- Joined
- Dec 29, 2024
- Messages
- 2,993
- Solutions
- 1
- Time Online
- 8d 6h
- Reputation
- 14,101
A conversation I encountered on org:
Guy1: I don’t want to get rich only when I'm 50. You're a scammer. (Changed it a bit to make it “.com-friendly”)
Guy2: I didn't scam anyone. Who do you think you are talking to? Fine by me, don't get rich in your 50s, don't get rich ever.
This conversation made me reflect on how we perceive wealth. As for me, I want to be rich when I’m young because being wealthy in old age might not be as fulfilling as it is in youth. We might be too weak and without that youthful desire to travel, party and experience all the best things that money can buy. I essentially don’t want to be an old man living with the regret of never having experienced many things (which he can no longer replicate), during what was supposed to be his prime.
I think that most of us would agree that to become rich, we have to take some sort of risk rather than saving money and making relatively safe investments. However, this seems more and more like a survivorship bias to me (might be quite water for some). The ones who failed to succeed rarely get interviewed, if ever. You only hear about the people who succeeded by taking big risks because that’s what the people love to hear, that’s what really sells for the broadcasting media.
The conclusion from this is how most of us will never become rich. This is quite a sad realisation in all honesty: to know that we’ll probably never achieve the American dream.
Therefore, knowing that most people will never achieve extreme wealth, it’s worth considering alternative approaches such as safe investments and consistent saving to secure financial stability in the long run, which, in addition, could pay off very well and may result in significant wealth.
This is in no way meant to discourage risk-taking. In fact, I still do not want to wait decades for wealth to reach me. Rather, it is just a caution about how being slow and steady might be better for most people rather than trying to get rich quick. While wealth in youth might be ideal, securing financial stability or becoming rich in old age is still a worthwhile goal and far better than never attaining it at all.
No statement made here is set in stone. There are many paths towards success, so let this be a discussion instead.
Guy1: I don’t want to get rich only when I'm 50. You're a scammer. (Changed it a bit to make it “.com-friendly”)
Guy2: I didn't scam anyone. Who do you think you are talking to? Fine by me, don't get rich in your 50s, don't get rich ever.
This conversation made me reflect on how we perceive wealth. As for me, I want to be rich when I’m young because being wealthy in old age might not be as fulfilling as it is in youth. We might be too weak and without that youthful desire to travel, party and experience all the best things that money can buy. I essentially don’t want to be an old man living with the regret of never having experienced many things (which he can no longer replicate), during what was supposed to be his prime.
I think that most of us would agree that to become rich, we have to take some sort of risk rather than saving money and making relatively safe investments. However, this seems more and more like a survivorship bias to me (might be quite water for some). The ones who failed to succeed rarely get interviewed, if ever. You only hear about the people who succeeded by taking big risks because that’s what the people love to hear, that’s what really sells for the broadcasting media.
The conclusion from this is how most of us will never become rich. This is quite a sad realisation in all honesty: to know that we’ll probably never achieve the American dream.
Therefore, knowing that most people will never achieve extreme wealth, it’s worth considering alternative approaches such as safe investments and consistent saving to secure financial stability in the long run, which, in addition, could pay off very well and may result in significant wealth.
This is in no way meant to discourage risk-taking. In fact, I still do not want to wait decades for wealth to reach me. Rather, it is just a caution about how being slow and steady might be better for most people rather than trying to get rich quick. While wealth in youth might be ideal, securing financial stability or becoming rich in old age is still a worthwhile goal and far better than never attaining it at all.
No statement made here is set in stone. There are many paths towards success, so let this be a discussion instead.
