What people don't realize is that they are most likely already rich. They just don't see their wealth. You may be thinking that I am crazy, but hear me out. Most people in the United States will make more than a million dollars over their working lifetime. So they are millionaires in the making. Unfortunately, they'll end up giving most of it away to creditors and merchants because they don't recognize it for the wealth it really is.
The median household income in America is about $44,000. Multiply this by the average 40-year working life and you'll see that the average household will make $1,640,000 (1.64 million) in a lifetime. You don't have to be a doctor or a lawyer to be a millionaire. One trucking firm advertises that their average driver earns $56,700 per year. That truck driver will make $2,268,000 over the course of his or her career, and if they manage it wisely, they could end up with a net worth greater than much higher income earners who don't manage their spending.
So, the question is, will you keep it or give it away? The most common way people give away their wealth is by using credit. Using debt to finance your lifestyle is a perscription for poverty. You might as well burn your money. If however, you eleminate your debt, you'll have cash flow to rapidly build wealth. That's the heart of what I have posted many times: if you just stop giving your wealth away, it can accumulate to give you freedom and even wealth a little later in life. You cannot have everything you want right now and have an affluent life later too.
I use a lot of credit but I don't pay anything for it. In fact it earns me about $8/day. I only got going with this again because of our discussions, and I am glad you got me into it again, because I'm doing pretty darn good this time around. Having a stupendous credit limit makes me feel a little more comfortable about emergencies, but I have insurance so I'm not sure what the emergency might look like. An economic downturn could really hurt me, and enormous sums of credit might help me weather that storm. I hate hate HATE paying interest, but credit with no interest is a useful tool. I also want to say that I own a home with some debt, but it's a stunning home in an upscale neighborhood that I probably couldn't save up to own in a timely way. So I can't rail against credit. It enriches my life. I also simply don't go into debt if I can avoid it. My fake debt now has all the assets available in cash and CD's. So like so many things in life, credit is useful when used intelligently and responsibly, and simply deadly when misused unwisely or without awareness. I can't simplify it more than that. Credit's simply not a bad thing. Financial irresponsibility is!
ReplyDeleteJust a different view.
ReplyDeleteThe majority of Americans make minimum wage. In my view, the $44k, which is I think $39k in Illinois, is greatly pulled up from the upper crust. It doesn't show the real numbers.
Most people earn right around minimum wage their whole lives, keeping them in poverty. Our states minimum wage is $6.50 (I'll use this cause national is $5.15). If they work a 40 hour week - most work more to survive, they make $260 a week or $13,520 a year. Their lifetime earning would be $594,880.00. This now explains a lot of our country's current condition. And should reinforce why we need to build up that pyramid base.
If our lower levels aren't making enough to live, they aren't spending money to increase wealth all the way up. Thank you Republicans!
The trib did an article a while back that stated to live (get by) people needed a 2 person working family making $13.50 an hour. This is an eye opener.
Although, I believe your mindset idea is good. I do believe in prayer and positive thinking, I don't think it is practical with our society at large. Many will never reach those income levels. This is why I try to tithe as much as I can. It's never enough.
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ReplyDeleteI hear you, I only make 19k-20k per year and it is not enough with my current debt. If I can get my debt paid off and it stays paid off, I should be fine financially. Saving a little and hopefully retire a millionaire. I am still looking for a part-time 2nd job to help reduce that debt quicker and get in a position to save money to cover emergencies that may arise, whether it's replacing a major appliance or paying for the deductables that insurance doesn't cover.
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ReplyDeleteThe figures quoted were median income not average.
median means the middle and does not add all incomes together, like average does.
"If you want ONE year of proserity, GROW grain. If you want TEN years of prosperity GROW trees. If you want ONE HUNDRED years of prosperity GROW PEOPLE"..CHINESE PROVERB
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