Jeffrey Strain writes 10 Reasons You Aren’t Rich for The Street.com. He also writes the popular Personal Finance Advice. The ten reasons are great, but before we get there, I have a couple points of minor criticism.
The title says “rich”, but the introductory paragraph implies that means having a million dollars. Many would disagree in this world of inflation that a million dollars is equivalent with being rich. As an example, it buys a nice little home in my area, Silicon Valley.
My other criticism is that the title is present tense. It heavily implies that if I have followed all ten reasons to this point, then I am rich. Then that promise is broken in the opening paragraph with the words “or on your way to becoming [a millionaire].”
The ten reasons are well worth the read. I personally liked “9. You’re Financially Afraid.” It’s a big reason why I don’t tie up a lot of money earning 5% interest in a high interest bank account. After inflation and taxes, you’re lucky if you make a dollar or two. At the end of the article, I realized that I’m following all the rules, so I’m on my way.
I’d still like to add two more reasons reasons “why you are not rich”:
11. You Need More Time – If you do all these things at age 60, you aren’t going to be rich at age 62.
12. You Need to Have Income - Many people will say this is not true, that’s it’s always possible to spend less than you earn. Back in the Dot Com bust, I had lost all my income except for the occasional contracting gig. I became a frugal maven out of necessity. I would not have become rich with that life style though.
i’ll have to go and check out these links :)
Okay #11 and #12 are understandable also. #13 I can add is not marrying a rich person! LOL
I can tell you that #1 is almost apart of just being an American. Some of us have that in our blood.
Didn’t notice that Jeffrey had the opportunity to write for The Street! Cool! He used to live in Silicon Valley too but now he’s over in Japan… we could’ve all had a meet up sometime. Maybe we can all have one if he comes back for a visit.
Also, the topic of “why we aren’t rich” seems to be a popular one. I noticed a similar list a while back on Super Saver’s Wealth Builder blog. Goes to show we all know how to self reflect and hopefully get ourselves pointing towards the right direction towards our dreams.
Time and income is indispensable to become rich. However, it is not how much you earn but rather it is how much you save that counts in life that is why paying yourself first is the most precious advice you can ever get to build your golden nest.
Only a closed mind thinks of riches as wealth. Is not a greater wealth happiness in all its forms? I have learned that understanding and incorporating simplicity and making time for it in my life is greater than all riches, but it is indeed fleeting as one focuses too much on seeking money all of the time. I’d rather be a happy poor fool than a miserable rich idiot.
Yes, but this article doesn’t focus on overall wealth and happiness as much as it does the financial aspect of being rich. The overall wealth and happiness area is a larger discussion for another time/place.