Thread by @sweatystartup

Corporate america is a trap for anyone who wants to stop working prior to 60 yrs old.

They pay you just enough so the opportunity cost of doing something on your own isn’t worth it.

And more and more every year so the new $ is just enough to keep you.

They love it when you buy nicer houses, cars, things.

They hate it when you buy investment properties or assets.

Their goal is to keep you making money for them as long as possible.

By the time you’re 35 with two kids making $200k a year but spending $175k a year there is no way out.

They have you exactly where they want you.

And you’re 100% stuck.

How can you take any risk at all?

You have everything to lose and too much life overhead with any kind of side project.

And even the small sure bets are too risky to go after because of the dependency your employer has created.

A bi-weekly paycheck is an addiction.

You have to have it to pay for the things you have no time to enjoy.

There is no other way for you.

You blink and you’re 65. Rich. Unhealthy. No deep friendships.

And you’ve given up 50 hrs a week for 45 yrs to build for someone else.

Do you need to be an entrepreneur?

Absolutely not.

But you need to find a way to own some assets.

So by the time you’re 35 or 45 or 55 you don’t need to trade your time for their money so your kids can eat and get an education.

It’s easy to say things like “don’t buy a bigger house or nicer car.”

But that’s impossible for almost all of us. Me included.

Humans crave status and comfort and shiny things.

WTF is the point of making money if you aren’t going to spend it?

If I didn’t start a business by dumb luck when I was 21 with absolutely no overhead I would be slugging away right now as well.

95% of people aren’t cut out to be an entrepreneur. A lot of things SUCK about it.

There is no solution here for most folks, and it’s a shame.

We have to just try to curb the addiction. And be less and less dependent on that sweet sweet paycheck as time goes on.

By being resourceful and doing the best we can.

It’s not about the damn money.

The person with the most money at the end of the day doesn’t win a prize.

They’re also the ones who gave up everything else to get it.

It’s about the freedom to spend your time doing things that matter with people who matter to you.

Too many people set the bar too high and end up chasing money and status and things their entire careers...

Not even knowing that the trade-off all along wasn’t worth it.

A lot of people really enjoy their jobs. And they are lucky.

95%, if given the option, wouldn’t go into work on Monday if they didn’t have to.

If they weren’t so dependent on that money.

And if they didn’t have to trade their most valuable resource to get it.

But next time you’re about to sign that loan or buy that house or sign your kids up for that school...

Remember something:

You’re taking the bait. You’re falling for it.

You’re getting more and more addicted.

And there is no easy way out.

Why do you think all the best companies put their HQs in all the most expensive cities?

It sure as hell isn’t about you and your experience.

It’s about your ego.

They do it so you buy that house. And send your kids to that school.

And so they have you at their mercy.

I’m all about solutions.

But there is no solution to this problem that will work.

Because humans are terrible at one thing:

Delayed gratification.

We hate to wait till tomorrow for something we could have right now.

We refuse.

Click the mouse. Order the shit. Buy the thing.

I can afford it! Gotta live a little!

And in the other side, that same corporate America is making it easier and easier to consume and spend and buy and be comfortable right now.

So we give our money right back to them.

So we have to go trade our time for money.

So we can buy more shit and feel more pleasure.

What 99% of people don’t understand is that this isn’t how it works for a select few of us.

There are people among us who don’t have to trade their time for money.

They aren’t dependent on anyone or anything to put food on their table or send their kids to school.

They own shares in the companies.

They own the businesses that deliver the happiness.

They own the buildings we work in or shop in or store our shit in.

How did they get to be where they are? Why do they live differently?

Because at one point or another, in every one of their families, somebody decided the rat race was bullshit.

They decided they didn’t want to be addicted to a paycheck.

So they started something, took a risk, built something, and they started to separate their time from their money.

They didn’t need to trade in their greatest asset any longer.

And they delayed gratification. Went without a little pleasure now for freedom later.

And it changed everything for that person and their families.

And they got off the juice. Crushed the addiction.

And they are the 1%.

So what do you do if you’re trapped? If you took the bait? If the capitalism flywheel sucked you in as it’s designed to do?

You start delaying gratification.

You make the sacrifice.

You do the work now so your kids can live differently.

You flip the script and slowly, over time, buy or build things that make you money vs cost you money.

And think about things you buy not in the payment that goes out but the cash that comes back.

And you get on the other side of the table.

The problem:

It’s uncomfortable.

It’s not fun.

It’s uncommon.

There is no guidebook.

It’s scary and risky and humiliating.

So 99% of people will think about it and understand it but they won’t be willing to do what it takes to join the 1%.

The narrative around wealth on the internet isn’t helping.

You see the shiny things wealth gets you.

You see the easy ways to get wealthy.

You don’t see the real way to achieve wealth. And it makes sense...

People don’t want to hear the truth.

That wealth is fucking hard to get ahold of. That most people don’t have what it takes to obtain it.

And that it takes a lot of time.

And sacrifice. And work. And risk. For years.

News stories about get-rich-slow stories don’t get clicks. They aren’t sexy.

We hear from the unicorns. The .01% of the wealthy people who changed the world and achieved greatness.

And so the narrative around wealth online attracts a certain type of person.

Not the conservative, long game, delayed gratification person...

But the person who wants to be rich.

They want it all right now.

And that desire to have it all right now is what is getting people in the hole in the first place.

So it’s a dead end.

And the people who actually have what it takes don’t buy into the click bait.

So they take the safe route. And they go get a job. And trade their time for money for 45 years.

My life mission is to help those people see that there is a low risk way to build wealth.

An unsexy way. A sweaty way.

To get ahold of some assets. Some leverage.

If you’re in, and you want to learn more about the real ways to build wealth through real estate and entrepreneurship, sign up for my newsletter.

Sweatystartup.substack.com

There is a lot of misinformation around saving vs investing.

Many people have a spending problem.

But 90% of your energy should be focused on MAKING MORE MONEY.

That’s what I’m all about.

Through small biz, real estate, and SMART work.