With Branson and Bezos going to space this week, many of us have opinions about how they used their money. I know that a lot of people want to be rich, but… Do they really know what it takes to even start to get “Space Race Money”? And are they being honest with themselves about what they think they want?
Since I’m having one of those weird nights where I woke up at like 3 AM and can’t get back to sleep, I figured I’d blog – LOL! And if you’re wondering, “Yes. These are the types of things that are genuinely on my mind when I first wake up no matter the time.”
First: Do People Underestimate “Getting Rich”?
I’ve been having this sort of internal crisis lately that has me examining my life goals and stuff a lot lately (I’ll probably get into all of that in another post at some point), and that’s set me down a path where I came across the ALUX YouTube channel.
They have tons of followers, so I’m late to this party, but I love one video in particular that they made a few years ago…
The thing that I REALLY appreciate about this video is that it gives you a chance to assess your current standing (honestly) and then actually offers up what I view as pretty concrete starting steps.
I had been watching this video before Bezos went to space (at least), but I had been thinking of writing something wondering aloud if people truly understand the amount of work that goes into some (definitely not “all”) people getting rich.
Do people get the amount of time that some invest in their fields to pull off outrageous things like being wealthy enough to fly to space (yes, even if it looks like you’re flying off inside a giant sex toy)? Are people underestimating the time and energy truly put into building fortunes?
Well, not arguing about the moral standings of extreme wealth – if you are interested in starting to accumulate anything remotely resembling Space Race Money, I’d say that video is a pretty solid place to start to get your mind right for the journey ahead of you.
Second: Do People Really Want to be Rich?
I’m not asking this from some pompous stance of saying “money doesn’t matter” (like that meme variation about money and looks going around)…
I don’t have pockets deep enough to be that rich guy making that kind of statement.
What I’m asking is tied to the initial question about understanding what it takes to build wealth. When people say that they want to be rich, are they understanding the scrutiny that comes along with that? Are they understanding the very public expectations that will be thrust upon them? And if so, do they want that?
I would wager that the attention alone (on top of the work to get there), on top of the work it takes to get there, would eliminate a number of us from the bucket of REALLY wanting to get rich.
I don’t know. No big “Aha” moments in this one — just thinking out loud (er… “in type”?) about whether or not people are really ready for the smoke of being rich when they throw it out there that they want that in their life? Have they really considered it?
And, yeah – I guess this was also tied to the entitlement that people seem to voice about the wealth that others have built. I have opinions about such things, and if you ask me about it in the comments – we can go there. I have mentioned things I would personally invest in if I were mega-rich before on this blog, but I’ve never really had the expectation that my opinion should be the guiding star for others and their money.
But… That’s getting into a whole other topic, so I’ll stop here.
Peace, and thanks for reading.
The soundtrack for this post provided by…
Image Credits:
– Cover Image © thongyhod (Shutterstock)
– Body Images 1 © Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast
– Body Image 2 © Unknown