Shaq is rich; the white man that signs his check is wealthy. Here you go Shaq, go buy yourself a bouncing car. Bling-Bling….I ain’t talking bout Oprah; I’m talking about Bill Gates.. OK! If Bill Gates woke up tomorrow with Oprah’s money he would jump out of a window. I’m not talking about rich, I’m talking about wealthy. – Chris Rock
People pray for poor people, but they listen to rich people. I want to be rich. – John Thompson II
Of the billionaires I have known, money just brings out the basic traits in them. If they were jerks before they had money, they are simply jerks with a billion dollars. – Warren Buffet
Pregnant people get strange tastes. I was pregnant with poverty. Pregnant with dirt and pregnant with smells that turn people away, pregnant with cold and pregnant with shoes that were never bought for me, pregnant with five other people in my bed and No Daddy in the next room, and pregnant with hunger. Paste don’t taste too bad when you’re hungry. These words uttered by a welfare child who saw his mom raise 6 children as a maid. – Dick Gregory
When I was in high school the big thing was to go to college graduate and get a desk job with benefits. Imagine my surprise when I get out of school the oil field workers, construction, energy company workers are making twice as much as me. It was just that, a surprise. I was not envious. I didn’t regret going to school nor was I going to apply to work in these professions.
I recently was faced with a possible opportunity to interview with one of those jobs and it made me revisit how I look at wealth and financial flexibility. I was the kid that would work and save my money for months just to purchase an item I really wanted. It was never about the money. My younger sister would spend money she received that same day. My older sister would spend half, loan out some and save the rest. I could go without candy; chips and other “nick knacks” because I was focused on what I wanted. I have never been focused or driven by money. I have always looked at money as a tool to acquire goods or services etc.
I think most people would say they would like to live comfortably and that’s fair. I’ve never measured success in dollars and cents. I always felt like if I was happy with me, put God first and I received my families respect and admiration I would be successful. I felt like if I was trying to be the best person I could be I would be successful. As far as wealth I admit I never really gave it much thought until the last few years. Hill Harper is his book The Wealth Cure advises that money is not wealth. “Money plus wellness equals wealth”. In a sense wealth is tied to your health and financial flexibility. If you stay in your financial lane unburdened by unnecessary debt you will remain flexible.
Kevin Hart who, at this present time is about as big as it comes in Hollywood did the Laugh at My Pain tour in 2012. I stay in my financial lane people! Let me explain what I mean when I say this. Here’s what happens you start to make money you meet other people that make money. When you meet other people that make money you want to hang out with these people. Naturally you want to spend money like how they spend money but, you realize that you don’t make the same kind of money that they make. Hart ends the set advising he doesn’t hang around athletes because “they don’t respect money”.
At its core money is just printed green paper that only has the assigned value that has been placed on it. How do you look at money? Do you feel pressure to keep up with the “Jones’s”? That Lexus are condo with the view may be way more significant to you than just “a car” and a “house”. Do you look at money emotionally? Man I had a bad day but, some new shoes will make me feel better. I don’t feel like even leaving the house “I don’t get paid until next week”. We have given money and its pursuit to much value and control over our lives. Money has its place and that is a fact. We need money to acquire goods and services. It is also the compensation we receive for labor and ingenuity. I still can’t comprehend how $8.00 compensates a man for an hour of his life but, I digress. I also encourage people to enjoy the fruits of their labor but, in moderation. By in large I want us to understand that money is not the path to happiness or fulfillment.
I was having a recent conversation with an associate explaining my views on money, wealth and etc. The questions of what is money to you and how do you look at money came up. I asked are you looking to attain money for greed, security, a tool or for some other reason. She posed the question “what if I want to take care of my family or set myself up for the future”. I advised that was very admirable but, at what cost. When your kids are grown and your parents long gone will they remember how well you took care of them or that you were never there. Is it not our purpose in life to help others how can you help others and enjoy life if you are centrally concerned with yourself? You have to find a balance.
The starting point of all achievement is DESIRE. Keep this constantly in your mind. Weak desire brings weak results; just a small fire makes a small amount of heat. – Napoleon Hill
The Weary Blues 