A genuine rich life doesnât have to cost a lot. Oftentimes the cost isnât monetary anyway.
Anytime you cut corners and slip into the easy short-term instant gratification comfortable route, you must expect less in the end. Life rewards those who are willing to do whatever it takes.
The best investment will always be in ourselves since it pays dividends for a lifetime. Eventually, practice over time will translate into progress and consistency leads to compounded returns.
As most get older, our desires change. Except for Gen Zers. We engage in reverse psychology and have always craved experiences not junk besides collectibles, antiques, and NFTs. Thankfully they donât get dusty or take up as much space on our desktop.
Iâve always believed the best use of my money is to create experiences and memories not to secure possessions and random objects that depreciate by 20% the moment I drive them off the lot. Yet sometimes we cannot help ourselves. If there are no other transportation options open, we must do what we gotta do and buy a speedy comfortable metal box. As long as your overall decisions are healthy and smart for the environment and wallet, you are a good human and will be a wealthier one too.
Thankfully cars have kept their value since the pandemic began and millions of Americans have no choice other than to drive so we must waste some money on something! Although Iâm a frugal stealth wealth minimalist, I never forget that money is made to be spent. Thatâs why we have discretionary disposable income after all! Past that point, your hard-earned earnings shouldnât be allocated to more than 20% of any investment no matter how young.
Rule Breaker
Everything has a cost, specifically opportunity cost. How we do one thing is how we do everything. Our choices in our life come from our decisions and what we consume we become.
I firmly believe that our mighty daily habits which are small triumphs will get us much farther in life than relying on exceptional natural talent. Talent can only sustain you for so long and you wonât enjoy the journey nearly as much. Itâs similar to luck. You can be born with luck and it will last you X amount of years in X Y Z places but after a while, you will have to find a way to create your own luck which starts with the investment in yourself.
These days with wage growth fueling part-time and teenage summer jobs and junior pay the most, read here many colleagues my age are reconsidering the steady and historically reliable path towards economic security: a degree a.k.a an economic premium that cannot be replaced.
They compare themselves to influencers earning six-figure incomes online, or those traveling the world and rely on their iPhones and good looks to get them in front of Hollywood yet they forget the lack of security, reputation, investment, and knowledge these stars are dealing with.
They are too dependent on one platform that if a recession hits or a breakup happens, they are toast. The grass always looks greener on the other side and this myth tends to sabotage many people who believe in it.
Worst Time Tomorrow, Best Time Today
The fancier belongings and cooler accolades today entail there will be more expensive backup plans made tomorrow. Lifestyle inflation creep creeps on all the way. It always comes back to you whether you like it or not. The easiest person to fool is yourself but we canât even do that to ourselves.
You can either live a hard life full of easy choices or an easy life having made the hard choices.
Learning before earning is a staple of life and shouldnât change just because self-employment, wages, bonuses, flexibility, and benefits are rising at their fastest pace. Working for an employer 9â5 isnât harmful and working for yourself isnât necessarily better in the long run no matter how motivated you may be. It takes commitment, a double backup plan, and a great mental health regime no matter what you chose. But if thereâs one, rather a couple of ultimate factors behind working for yourself versus an employer itâs the irreplaceable benefits, most notably a tax-advantaged retirement account, health/dental insurance, PTO, maternal/paternal leave, equity-based compensation, and community.
Everyone works differently but especially the younger one is, they tend to go on a path of least resistance for short term gratification and a rich quick reward. Social media and mainstream news outlets donât help in this regard. Whatever looks easy may be dangerous after all. This ends up being a major headwind in the long run.
You pick your battles. In life to the markets, what you put in, is what you get out. The more risk, the more reward or the opposite and you could lose it all. Be careful about your gambles, bets, and mistakes but above all, remember from them. We should learn from the past not hide away from it. Otherwise you are wasting your time trying to avoid what you already missed out on.
Above average wealth and tranquility arenât necessarily products of working hard. You donât need to hustle to be productive. You need to have priorities and allocate your energy wisely. If you donât value and put the investment into other people and yourself, it will be difficult to progress anywhere. Asking for help in itself is a strength, never a weakness.
You can go far alone or farther together. If you take the easy route, expect quick fun unpredictable unforeseeable scary gains, yet it wonât be sustainable and only hurt you in the long run. Itâs amazing to see how this applies virtually everywhere in life. From food to diet, fame to relationships. Moderation and a long-term commitment are key in life.
In the markets, you could go all-in with an aggressive approach and gamble your life for no return later on or keep it steady and live not rush through it. Itâs better to have a lower guaranteed return, currently standing and live off the most safest investment of U.S. government bonds such as Treasuries, I Savings Bonds that offer a fairly attractive and decent interest of currently ~7.12% and or TIPS than betting on a higher return for a boom or bust cycle.
This is your life on the line after all.
It applies to everything from what you eat to who you hang out with as we are the average of the people we are with. Staying diversified, having a backup plan, and taking an appropriate amount of risk you can stomach will serve you far better than any audacious gamble and dopamine plunge.
The price is up to you. There will always be a cheaper and less valuable option sitting on the shelves and across the aisle its tough competitor that is fully stacked on the shelf that costs more mentally than financially today that will yield far greater results in the long term can easily change your life. Your decisions design your life.
To make money requires money but with a strong mind and default to take action, the initial cost will fade and all be based on choice.
Keep this in mind the next time you make a purchase, pick a menu option, or spend time with people to help you picture the price you will pay later on.
Thereâs always a price to everything but it will either depreciate or appreciate as you move forward.
Only time will tell. Forecast it before it frightens you.