The Brutal Truth About Making Money

If we were to divide all the wealth in the world, within five years, it would return to the same people who had it at the start. We have seen this phenomenon at work when the poor got stimulus checks. Their money eventually ended up at Amazon, Walmart, and Target.

So why does this happen?

It’s all in the mind.

Those who get rich think of acquiring money differently from anyone else. Let’s divide these two groups into predators and prey. I’m not spewing Machiavellianism here, but logically speaking, there is nothing else outside of these two categories of people. You can be one or another, unless you live in the forest. As a caveat, I need to say that when I mention predators, I don’t mean scammers or sexual predators. Both are abhorrent and deserve to be punished.

The main differentiator is their moral imperative:

Predators believe that it’s a sin not to offer others their products or services.

Prey believe that it’s a sin not to indulge themselves with the money they have been given.

How predators think about money is vastly different too.

For them, the concept of power is synonymous with money. This is rightfully so because those who have significant power, but are not rich, simply don’t monetize their influence. For prey, power and money are two separate things.

Also, for predators, it is apparent that any kind of success in commerce cannot exist without eventually wielding influence. Prey rejects this notion by claiming that this would be stepping on someone’s toes.

Predators have a different interpretation of the term ‘exploit’. For them, it’s about identifying unused value and extracting it, synonymous with providing efficiency. Prey always considers it taking advantage.

Predators don’t exhibit delusional thinking which is rife among prey. They accept the fact that most people aren’t like them. They also don’t try to change those who are prone to fantasies. It is what it is. Prey typically convinces themselves that their employer cares for them and they will never get fired, even by AI.

Predators take massive action. Their work is often connected to their lifestyle. Prey believe in working for their lifestyle. They would slave away years for occasional pleasures.

Predators appreciate and realize the value of economic freedom. They sacrifice time to build businesses and acquire investments which eventually pay them dividends. The strategy to achieve that is always working on the business, not working in it. Prey does not understand this difference. They are also oblivious to the notion that comfort is the enemy because if you get complacent, you will live under the auspices of those who have their will over you.

Predators have learned to love leverage and prey think that leverage (employing technology and people) always comes with headaches and risk.

Predators always think long-term. Many of them aim to leave behind a dynasty. The current financial system rewards long-term mindset. As Warren Buffett once said, "The stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient". Prey is doomed to lose because they act on impulse and fail to educate themselves on how things actually work.

Prey think that money is for survival, and predators think it is a tool to shape destiny.

Prey believes that chasing money is selfish and greedy. Predators know that it is a lie aimed at making prey never step out of line.

We have to recognize that without predators, we would be living like Amish people, so why not be grateful for their achievements. We can debate which of these two groups is more spiritual, but one will definitely have fewer regrets on their deathbed.

Ask yourself if starting a business or stock trading without a conscious decision to become a predator is madness or not?

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