Most people don’t know Harrison Ford pooped his pants every 10 minutes while shooting Indiana Jones “Raiders Of The Lost Arc.”
There’s a famous scene where he fights a swordsman. It should have been a long scene with lots of drama. But the final scene was short and Indiana Jones just blows the bad guy’s head off with a gun.
The culprit was some tainted restaurant lamb.
Harrison ate this meat and had diarrhea non-stop, so they had to make the scheduled scenes they needed to film no longer than 10 minutes each, or Harrison would poop his pants worse than my 9 month old daughter.
They could have given Harrison a diaper. For some reason no one thought of it — that’s why we need newborn dads like me on Hollywood film sets.
The lesson here is simple: constraints can create superpowers.
That’s why certain rules can be a powerful way to become moderately wealthy, faster. Here are my non-negotiables you can build your list off.
Spend money to make money
Everyone wants to make millions and invest hundreds — Justin Welsh
I see it all the time. People would love to build a big audience online or learn how to write a best-selling book. The problem is they won’t invest in masterminds or coaches to help them figure it out.
At best they’ll buy a $10 Udemy course and think they’re making progress.
You become wealthy faster when you learn from already wealthy people. It’s naive, and frankly, stupid to think you can get wealthy by investing hundreds of dollars — or worse, $0.
To make a return in the stock market you have to invest money and own stocks. To make money from your skills and online pursuits you have to invest money to figure it out.
The more money you invest in good information and communities, the faster you hit your financial goal. It’s cliche as hell but who you spend time with determines your net worth.
Quiet people are some of the wealthiest people in the room
Entrepreneur Sahil Bloom says he recently went to an in-person mastermind. He spent the weekend meeting people who had varying net worths.
He later found out that the richest guy in the room, who had created more than $1B value through his businesses and investing, barely said a word.
He spent the whole time listening. He looked unsuspecting. He didn’t brag but instead came to listen and learn.
These are the wealthy people you want to learn from. They make their fortunes through listening more than they talk.
Invest in your health as much as stocks
Finance books don’t talk about this.
A business is just a complex structure full of people with finite levels of energy. I once read that businesses go bankrupt, not because of sales, but because the founders run out of energy. They stop fighting.
Energy is the result of health.
If you have no energy you damn sure won’t produce financial energy that leads to wealth. That’s why it’s a must to invest lots of money in your health — gym, supplements, organic food, time to rest, yoga, etc.
I stuffed up this one for a long time and now I’m paying the price. I’ve had multiple injuries in the past few months. Thankfully I’m young enough to undo the damage through stretching and yoga.
Health leads to wealth.
Apple Notes Lists
Lists contain ideas.
The more ideas you collect the more sources for creativity you have. The trick with lists is to note them down as fast as possible. Apple Notes is the quickest way I’ve found.
I keep lists for everything — writing ideas, people I should email, books I should write, businesses I should start.
Rule: if the idea stays in your head it’s dead.
Multiple weird vacations a year
The person who never takes breaks is the same person who’s running on empty when it comes to creativity.
It’s scientifically proven that we need breaks.
When we take them certain parts of our brains light up and start joining the dots in the background while the tidal wave of information overload is halted for a few days/weeks.
Pre-schedule vacations. And take more 3-day weekends that have a limited effect on your productivity.
A relaxed mind can create value others can only dream of.
Screw being normal
If I had to point out one obvious thing about all the wealthy people I’ve met, it’d be this: they do the opposite of 99% of people.
It doesn’t take a lot of brains.
Most of us follow the herd who are preprogrammed from school right through to the servitude life they live inside some massive institution. If you can see beyond this programming, the paths to wealth are obvious.
There’s nothing sexy about real estate, stocks, or online business. But they are all components of wealth.
You get one life. Don’t screw it up by being normal.
Say “no” more than feels comfortable
The default way of living is to be a people pleaser.
Therefore we say yes to most requests. But yes comes with strings attached. Soon enough you run out of time and can’t work on the tasks that make real money for you and your family.
I learned to say no a lot 9 years ago. If I’m unsure then I just say no. I value my calendar more than I value pleasing others. With a blank calendar it’s so much easier to create a path to wealth.
You obviously can’t always have zero appointments. But you sure can say no to 90% of the ones that may be currently overflowing your calendar.
Invest in assets, not dumb-dumb things
Luxury is stupidity.
It dumbs us down to our primal instincts and screams “Ooh Ooh I’m higher in the social hierarchy than you.” (A.K.A I’m better than you.)
Luxury steals your free time. Assets buy back your time.
When you buy a good financial asset — like stocks — it becomes a vehicle to store time that you can cash in, in the future. The worst assets are luxury items that depreciate right after you buy them. It’s a trap.
Culture wars are a distraction (stay away)
We earn with our minds.
That’s why the culture wars are like a nuclear bomb for your psychology. We’re heading into a U.S. 2024 election. It’s going to get ugly. There’s gonna be a lot of hate and tribalism. People are gonna say some nasty stuff. Families will be divided by right versus left, red versus blue.
The shortcut to wealth is *not* to get tricked.
These culture wars won’t upgrade your life. There’s little you can do about the problems that drive them. Your best bet is to switch off and not get swept up by all the drama.
A focused mind becomes a wealthy mind.
Write more than you read
Most reading is procrastination in disguise.
The key is to get used to writing more than you read. Writing online brings opportunities to you. Some of those will turn into money.
If you want to attract opportunities you could never have dreamt of it’s worth considering.
If no one knows you exist and they don’t know the value you bring, how can they pay you for it? They can’t. So you’re forced to ride the hamster wheel of applying for opportunities and jumping through hoops, begging for a chance or a big break. No thanks.
Automate opportunity creation by writing.
Rejection and failure mean you’re doing something right
The best learning comes from rejections and failures.
Only once you experience a lesson do you truly understand it. That’s why I use the number of failures and rejections I get as a way to measure future wealth. I know the more negatives I’m battling now, the more I’m learning lessons that’ll create enormous value in the future.
My online business is a result of those failures and rejections. Some people know my success story. What they don’t know is that this is the fourth attempt at my current business.
Rule: rejection is redirection.
Don’t avoid taxes
While on a recent holiday I saw a guy wearing a singlet that said:
Fiscal paradises (tax havens):
– Panama
– Monaco
– Bahamas
– Seychelles
It’s popular on social media for entrepreneurs to talk about moving to a tax haven and reducing taxes. What they don’t tell you is once you engage in this behavior, the country you were born in will likely disown you or secretly put a black mark against your name.
You’re not fooling anyone by using tax havens. It’s tax avoidance.
Instead of living out of a backpack in some 3rd-world country to avoid paying a few thousand dollars in tax, you’re better off focusing on being tax efficient. In other words:
- Invest like the rich
- Use tax-loss harvesting
- Buy financial assets with an LLC
- Set up family trusts to distribute wealth
- Have income run through a business instead of a personal name
Death and taxes are guaranteed. Be tax-efficient instead of tax-dodgy.
Lastly, stay away from this common mindset
People who have a poor relationship with money think that sales and business are evil — Dan Koe
Capitalism is at the heart of most major economies.
Exchanging goods and services is what we do. Those who virtue signal — and pretend money, sales, or business is dishonest or making people sell out — will never be wealthy.
It’s okay to sell. It’s okay to do business.
If you’ve ever worked a job or had an income then you’re part of this evil conspiracy. So just accept this is human nature and embrace it. Focus on being honest at how you make money and everything will work out.
Sell or be sold.
This article is for informational purposes only, it should not be considered financial, tax or legal advice. Consult a financial professional before making any major financial decisions.
