How To Stay Broke

Growing up in a relatively well-off family made me aware at an early age of how pretentious people can be. I quickly tired of people who acted as if they were living in fine style only to discover later on that they were/became penniless. One thing my parents often repeated before I left for college was, 'save your money - you never know when you will need it as rainy days will come". After some dumb choices in my freshman/sophomore years, I realized the truth of their words.

A lot of folks subscribe to the notion of "if you think poor, you will be poor/If you think rich, you will grow rich". From what I've seen on the ground, if you think rich when you are not rich, you will be poor. This truth becomes clear when you see folks who spend like they earn more than they actually do - as if the feeling of being wealthy or possessing the trinkets that symbolize wealth is actual wealth. This is one of the reasons many people cannot accumulate wealth & end up with nothing to pass on to their kids.
 
I am no expert in wealth creation & truth be told, I have an aversion to "grow rich" books that have blossomed into a cottage industry. These authors are the ones getting rich off of their flat-world schemes. I sometimes find myself mingling with people who have bought into this "grow rich" mantra & sicken when I witness how they put on airs like they have it all figured out - you know my foot just itches to stomp that fake shit out of 'em! In a nutshell, this is how they are:

"People buying stuff they can't afford, with money they don't have, to impress people they don't like."

Why folks want to waste their energy/time/resources to keep up with what other folks have (& what other folks think) blows my mind. Let them go ahead and buy their luxury goods, travel to exotic places & throw grand parties until they drown in a pool of personal debt. Pity them for being shallow enough to think that this is what life is all about & let's hope that they're  thinking of their kids future & saving a tidy sum for their own retirement. They will talk it up & laugh heartily especially when they think that they have a brighter lifestyle than the little people around them. One day they will realize their mistake: Living above their means will eventually beat 'em down. As they grab for better and bigger, their bank accounts (and credit scores) will go ((POOF))) - not a damn cent!

As the rich continue to fleece the world, we all have to guard our pockets & resist the temptation to spend more than we can afford. We gotta live within our means! My grandfather once said that if you cannot afford something in cash, don't bother with it. His wisdom is all too clear now as countless numbers are up to their necks in debt with no hope in sight & the only people whistling to the bank are the bankers themselves! The reality is there will always be folks who have more than you so just relax and live your own life without the distorted lens of what a good life is really all about. Your kids will thank you later.

OneLove

:::MME:::