So who among us has ever fantasized, visualized, or daydreamed about being wealthy?
All of us, right?
Especially here in the western world,
we are essentially force fed the desire to become,
or to at least appear wealthy.
That being said,
How many of us also think of wealth more as some far away, grand ideal,
than a concrete, attainable, financial goal?
Again, most of us.
Even in this age of information,
most people still think of wealth as something only in reach for a very select few.
But the reality is,
as far as financial wealth is concerned,
there are a few ancient principles that one can follow to help navigate their way to financial freedom and all that goes with it.
And while these principles are not necessarily easy,
they are simple.
And they are as follows:
1) Increase Your Income
2) Live Well Below Your Means
3) Invest The Difference Wisely
Simple enough right?
Well, let’s discuss each a little more in detail.
First) Increase Your Income
Big shocker, right?
Who would have thought you’d have to make money to become wealthy?
But the 2 things to try and remember when reflecting on this first principle of building wealth are:
1) The other two principles of building wealth are just as,
if not more important than having a high income.
And 2), Increasing your income isn’t necessarily synonymous with procuring a higher salary.
In fact,
there are any numbers of ways to supplement your primary income during your non work hours;
and having multiple streams of income is the best way to create as high an income as possible.
For example,
Ive known people from age 30 to age 60,
who’ve started making money by buying cars at auction and flipping them on the side.
Once more,
entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuck is well known for going garage sale hopping,
and making $100’s of dollars by reselling the items he buys at garage sales online.
And as we’ll touch on again later,
you can even invest in real estate,
or other similar passive investment income streams.
The bottom line is that there are a thousand different ways to increase your income,
and many of them can be accomplished with little more than a cell phone and a laptop.
You don’t have to make the leap all at once,
just set a goal to start a side hustle this year,
and to maybe bring in an extra $10-20k next year,
and with a little patience and persistence,
you’d be amazed at how much additional income you could be bringing in the next 5-10 years.
Next) Live Well Below Your Means
Now, I would argue,
that this is not only the most difficult principle for most people to follow,
it’s also the most important,
as it allows you to maintain greater flexibility,
not just financially,
but in the other areas of your life as well.
I cannot overstate the value,
that nurturing a certain vein of minimalism has brought to my life,
both in the interest of building financial wealth,
and in the interest of practicing holistic health.
Some people believe that to become wealthy in this life,
you have to be a money hungry materialist,
but it is very difficult if not impossible to build long term sustainable wealth when you’re living at or above the means of your income.
It’s the very fact that most people are willing to trade their future abundance,
for the immediate gratification of faster cars,
bigger houses, flashier clothes, and richer food,
that keeps most people broke or under water at the end of every month.
What’s more,
the fastest way to maximize how far your current income will get you,
is to downsize and simplify.
They say you have to do what others are unwilling to do for a short time,
if you want to do what others are unable to do for the rest of your life.
Often times doing what others are unwilling to do,
boils down to doing without that which others tell themselves they need.
So liberate yourself from as many of your worldly attachments as possible,
and give yourself the best opportunity possible to experience true financial abundance.
Lastly) Invest The Difference Wisely
It’s probably no surprise that investing your excess income is key to building wealth.
However,
where most people get hung up,
is with the operative word of this principle,
“wisely.”
Everybody loves the idea of getting an insider tip,
or having some stroke of genius,
that leads them to putting a large sum of money somewhere,
that it, in turn, explodes over night.
But as they say in the real estate world:
If it sounds too good to be true,
it probably is.
The typical problem with promises of explosive overnight returns,
is that they generally ride on the back of volatile investments opportunities,
carrying significantly higher inherent risk.
This may not be a problem for a seasoned angel investor with a high risk tolerance.
But for someone just getting their feet wet investing,
a big loss has the potential to set them back for years,
if not discourage them from investing again all together.
Thats why it’s important to fill up your “safety bucket” first.
By first investing in safer long term plays,
that offer predicable consistent results,
based on the insights of experienced successful individuals,
we set ourselves up to build sustainable long term wealth,
and position ourselves to take greater risks,
more safely,
further down the road.
Conversely,
we also can’t be afraid to invest our excess income,
choosing instead to stuff it under the mattress,
or let it sit losing value in a bank account.
While it’s certainly true that nobody is investing to lose money,
the reality is that there is some risk involved in every investment,
and in that,
you ultimately have to be willing to lose your money,
before you can play the game.
As in the parable of the talents,
we must be willing to take some risk,
and to use that which the universe has given us,
to manifest greater abundance,
and as Robert Kiyosaki teaches in Rich Dad Poor Dad,
the rich don’t work for money.
So invest,
and invest wisely,
to put your money to work for you as soon as you can.
So there we have it.
1) Increase Your Income
2) Live Well Below Your Means
3) Invest The Difference Wisely
As mentioned previously,
these principles are certainly easier said than followed,
but at the same time,
they are simple.
The truth is,
like all good things in life,
building wealth takes hard work,
and time.
But with these principles to guide you,
you can view the pursuit of wealth as simply a byproduct of your own holistic growth.
Expand your knowledge base to maximize your value in the marketplace,
unburden yourself of unnecessary material attachments,
sew the abundance you manifest,
to reap more of like kind.
Follow these 3 rules,
And with a little patience,
You’ll not only find yourself experiencing a greater sense of material abundance,
But a greater sense of self as well.