Being Rich Vs. Having Wealth Without Being Wealthy

1. "Real Estate is not about quick money, it's about sustainability!"

Thank you Marcus Maloney for this inspirational quote (Newbie Real Estate Investors: The Path to Success Starts Here, blog, April 18, 2014, Biggerpockets.com) .

For the better part of my early investment strategy; I with singular purpose, focused on trying to obtain quick money. Forex, stocks, mutual funds, multi-level marketing, even commodities; I tried them all. I tried them all....with great FAILURES! From the novice investor standpoint; I kept scratching my head, wondering what step I skipped?

I did what the gurus were saying to do with my money. Put my money here or there and sit back and collect my rewards (checks). Well, I did; again and again, I put my money somewhere else. But guess who was sitting back and collecting the rewards. That's right, the gurus of late night TV. By age 30, I had given up on becoming "rich." Here comes the funny part.

I had given up on ever becoming "rich;" now I'm going to become "wealthy!"

Hmmm....

What's the difference? The only difference between the two words is their positions in the dictionary. They are both Buzz words from the "get rich quick" society that we live in today. These words are for all intents and purposes, interchangeable.

The difference between wealth and wealthy.

Being wealthy in many people's perspective is the possession of money or something of great value. My perspective is this, you got a boat load of cash. But does that mean you have wealth? NO! You may have a boat load of cash, but are you one slip and fall from the poor house?

Wealth, true wealth; is a position of power. It is a position of invincibility. It is the investors way of saying, "up your nose with a rubber hose, if you don't like my deal!" I had every intention of using other words, but instead decided to write this at a PG level. Wealth, is being in a position that no one thing can remove you from. It is you the investors ability to say; "So what, I am still here today, tomorrow, next week, next month, next freaking year!"

Wealth is not measured in monetary terms. Wealth is measured in terms that are psychological.

Real Estate Agents can attest to this. A home buyer (non-investor) will only put offers on homes that they can see themselves living in for a long period of time. They must love everything about the home, including the changes they want to make. The agent knows, at this point; if they say and do the right things, they will have a deal. Ask any agent what happens, when they suggest putting in on an offer on a home; that the buyer is just not feeling. Something always, without fail; goes wrong. No deal!

Another way to analyze this is from a baseball players perspective. A baseball power hitter will always know when they hit a home run before the ball has even cleared the fence. Just from the way the ball contacts the bat, the sound the contact makes, and the ease of their swing. All other hits, is a scramble to the bases, or just plain foul balls.

Wealth is sustainability!

Every real estate investors end goal is having wealth (sustainability). Investors want to maintain their own sustainability long after they "retire." They will write this down as their goal. "I want to build wealth through my real estate portfolio." Psychologically they are telling themselves that they want to be in a position of invincibility, financially. The great real estate investors will spend years to make sure they obtain this goal. Even average investors can spend even more years working towards this goal, and achieve it.

But, many will think it, write it, and never achieve it; simply because they want to be RICH!