The One Thing That Will Make You Truly Rich
In this article, I will be sharing with you the one thing that will make you truly rich.
Now take time to think about it; what do riches mean to you?
For most people, to be rich is to drive the most expensive cars in the world. The Ferrari, Range Rover, Rolls Royce, Lamborghini etc. But are those the true riches?
In my own opinion, true wealth is freedom. Freedom to do whatever you love to do with whomever you like to do it with, and whenever you like to do it.
Freedom is the only thing that will make you truly rich and happy and I think freedom should be your reason for desiring money.
Let me give you some examples here.
Mr. A works either for a big company or on his own business but has to work 60hrs every week. His working environment is so tough that he has to resume at a certain time (let’s say 8 or 9 am) and close at certain hours.
No excuses and no absence is allowed. He earns Ksh.150,000/month, but he’s not in control of his time, what he does and who he works with.
Now think of another man we will call Mr. B who either works on his own business or for a company, but he has the absolute liberty to work at any hour he chooses. He could decide to wake up by 7 am or even 11 am.
He could decide to work from 7 am to 3 pm or from 3 pm to 10 pm. Though Mr. B earns only Ksh.80,000/month, he lives in a smaller town which is less expensive than that of Mr. A. Relatively, the purchasing power of his income is very close to that of Mr. A, plus he is in total control of his life.
Now tell me, who do you think is richer out of the two men in this illustration? Most people would think that the man who earns Ksh.150,000 is richer than the man who earns Ksh.80,000.
Most people in our society will assume that the man who rides a Ferrari is richer than the man who rides a Toyota. Most people will assume that the man who lives in a mansion is richer than the man who lives in a 2-bedroom apartment.
The reason we think this way is that we measure wealth in terms of the money and luxuries an individual has but in the real sense of it, no human being can be truly happy unless he’s free to choose what he does, how he does it and when he does it.
*What do I want to achieve with this article?*
I want to challenge you to rethink how you define wealth. I want to challenge you to pursue money for the sake of freedom, not for the sake of luxury. This is not to speak against luxuries.
It’s not a sin to use the latest iPhone, latest cars, or watches but if that’s the thing you work for, if that’s the reason you wake up every morning, you will have a terrible life because you will be working too hard, sacrificing too much of your freedom, just to use the latest wristwatches.
But if your goal is freedom, you will soon discover that you don’t need a million shillings before you can achieve freedom. You will also experience what it is to be in absolute control of your life, which most adults never experience.
*In conclusion,*
I believe real wealth is in freedom. The freedom to do what you want to do at the time you want to do it, with whoever you want to do it with.
The reason you should desire to have money is to achieve this height. The height of freedom, because there lies the real happiness that all of us desire.
If the reason you want to work hard is to buy a new watch, you will soon discover that watches don’t make anybody happy.
If the reason you want to work hard is to buy an expensive car, you will soon see how depression can hit anyone, even inside a Range Rover. Pursue money for freedom.
Set goals that will make you arrive at a point in your life when you wake up at the time you want, to do whatever you want, with whoever you want. Even though you can still work hard when you reach this level, you will only work hard on things you love, not on things you were forced to do by an employer.
By
Timothy Angwenyi
Business Consultant
Justine Nyachieo
Business Man & Mentor
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