.
Trying and experimenting is good but then hone whatever’s working and just go really hard on that.
#4 Investments to STAY Rich
Counterintuitive to all we’ve learned but the secret sauce about investing isn’t just to invest it’s to invest to STAY rich not GET rich.
The Robinhood peeps and meme crypto kitties out there who’ve dumped money into the hottest latest trends and want to get rich overnight maybe have seen overnight success but overtime, they’ve lost big time because it’s called pure gambling.
Instead you want to preserve your hard earned money not have fun with it. The stock market shouldn’t be a fun approach. It should be boring, lazy and and not a pretty sight to see every day.
To preserve your wealth for generations, you must look beyond tomorrow’s gains and search towards future gains to be able to provide a stable living and support.
#5 They Are NOT Smarter Than You
Hard to believe right?
Search online any study comparing the richest people on earth.
You’ll notice some reoccurring traits that they credit to their success:
-Consistency
-Patience
-Able to deal with more pain than a typical individual
-Values time = money
-Doesn’t fall into quick schemes
-Understands money is a byproduct not the end goal
-The best investment is in themselves
The average millionaire let alone billionaire DID NOT:
-Go to an Ivy-League
-Inherit their wealth
-Get stellar grades
-Valedictorian
-Top IQ
-Popular
Instead, they took what they could control which was their effort, limited time and mindset and drilled into what they knew best.
What if the secret to success was doing the same thing you were good at for a bit longer with a distinct time frame of 10 years?
Everyone would follow it then but since it’s unknown, majority quit due to a lack of patience not IQ.
Expect to take a long time because all good things come to those who wait.
You’ll always be farther along if you keep going.
#6 They Are NOT Selling Courses or Making Videos
Although being a YouTuber or Coursera teacher might offer incredible passive income you can constitute as a business which will help you pay less in taxes and build a cash flow revenue stream, it isn’t going to make your expertise stand out on its own.
Just think about it. Hard work is required in everything but especially with courses, there’s a lot of manual labor and less real income generation from skillsets that’s needed.
The best use of your time isn’t to teach instead it’s to teach yourself.
Let your mind make you money not your manual labor. It’s okay to get into a competitive field but realize you need to find a better way to stand out than teaching 7th grade Algebra.
Remember: People selling you the course aren’t making money doing the product, they are selling you the product
#7 Got Lucky
Luck plays a big part in life.
Some people are just born into wealth and got a leg up through inheritance growing up in a wealthy neighborhood with parents who amassed a fortune.
There’s nothing you can do about that but you can get to that same place if you really desire which sounds shallow since after a certain income, $75k, your happiness plateaus anyway.
Talent is overrated, but luck plays a factor and that’s why life is unfair but it doens’t mean that those who got a leg up have it easy.
In fact, they have to prove the reputation of their family, scale the business even further and keep the legacy brewing. That sounds like more pressure to me!
The best way to increase your chances of luck is to do more risky things. This shouldn’t mean gambling GameStop when strangers on Reddit tell you to do so.
Rather it could entail traveling the world and taking up a new language, trying out a course you always wanted to but were always afraid of feeling embarrassed about not knowing anything or flipping your own rental property by taking out your first mortgage.
None of these risks will kill you. They are calculated and can offer an incredibly high ROI if life plays out.
If you stay in the same property doing the same thing, don’t expect to get anywhere.
#8 Do Boring Things
The byproduct and result of building boring things is fantastic but the journey is something people avoid at all costs and hence why there are only a select few in the world who’ve dealt with the pain, rejection, boredom and annoyances.
Entrepreneurship is the most glorified career path because of the fake image of success-if you make it out alive which 99% of startups don’t.
The early days of Amazon to Microsoft looked dim. No one believed in Gates or Bezos expect for them and they need it would be challenging yet they overcome it because they knew they didn’t need a degree to certify they could change the world.
Boredom means creation is coming. Business is dangerous hide away from it and concentrate on what matters.
The amazing thing about life is that you don’t know what you’re capable of. Anyone can become anything if they put in a little extra effort, believed in themselves more, ditched their phones and started focusing on what they can control.
Clearly, there’s no secret sauce besides sticking it out and doing the opposite of conventional.
Try them out and never look back.