How to Make Tons of Money
How to Make Tons of Money
The gameplan has remained the same
Making “tons of money” has always captivated people. There’s a reason why Think and Grow Rich continues to remain a bestseller even after 80 years of its debut.
It’s a topic that’ll never go out of vogue. A fresh take on it will always attract eyeballs as long as it’s useful. Naval’s how to get rich without getting lucky tweetstorm is a good case in point. This was the piece of content that launched his “new age philosopher” brand.
It’s amazing because the fundamentals of making a hell lot of money hasn’t changed and I doubt if it ever will.
Mind you, there’s a difference between “comfortably getting by money” and “tons of money.”
The former is easier to achieve but the latter has only specific pathways to it.
I’d say there are only 3 ways to go about it.
1. Build and own a growing business
No brainer you might say. But there’s some nuance to it.
Note that I said “build and own” a business. Just building it is not enough. There are enough stories of founders giving away too much equity in the beginning to build a business and then exiting out of it without getting a penny.
Why building and owning a business is a great way to make tons of money?
It’s scalable. The market dictates how big you can become. There are really no limits to how high you can go.
The higher you go, the opportunities to make more money as a business (and as the owner of the business) open up.
Risky and failure-prone? Yes, of course.
Great way to become rich? Absolutely, if it’s growing and/or sellable.
You should either be able to grow the business day in and day out, or you should be able to cash out of it.
If neither of the above is true then your business is nothing but a source of regular paycheque with the added headaches of administration and compliances.
2. Own a growing asset
What counts as a growing asset?
A growing business or growing value of a property or equity.
You could be an employee in a growing business with a good share of equity.
You could be sitting on a piece of land that is certain to grow in value every year.
You could be an investor who owns a share of a business that’s certain to grow.
You’re owning but not building.
As long as your investment is in an appreciating asset, the chances of striking it big will remain high.
Of course the whole game is about choosing the asset.
Be it investment in a business or a person or a property, the more prudent you are about making the choices, the better the chances to grab the big moolah.
3. Build a Phenomenal Personal Brand
If you build a brand that’s big and trustworthy enough, people will pay you what you ask for no matter how exorbitant a sum it might be.
And people will pay.
The power of the individual has never been bigger. The information age has catapulted the individual to the top of the food chain.
Just look at what Taylor Swift has done.
You don’t need Taylor’s scale. You could be an extraordinary employee in a firm that not just hits it out of the park when it comes to her job, but is also known for a variety of skills that her peers can’t match.
A great personal brand can be built irrespective of the kind of work you’re involved in.
What does a personal brand mean?
It means people instinctively recognize you for something specific.
Sometimes such brands get built without the person knowing. People start noticing you for something particular that you’re good at but haven’t given much thought to.
If that’s already happening and you don’t know then it’s your game to lose.
Standing out in today’s age of overwhelm is increasingly difficult and yet increasingly rewarding.
A great personal brand means more opportunities, several of which could be monetized.
Yes, you’d be primarily renting out your time to begin with.
Eventually though, you’d reach a point where you’d be able to choose when to rent out your time (or not at all). You’d just have made tons of money by then.
Common Thread
A common thread running through all the above 3 options is this:
All the methods require effort in two things:
Choosing what to spend time on
Going all in once you’ve decided
Real money in stock markets is seldom made by people who do it from the sidelines. It’s made by people who invest all their time and energy in understanding the nuances of the game and play it well.
Real money in business is seldom made by people who do not persist.
Real money as a creator or an artist is only made when the artist understands “going all in” means respecting the commerce side of it and grabbing opportunities.
So, the thinking part in “think and grow rich” remains valid.
However it’s think and do and think again and do again and think something new and do something new.
Never underestimate the doing. There’s no way around it. Never has been.
Great insights Ab. Thank you.