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- Feb 11, 2011
- 82
- 609
Hi guys,
Thought I'd want to come in here today and share something I recently learned.
The topic is:
Money is not everything.
How many of us have read stories of billionaires, who when asked about how they made their billions, answered to the lines of: "I didn't even think about making a billion when I started"?
This may not be related to the Fast Lane. Or perhaps it may be. In either case, I thought this is super valuable to me and think it'd be nice to share it here with you.
Recently, I got to drive a GTR R35.
One of the top 5 fastest cars in the world. A friend of mine who has an incredibly wealthy family decided he's going to sell it. And the other day we spent time together, I got the chance to give it a drive. The reason he's selling it?
He said he was tired of it. What did he want in place of it? A Megane RS, manual. About 270 horsepower, compared to the 500+ horsepower GTR.
What? Going from a super car to a Renault?
And we're talking about a guy who if he wanted, he could have easily gotten a Lamborghini, Ferrari or Porsche instead. His reason? "I want something low profile, and it's a less overpowered manual so the driving experience will be more engaging."
You see, why did I want to share about this?
Every day, billions of people around the world think that money will give them happiness. While I think money can provide comfort, and yes, it's a tool that if used right can provide happiness, I don't think it is the key to happiness. I had to emphasize this again:
Money is not the key to happiness.
How many people out there living every day, will do whatever in their power to cheat, manipulate, play politics, and hurt others just to make money, thinking that if they've earned their fortune they would finally be happy?
How many people out there living every day, will admire that rich guy driving the Lamborghini, the Ferrari, the Porsche, thinking man, he's so lucky, and their hearts ache because they'd want the same for themselves too?
Little did they know...
That to the rich, on the next week or so when they first own these super cars and drive it, the thrill of the car has already dumbed down to just a cool new possession. We can ask MJ and the many other multi-millionaires on this forum to confirm it.
The car has never been the actual cause of their happiness, and is never the cause of their fulfillment. It has never been any of the rich's deepest happiness. If there's lasting happiness created by the super car they've purchased, it's only made available when as a result of having that super car - they were able to make others happy or there is a personal sentimental reason to it.
So what are we really driving at?
The reason why I'm writing this now, is to hopefully provide someone who've read this post a reason to pause and ponder, with a wish that you'd be able to achieve greater success in life. Even though the goal to Fast Lane is to make money, do also give a thought to the reason why you want to make money.
Maturity and wisdom is what will really help us to achieve what we want in life, and hopefully this post will be able to help you with that a little bit more.
Aiming to just make money blindly, will not only prevent you from making it, it will also prevent you from ever really enjoying it.
When I driven the GTR, what went on inside my mind? It was actually this: "Shit, this is one of the top 5 fastest cars in the world, a car that beats Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Porsches - and that's it?" I didn't feel anything special. It was fast, sure. But the experience was not that far from driving a normal car that's amped up with more speed, or more control. I meant this from an experiential sense, instead of from a comparison or review point. Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Porsches, I'd imagine that they'd be able to provide a more comfortable experience, but nonetheless they couldn't be that far apart.
Would I ever get a Lamborghini, Ferrari or Porsche? Sure, if I had more than enough then to just squander a bit. But will it really give me happiness to own any of them? At this point, I'd say it's like owning a iPhone 6. You'd think it's cool, but it's just another possession.
The wealthy has been saying this all the time. But very few really notice what they meant.
They meant it literally. Their possessions have never been anything special.
Rather, it's the little human things we appreciate like spending good and sincere time with friends, family, the people you love, offering value to others, leaving the world with something meaningful which are the things that really matters, and that contribute to happiness.
It's not your ability in leveraging your employees to accomplish your goal that's what will make you happy. It's things like even when working, you were able to allow employees to feel fun working, and you allow them to spend a good time working together with you and bond with you that's going to make you happy. It's chasing after a goal fervously and with great hunger together with your trusted team to make a powerful impact in others' lives, that is going to make you happy. It's the feelings involved throughout the progress, the progress, that's going to make you happy. It's how what you're doing going to positively affect others, on what scale, what kind of challenges you aim to trump over, and that whole process of doing it that's going to make you happy. It's a mother's love for her child, it's life experiences enjoyed with people who are sincere, and you get to live life as real and give as much effort to life as you can, that is going to make you happy.
It's your contributions. It's your being. That's going to make you happy.
So, what do you want money for?
Make it meaningful.
The more you can make real value available to others, the more happy you'll be, and the more abundant the money you'll receive.
Material wealth is cool, but what's even better, is that we can breathe out our last breath knowing we've had a most amazing life while we are alive.
This kind of happiness doesn't come from being selfish. It comes from maturity.
When you have this kind of maturity, you'll want to appreciate what's really nice.
Even if it's a Megane RS over a GTR, just because you know, you'll sincerely enjoy that even more.
Thought I'd want to come in here today and share something I recently learned.
The topic is:
Money is not everything.
How many of us have read stories of billionaires, who when asked about how they made their billions, answered to the lines of: "I didn't even think about making a billion when I started"?
This may not be related to the Fast Lane. Or perhaps it may be. In either case, I thought this is super valuable to me and think it'd be nice to share it here with you.
Recently, I got to drive a GTR R35.
One of the top 5 fastest cars in the world. A friend of mine who has an incredibly wealthy family decided he's going to sell it. And the other day we spent time together, I got the chance to give it a drive. The reason he's selling it?
He said he was tired of it. What did he want in place of it? A Megane RS, manual. About 270 horsepower, compared to the 500+ horsepower GTR.
What? Going from a super car to a Renault?
And we're talking about a guy who if he wanted, he could have easily gotten a Lamborghini, Ferrari or Porsche instead. His reason? "I want something low profile, and it's a less overpowered manual so the driving experience will be more engaging."
You see, why did I want to share about this?
Every day, billions of people around the world think that money will give them happiness. While I think money can provide comfort, and yes, it's a tool that if used right can provide happiness, I don't think it is the key to happiness. I had to emphasize this again:
Money is not the key to happiness.
How many people out there living every day, will do whatever in their power to cheat, manipulate, play politics, and hurt others just to make money, thinking that if they've earned their fortune they would finally be happy?
How many people out there living every day, will admire that rich guy driving the Lamborghini, the Ferrari, the Porsche, thinking man, he's so lucky, and their hearts ache because they'd want the same for themselves too?
Little did they know...
That to the rich, on the next week or so when they first own these super cars and drive it, the thrill of the car has already dumbed down to just a cool new possession. We can ask MJ and the many other multi-millionaires on this forum to confirm it.
The car has never been the actual cause of their happiness, and is never the cause of their fulfillment. It has never been any of the rich's deepest happiness. If there's lasting happiness created by the super car they've purchased, it's only made available when as a result of having that super car - they were able to make others happy or there is a personal sentimental reason to it.
So what are we really driving at?
The reason why I'm writing this now, is to hopefully provide someone who've read this post a reason to pause and ponder, with a wish that you'd be able to achieve greater success in life. Even though the goal to Fast Lane is to make money, do also give a thought to the reason why you want to make money.
Maturity and wisdom is what will really help us to achieve what we want in life, and hopefully this post will be able to help you with that a little bit more.
Aiming to just make money blindly, will not only prevent you from making it, it will also prevent you from ever really enjoying it.
When I driven the GTR, what went on inside my mind? It was actually this: "Shit, this is one of the top 5 fastest cars in the world, a car that beats Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Porsches - and that's it?" I didn't feel anything special. It was fast, sure. But the experience was not that far from driving a normal car that's amped up with more speed, or more control. I meant this from an experiential sense, instead of from a comparison or review point. Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Porsches, I'd imagine that they'd be able to provide a more comfortable experience, but nonetheless they couldn't be that far apart.
Would I ever get a Lamborghini, Ferrari or Porsche? Sure, if I had more than enough then to just squander a bit. But will it really give me happiness to own any of them? At this point, I'd say it's like owning a iPhone 6. You'd think it's cool, but it's just another possession.
The wealthy has been saying this all the time. But very few really notice what they meant.
They meant it literally. Their possessions have never been anything special.
Rather, it's the little human things we appreciate like spending good and sincere time with friends, family, the people you love, offering value to others, leaving the world with something meaningful which are the things that really matters, and that contribute to happiness.
It's not your ability in leveraging your employees to accomplish your goal that's what will make you happy. It's things like even when working, you were able to allow employees to feel fun working, and you allow them to spend a good time working together with you and bond with you that's going to make you happy. It's chasing after a goal fervously and with great hunger together with your trusted team to make a powerful impact in others' lives, that is going to make you happy. It's the feelings involved throughout the progress, the progress, that's going to make you happy. It's how what you're doing going to positively affect others, on what scale, what kind of challenges you aim to trump over, and that whole process of doing it that's going to make you happy. It's a mother's love for her child, it's life experiences enjoyed with people who are sincere, and you get to live life as real and give as much effort to life as you can, that is going to make you happy.
It's your contributions. It's your being. That's going to make you happy.
So, what do you want money for?
Make it meaningful.
The more you can make real value available to others, the more happy you'll be, and the more abundant the money you'll receive.
Material wealth is cool, but what's even better, is that we can breathe out our last breath knowing we've had a most amazing life while we are alive.
This kind of happiness doesn't come from being selfish. It comes from maturity.
When you have this kind of maturity, you'll want to appreciate what's really nice.
Even if it's a Megane RS over a GTR, just because you know, you'll sincerely enjoy that even more.
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