Money helps you gain freedom and then lose that same freedom in pursuit of more money. Everyone starts out going after money because it helps gain freedom of doing what you want, where you want and when you want. Somewhere along the way, money morphs into a status comparison tool that keeps you running for more.
More money is made with compounding than any other means. Early life decisions can have an outsized impact on money trajectory because of the time runway. Warren Buffett starting investing at age 11.
Getting an education does not make you rich. Education combined with action and grit improves your chances of attracting money and with some luck, you can be rich.
To make a lot of money, you often start by being obsessed with money. You think about it all the time. And you expect you will never have to think about money after you are rich. But once you are rich, you can’t stop thinking about it. Making money leaves permanent etching in your brain through which your thoughts flow for the rest of your life. It’s not a good or a bad thing – it is the way it is.
No amount of money is enough if you don’t know how to keep it. Most parents want to leave money for their kids. Those same parents miss preparing kids for the money.
When money doesn’t change hands, we struggle to judge the real value of things. Relationships, health, eyesight, an evening spent reading a book, ability to run a marathon etc. have vastly different values to different people because such things have no objective currency of comparison.
Time freedom requires money, and a certain aversion to owning stuff. It’s a mistake to think money alone can buy time freedom. Money buys you stuff. And stuff requires your time and attention. Every object you own creates a gentle tug on your attention. You may think you own the stuff, but before you know, your stuff owns you.
There is no objective way to define enough money. Enough relative to what? You never hear anyone say they have enough money because the more wealth you accumulate, the more wealthy people you’re exposed to. You may start out comparing yourself with your friends and neighbors, but as you make more and more, the comparison shifts to the country club members to the private jet owners to the billionaires.
Money can lead to a false sense of security against problems. Most of your life, you think that all your problems can be solved with money. After you have the money, you realize that the problems that can be solved using money are the easy problems. The hard problems (such as a health issue, a strained relationship with a loved one) require a lot more than just money.
You may start out by saying you will quit after you are rich. But once you are rich, you don’t suddenly stop making even more money. People like making money more than they enjoy having money. The high comes from the increase.
Spending life chasing excessive money is like turning a road trip into a tour of gas stations. Gasoline is needed for the trip but it isn’t the point of the journey.
