"My husband thinks I have it soo good but my life is soo stressful. I have to wake up in the morning and decide which vault I'm going to get my clothes from. Then I have to decide which jewelry to wear with what outfit. Then I have to decide who I'm going to have lunch with and where I'm going to have lunch. Then, do I take the Bentley or the Rolls? Ooh, it's soo much! He has noo idea." Sitting poolside, her friend in jaw dropping fashion nodded in agreement and gave a reassuring, yet comforting, "Yes, I know." This was a real conversation that occurred in one of the most affluent areas in the U.S. last year before the conversation about a home that had just been purchased for a steal at $25 million dollars so they decided to add $11 million in upgrades because of the unbelievably low price.
With these types of conversations, it is easy to see why people want millions. They feel that with this kind of money, they have tons of options so they can pick and chose not only their materials but how they're going to spend their day and with whom they're going to spend it. It's a life of total economic freedom. But before you run off and start calculating what life is like when you have tens or even hundreds of millions, have you ever wondered what your life might look like when you're worth $500,000? See Exhibit A.
In my book Slide 68, one of the chapters entitled As You Set Goals, Figure Out Who's Already Reached Them talks specifically about what steps you need to take to help paint that picture and goes on to illustrate how to contact the people who's reached the goals you set. In fact, Clemson University liked a presentation I gave on the subject so much, they are currently creating a tee shirt for the students with the words inscribed "Who You Know Matters" after my High Impact Presentation DVD. Once you can see your day and ultimately your life vividly, there is nobody that can stop you from living it regardless if the economy hits the worse recession since the Great Depression or not. What you believe is what you see and what you see is what you're going to get.
Assuming Millions is the Only Answer Exudes an Unhealthy Money Blueprint
Problems can arise if you minimize the value of the $500K net worth example we give. The point isn't so much a magic number as it is you don't want as much as you may assume. Remember that net worth is the value of what you have after what you owe. When the desired millions aren't earned by a given age or year, people take their focus off net worth which is where true wealth lives. One may begin to lose hope and abandon solid wealth building strategies. Building wealth should come strategically every month and should actually be quite boring. But nobody wants to earn a boring million over time. We want the sexy Wall Street Journal headlines that scream some guy made a fortune with something simple that you should have patented because you had the idea years ago. With that story hot off the press, vulnerability sets in and people begin to take investment long shots. Forget the matching 401K company contributions, sensible spending and the used Lexus. You run after fanciful pipe dreams where no one has any real proven success that you can put your finger on. Instead of using true expendable income, you begin to bet the light and gas bill money thinking when that big payday comes, you'll show all your doubters. At that point, poor spending habits set in and you start eating out daily for lunch and buying coffee for breakfast with a credit card knowing you will only make the minimum payment. That seemingly small $8 today and $12 next Tuesday sling shot turns into a self inflicted gunshot wound at the end of the credit card cycle.
Millions and Then What?
Because we assume tons of new money means less problems, we dismiss the concept of writing out what we want simply because if we get a pile of new money we'll finally have a good enough reason to plan it all out. If that is remotely your way of thinking, then more than likely it will never happen for you. You won't ever take your wealth building seriously and if by chance big new money does come your way it will exit as fast as it came because your lack of a financial strategy will ruin you faster than the new friends that came with it can run away. I had to force a friend of mine who swore she needed millions to do a dream life exercise and when she finally did, I strategically brought her to the conclusion that she was only $30K a year from living out her ultimate dreams. Where is the need for millions in this picture? You have to figure out if you had the money today what would you do with it first...and then what...and then what...and then what? I'm willing to bet some of those things you can do now so before you start saying I would volunteer at the homeless shelter while bringing them lunch, try calculating how far you are from that lifestyle today.
People like to say we live in a microwave society and everyone wants instant gratification and while that might be true for some, I think a bigger issue is we want Gucci, Mercedes, mansions and diamonds at the same darn time! We can buy one or maybe even two big ticket items but frustration sets in when we can't have it altogether all the time. When I first began flying helicopters and started strategizing the purchase of one, I saw a mega yacht with the most ultimate helicopter landing on it. I thought to myself, "Man, that guy has it all!" He has a lot but I assure you something is missing. Something is always missing and it's never enough. We always want more. It's human nature.
The Good News is There's Still Hope
Now that you've gone on an emotional money roller coaster, let's bring it right back to the basics with a few simple steps.
- Sit down and figure out what you really want and how often you want it
- Research how much it costs
- Determine how far you are away from it and strategize a plan to make up the difference
**Plans, action, hope and faith outweigh an emplty bank account**
Once you do that, I'm willing to bet that 80% of you will be able to get it done on far less than even one million let alone millions. Most people's lifestyle doesn't change that much with new money. The guy in the trailer park who lives in a single wide and drives a ten year old truck wants a doublewide and a slightly used truck at best. You're not that far away folks. Take a mental picture of what you want, itemize your plan and stick to it.
Let's work!
Hey Mike Jenkins aka Charlie Murphyyyy- Forget her Rolls! When they gon make that Bentley truck?
