How to Get Filthy Rich: Young and Fast

Moving forward, on the subject of money, I believe most of us would want to be financially independent (aka RICH). Do we not? A very resounding yes for me. I want to be fully capable to pursue what I want without thinking or worrying where to get money to pay my bills, insurance fees and various consumptions. You can throw in my desire to contribute to society and fuel economies even. But I don't want to be rich after 20-30 years. Ideally, we'd want to be rich or get the reigns of richness now, pronto, este momento, dit ogenblik! Well, that's very promising when I'm currently under cost-cutting, but regardless, we'd all love to be financially powerful. Probably that is one of the main earthly goals we have in life no matter how sectors say that we should be not materialistic. Being aware of it or not, this is the real deal.

I remember once (not so long ago) when I was referred by a friend to attend a Herbalife 'meeting' in Makati. It involved a lot of effort at that time, but my friend promised that my finances would be bulked up once I attend the meeting like it was some sort of magic. I would be given a chance to pursue a business of my own, plus get a chance to taste their famed French Vanilla Shake. Frankly, I'm quite a skeptic with the business part, so basically the shake got me moving.

I went to this building in Makati, registered in a sleek Herbalife center and saw their products displayed in transparent cabinets. I went inside a conference room and looked at the people, mostly women, waiting glumly for the conference to start. I believe I was the youngest person there, or so I thought. I looked at the time and hoped that we get to the French Vanilla Shake tasting part before meeting my friend Rosella for lunch. After a few minutes of waiting, men in business suits entered as if they're going to perform a musical number. They spoke in an enthusiastic tone that for a minute I thought I was in some prayer meeting. They introduced themselves and excitedly started to explain why we are there. Apparently, in a nutshell, they are trying to recruit us to be a part of their ever-growing Marketing team of distributors, of globally recognized Herbalife Health and Wellness products. Uh-oh. Shit. Unfortunately, I'm not going to do any marketing nor sales. I suck at that like how I suck at math. I've no desire to be in that spectrum, and I've no desire to be there. But before staging my escape, they were already discussing our respective desires to be rich in this day and age. They've outlined the pros and cons of getting rich through a normal job in Makati versus nursing the Herbalife business that could reap returns over a tenfold. Tempting, but not quite. I just bought a can of French Vanilla and left.

However, I must admit that what they discussed was true. Newsflash, You can not get rich immediately by sticking with your metropolitan job, even if you're in the famed commercial district of the Philippines. The expenses in Makati versus the money that you incur, leaves you at a disadvantaged point. Let's face it, you cannot save up that much and get rich especially if you're still starting. Getting a better break, bigger paying job would take time, and you would not feel any different from those who will get rich when they reach their 40's, being department heads of a global organization they've worked for years. Yikes. How were they able to manage their interests? I have no idea. Probably they belong to the special niche of people wherein they have met their perfect jobs and being able to stay there long and happy, but I hope I'm just exaggerating or I'm personally screwed.

How can we manage and pursue our interests without sacrificing our lifestyle and financial responsibilities? The answer is to get financially powerful or rich. But reality speaking, we tend to get stuck in the traditional way of becoming rich, through traditional jobs, which may be very long and painstaking.

One dreamy lunch, my colleagues and I, daydreamed on how we can possibly secure our financial status this early, because most of us, ideally, wouldn't want to work anymore. Most of us have different interests to pursue. "If only we had billions"...as they would say. We knew the same fact that something drastic must happen and we began to hook up suggestions. These may not be ideal suggestions to follow, but most definitely feasible. Some people are already living proofs of it. It's amusing to look at some methods, desperate to feasible methods, on how to get filthy rich, young and fast.

How to get Filthy RICH, YOUNG AND FAST.


1. WIN IN A LOTTERY

IDEAL: Submitting to the powers of lottery, means submitting yourself to pure luck. It only takes\ 20 pesos to fill up that ticket and redefine your entire life; if the numbers you chose were picked out from a thousand combinations, that is. If you have hit the jackpot, consider yourself very very freaking lucky.

REALITY: Unfortunately, buying tickets and filling them up involves a lot of physical, emotional and financial strain. The real deal is that there are thousands of possible combinations for any person to win, yet the hand of luck strikes only once and the remaining few. There are more possibilities for failure than success because of the combinations and because of its nationwide popularity and accessibility. In short, the chances here are very slim. If you want, you can opt to study the mechanisms of lottery to improve your chances in winning, but science has no space in the realm of luck. This also applies to the nationwide contests of products.

GETTING THROUGH: Since vying for the lottery money involves physical strain, it also involves financial and emotional strain. Money, used to buy lottery tickets, should belong to the disposable income to avoid regrets and horrible calculations in the near future. Also, one should be mentally and psychological stable to pursue this method to richness since failures are more probable than success.


2. MARRYING GOOD

IDEAL: Movies have made comedic materials out of it, but marrying good is another faster way to riches. If you marry a person who's already affluent or very financially established to the point of capturing earnings made by two people, then the ability of one partner to follow his/her interests would be so much easier than before. Let's face it, I know some women who would just love to be housewives of prominent businessmen or people. They find managing the household, shopping expenses and daily trips to soirees and parties very much appealing than being single and struggling to be financially independent. In some cases, partners through marriage, are immediately given instant capital boost to pursue respective business of interests.

REALITY: In this modern age, everyone is expected to earn a living. We are not stuck anymore in the specific era wherein women are succumbed to the houses and just wait for competent suitors. Women now are very much empowered and can embark on a career. We are mostly seen as individuals rather than as a gender when it comes to earning our own dough. But marrying someone for specific monetary reasons is still existing, which veers towards a nasty truth of being a GOLD DIGGER. Some people marry their partners because of their own monetary incentives. Some cannot bear to struggle anymore and their desire to settle with a person with excellent financial standing, is way better than settling with a person that they love, but cannot meet their monetary demands or specifications. Gold Diggers have their own personal motives of marrying a person and that doesn't often involve love, well not at first at anyways. Obviously, this is not a very healthy and truthful relationship that could cause major problems in the future.

GETTING THROUGH: Given these observations, it's really quite important to be able to establish yourself first than learning to depend your monetary happiness to another person. I will not deny the fact that marrying a very affluent person is a big advantage. It fuses your capital together and you have more leeway to be risky in financial ventures. However, any marriage should always be based on love and respect. No one has any right to advance financially in the expense of other person's happiness. Most important point here in marrying good is that choosing a partner because of his bank account is not always foolproof. A person should consider that his/her loved one is an individual who is knowledgeable and capable enough to be financially stable at any given circumstances. It's always better to marry a person who has goals and knows how to make some good money one way or another, rather than marrying a person who only depends on his/her given riches at hand.



3. INVEST IN STOCKS and BUSINESS VENTURES

IDEAL: People get instantly rich, without doing anything, through investing in stocks. The returns can shoot as high as the sky. I know some people who would just wake up every day or every week, 20,000-50,000 pesos richer. Some do not even hold a stable job, but they end up richer than those who are employed. If you have extra money to burn, it's best to take a chance in stocks rather than depositing everything on a bank. The returns are way better.

Others would opt to put up their own businesses. That's the perfect method in creating the new wave of Ayala's and Sy's. Putting up a business, making it work and establishing it in the market will not only reap millions or billions, but makes you an instant boss as well. There are thousands of success stories available to draw inspiration upon. Think Goldilocks, National Bookstore, Sinangag Express, laundrymats and the like.

REALITY: The bad side of stocks and businesses are RISKS. One doesn't have to achieve a masters degree to know this. Stocks can give you overflowing returns, yet if mismanaged or taken for granted, you could immediately say goodbye to your hard earned money. Businesses on the other hand is quite same as stocks. Businesses take lots of effort to manage and should be studied well, or else it would be time to close up before you even...get even.

GETTING THROUGH: Stocks and Businesses have tons of risks, but it's not the same as gambling. One has to study, learn and manage their stocks and businesses well to make it work for them. It also requires certain amount of patience to see the returns. To be able to maximize the profits, a person has to undergo thorough study and research on the specific stock or venture. This would also entail a lot of guts and work compared to winning in a lottery or marrying good. Just like lottery, money used here (especially in stocks) should be your disposable income, to avoid further financial muddle in the future. Also aside from the monetary returns, self-fulfillment and business wit are achieved.


4. CREATE OR INVENT SOMETHING

IDEAL: Invent something new that the majority of consumers would like or need. The only thing you'll need here is vision, intuition, skills and guts to make it happen. Once you have invented something and it was received warmly, you would just have to sit back, relax and think of a way of protecting your invention by making a better version to introduce in the near future. It's like a business, only that this involves only yourself. You could be able to tie up with the biggest names in the industry, sell your prototype and secure an autonomous and powerful position in an organization. Think J.K. Rowling who wrote Harry Potter.All she ever needed was to nurse her wild imaginations, put it into words, and now she's the second richest woman in the world. Think the one who invented Velcro. Think those who invented Ziplocs.

REALITY: It's hard enough to arrive at a particular bankable idea, but it's much harder to make it into a reality. As humans, I'm sure ideas do not fall short, but sifting through those crystallines, picking up that fragment that you would develop and exercise, is painstaking. Also, be prepared to accept failure and be patient to reap the returns.

GETTING THROUGH: Curiosity, passion to develop and make things are important here. One must be encouraged to nurture ones ideas, and test it through conducting research or studies. The idea, not necessarily might be sound at first,but must have even the slightest potential for profit. Identification of a market or potential market is crucial. Being prepared and patient are also fine attributes to get through this creative method. Also, knowing when to forge ahead, stop or go back to the drawing board is needed to achieve optimal results.


5. BE A CELEBRITY

IDEAL: We all know that celebrities, pop stars, artists earn way more than a normal Juan, plus they get the perks. Payment for their recognized and admired talent can amount to millions. Payment for endorsements and commercials can buy them cars and properties. And being a celebrity is encouraged in younger years. Think Miley Cyrus, Judy Anne Santos, KC Conception. They wouldn't probably have to work for the rest of their lives; and still they would receive money and opportunities because they have built up stable celebrity status.

REALITY: Obviously, all of us cannot be models and celebrities no matter how talented we perceive ourselves to be. It takes a lot of powerful talent, distinct facial features that would speak with millions, and large amount of celebrity quality and charisma to make it work. Celebrities should also be extraordinarily stronger people to take on public scrutiny of their craft, bashing of their beings and creativity to reinvent themselves. Celebrities fall often in their own traps of self-destruction.

GETTING THROUGH: Being a celebrity may be glamorous, but definitely a harder life than anyone could imagine. A celebrity is always under the public eye, so privacy and peace of mind are some of the things that they should readily consider. To be able to forgo those, celebrities should understand that they are entering this world on their own accord. Also, since they are their own products, they should constantly reinvent themselves without loosing quality and consistency. Celebrities should be extraordinarily stronger people to take on the whimsical sentiments of the public. They should be prepared and be able to establish a stronger foundation and not to be blinded by present fame and power.