Bounce
New Contributor
A pilot buddy of mine (a very lazy pilot buddy of mine) watched me retire at age 47 and walk away from a job as a captain for a major airline. He said he just couldn't figure out what to do to follow in my footsteps. He's working paycheck to paycheck and deep in credit card debt.
He is focusing on the "HOW" part of the equation and missing the "WHY." I try to explain that the first place for him to start in in his own mind.
This is a response I gave him to an e-mail where he said he just couldn't seem to get one foot in front of the other. I had to change some of the wording to make it presentable to the general public - LOL. I think I got them all.
You, like most everyone else, looks out at the world and sees it NOT as it is – beliefs about reality – but instead as reality itself. When I say “the world,†I’m specifically talking about your personal world (not the world of politics or religion). More specifically, I’m talking about YOUR world of finances and money.
Somewhere along the line you learned to see money the way you see it. It’s obvious to you what it is. The best ways of getting more of it are obvious to you, as are what you should do with it when you get it. All this is obvious.
The problem is, the vision you have about all that results in the exact situation you find yourself in right now. Many other ideas feed into it, but I want to focus exclusively on the financial part of this and not complicate it too much for now.
You see money as something you spend your time earning (renting your life for) and something you use to pay the family bills with. It’s pretty much standard American ideology for the working class. Other ideas that feed into this – which I won’t get in to beyond mentioning that they exist – are ideas that working hard for money is simply what one does. Working for a buck is what you're SUPPOSED to do. When I say “hard†in this case, I mean devoting lots of your time to. After all, you’re supposed to do well in college, get a good job with a secure corporation that offers a generous benefits package and build a career. That’s pretty well accepted and GENERATIONS of Americans have bought that idea.
You need to wean yourself OFF of those ideas and accept some new ones. Moreover, I know it’s not easy because I did it. You need to answer some questions for yourself. First, do you mind renting the best years of your life for whatever the airline will pay? The answer to that is pretty obvious, you don’t mind at all. I didn’t either at first.
But what if the premises we signed up under go away? What if the economy takes a huge dump and the dollar goes to ----? What if we go the way of Argentina or worse? What if you lose your medical certificate and can't fly or the national energy policy drives the price of jet fuel through the roof and nobody can afford an airline ticket? There are 50 things that could happen to destroy your income stream the way you have it set up. What then? The idea that I am trying to get you to accept is that IT’S NOT FINE to rent the best years of your life away for a buck. That’s the first idea you should change. The thought of renting my life away so Delta can make money on my back turns my ------- stomach!
However, there are a ---- load more (ideas you have to change)… I’ll stick with one other for now and that’s what “money†is. You look at it in a certain way. You need to understand that money isn’t what you think it is and instead look at it as a tool. Money is a tool and it’s only job is to create MORE MONEY. That’s all it does. It’s always making money for someone. Moreover, money is everywhere. You can use other peoples’ money to create money for yourself. Money can either work FOR YOU or AGAINST YOU. Right now, you have it working against you. If you’re using other peoples’ money to SPEND and you owe them interest for consumables and other consumer debt, money is working FOR THEM and AGAINST YOU.
Money should write you a check, not cause you to write one. There are a ---- load of ideas you have to change if you want to change your life. If you don’t want to change your life, then you really don’t believe the ---- you’ve been saying about the future of the economy. You really don’t believe that we’re headed down the road to Jimmy Carter’s stagflation. If you did, motivation to change wouldn’t be an issue.
We’re headed for a ------- thunderstorm. If you believe what you’ve been taught about flying in to those -------, you’re going to maneuver NOW. If you’re not convinced they’re all that bad, you might not have the motivation to do what it takes to maneuver around the -----.
So, if laziness and lack of motivation to move are an issue, then you really don’t believe the ---- they say about what’s in those thunderstorms.
He is focusing on the "HOW" part of the equation and missing the "WHY." I try to explain that the first place for him to start in in his own mind.
This is a response I gave him to an e-mail where he said he just couldn't seem to get one foot in front of the other. I had to change some of the wording to make it presentable to the general public - LOL. I think I got them all.
You, like most everyone else, looks out at the world and sees it NOT as it is – beliefs about reality – but instead as reality itself. When I say “the world,†I’m specifically talking about your personal world (not the world of politics or religion). More specifically, I’m talking about YOUR world of finances and money.
Somewhere along the line you learned to see money the way you see it. It’s obvious to you what it is. The best ways of getting more of it are obvious to you, as are what you should do with it when you get it. All this is obvious.
The problem is, the vision you have about all that results in the exact situation you find yourself in right now. Many other ideas feed into it, but I want to focus exclusively on the financial part of this and not complicate it too much for now.
You see money as something you spend your time earning (renting your life for) and something you use to pay the family bills with. It’s pretty much standard American ideology for the working class. Other ideas that feed into this – which I won’t get in to beyond mentioning that they exist – are ideas that working hard for money is simply what one does. Working for a buck is what you're SUPPOSED to do. When I say “hard†in this case, I mean devoting lots of your time to. After all, you’re supposed to do well in college, get a good job with a secure corporation that offers a generous benefits package and build a career. That’s pretty well accepted and GENERATIONS of Americans have bought that idea.
You need to wean yourself OFF of those ideas and accept some new ones. Moreover, I know it’s not easy because I did it. You need to answer some questions for yourself. First, do you mind renting the best years of your life for whatever the airline will pay? The answer to that is pretty obvious, you don’t mind at all. I didn’t either at first.
But what if the premises we signed up under go away? What if the economy takes a huge dump and the dollar goes to ----? What if we go the way of Argentina or worse? What if you lose your medical certificate and can't fly or the national energy policy drives the price of jet fuel through the roof and nobody can afford an airline ticket? There are 50 things that could happen to destroy your income stream the way you have it set up. What then? The idea that I am trying to get you to accept is that IT’S NOT FINE to rent the best years of your life away for a buck. That’s the first idea you should change. The thought of renting my life away so Delta can make money on my back turns my ------- stomach!
However, there are a ---- load more (ideas you have to change)… I’ll stick with one other for now and that’s what “money†is. You look at it in a certain way. You need to understand that money isn’t what you think it is and instead look at it as a tool. Money is a tool and it’s only job is to create MORE MONEY. That’s all it does. It’s always making money for someone. Moreover, money is everywhere. You can use other peoples’ money to create money for yourself. Money can either work FOR YOU or AGAINST YOU. Right now, you have it working against you. If you’re using other peoples’ money to SPEND and you owe them interest for consumables and other consumer debt, money is working FOR THEM and AGAINST YOU.
Money should write you a check, not cause you to write one. There are a ---- load of ideas you have to change if you want to change your life. If you don’t want to change your life, then you really don’t believe the ---- you’ve been saying about the future of the economy. You really don’t believe that we’re headed down the road to Jimmy Carter’s stagflation. If you did, motivation to change wouldn’t be an issue.
We’re headed for a ------- thunderstorm. If you believe what you’ve been taught about flying in to those -------, you’re going to maneuver NOW. If you’re not convinced they’re all that bad, you might not have the motivation to do what it takes to maneuver around the -----.
So, if laziness and lack of motivation to move are an issue, then you really don’t believe the ---- they say about what’s in those thunderstorms.
Dislike ads? Become a Fastlane member:
Subscribe today and surround yourself with winners and millionaire mentors, not those broke friends who only want to drink beer and play video games. :-)
Membership Required: Upgrade to Expose Nearly 1,000,000 Posts
Ready to Unleash the Millionaire Entrepreneur in You?
Become a member of the Fastlane Forum, the private community founded by best-selling author and multi-millionaire entrepreneur MJ DeMarco. Since 2007, MJ DeMarco has poured his heart and soul into the Fastlane Forum, helping entrepreneurs reclaim their time, win their financial freedom, and live their best life.
With more than 39,000 posts packed with insights, strategies, and advice, you’re not just a member—you’re stepping into MJ’s inner-circle, a place where you’ll never be left alone.
Become a member and gain immediate access to...
- Active Community: Ever join a community only to find it DEAD? Not at Fastlane! As you can see from our home page, life-changing content is posted dozens of times daily.
- Exclusive Insights: Direct access to MJ DeMarco’s daily contributions and wisdom.
- Powerful Networking Opportunities: Connect with a diverse group of successful entrepreneurs who can offer mentorship, collaboration, and opportunities.
- Proven Strategies: Learn from the best in the business, with actionable advice and strategies that can accelerate your success.
"You are the average of the five people you surround yourself with the most..."
Who are you surrounding yourself with? Surround yourself with millionaire success. Join Fastlane today!
Join Today
