This is the first in a series of eight articles expanding on the steps of the article:
8 Steps to Build Wealth
Step 1: Decide to Build Wealth
In order to build wealth, this step is not only the first chronologically, but also the first in importance. Unfortunately and perhaps counter-intuitively, it’s also a very overlooked step. Plenty of people would like to be wealthy, but very few actively decide to set out on a path to build wealth. If you choose to do so, you’ll be standing out from the crowd.
Most people I’ve talked to view money as a means for gratification. These people spend much of what they make (or sometimes more than what they make), and although they may put some money away for retirement, or for a house, their primary concern is to afford the lifestyle they want in the present. This viewpoint is indeed somewhat valid. When someone works hard for money, it’s only natural that they want to enjoy the fruits of their labor. Life is in part about experiencing new things, and some of these experiences do have an economic cost.
There are some that wish to take wealth to the next step- to focus on building some real wealth that exponentially grows over the course of their lifetime. Wealth can mean abundance, freedom, success, and most importantly, the ability to shape the world in some small way as you see fit- for better or worse. Money can be used to build and to help, and also to destroy and to deny. If you develop passive income that supports your lifestyle, you are free to direct your energy and your remaining resources to what you are passionate about.
Wealthy people, by definition, are in the minority. Wealth is defined, generally, in reference to the rest of the culture that you live in. The standard of wealth in one country may be significantly different than wealth in another country. What this means is that in order to build wealth, you have to do something different than what is normal. Since the majority are not wealthy, you can’t follow the ways of the masses to attain wealth. You have to fight against needless consumption and credit card debt. You have to set aside money for growth each time you make it. You have to have a solid understanding of the basic principles of wealth building, investing, and business, and this requires constantly learning and growing.
The next seven steps are all about how to build wealth, but it begins with you deciding that building wealth is one of your goals. If it’s not, then don’t worry, and move on. If it is, then you have to choose to build wealth and to know that you will succeed. It’s not a goal you can be wishy-washy or uncertain about. You have to dedicate some time and some resources to making it happen and to remain confident in your goal. Money doesn’t find it’s way to good stock investments by itself; it requires financial prudence to produce abundance.