8 Ways To Financial Freedom and Wealth

September 20, 2007 · Filed Under ·  

Getty - Time MagazineWhen it comes to advice on building wealth and financial freedom, I have always enjoyed J. Paul Getty’s advice. While I may not agree with all his advice, I think it is definitely worth discussing. Born into a family with considerable wealth from the oil business in 1892, Getty was one of the first people to amass over $1 billion in worth. Here are his 8 rules for gaining wealth and financial freedom, followed by some commentary by yours truly:

  • Rule #1 - To acquire wealth today, you must be in your own business.

When you own your own business the possibilities and opportunity for growth are endless. These opportunities are often directly related to how hard you work and how creative you are in marketing your business. In other words, there is no ’salary-cap’!

  • Rule #2 - You must have a working knowledge of the business when you start and continue to increase your knowledge of it as you go along.

In other words, do your research! If you are starting a business based on a hunch that you can find a target market or a niche, do your research first, not after you start. Conduct surveys, talk to consumers in your area, and talk to other businesses. Do a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) of your business venture so you have a better idea what type of market you are getting involved with. But don’t stop there, continue to do market research as your business evolves so you can stay a step ahead of your competitors and gain that ever important advantage.

  • Rule #3 -You must save money in your personal life and in your business venture as well.

As your business grows you will need financial resources to expand and keep up with growth. If you have not saved a cash reserve this will be impossible. Getty always stressed the need for discipline and financial will-power and using it to avoid going after the quick buck.

  • Rule #4 -You must take risks.

Starting your own business is in itself a big risk. But I find this one to be in contradiction with Rule #3. When starting a business it can be hard to save money and take risks at the same time. But as your business grows, you will have the ability to take well calcualted risks, particularly with advertising and product expansion. Good judgment and research is important to risk taking in my opinion. Make sure to do a risk vs. benefit analysis.

  • Rule #5 - You must not only learn to live with tension, you must seek it out.

This one gives me the ibby jeebies. Seek out tension and stress, say what? But what Getty is saying is that stress, when viewed positively can actually be a good thing. It can be a motivator to keep your nose to the grind stone in an attempt to gain a competitive advantage.

  • Rule #6 - Build wealth as a by-product of your business success.

This one really resonates with me. If you only focus on wealth, you are destined to fail. If instead you focus on working hard, having fun, being creative, then the rest rest will take care of itself. I have personally found this to be very true. Plus, this outlook is much healthier than being consumed with profit and the bottom line. Getty believed that true wealth is only a benefit of “playing the game”.

  • Rule #7 - Patience.

My blog can relate to this one. When I first started blogging I felt like I was just talking to myself and almost gave it up. Good things come to those that are patient. In business, Getty felt that is was vitally important to be patient and wait for the right time to make your move and take your risks. Study history to determine how and why previous strategies were successful or where they may have gone wrong.

  • Rule #8 - Diversify.

Getty felt that once your business was successful it was important to have more than one income stream. Old adage, “don’t carry all your eggs in one basket”. Look for new markets, expanded product lines, and new advertising opportunities. Try to find ways to grab more market share. This minimizes your risk and keeps your entrepreneurial juices flowing.

Note: For further reading on the life and financial successes of J. Paul Getty check out his books How To Be Rich and As I See It: The Autobiography of J. Paul Getty.

Photo of J. Paul Getty From Time.com.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Please Pass This Post Along and Comment Below!
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Furl
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Technorati
  • YahooMyWeb

Comments

2 Responses to “8 Ways To Financial Freedom and Wealth”

  1. Lynnae @ Being Frugal on September 20th, 2007 6:10 am

    Great post! Rule #5 scares the heck out of me though! :)

  2. Kyle on September 20th, 2007 10:20 am

    I agree Lynnae, I think I would rather be happy and not rich then wealthy and stressed out! Although I know people that do thrive on it and seem to do OK, but no thanks for me.

Leave a Reply




Bad Behavior has blocked 562 access attempts in the last 7 days.