In our first post on “Your Personal Billionaire Mentor” (here), we looked at the first two secrets for building wealth drawn from the book “The Richest Man in Babylon” and its primary character, Arkad. He apparently did pretty well for himself, as he went from poor scribe to reportedly being the richest man in all of ancient Babylon – the wealthiest city in the world – by following some basic principles.
In this post, we’ll continue with five more lessons Arkad taught on building wealth. It’s like having your own personal billionaire mentor!
The Third Cure – Make thy Gold Multiply
Financial independence is not about age it’s about cash flow. This occurs when you have enough income from other sources that you no longer have to go to work. Prudent investing can help you multiply assets and produce income. A man’s wealth is not so much found in the money in his account, but in the income he builds. The stream that continually flows into his purse and keeps it always bulging. Desire an income that continues to come whether you work or travel.
The Fourth Cure – Guard thy Treasures from Loss
Arkad teaches, ‘Gold in your purse must be guarded with firmness or it will be lost.’ The first sound principle of investing is finding security for your principle’. While risk to a degree is sometimes necessary to build wealth, the penalty of risk is probable loss and must be balanced.
Be careful when you loan to another. Study the dangers of any investment before putting money there. Consult with wise men. Secure the advice of those experienced in the task of handling money prudently and let their wisdom protect your treasure from unsafe investments.
The Fifth Cure – Pay Off Your Dwelling
Despite popular belief, from a cash flow perspective, your home is a liability (defined as something that takes money out of your purse). Own your home – pay it off and it will only cost the insurance and taxes. Your heart will be glad and your cost of living will be greatly reduced, making more of your earnings available for pleasures or investing in income-producing assets. Paying off the house is not always feasible but those I’ve seen who have done this have much less stress in retirement.
The Sixth Cure – Ensure a Future Income Plan
Think about your future and make preparations for your family should you no longer be with them or able to support them. Houses and land, owner-financing sales, wills, life insurance and disability insurance all can provide a measure of security for the future.
The Seventh Cure – Increase Your Ability to Earn
What are you doing to increase your ability to earn? Preceding accomplishment must be desire. Your desires must be strong and definite. The process by which wealth is accumulated is first in small amounts, then in larger ones as a man learns and becomes more capable.
We hope this gets you thinking. And, here’s some additional good news…you don’t have to be a billionaire to have an amazing retirement. All you need is a strategic plan that can help you manage five core areas…income planning, investment planning, health/life insurance planning, tax planning and estate planning. We think it’s a lot like putting together the pieces of a puzzle in which some of the pieces are continually changing!
If you would like help finding clear direction for your retirement, contact us today for a complimentary assessment of where you are relative to your retirement goals. We’re happy to help!
