16 July 2007 163 views 4 Comments Print This Post  Email This Post

I get a strange feeling when I think about how I became the person that I am today. Here I am, 23 years old and I’m writing articles about wealth building; making, saving and investing money. Money topics have become an adopted language to me. I talk about money around some of my best friends and my family, while learning more each day. Its ironic that when I look back at my life, I can remember a time when I was a completely different person. I was financially illiterate, which is why I spent on extravagances and failed to look toward the future. To be quite honest, I had a consumer’s money mentality.

The Poor Consumer

When I was in high school, I started my first online business. It was called Top Notch Jewelry, and the site hasn’t been around for many years now. At the time it was my first sense of accomplishment. It didn’t make a lot, but anything seemed like a lot because I was so young and I never worked before. I did the same things most teenagers did at the time like buying name brand clothes, new electronics and fancy game systems. I never second guessed my purchases. I assumed that the money would keep coming in. It did, so I spent it.

A few years later, in my early college years I founded my most successful business to date. I sold shoes through a website, which I will keep on the down low for now because the buyer is still running the site. The good thing about this business was that I was making a lot of money. However the bad thing was also the fact that was making a lot of money. I spent more money than ever before. I bought gold jewelry and Italian clothes. I spent thousands customizing my Mercedes E-class. I ate out more than ever and gained weight. I upgraded my lifestyle with every new dollar I earned. The money came in one way and left through another.

When I had this consumer’s mentality of just looking rich, I was damaging my chances of actually becoming rich in the future. I estimate that during those years I blew around $50,000. I will never see that money again. It kills me to think that had I invested that money in local real estate, I would have about $300,000 now. Instead, I have $0 from those days.

My Decision to Be Rich

As strange and cheesy as it sounds, I believe that getting rich, building wealth, or attaining financial freedom starts with a sincere decision that you want it. If you make that sincere decision, you will find ways to set a course of action and apply the necessary steps to reach the destination. At the most basic level, you have a choice to look wealthy, or be wealthy. I was forced to make a decision shortly after I sold my businesses because I had a series of business failures. Money went into these projects and nothing came out of it. The cashflow I was used to was gone and I had to dip into my savings just to pay for everyday expenses.

It was only about a year ago when I truly made the decision to become rich. That is when I stopped my awful spending, started driving a cheaper car, and really began to learn about and understand money. Between then and now, I’ve made a series of personal decisions that I know will lead me to financial freedom, which I will expand upon in future articles. To this very day I continue to regret my crazy spending, but I also know it was required in order for me to have the mentality I have today. It was a lesson learned and a rather expensive one at that. Had my cashflow never stopped, I will likely be driving a fancier car and buying nicer things all while having little to no savings or investments. Sure I would look rich, but I’d simply be a hollow piece of gold.

Our financial future is simply a choice. Our choice forces us to set goals and meet them. Our choice forces us to find a means to the end goal. Just remember, the choice is ultimately yours.