It’s a pretty strange question, isn’t it?
Why am I asking? Because I am reading, I Will Teach You to Be Rich, by Ramit Sethi and he asks the question in the first chapter. “Most people never spend even ten minutes thinking through what ‘rich’ means to them,” Sethi suggests. “Here’s a hint: it’s different for everyone, and money is just a small part of being rich.” He makes a good point and we will get back to it, but I can hear what you are thinking, or maybe it’s just me. You are thinking something like being rich is vulgar or I never meant to be rich, I just wanted a good life, or I don’t want to be rich. Something like that. And I think that is the point. I am suggesting you look first at what comes up for you when you think about what being rich is.
It is a good exercise to occasionally question the beliefs we have about money. Why? Because without questioning your assumptions (about anything) from time to time they become unconscious, unexamined beliefs and they begin to run the show, not you. Our mind is pretty efficient, so once we have figured out something “is this” or “is that” it pretty much files it away for future use so it doesn’t have to go through the processing every time. If something similar comes along your brain files it under “is this” or “is that” and moves on to the next thing. The problem is when our minds decide something “is that” we don’t question it. Do this too many times and the belief is running the show and not you. So, when I ask you what rich is to you, you may have gone to I am advocating you live like the Kardashians.
Nothing is further from the truth. I want you to live as you want to live. Spend some time thinking about what is important to you. Not what you neighbors, co-workers or relatives think. That is why I want you to think about what rich is for you. For me it is:
- Travel and to do so in relative comfort
- Spend as much on healthy and organic food as I want without worrying that I just spent $30 on a piece of salmon
- Live near the beach
- Spend quality time with family and friends
There I said it and I just realized I rarely spend 10 minutes thinking about what I want or what I value and what I don’t. Which brings me to what I think Sethi’s point is. The idea is to put your resources into what is important to you and take the oxygen away from the things that don’t matter; stop buying them or paying for them. There is a lot more to the book and I recommend you read it. That is why I am going to make you this offer. Send me an email to david@hicokfinancial.com with BUY ME THE BOOK in the subject line and I will send you the book. That’s it. Why am doing this? I want to see how many of you read to the end of this article. Enjoy!
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