Most people on on this planet yearn to wake up rolling in a pile of cash. The concept of getting ahead has long been the fragment of modern society, but what if we told you you’ve been doing it wrong all along? With endless solutions on how to get rich quick and ponzi schemes, punters tend to overlook the pitfalls of this arduous journey as they dive head first into the rat race.
D’Marge spoke to Luke Laretive who is a Senior Private Wealth Adviser at Shaw and Partners to find out the real reasons why you’ll never be rich and what you can do to change that.
You’re Impatient
I hate to contradict my new Nigerian pen pal, but from what I’ve seen, it takes a long time to get rich. Whilst some appear to be overnight successes, if you dig deep enough you’ll find there have been many, many years of trying and failing, learning and improving that have culminated in a point in time where preparation has met opportunity.
The point is, successful people stayed in the game long enough to succeed – they didn’t quit. It’s not passively doing the same thing repeatedly; it’s constant critical evaluation, improvement and experimentation.
You’re A Genius In Hindsight
You can talk and plan and scheme until you’re blue in the face but you’ll never win if you don’t do stuff. Get off the couch, give up your Netflix account, sell your PS4 and start working. No one cares if you “knew that stock would fly” or “that business idea would kill it!” Ironically, neither would you if you shut up and had the balls to do it in the first place.
You Are Afraid Of Losing Money
To quote Investment Advisor and bestselling personal finance author Robert G. Allan, “how many millionaires do you know who have become wealthy by investing in savings accounts?”…queue crickets here.
Without being able to measure risk and endure the challenges any enterprise will face, you’ll never make a quid. You must be willing to get your hands dirty and enjoy the process of losing – it’s not all Rolex’s and private jets on the way to the top. Whether you’re investing in other people’s businesses, real assets (like a property) or your own business, nothing goes up in a straight line from the day you start and everything is temporary.
You’re A Tax Dodger
Be a student of history – investing for tax minimisation has been the worst investment strategy ever. Budplan (Tea Tree Oil), Timbercorp, Great Southern Plantations…the list is endless. Invest to make lots of money, pay lots of tax. It’s way more fun than not paying tax and losing money. Heed the sage advice of John Templeton – billionaire mutual fund investor and the ‘greatest global stock picker of last century’, according to Money magazine – “The four most dangerous words in investing are: ‘this time it’s different’”.
You’re A Pessimist
Positivity and optimism isn’t only beneficial, it’s a pre-requisite. It’s hard to remain resilient when things aren’t going your way or if you don’t believe that things will improve.
It’s impossible to start a business without vision for a better future and it’s unlikely you’ll inspire others to follow you if all they hear from you is the glass is half empty. As the great business magnate Warren Buffett said, “I will tell you how to become rich…be fearful when others are greedy and greedy only when others are fearful”. The big upside here is where there’s lots of negativity and irrational behaviour, there’s equally overblown opportunities to make money.
You’re A Punter
It’s disrespectful to money and subsequently everyone who has less than you do. If you want to lose your money, go give it to charity. If you want to ‘get rich’, refer to points 1-5. Shortcuts are for chumps.
Special thanks to Luke Laretive who is a Senior Private Wealth Adviser at Shaw and Partners. This is general advice and you should consider it in light of your personal circumstances.
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