Instead of dollar bills, think employees. Each dollar bill you gain is another employee you gain. Dollar bills, as employees, allow you to make more money.
I read an insane person’s comment on a YouTube video recently. The guy in the video just bought an Aston Martin. A lot of people in the comments were telling the guy he was stupid – that an Aston Martin at his age/income level is stupid. But there was one commenter who really needs a lot of financial guidance. Here’s what he said:
He didn’t waste money buying the car. If he didn’t spend the money then he would have wasted it. It would go unused. I am an idiot.
Okay, maybe he didn’t say that last part. But wow, this guy really has his head on backwards. Keeping money in your control is the furthest thing from wasting it. While keeping your money (your employees) you have greater opportunity to make more money.
At the most basic level, you can keep the money in a savings account at a bank. Right now, for every $100,000 you keep there, you’ll get about $1,000 per year more. $1,000 more employees per year. If you invest the money (as you should) you may be able to make a LOT more. 10% is not unheard of. So yes, for every $100,000 you invest, you can get $10,000.
When you buy a depreciating asset such as an Aston Martin, you instantly slaughter your employees. The car depreciates naturally, you scratch it, it breaks down, you have to insure it, you have to fuel it… Those poor employees getting killed off each and every day.
This means you both have fewer employees but also those employees won’t be able to recruit any new ones via investments. Here’s how you should really think about your money:
The More Employees You Have, the Better
More is better. Absolutely. Even if you feel you have enough money in your life, more is always better. Let me reiterate. More is always better.
I’m saying this to you as someone is doesn’t have a great need for money. I’m frugal. I stopped lusting after expensive items years ago. Thus, I don’t need much money. But the more money I have, the better.
This is because having money means I can control more. For instance, if I want to support a nonprofit, I have the money to do so. If I want to help out someone I know, there you go. If I want to support a political candidate, there you go. I don’t really think of the money as mine. I just know I get to say who can have it. It’s exhilarating.
Make Sure Your Employees Never Sleep
Make sure your employees are always hard at work. This means never leaving them without work to do. This is one reason I hate paper money. It’s just sitting in your wallet, under your bed, in a safe, wherever. It’s depreciating quickly. The same is true with keeping money in a PayPal account. No interest. No good.
What you want is your employees to be operating at peak efficiency. One great way to do this is to first get a high interest checking account. Then get a high interest savings account. Then find ways to invest your money (401k, Roth IRA, etc. etc.). If you want to go further, you can look into investing the money in a way that you can better control. This can be investing in your business or a friend’s. I know some business owners who 100% feel they can put their money to work best in their business.
Make It Automatic
No one can be motivated 100% of the time. If I had to consistently ramrod my employees, little work would get done. This is why it’s important to make things automatic. Make sure your employees can work on their own.
The way you make your employees work automatically is by setting up systems. The most obvious way of doing this is to automatically place part of your paycheck into your 401(k). When you do this automatically, you won’t miss it. And your employees get right to work. There’s no waiting around until the boss finally tells them to do something.
This same automatic method works well for paying bills. Make them automatic. Then you won’t have to worry about missing payments and damaging your credit score. Definitely take advantage of this technology, regardless of your age.
Enjoy Your Investments
Make sure to live a well-rounded life. Feel free to reap some of the fruits of your labor. If you scrimp and save too much, you may explode. That’s bad for business. Consider pocketing the dividends, for instance. Use that money for play if you’d like.
Remember, your money should be robotic but you needn’t be. Put them to work. Enjoy your life. Get richer. Happy wealth building.
Bio:
Will Lipovsky is a personal finance freelance writer and internet marketer. His most embarrassing moment has been saying to a Microsoft executive, “I’ll just Google it.” You can get in touch with Will at FirstQuarterFinance.com.
Ha! Laughing at that youtube comment. Interesting perspective about money! It makes sense. I’m guilty of letting money sit around in my very low-interest bank account in case of emergencies. That little cushion makes me feel safe, but I’m looking to make that money “work” harder for me in a higher-interest account.