Comments on: Frugalism vs. Capitalism III

By: plexluthor

plexluthor — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 19:13:54 +0000

This is a little outdated, but if you want more data for the next exchange along these lines, consider picking up a copy of The Millionaire Next Door if you haven’t already. Two PhDs write about surveys of millionaires, and their findings that while most are small-business owners with good incomes, they usually lean more to the frugal side than the capitalist side. The book has interested stats, such as “The most you ever paid for a {watch, shoes, car}” or “How long since you {bought a new car, traded a stock}?”

If you want to be a billionaire, you almost have to have a huge income. If your aim is a little lower, though, frugalism is probably a better bet.

By: Foobarista

Foobarista — Mon, 25 Dec 2006 08:54:31 +0000

I have one standing gripe about this whole dialog: it’s comparing apples to oranges. The tycoons listed are not “investors writ large”, but actual businesspeople. In other words, comparing how someone runs their business with their choice in cars or whatever is rather silly.

That said, the real discussion is how one spends one’s “money time”. As a general “top-liner”, I agree one should spend one’s “money time” working on the top-line. But some attention to bottom-line spending can help greatly, particularly since it typically doesn’t take all that much time once you start doing it. And an eye on seemingly trivial expenses helps build the cash hoard needed for funding investments.

By: Lazy Man

Lazy Man — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 17:07:29 +0000

You know, I was thinking a similar thing. We could probably go back and forth on this for quite some time. In the end, we’d spend a ton of hours with little to show.

Plus, I had a new business idea last night, and I have to research about developing it. More on that in a future post.

By: Rich Slick

Rich Slick — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 16:58:52 +0000

Bloody hell man…you are a persistent bloke. Well done and good show. I won’t respond because I’m busy researching investment opportunities ;) and I’ll start holiday in exactly three minutes.

Cheers & Happy Holidays,
Rich Slick