How the Rich Get Richer and The Poor Get Poorer — This Will Change Your Life Like Never Before
Financial independence from time past has always been and is still one of the greatest challenges in the world today. In my own opinion, every single human being on the planet has the potential to become rich, successful and enjoy all the facilities of being financially free (as we are all created each with a unique gift), but the BIGGEST question is still:
‘’ Why Are The Resources Only In The Hands of a Few Group of People’’?
Now, this is not to say poor people don’t become rich as well. Poor people do rise to the top all the time. In fact, a good number of Millenial billionaires all come from the poverty level and they keep rising day-in-day-out.
But we are going to be looking at that one thing that makes these people so rich and yet keeping the poor where they are.
Okay — let’s get right into things.
An Overview of Our Financial Struggles
Have you been looking for ways to become financially free or independent?
Have you been asking yourself why is it that 96% of the world’s population is on the poor and middle class, while 4% are living on a completely different planet?
If that is you, then you are in the right place.
Just hang on till the end of this, because at the end of this piece of content, I have something amazing for you that will completely change your perspective about success.
The thing with the rich is that they have over time learned and grew up with very powerful skills and timeless principles that they practice every day of their lives, and these have enabled them to remain rich all through their lives.
These skills and principles that they have mastered and grown up with, is what separates them from every day’s people, and it is what makes them stand out, it is what makes them remain rich. Circumstances may change with time, but principles remain the same because they are our guide to riches or success.
Below are a few of those principles you must learn to become rich or successful.
1. The Rich Think Abundance While the Poor Think Lack
The rich have a completely different mindset in the way they approach the issue of (How to Make Money). It all begins with how they think, their beliefs, and their perceptions about life.
In the Holy Bible, the book of Proverbs 23:7 says — ‘’As a man thinks in his heart, so is he’’.
A great man of God by the name of Prophet T. B Joshua also said —
‘’Change Begins from Within, And Not Without’’.
One thing that the rich have been able to master, is their act of thinking — very important.
They understand that thoughts breed action, and actions breed results.
They understand very well the first LAW OF SUCCESS which is first within, then without.
Whoever you become on the inside, will definitely be reflected on the outside base on the action you take. When you realize that you are surrounded by the poor, it is important for you to make a decision that you won’t go along that mind path that they have taken, but then it is important for you to know, that no matter the decision you have taken, only action can bring the expected result.
So Don’t Think and Sleep, But Rise and Grind.
2. The Rich See Opportunity While The Poor See Problem
Let’s try to imagine a teacher who got an appointment to teach at secondary school, and he had to teach the senior classes, those classes preparing for final year exams. He taught them throughout the year and after they had taken the exam, a huge number of them failed and had to repeat the class.
Being disappointed, the teacher could possibly react by saying —
‘’I don’t understand why these students are so dull, after all my efforts of teaching them, they still failed’’.
But another teacher comes in and sees the amount of failure in the students and immediately recognizes an opportunity to make money while imparting knowledge into the lives of these students. He could possibly write a book on a practical guide to help them pass their exams excellently well.
Or he can organize some extra classes for the students, where they will have to pay some extra token to get extra coaching for their exams. Now the difference between these teachers is the fact that one saw a problem, and the other saw an opportunity.
3. The Rich Allow the Interest On Their Investment to Compound (Delayed Gratification) While The Poor Believe in Instant Profit
There is a simple fact about getting rich or building wealth and become successful and that is, no matter how great the talent or efforts maybe, some things just take time to arrive, said Warren Buffett. There is always a time interval between the time you make investments and when your investments will yield significant dividends.
The rich understand this law of delayed gratification, they understand the principles of compound interest and they always make it work for them. They understand how to take the interest that accrues from an initial capital invested and then put it back into the business to re-generate more profit from the initial profit.
4. Rich People Mind Their Association (team), While The Poor Don’t
There is a proverb that says your network will determine your net worth, and statistics have proven that to be true. The rich are very careful and deliberate in creating a particular kind of network around them and their business.
They may not be intelligent, but they surround themselves with highly intelligent people, they may not be strong, but they surround themselves with very strong people, people with empires in their minds, people with ideas which if worked upon and invested into, will become a goldmine for life.
Even the Holy Bible says in Proverb 13:20 —
‘’He who walks with the wise will be wise, but the companion of fools shall be destroyed’’
Spending time with wealthy people is very vital if you want to be financially successful. You’ll be amazed at how your perspective will change drastically when you hear people talking about how much they make in a single day, and how they go about achieving that.
I once came across the story of Jackie Kennedy, the once-upon-a-time wife of John F. Kennedy when she said,
‘’if I was broke, I know what I will do to get back on my feet, I will go to the most expensive restaurant in New York, buy myself a glass of water and eavesdrop on the conversations of the rich’’.
The rich are careful not to keep within their circle of friends, people who are myopic in thinking so they don’t find themselves regressing instead of progressing. And this is how important your association should be and should impart your life and everything else about you.
5. The Rich Make Their Money Work for Them While the Poor Work for Money
Statistics have shown that 96% of the world’s population are earning 4% of all the revenues made from the world’s economy, and just 4% of the world’s population are earning 96% of the revenues from the world’s economy.
Now, what does this mean, this is because the majority of the population of the world are actually working for money, I don’t blame them and I am not saying working is bad either. This is because of the impression that was imparted into them while they were growing up and in school.
The impression that, for you to become successful, you must study hard, go to the best schools, get good grades, secure a good or high-paying job, and save good money. There is nothing wrong with all of this as long as you are
comfortable and fulfilled, but as Robert Kiyosaki said, the problem with this approach is that you only make money as long as you are working. He said, in such a system you are literally exchanging time for money, and when we exchange our time for money, our earning potentials are limited.
Because you can only make money while you are still working, and so to make more money, you have to work longer hours which is highly demanding physically. He also added that Rich Dad told him that the poor and the middle class work for money, while the rich have their money working for them.
How are they able to achieve this? They learn how to invest their money into assets like businesses and other investments that generate passive income until they get to a point where they don’t have to work anymore, but have money flowing into their accounts.
The rich simply spend their money on ASSETS while the poor spend theirs on LIABILITIES.
Permit me to share with you a story I stumbled upon in my search for the reason why the rich get richer and the poor keep getting poorer.
In 1926, a man called George Samuel Clason published a series of parables that were set in the ancient city of Babylon. This set of parables later became a book called, The Richest Man In Babylon, and over the years it has become a standard in financial literature.
If you’ve never read the book, you’ll be blown away by the tried and tested lessons it presents for becoming wealthy and rich. The story begins with a character called ‘’Bansir’’ who happens to be a chariot builder, and ‘’Kobbi’’ a musician on his own side.
The two became so good and almost the best at their craft, yet they were poor and had no money. So, they set out to seek the advice and wisdom of their childhood friend Arkad, who had become very rich and had amassed large fortunes.
Arkad at that time was the richest man in Babylon, and despite how he spends money liberally and giving generously to charity, his money never moved, he seemed to have an endless amount of income streams and his wealth kept growing.
So when they got to him, Arkad told them a story, he said he was once a poor man before becoming this rich, he also said, he being poor back then and looking for how to get rich, he stroke a deal with a rich man to find out the secret to wealth accumulation in exchange for his work on a clay inscription.
So the rich man agreed and gave him a very valuable life’s lesson, he told them this: -
“I found the road to wealth when I decided that a part of all I earned was mine to keep, and so will you”.
This is a very powerful lesson and it’s the premise upon which the rich have built their wealth. The rich invest their money and spend what’s left, but the poor spend their money and try to save what’s left
Arkad, the richest man in Babylon did not make his fortune by spending more money than he could afford. He became rich by setting aside 10% of his earnings and invested it in ways that were sure to produce more income in the future. As a matter of fact, he was literally investing in his future.
This is the first law of financial freedom, to put 10% of your income aside for investing. What you get from life is not as important as what you invest in your future.
He also went ahead to tell them about the law of Gold which goes as follows:-
1. The First Law Says “Gold Comes Gladly and in an Increasing Quantity to Any Man Who Will Put Aside Not Less Than 1/10 Of His Earnings to Create an Estate for His Future and That of His Family’’.
This law goes in line with the principle of paying yourself first. The rich understand this principle very well, paying yourself first has always been and is still a proactive approach to financial freedom. Many are times where people complain about how little money they have, they’ll always say,
(no matter how hard I try, I always have very little or nothing left at the end of the month),
others will say,
(my job isn’t paying me well enough).
Yes, I totally agree that these facts may all be valid, but if only one can actually stop a while and assess where their money is going to, they’ll realize that most of the so-called PRIORITIES like weekly dinners out, or going out
clubbing every week are actually not necessary expenditures at all in your struggles for financial success but are in fact a huge downturn on your income and nobody ever achieves financial success this way.
So, what you should do instead is put 10% of your earnings aside every month. The moment your paycheck comes in, before you start paying the bills, rent, utilities, your mortgage, Netflix, etc, make sure you’ve set aside 10% first. And the sooner you get started, the better for you. And the larger your savings, the larger your investment funds will get.
And not only will you take advantage of compounding growth to help grow your money faster, but in case a major financial crisis occurs such as a huge medical bill, a large car repair, or in a worst-case scenario, you won’t be as scared as possible.
Now to the second law of financial freedom is to invest your money.
2. Gold Laboureth Diligently and Contentedly for The Wise Owner Who Fends for its Profitable Employment, Multiplying Even as The Flocks of the Field.
Gold and money indeed are all willing workers. The richest man in Babylon had learned earlier on how money works, and how to put his money to work for him. He was able to control his expenses and had learned and understood the difference between necessities and luxuries which is what the poor fail to understand.
That is why a lot of people struggle to try to differentiate the two.
When it comes to luxuries, the rule of thumb is simple.
If you don’t need it, don’t buy it!!!
It really is that simple.
As your savings rise to a significant level, you can start looking for profitable and safe businesses to invest your money into.
There are many ways you can invest your money such as: -
· Real estate,
· Stocks,
· Bonds,
· Online Marketing,
· And other businesses.
You need to see your money as little soldiers going into war and bringing back bounty, the more soldiers you have, the more bounty they’ll bring back. But before making any major investment, you first of all need to be absolutely certain about where you’re putting your money into.
Make sound investments and your money will come back to you in abundance. Seek first advice from people who have been there before you or are into the business you are interested in, or as I like to say, seek wisdom first before making any investment.
This brings me to the third law of financial freedom.
3. Gold Clingeth to The Protection of the Owner Who Invested Under the Advice of Men Wise in its Handling.
You have worked hard for your money right, and you shouldn’t lose even a single penny of it, so why would you trust your own inexperience or knowledge (which you don’t have) to carry out or make sound investments. This is exactly the error most poor and middle-class people commit.
They make investments out of their feelings, or things they might have overheard from their friends, neighbors, colleagues, or even on the TV or radio. What always eventually happens is that they end up losing money to that business.
What they thought was a sound and solid investment turns out to be a scam. In very rare cases would you hear, that the investments they made were successful or that they made any money at all.
Meanwhile the rich, on the other hand, do seek advice from professionals, wise in the handling of money before engaging in any major investment. Just like you wouldn’t trust a cook to perform heart surgery on your chest, you shouldn’t also trust people who are not skilled in the ways of making and handling money, to advise you on where to put and invest your hard-earned money into.
This brings me to the fourth law of financial freedom.
4. Gold Slippeth Away from the Man Who Invests it in Businesses or Purposes with Which He is Not Familiar, or Which Are Not Approved by Those Skilled in Its Keeping.
The best way to illustrate this law is with the help of my friend John. John has been following and practicing the first (1) law of financial freedom for one year now, and has so far saved up quite a significant amount of money. In fact, he has saved a total of ten thousand dollars ($10.000.00). So, John is a reasonable and smart guy.
He reads a couple of books a year, he makes sure he learns something new every day, and watches TV and YouTube videos on his favorite subject, (investing and making money). like I said, (Financial independence has always been and is still the world’s greatest challenge of all-time). Although a smart guy, he has a very acute flaw in investing.
These are the kind of investments John and a lot of poor people subscribe to.
The moment they hear about something that sounds like a good investment on TV or radio, they dive into it right away. I’m sure you’ve heard it all before,
· This is one real estate opportunity you can’t afford to miss,
· Or invest in this stock, it’s too big to fail,
and a couple of months later, it is all a mess. All because you had no basic knowledge of the said business or how to go about it.
The basic rule to follow when investing is also very simple but a bit different,
if you don’t understand it, there are three things involved,
=you either learn it,
=or get someone knowledgeable in it,
=or don’t invest in it at all, period!
Or, just as the third law suggests, seek advice from men wise in the keeping and making of money. This is what John should have done, instead of investing in stocks and real estate without basic knowledge.
He rather should have looked for and sought the advice of a person who is succeeding and making money in real estate or stock investing. Because he failed to do that, my friend John is dead broke and has just about five hundred dollars left in his account.
But even at that, all hope is not yet lost, just like they say, it is never too late.
In his moment of misery and hardship, John was able to come up with a brilliant plan to make back the money he had lost. His plan was very simple, brilliant, and cunning. In his own opinion, he can’t fail this time around.
My friend John plans to go to Las Vegas, the gambling city, and bet on a couple of games and then make back the money he lost. he’s absolutely sure and certain that he is going to make back his money this way and then some more on top of it.
This brings me to the fifth law of financial freedom.
5. Gold Flees the Man Who Would Force it to Impossible Earnings, or Who Follows the Alluring Advice of Tricksters and Schemers, or Who Trusts it to His Own Inexperience and Romantic Desires in Investment.
As I was saying, in John’s plan to make back the money he had lost and even more, he thought the fastest and easiest way to achieve that was to jump into gambling, although some people do make a lot of money gambling (very rarely), it wasn’t John’s lucky day. Finally, my friend John learned two very important lessons that year.
1. What happens in Las Vegas stays in Vegas.
2. And, there’s no quick way to become rich.
The lessons their friend Arkad taught them are the premise of the book, and they are the principal factors of wealth-building habits, that I believe every rich person has followed and everyone should accumulate wealth. These lessons have helped millions of people out there who practice them to become financially stable, free, and successful.
Conclusion
Mark Zuckerberg once said ‘’ideas don’t come out fully formed, they only become clear as you work on them, you just have to get started’’.
Yes, I know as a human being that you are, you do have your own weaknesses, but as you work on your project, all that will give way and everything will fall into place.
There is no time to make a start better than now. So, just get started on whatever it is you are passionate about and follow the rule of success and you will be successful.
I hope this piece of content was helpful. But before I leave you, if you ever need a hand or have any contribution to make or a question to ask, please do feel free to leave them below, I will be more than glad to help you out.
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