You get rich owning things you control...

[MJ DeMarco]

From the Life in the Fastlane newsletter...

Subject: Financial blasphemy: $6 lattes, debt, more...

Last week I tweeted the following truth:

Financial blasphemy: I drink $6 coffee. I spent $5.3M on a 13,000 sq/ft estate w/a $6K mortgage. I have 12 credit cards where $1000s are charged monthly. I dine out 3-5X week. When I shop, I don't look at prices and throw whatever I want into the shopping cart. The word "budget" is not in my vocabulary. I also have no savings plan, I don't make regular investments in index funds. Despite doing everything contrary to financial experts & every finance book ever sold, I have total financial freedom. Here's are 8 truths that made it happen... (Link to full tweet)

Among one of those truths, there was one I want to call your particular attention to:

The true secret to wealth/unfettered financial freedom (not the mediocre suckfest promoted nowadays) is by owning things you can control as an INSIDERS. This puts the power of asymmetrical business returns that compound into your grasp. Buying indexed funds does not count.

If you look at any person who has accumulated wealth (and by wealth I mean at least $10M+) you will see the above FACT as common denominator. In fact, Sam Altman (the entrepreneur behind the ChatGPT AI) echoed the same in a legendary blog post on becoming successful. He said:


If you want the FINANCIAL freedom to accompany TIME freedom, you need to not only OWN things but CONTROL them. This is why a CENTS-based, Fastlane business is always your best bet for rapid wealth accumulation—not stocks, not crypto, and certainly not a soul-crushing job for 25 years while hoping to climb your way into a C-Suite.

You see, when you buy stock in Apple or Tesla, you might own a tiny piece of the company but you don't control it.

You aren't an INSIDERS, and you don't get to dictate decisions.

Now before you start screaming about Warren Buffett, Bill Ackman, or Carl Icahn, these powerhouse stock investors are activist investors. Meaning? Activist investors buy so many shares in these companies they get to influence their decisions through stock proxies and, ultimately, get seats on the board that they can control.

When you have ownership but fail at control, many bad things can happen.

A YouTube channel with 2M subscribers is incredibly influential. But say the wrong thing, and the YouTube censors will act—and boom—it is gone. Of course, I'm not saying a big YouTube channel is a bad idea, on the contrary, but I am saying to be mindful of the hand that is feeding you.

Other control problems are self-induced.

Stan Lee created many iconic Marvel comic book characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man, and the Hulk. Though he retained the titles of Marvel's president and chairman, he had signed away the rights to Marvel's properties early on. As the characters exploded in popularity via movies in the 2000s, Lee did not have control over them or share substantially in the profits.

This is why the Commandment of Control is a critical element in my proprietary CENTS Framework outlined in my books.

If you're going to endure the hardships of starting and growing a business, one that rapidly grows in value, as Sam Alman describes, it's critical you keep control.

When the wealth accumulation phase ensues, and you stand to earn millions, you want to reap the benefits. Only then and after that should you consider control-reducing activities, such as venture capital or selling equity.

You get rich by owning things as an INSIDERS that you control.

You get less poor by owning things that you don't control.

MJ

 

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[Chet Shen]

From the Life in the Fastlane newsletter...

Subject: Financial blasphemy: $6 lattes, debt, more...

Last week I tweeted the following truth:



Among one of those truths, there was one I want to call your particular attention to:



If you look at any person who has accumulated wealth (and by wealth I mean at least $10M+) you will see the above FACT as common denominator. In fact, Sam Altman (the entrepreneur behind the ChatGPT AI) echoed the same in a legendary blog post on becoming successful. He said:

View attachment 50079
If you want the FINANCIAL freedom to accompany TIME freedom, you need to not only OWN things but CONTROL them. This is why a CENTS-based, Fastlane business is always your best bet for rapid wealth accumulation—not stocks, not crypto, and certainly not a soul-crushing job for 25 years while hoping to climb your way into a C-Suite.

You see, when you buy stock in Apple or Tesla, you might own a tiny piece of the company but you don't control it.

You aren't an INSIDERS, and you don't get to dictate decisions.

Now before you start screaming about Warren Buffett, Bill Ackman, or Carl Icahn, these powerhouse stock investors are activist investors. Meaning? Activist investors buy so many shares in these companies they get to influence their decisions through stock proxies and, ultimately, get seats on the board that they can control.

When you have ownership but fail at control, many bad things can happen.

A YouTube channel with 2M subscribers is incredibly influential. But say the wrong thing, and the YouTube censors will act—and boom—it is gone. Of course, I'm not saying a big YouTube channel is a bad idea, on the contrary, but I am saying to be mindful of the hand that is feeding you.

Other control problems are self-induced.

Stan Lee created many iconic Marvel comic book characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man, and the Hulk. Though he retained the titles of Marvel's president and chairman, he had signed away the rights to Marvel's properties early on. As the characters exploded in popularity via movies in the 2000s, Lee did not have control over them or share substantially in the profits.

This is why the Commandment of Control is a critical element in my proprietary CENTS Framework outlined in my books.

If you're going to endure the hardships of starting and growing a business, one that rapidly grows in value, as Sam Alman describes, it's critical you keep control.

When the wealth accumulation phase ensues, and you stand to earn millions, you want to reap the benefits. Only then and after that should you consider control-reducing activities, such as venture capital or selling equity.

You get rich by owning things as an INSIDERS that you control.

You get less poor by owning things that you don't control.

MJ

So it's all about controlling your assets that are able to rapidly increase in value like a CENTS-based business, diverse investments or assets that are going to increase in value.

If you want to get rich, you gotta control your assets. Make sure that you control your business. Make sure that you control your investments.

Is that why crypto or stocks are not reliable? You can't control them, but you can control a diverse portfolio of investment.

I'm merely repeating the gold content you just posted and would like to verify my conclusion if I'm right

 

[Mr. Tycoon]

From the Life in the Fastlane newsletter...

Subject: Financial blasphemy: $6 lattes, debt, more...

Last week I tweeted the following truth:



Among one of those truths, there was one I want to call your particular attention to:



If you look at any person who has accumulated wealth (and by wealth I mean at least $10M+) you will see the above FACT as common denominator. In fact, Sam Altman (the entrepreneur behind the ChatGPT AI) echoed the same in a legendary blog post on becoming successful. He said:

View attachment 50079
If you want the FINANCIAL freedom to accompany TIME freedom, you need to not only OWN things but CONTROL them. This is why a CENTS-based, Fastlane business is always your best bet for rapid wealth accumulation—not stocks, not crypto, and certainly not a soul-crushing job for 25 years while hoping to climb your way into a C-Suite.

You see, when you buy stock in Apple or Tesla, you might own a tiny piece of the company but you don't control it.

You aren't an INSIDERS, and you don't get to dictate decisions.

Now before you start screaming about Warren Buffett, Bill Ackman, or Carl Icahn, these powerhouse stock investors are activist investors. Meaning? Activist investors buy so many shares in these companies they get to influence their decisions through stock proxies and, ultimately, get seats on the board that they can control.

When you have ownership but fail at control, many bad things can happen.

A YouTube channel with 2M subscribers is incredibly influential. But say the wrong thing, and the YouTube censors will act—and boom—it is gone. Of course, I'm not saying a big YouTube channel is a bad idea, on the contrary, but I am saying to be mindful of the hand that is feeding you.

Other control problems are self-induced.

Stan Lee created many iconic Marvel comic book characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man, and the Hulk. Though he retained the titles of Marvel's president and chairman, he had signed away the rights to Marvel's properties early on. As the characters exploded in popularity via movies in the 2000s, Lee did not have control over them or share substantially in the profits.

This is why the Commandment of Control is a critical element in my proprietary CENTS Framework outlined in my books.

If you're going to endure the hardships of starting and growing a business, one that rapidly grows in value, as Sam Alman describes, it's critical you keep control.

When the wealth accumulation phase ensues, and you stand to earn millions, you want to reap the benefits. Only then and after that should you consider control-reducing activities, such as venture capital or selling equity.

You get rich by owning things as an INSIDERS that you control.

You get less poor by owning things that you don't control.

MJ

As the great Dennis Felix said: if you want to get rich you want to be an owner.

 

[WJK]

So it's all about controlling your assets that are able to rapidly increase in value like a CENTS-based business, diverse investments or assets that are going to increase in value.

If you want to get rich, you gotta control your assets. Make sure that you control your business. Make sure that you control your investments.

Is that why crypto or stocks are not reliable? You can't control them, but you can control a diverse portfolio of investment.

I'm merely repeating the gold content you just posted and would like to verify my conclusion if I'm right

Start by controlling yourself and your time. It's the only two things you can totally control. You sure can't control other people and most of the time, the world around you. Gaining control of other stuff is the icing on the cake.

Controlling yourself includes educating yourself. That education is the only thing you'll ever really own during your life. You can't lose your education in a lawsuit, get too old, lose it in a divorce, or lose it by making a stupid mistake. What you learn is yours for the rest of your life.

Time is the other critical piece of the puzzle. It is the only form of equality for humans on planet Earth. Everyone has 24 hours per day and, 365 days per year (plus one extra day every few years), Some people use this element well and others don't.

Start with the basics. Then work on controlling your business(es), your properties, your money, your assets, and your investments.

Applied education and skills, in a timely manner, to a problem or need, are the building blocks of everything else.

 

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[Chet Shen]

Start by controlling yourself and your time. It's the only two things you can totally control. You sure can't control other people and most of the time, the world around you. Gaining control of other stuff is the icing on the cake.

Controlling yourself includes educating yourself. That education is the only thing you'll ever really own during your life. You can't lose your education in a lawsuit, get too old, lose it in a divorce, or lose it by making a stupid mistake. What you learn is yours for the rest of your life.

Time is the other critical piece of the puzzle. It is the only form of equality for humans on planet Earth. Everyone has 24 hours per day and, 365 days per year (plus one extra day every few years), Some people use this element well and others don't.

Start with the basics. Then work on controlling your business(es), your properties, your money, your assets, and your investments.

Applied education and skills, in a timely manner, to a problem or need, are the building blocks of everything else.

Understand that you're in control of your decisions and your choices on everything you do including your feelings, mindset, education, entertainment and etc.

I'm 15yr old and still in school. This means that I gotta choose to spend my time wisely, video games or study? And choose my education wisely too, fantasy novels or practical business books? Picking your friends, controlling every aspect of your life?

Know that everything you do is your choice. Choosing to play games, choosing to play with friends, choosing to learn business, etc?

 

[WJK]

Understand that you're in control of your decisions and your choices on everything you do including your feelings, mindset, education, entertainment and etc.

I'm 15yr old and still in school. This means that I gotta choose to spend my time wisely, video games or study? And choose my education wisely too, fantasy novels or practical business books? Picking your friends, controlling every aspect of your life?

Know that everything you do is your choice. Choosing to play games, choosing to play with friends, choosing to learn business, etc?

I had a rough beginning and a terrible home life when I was young. I had an adult life with all those responsibilities much too young. I didn't get to play and explore. Life was way too serious.

Yes, you should enjoy some of your time balanced with learning and striving. Just don't fall into being a party boy. It's a real waste of time and it could ruin your life. Be aware of the transition you are making from being a kid to being an adult.

Most people your age don't even know that business people like us on the Forum exist. You're already way ahead of the curve. They won't know about the different choices until they are much older. You have a lot of time to pass them by.

Learn everything you can. Try things. Go see and experience everything you can -- that won't hurt you. Get a lot of different interests and hobbies. One of them could be your future business. Volunteer. Work for free to learn something new. Listen to your heart and find things you love. Ask LOTS of questions. Take classes both in person and online to try things out. You won't know what you like until you try.

Also, realize that when you try something new, you won't be good at it. Humans don't like to do things where they don't excel. A lot of things won't be fun until you get good at them. You may have to hang in there and do the activity for a while. Then see if you like it.

I daily use stuff that I learned years ago. Sometimes it is only a bit or a piece of a topic, but it really counts. I had a class in high school that taught me to write good term papers. I swear that teacher had more red marks on those pages than I had words. But, I used that skill when I wrote 100-page technical reports for my RE commercial appraisal business. It got me through 4 college degrees including law school with all of those legal final exams. I'm using that skill right now to answer you.

I have 2 degrees in merchandising, which is basically marketing. I ended up using that education to do all of my own marketing in my RE career. I learned how to lay out an ad according to how people read them. Do you know how people's eye track when they read a page? Where do you put your name and contact information for the best results?

Think about what you want to do with your life and your time.

 

[Guest-5ty5s4]

Life in the Fastlane newsletter.

I dig it, and I bet Joe Walsh would approve too

to Lambos and Maseratis...

 

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[ZackerySprague]

My car owns me lmao.

 

[nagualdev]

My car owns me lmao.

In that sense I never understood why in Europe rent was preferred instead of buying.
Assuming that you are buying considering your economic possibilities, your mortage will be converted to an asset at the end with asumible risks.

 

[Chrisrod2597]

From the Life in the Fastlane newsletter...

Subject: Financial blasphemy: $6 lattes, debt, more...

Last week I tweeted the following truth:



Among one of those truths, there was one I want to call your particular attention to:



If you look at any person who has accumulated wealth (and by wealth I mean at least $10M+) you will see the above FACT as common denominator. In fact, Sam Altman (the entrepreneur behind the ChatGPT AI) echoed the same in a legendary blog post on becoming successful. He said:

View attachment 50079
If you want the FINANCIAL freedom to accompany TIME freedom, you need to not only OWN things but CONTROL them. This is why a CENTS-based, Fastlane business is always your best bet for rapid wealth accumulation—not stocks, not crypto, and certainly not a soul-crushing job for 25 years while hoping to climb your way into a C-Suite.

You see, when you buy stock in Apple or Tesla, you might own a tiny piece of the company but you don't control it.

You aren't an INSIDERS, and you don't get to dictate decisions.

Now before you start screaming about Warren Buffett, Bill Ackman, or Carl Icahn, these powerhouse stock investors are activist investors. Meaning? Activist investors buy so many shares in these companies they get to influence their decisions through stock proxies and, ultimately, get seats on the board that they can control.

When you have ownership but fail at control, many bad things can happen.

A YouTube channel with 2M subscribers is incredibly influential. But say the wrong thing, and the YouTube censors will act—and boom—it is gone. Of course, I'm not saying a big YouTube channel is a bad idea, on the contrary, but I am saying to be mindful of the hand that is feeding you.

Other control problems are self-induced.

Stan Lee created many iconic Marvel comic book characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man, and the Hulk. Though he retained the titles of Marvel's president and chairman, he had signed away the rights to Marvel's properties early on. As the characters exploded in popularity via movies in the 2000s, Lee did not have control over them or share substantially in the profits.

This is why the Commandment of Control is a critical element in my proprietary CENTS Framework outlined in my books.

If you're going to endure the hardships of starting and growing a business, one that rapidly grows in value, as Sam Alman describes, it's critical you keep control.

When the wealth accumulation phase ensues, and you stand to earn millions, you want to reap the benefits. Only then and after that should you consider control-reducing activities, such as venture capital or selling equity.

You get rich by owning things as an INSIDERS that you control.

You get less poor by owning things that you don't control.

MJ

Thank you for this post MJ! Control is key!

 

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[Dangerous Donna]

From the Life in the Fastlane newsletter...

Subject: Financial blasphemy: $6 lattes, debt, more...

Last week I tweeted the following truth:



Among one of those truths, there was one I want to call your particular attention to:



If you look at any person who has accumulated wealth (and by wealth I mean at least $10M+) you will see the above FACT as common denominator. In fact, Sam Altman (the entrepreneur behind the ChatGPT AI) echoed the same in a legendary blog post on becoming successful. He said:

View attachment 50079
If you want the FINANCIAL freedom to accompany TIME freedom, you need to not only OWN things but CONTROL them. This is why a CENTS-based, Fastlane business is always your best bet for rapid wealth accumulation—not stocks, not crypto, and certainly not a soul-crushing job for 25 years while hoping to climb your way into a C-Suite.

You see, when you buy stock in Apple or Tesla, you might own a tiny piece of the company but you don't control it.

You aren't an INSIDERS, and you don't get to dictate decisions.

Now before you start screaming about Warren Buffett, Bill Ackman, or Carl Icahn, these powerhouse stock investors are activist investors. Meaning? Activist investors buy so many shares in these companies they get to influence their decisions through stock proxies and, ultimately, get seats on the board that they can control.

When you have ownership but fail at control, many bad things can happen.

A YouTube channel with 2M subscribers is incredibly influential. But say the wrong thing, and the YouTube censors will act—and boom—it is gone. Of course, I'm not saying a big YouTube channel is a bad idea, on the contrary, but I am saying to be mindful of the hand that is feeding you.

Other control problems are self-induced.

Stan Lee created many iconic Marvel comic book characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man, and the Hulk. Though he retained the titles of Marvel's president and chairman, he had signed away the rights to Marvel's properties early on. As the characters exploded in popularity via movies in the 2000s, Lee did not have control over them or share substantially in the profits.

This is why the Commandment of Control is a critical element in my proprietary CENTS Framework outlined in my books.

If you're going to endure the hardships of starting and growing a business, one that rapidly grows in value, as Sam Alman describes, it's critical you keep control.

When the wealth accumulation phase ensues, and you stand to earn millions, you want to reap the benefits. Only then and after that should you consider control-reducing activities, such as venture capital or selling equity.

You get rich by owning things as an INSIDERS that you control.

You get less poor by owning things that you don't control.

MJ

MJ, great great coaching tip; I thank you. Would you share how your paycheck pot has recently changed? As in the dividends portfolio? Is there anything new that we should consider?
Appreciate you !

 

[MJ DeMarco]

MJ, great great coaching tip; I thank you. Would you share how your paycheck pot has recently changed? As in the dividends portfolio? Is there anything new that we should consider?

I commented recently here:

GOLD! - HOT! - INVESTING - Lifetime passive income: The Paycheck Pot In Action

Want to earn a passive income every single month for the rest of your life? And be able to survive a recession or a market collapse? Earn (and save) enough money to build a Paycheck Pot, a lump-sum portfolio that yields a passive income EVERY MONTH through the use of market investments such...

www.thefastlaneforum.com

 

[Goodfella999]

I shared the "get rich by owning things" screenshot on my facebook. My uncle commented that the books I read are get rich quick schemes. Hes the definition of 9-5 slowlaner 401k got nowhere in life person. I knew it was coming, the sheep just dont get it. Why are broke people know it alls?

 

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[Mr.Nichan]

I might not be knowledgeable enough to know how, in practice, I would be paying myself through the company I own apart from the monthly salary and from the dividends at the end of the year. But if you have build a company that ticks all the boxes of CENTS, how would one come to such levels of money per month? I do realize its a dumb question as is, but thinking that by time the company has grown to $20-30M in revenue that would in many cases mean that a team of employees has been introduced and maybe even co-founders. I'm excluding a sale of the company since in case of that event there are multipliers involved based on revenue or profits.

Wouldn't they start to sharpen their pitchforks and lighting their torches if I'd be taking out that kind of money from the company?

It feels like I have missed something basic from TMF or that I should only focus on keeping my business as minimal as possible in terms of employees while still try to help as many people as possible. I'm probably thinking too small and not in enough steps into the future..

I'm building a two-sided mobile marketplace for which means a constant need of software development and some customer support. I'm bootstrapping so I will try to avoid outside capital at all cost to keep me in control. I talk about my business and revenue model in my INSIDERS progress thread linked in my signature. But I'm taking a percentage of each purchase from the would be consumers and a portion of the connected companies would pay a smaller monthly fee for e-com integration (= low ticket through and through). If this takes a foothold I have potential of helping 1000s of companies nationally to make more sales and I will have potential to bring happiness 500K-1M people nationally.

As a side note: I'm not just postponing action by/while asking these questions, I'm building my company either way. If my company doesn't take off as much as hoped, I might have the chance of selling it anyways for less and use that as seed money for the next venture.

 

[WJK]

I might not be knowledgeable enough to know how, in practice, I would be paying myself through the company I own apart from the monthly salary and from the dividends at the end of the year. But if you have build a company that ticks all the boxes of CENTS, how would one come to such levels of money per month? I do realize its a dumb question as is, but thinking that by time the company has grown to $20-30M in revenue that would in many cases mean that a team of employees has been introduced and maybe even co-founders. I'm excluding a sale of the company since in case of that event there are multipliers involved based on revenue or profits.

Wouldn't they start to sharpen their pitchforks and lighting their torches if I'd be taking out that kind of money from the company?

It feels like I have missed something basic from TMF or that I should only focus on keeping my business as minimal as possible in terms of employees while still try to help as many people as possible. I'm probably thinking too small and not in enough steps into the future..

I'm building a two-sided mobile marketplace for which means a constant need of software development and some customer support. I'm bootstrapping so I will try to avoid outside capital at all cost to keep me in control. I talk about my business and revenue model in my INSIDERS progress thread linked in my signature. But I'm taking a percentage of each purchase from the would be consumers and a portion of the connected companies would pay a smaller monthly fee for e-com integration (= low ticket through and through). If this takes a foothold I have potential of helping 1000s of companies nationally to make more sales and I will have potential to bring happiness 500K-1M people nationally.

As a side note: I'm not just postponing action by/while asking these questions, I'm building my company either way. If my company doesn't take off as much as hoped, I might have the chance of selling it anyways for less and use that as seed money for the next venture.

You are asking an excellent question. How do you expand while paying yourself? Expanding a business costs big bucks and it takes time to get the rewards.

I've had the same challenges in my RE business. I hate debt. I run from having partners. I do have a crew that I pay. And I have learned to outsource a lot of services. I'm cheap, cheap, cheap! I have put the needs of the businesses in front my of own time after time over the years. I'm still doing that today since I currently have some big projects going that are soaking up my cash flow. I'm buying really sexy stuff like -- bunks of 2X4s and loads of insulation. This week it was repairs for the well on a flip we're rehabbing. .

When can you start soaking up the bucks? It depends on your plan to expand and how you finance it. I love your plan to bootstrap it. It's harder today to make tomorrow easier.

 

[NathanN]

I sometimes forget how important the control factor really is in business. So many people love the easy money of affiliate marketing or having one channel where they get all their business, but in the blink of an eye, it can all come crashing down when you leave the control of your business to another source. I've seen some relatives who have had businesses before that have left out the commandment of control in their business, and it truly is important to have that grip on your business so it cant be whipped out in one swipe.

 

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[WJK]

I sometimes forget how important the control factor really is in business. So many people love the easy money of affiliate marketing or having one channel where they get all their business, but in the blink of an eye, it can all come crashing down when you leave the control of your business to another source. I've seen some relatives who have had businesses before that have left out the commandment of control in their business, and it truly is important to have that grip on your business so it cant be whipped out in one swipe.

In RE it's all about the choice between leverage, using OPM (other people's money), and doing projects with personal cash. Your success at creatively using debt depends on where you are in the business and debt cycle. Debt can work in your favor when the property values are increasing at a higher rate than your cost of borrowing. Conversely, it can really hurt when the market turns cold and the lender has the upper hand. Especially when property market values decline, which can adversely affect commercial loans and GPI (Gross Potential income -- cash flows). Debt management is one of the biggest RE control issues.

 

[Mr.Nichan]

You are asking an excellent question. How do you expand while paying yourself? Expanding a business costs big bucks and it takes time to get the rewards.

I've had the same challenges in my RE business. I hate debt. I run from having partners. I do have a crew that I pay. And I have learned to outsource a lot of services. I'm cheap, cheap, cheap! I have put the needs of the businesses in front my of own time after time over the years. I'm still doing that today since I currently have some big projects going that are soaking up my cash flow. I'm buying really sexy stuff like -- bunks of 2X4s and loads of insulation. This week it was repairs for the well on a flip we're rehabbing. .

When can you start soaking up the bucks? It depends on your plan to expand and how you finance it. I love your plan to bootstrap it. It's harder today to make tomorrow easier.

I know the mechanics of expansion while paying yourself, its just a matter of expanding primarily and paying yourself whatever is left.

My thoughts was about how it will be viewed (by employees and potential shareholders/partners) and how to justify the, at that point, large payments? Building anything other than a successful one man band with "automated" selling and a team of VA's I just have trouble seeing as how to make it possible to get those kinds of returns talked about without getting questioned by those around you.

Maybe I'm not looking far enough ahead in the chain of command and only looking at how a CEO is able to get his/hers? What does the situation look like as an owner and a member of the board? If you are anything but alone on the board you would be forced to take into account the others when discussing dividends, right? This makes me think that in order to keep abiding the Control commandment you are reduced to avoid outside investors like the plague and keeping the number of employees at a minimum and/or outsourcing most/all the work to still have the freedom to pay yourself the kind of money that is making people around you question their life choices.

I'm not even close to this point and I do know that this is not a get rich quick thing. I'm only trying to grasp this so I'm not shooting myself in the foot by doing something now that might hinder me in the future as trying to find investors or whatnot. And I know "its better to own part of a melon than the whole of a grape" but once you are in the melon case you don't have the same extent of Control and you need to justify your payouts to others (excluding a company sale from this train of thoughts).

 

[WJK]

I know the mechanics of expansion while paying yourself, its just a matter of expanding primarily and paying yourself whatever is left.

My thoughts was about how it will be viewed (by employees and potential shareholders/partners) and how to justify the, at that point, large payments? Building anything other than a successful one man band with "automated" selling and a team of VA's I just have trouble seeing as how to make it possible to get those kinds of returns talked about without getting questioned by those around you.

Maybe I'm not looking far enough ahead in the chain of command and only looking at how a CEO is able to get his/hers? What does the situation look like as an owner and a member of the board? If you are anything but alone on the board you would be forced to take into account the others when discussing dividends, right? This makes me think that in order to keep abiding the Control commandment you are reduced to avoid outside investors like the plague and keeping the number of employees at a minimum and/or outsourcing most/all the work to still have the freedom to pay yourself the kind of money that is making people around you question their life choices.

I'm not even close to this point and I do know that this is not a get rich quick thing. I'm only trying to grasp this so I'm not shooting myself in the foot by doing something now that might hinder me in the future as trying to find investors or whatnot. And I know "its better to own part of a melon than the whole of a grape" but once you are in the melon case you don't have the same extent of Control and you need to justify your payouts to others (excluding a company sale from this train of thoughts).

Your concern is valid down the road. I'd rather have the grape rather than a piece of the melon. As you become more successful, more money and assets really don't mean much to your personal happiness. Your freedom of time and direction means a lot more.

 

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[Mr.Nichan]

Your concern is valid down the road. I'd rather have the grape rather than a piece of the melon. As you become more successful, more money and assets really don't mean much to your personal happiness. Your freedom of time and direction means a lot more.

I'm thinking that the money brings the freedom of time. So thinking that if the only way to that kind of freedom means letting go of controll in the form of investors or partners maybe Im not actually creating the "correct" business since that violate spart of CENTS down the line?

I do know that this probably won't be the last business I create, and Im excited about that too, but I want this to become as big as possible since that will become a new and better vehicle for people to bring and share joy and hapiness to each other. So I'm not prepared to cap that growth just because I don't want partners. Then it would be better I take it as far as I can then sell it to let it thrive beyond me and my limited abilities.

 

[Jeix]

I'm thinking that the money brings the freedom of time. So thinking that if the only way to that kind of freedom means letting go of controll in the form of investors or partners maybe Im not actually creating the "correct" business since that violate spart of CENTS down the line?

I do know that this probably won't be the last business I create, and Im excited about that too, but I want this to become as big as possible since that will become a new and better vehicle for people to bring and share joy and hapiness to each other. So I'm not prepared to cap that growth just because I don't want partners. Then it would be better I take it as far as I can then sell it to let it thrive beyond me and my limited abilities.

Entrepreneurs are by definition residual claimers. Your business gets paid first but it has obligations towards suppliers, customers and whoever else allows it to run smoothly.
You only get to keep a small portion of the profits each year.
The good news is that, once your business makes $1-2M a year, it can be sold for a huge premium. That's how you make insane money overnight. Once you have insane money, you can live off of investments your whole life, or pursue other ventures.
That's the fastlane in a nutshell.

 

[biophase]

I know the mechanics of expansion while paying yourself, its just a matter of expanding primarily and paying yourself whatever is left.

My thoughts was about how it will be viewed (by employees and potential shareholders/partners) and how to justify the, at that point, large payments? Building anything other than a successful one man band with "automated" selling and a team of VA's I just have trouble seeing as how to make it possible to get those kinds of returns talked about without getting questioned by those around you.

Maybe I'm not looking far enough ahead in the chain of command and only looking at how a CEO is able to get his/hers? What does the situation look like as an owner and a member of the board? If you are anything but alone on the board you would be forced to take into account the others when discussing dividends, right? This makes me think that in order to keep abiding the Control commandment you are reduced to avoid outside investors like the plague and keeping the number of employees at a minimum and/or outsourcing most/all the work to still have the freedom to pay yourself the kind of money that is making people around you question their life choices.

I'm not even close to this point and I do know that this is not a get rich quick thing. I'm only trying to grasp this so I'm not shooting myself in the foot by doing something now that might hinder me in the future as trying to find investors or whatnot. And I know "its better to own part of a melon than the whole of a grape" but once you are in the melon case you don't have the same extent of Control and you need to justify your payouts to others (excluding a company sale from this train of thoughts).

You are way over thinking it.

Suppose you have a business that grosses $1 million a year. Would it seem reasonable for the owner of that business to make $100,000 a year?

Now suppose you have a business that grosses $10 million a year, would it seem reasonable for the owner to make $1 million a year?

So why would you as an owner in each of these scenarios deserve to be paid only $100,000 a year?

If this were the case, why would you even be growing the business? Why take on more work and expand if you think the rest of your employees or shareholders would assume that you should make a fixed amount no matter how big the company grows?

 

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[Guest-5ty5s4]

You are way over thinking it.

Suppose you have a business that grosses $1 million a year. Would it seem reasonable for the owner of that business to make $100,000 a year?

Now suppose you have a business that grosses $10 million a year, would it seem reasonable for the owner to make $1 million a year?

So why would you as an owner in each of these scenarios deserve to be paid only $100,000 a year?

If this were the case, why would you even be growing the business? Why take on more work and expand if you think the rest of your employees or shareholders would assume that you should make a fixed amount no matter how big the company grows?

This is way off topic from the thread (we are going off on a tangent), but it really depends how much you want to reinvest in the business versus pay yourself/pay the owners, kind of like the dividend payout ratio on a publicly traded stock. Paying out more in dividends (or in profits and/or salaries or other "addbacks") might be nice, but paying yourself less leaves more money in the company for growth.

I know SMB owners who have kept their salaries pretty static as their businesses have grown for years, despite giving their employees raises over and over commensurate with inflation. Maybe they want to sell for a bigger gain at the end. Or maybe there is another goal. (Of course, oftentimes, there is some other issue, but we're talking about good reasons for this)

 

[Mr.Nichan]

Entrepreneurs are by definition residual claimers. Your business gets paid first but it has obligations towards suppliers, customers and whoever else allows it to run smoothly.
You only get to keep a small portion of the profits each year.
The good news is that, once your business makes $1-2M a year, it can be sold for a huge premium. That's how you make insane money overnight. Once you have insane money, you can live off of investments your whole life, or pursue other ventures.
That's the fastlane in a nutshell.

Yeah, the multiple year "overnight" success by selling the company has always been a given in my mind, the questions was only regarding the inbetween time while owning and building.

You are way over thinking it.

Suppose you have a business that grosses $1 million a year. Would it seem reasonable for the owner of that business to make $100,000 a year?

Now suppose you have a business that grosses $10 million a year, would it seem reasonable for the owner to make $1 million a year?

So why would you as an owner in each of these scenarios deserve to be paid only $100,000 a year?

If this were the case, why would you even be growing the business? Why take on more work and expand if you think the rest of your employees or shareholders would assume that you should make a fixed amount no matter how big the company grows?

This made it click, yeah that is not unreasonable! Apart from the fact that the incentive might be to expand in impacting even more people, but I guess there are very few that will pursue that if already helping a big amount of people and not getting any returns for going further.

This is way off topic from the thread (we are going off on a tangent), but it really depends how much you want to reinvest in the business versus pay yourself/pay the owners, kind of like the dividend payout ratio on a publicly traded stock. Paying out more in dividends (or in profits and/or salaries or other "addbacks") might be nice, but paying yourself less leaves more money in the company for growth.

I know SMB owners who have kept their salaries pretty static as their businesses have grown for years, despite giving their employees raises over and over commensurate with inflation. Maybe they want to sell for a bigger gain at the end. Or maybe there is another goal. (Of course, oftentimes, there is some other issue, but we're talking about good reasons for this)

Yeah sorry for the spinoff. Then starting companies that doesn't need so much overhead in managing and employees would be better suited to retain the Control and the "no questions asked"-payouts.

I wont be abandoning my current venture just because it might require more overhead and more owners to run (in the future). Just wanted to take my thoughts up with you to get them confirmed or not.

 

[WJK]

I'm thinking that the money brings the freedom of time. So thinking that if the only way to that kind of freedom means letting go of controll in the form of investors or partners maybe Im not actually creating the "correct" business since that violate spart of CENTS down the line?

I do know that this probably won't be the last business I create, and Im excited about that too, but I want this to become as big as possible since that will become a new and better vehicle for people to bring and share joy and hapiness to each other. So I'm not prepared to cap that growth just because I don't want partners. Then it would be better I take it as far as I can then sell it to let it thrive beyond me and my limited abilities.

What can you do today with the resources you have in your hands that will grow your business? Don't overthink it. Just do it. You'll be amazed at what a series of small baby steps can bring over time. I get so tied up in the day-to-day hustle that I don't realize how far I've come. I bet you will do the same. You only must do the next important thing. That's it. That's the bottom line.

Your comments on "freedom of time" are interesting. What do you want to do with that time you are purchasing with your current work? What do you dream that your life will look like?

Arriving at and dreaming of are two different things. I thought I had it all worked out when I was young. Now my ideas and wants are worlds away from where I started. And my life is also so different from how I envisioned it. If someone had told me where I'd end up, I would have laughed them out of my carefully constructed world.

But here I am -- a big frog in a very small pond. Yes, I made the decisions that led me here. But, I did what I thought was right at the time. I was able to take care of my mom for the last 10 years of her life. That's true freedom of time. I gave up my career and my home in LA to care for her and come here. After her death, I remarried and settled down. My husband is my best friend. I've missed my life in LA a lot over the years. It was exciting and fun. But I have no real regrets. This is not the life I would have chosen. I feel like it was chosen for me by the Higher Powers. I am so loved and respected. What more could I ask for?

 

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