The incredible story of Ronald Read and what it can teach you
/THREAD/
Ronald Read was a World War II veteran from humble beginnings
He worked his entire life at a gas station and as a janitor at JCPenny
Despite his less than modest job and salary, he amassed an $8 million fortune until he passed away at the age of 92 in 2014
Even his family was surprised to find out about his fortune
His stepson said about him:
"He was a hard worker, but I don’t think anybody had an idea that he was a multimillionaire"
So, how did he do it?
He achieved this by frugal spending and consistent investing
He maintained a frugal lifestyle, never spending money unless he absolutely had to
He used to drive a second-hand Toyota Yaris, using safety pins to hold his coat together
He was even cutting his own firewood
But what allowed him to accumulate such a net worth was his consistent investments in the stock market
"I’m sure if he earned $50 in a week, he probably invested $40 of it", said his friend and neighbor Mark Richards
He had a similar mindset with Warren Buffett
Buying quality companies and holding for the long term
As Buffett says, "If you aren’t willing to own a stock for 10 years, don’t even think about owning it for 10 minutes"
He owned at least 95 stocks at the time of his death
Most of his holdings were blue-chip stocks he held for decades
Some of them were
• Procter & Gamble
• J.P. Morgan Chase
• General Electric
• Dow Chemical
• J.M. Smucker
• CVS Health
• Johnson & Johnson
• AT&T
• Bank of America
• John Deere
As a lifelong resident of Brattleboro, Vermont, he left $6 million of his fortune to his local library and hospital
To this day, this is the largest donation or contribution these institutions have seen
But what does this incredible story teach us?
1. You don't need to make six figures to accumulate wealth
2. Frugality and consistent investing can make you a millionaire
3. Compounding can literally work miracles
4. Buying quality companies and holding for the long term is the best investment strategy
Use this story as a lesson to get your finances in order and start investing
Success is only a matter of time
/END/
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