There is a difference between getting rich and having wealth. I want to teach you to get rich, but I really want to teach you how to get wealthy. You can get rich quick but nobody gets wealthy quick. Wealth is the abundance of something in such surplus, that no condition can destroy it. It’s abundant—you can’t get rid of all of it. There’s so much that no matter what happens around the world, it can’t go away. Making a lot of money is one thing—getting wealthy is something entirely different. How do you learn to do what wealthy people do? To start, stop saying things like, “Money won’t make me happy” because that’s false. People who are just getting by talk about money as though it’s a bad thing—but I promise you having buckets of money isn’t going to be a reason you’ll ever be unhappy. I want to outline the mistakes that most people make that the wealthy don’t. #1 Not Using Debt—You’ve been told don’t use it, never use it, it’s evil. My boy Dave Ramsey says all debt is bad debt. If you do your homework and don’t just listen to the popular thinking that debt is somehow killing everyone, you’ll understand there are different kinds of debt. There’s time to use debt and there’s time not to. When do you use debt? There’s no always in anything. All big companies use debt. Debt can be used to expand a business. Debt is my ability to go into the marketplace and produce more income, not buy more things. I never use debt for consumption. Consumption is things like groceries or cars. Not all debt is created equal. I use debt to build income. Debt is me going to the bank to borrow money to build my business. Look at Apple, they have $270 billion in cash. They borrow money from Japan. Why? Because they can use debt cheaper to explode income, to invest in equipment, and to do research to blow up their top line. I have over $200 million in debt. I’m not paying it—the tenants who live in my apartment buildings are paying down my $200 million debt while I get the write-off from the interest they are paying. So when do you use debt? When it makes you more money, when you get a write-off, and when you can expand your business. Don’t believe that all debt is bad—get wealthy by using debt smartly. #2 Money Shortage Mindset—If you were brought up poor or middle class you have a certain mindset. You believe that there is a shortage of money. Money doesn’t grow on trees, right? Well, there is more money on this planet than there are trees. You can print money faster than you can grow a tree. Money, here in the US, was actually printed from a cotton bush. By definition a bush is a tiny tree. That paper was cotton, so it’s not true that money doesn’t grow on trees. Money is everywhere. Go outside and look around—the cars, the buildings, the people wearing clothes and ties, the retail centers, and the purses. There is no shortage of money. If you were brought up poor or middle-class you were brought up by people that believed money was in shortage. Turn the lights out, eat all your food, save the pennies—look, a penny is a PENNY. Fix this money shortage mindset. Start looking for money. See how much money is around you. There is abundance and opportunity everywhere. Get wealthy by seeing abundance. #3 Looking at Prices—You know the old saying that if you have to know the price you can’t afford it? That’s actually not true. Why are you looking at prices? If you’re looking at price you already have deceived yourself. Price is not your problem. The price is not what you are buying. I did this for years—I’d go to a restaurant and look at the prices on the menu. Do you think the super wealthy worry about the price of a steak or a cup of coffee? Wealthy people don’t worry over price. They aren’t worried over a $30 book or a $1000 program. Their attention is focused on success. Be focused on your income. The average American makes $52,000 a year where the average cost of living is higher than $52,000 a year. 76% of all Americans live paycheck to paycheck in the wealthiest country in the world. It’s no different for a person in America than it is for a guy in India making $2 a day. Neither has enough income. It’s no different. All the attention is on what things costs. Shift your attention away from price because price is not your problem. The problem is you don’t make enough income. Looking at prices is an indication that you’ve contracted financially. Get wealthy by focusing on your income, not prices. These are just a few ways you can get started on the road to wealth. This is not a get-rich-quick scheme where if you start doing these things you’ll be a millionaire next week. These are rather broad principles that you need to embody if you ever want to become wealthy. Have you dreamed of becoming not just rich, but even super rich? Quit focusing on prices, refuse to see money as a shortage, and know that not all debt is bad. Get on Playbook to Millions for much, much more to get you on your way to your first million. People are doing it, when will you? The reality is there are two options, invest in yourself or give up on ever being wealthy. Which will it be?
