More Steps to Riches from Ancient Times
Did you like the first four steps to Become the Richest person in your city from George Clason in The Richest Man in Babylon? I hope you did because there are more steps to create wealth that are still as applicable today as in ancient times.
As you may recall, here are the prerequisite and steps one to four:
(Feel free to refer to the post How to Become the Richest Man or Woman in Your City for more detail on the prerequisite and Steps 1 – 4)
The Prerequisite – A burning desire to create wealth along with the willingness to take the required action steps.
Step 1 – Start your wallet or purse to fattening by with 10% of your earnings that is yours to keep.
Step 2 – Control your expenditures to live comfortably on the remaining 90%.
Step 3 – Make your gold (money) multiply by investing the 10%.
Step 4 – Guard your treasures (money) from loss.
Now let’s learn the details of steps five through seven that complete the path to wealth as practiced by The Richest Man in Babylon.
Step 5 – Make thy dwelling a profitable investment
In the days of Babylon many folks rented unsuitable living quarters. It was true then that renting was a way to throw your money away where building a home through borrowing from the money lender resulted in nearly the same monthly expenditure that creates an investment. So the recommendation was to acquire a nice little home that you could afford where you and your family can live comfortably.
Most of us already see the value of this step and we’ve already acquired a home. The main point I took from George Clason in this step is to purchase a nice little home you can afford. We can’t let our mortgage payment strap us down since we have to live comfortably on the remaining 90%. Also it is important to note that 10% was set aside for investment in addition to the mortgage payment.
When we look at the importance of purchasing a home as well as investing in other income producing assets, I’m reminded of Robert Kiyosaki‘s teachings in his book Rich Dad Poor Dad. Robert says that your home is a liability because it causes money to go out through mortgage payments and upkeep. This is a total opposite of what our banks tell us and what most believe that our home is an asset. So George Clason and Robert Kiyosaki strongly agree that your home is not your best asset and that you must have many more investment assets to have true riches.
Step 6 – Insure a Future Income
You must always be thinking of the future and make preparations for a suitable income in the days to come. Also you must make preparations for your family when you can no longer be there to support them. “No man can afford not to insure a treasure for this old age and the protection of his family, no matter how prosperous his business and investments may be.”, wrote George Clason.
Planning for the future involves making investments that will endure safely for many years. These same investments must be available when the time comes for their use as was anticipated. George Clason and the Richest Man in Babylon also make the point that the earlier you start planning and investing for your future income, the less you will have to invest each year. Notice that there was no mention of planning to depend on social security for future income.
It was very interesting to learn that back in ancient times, the men of Babylon predicted many men paying in a small amount regularly to create a handsome sum for the family of each man who passeth to the beyond. We all certainly know this plan as life insurance. The financial intelligence and wisdom of the people from this ancient period in history is astounding.
Step 7 – Increase Thy Ability to Earn
If you find that your expenditures exceed your income, the only real solution is to increase your capacity to earn more income. Some may think this can to be done by going to your boss to ask for a raise or using loans and credit cards. The raise request may work, but most likely not, and incurring bad debt is definitely not the solution.
The sure way to increase your ability to earn is to learn more through self-education. Per George Clason, your financial situation will improve when you seek greater skill so that you can better serve those whose patronage you depend on. Therefore, you must always make progress and be moving forward rather than standing still to be left behind.
This “seventh and last remedy for a lean purse is to cultivate thy own powers, to study and become wiser, to become more skillful, to so act as to respect thyself.” This sounds so close to Jim Rohn‘s teachings to make yourself more valuable to the marketplace through the disciplines of self-development.
I can certainly tell that George Clason‘s book The Richest Man in Babylon made a direct impact on Jim Rohn and he so kindly helped others to benefit as well. I hope you read this book and put it’s wisdom into action for you and your family.
I completely agree with these points Dawn. Purchasing a home for the price you can rent (when all considerations are taken) is wise. Purchasing a home that stresses your finances is not wise.
Having a plan for the future is also wise…whether it be to increase your income or make sure others are taken care of down the road.
I am so happy you shared the gems of wisdom in “The Richest Man in Babylon” as I believe these lessons are more necessary today than ever before in recent history.
Thanks!
.-= Bruce Backman´s last blog ..When Love is More than Enough =-.
I completely agree with these points Dawn. Purchasing a home for the price you can rent (when all considerations are taken) is wise. Purchasing a home that stresses your finances is not wise.
Having a plan for the future is also wise…whether it be to increase your income or make sure others are taken care of down the road.
I am so happy you shared the gems of wisdom in “The Richest Man in Babylon” as I believe these lessons are more necessary today than ever before in recent history.
Thanks!
.-= Bruce Backman´s last blog ..When Love is More than Enough =-.
Hey Dawn,
Thanks for the continuation of your post from last week.
So much great wisdom and tips for us all to take and move forward with.
I particularly liked Step 7 – Increase Thy Ability to Earn.
I wrote a 3 part blog post on this called: “What is YOUR CaPaCiTY to EARN?”
There I was talking about the inner work needed to happen to be able to increase this capacity for yourself. Check it out if you get a chance.
Thanks again.
Make it a great day!
God Bless,
-ed
Hey Dawn,
Thanks for the continuation of your post from last week.
So much great wisdom and tips for us all to take and move forward with.
I particularly liked Step 7 – Increase Thy Ability to Earn.
I wrote a 3 part blog post on this called: “What is YOUR CaPaCiTY to EARN?”
There I was talking about the inner work needed to happen to be able to increase this capacity for yourself. Check it out if you get a chance.
Thanks again.
Make it a great day!
God Bless,
-ed
These points are all key to what I like to call your Personal Economy. To borrow from Bruce’s comment about the mortgage, it is astounding to me that we have (as a whole) let the media and business communities let us sell our own personal liberty for a payment of $29 per month. I also kind of get annoyed by the way that the IM community is doing the same thing. The minute we lay out our lives on a payment plan, we have no say in what we can do with our lives until we have done all we need to to cover the nut. I truly believe that many talents have been wasted because the individuals in question could never be in a position to exercise their true calling. We (collectively) bring it upon ourselves, but at a tremendous cost to society as a whole.
If more people heeded the advice you lay out here, no telling where the world would be. (Better for sure)
Regards,
Chip
.-= Chip Wilson´s last blog ..Social Syndication – Leveraging Tribes and Human Psychology to Build Your Online Business =-.
These points are all key to what I like to call your Personal Economy. To borrow from Bruce’s comment about the mortgage, it is astounding to me that we have (as a whole) let the media and business communities let us sell our own personal liberty for a payment of $29 per month. I also kind of get annoyed by the way that the IM community is doing the same thing. The minute we lay out our lives on a payment plan, we have no say in what we can do with our lives until we have done all we need to to cover the nut. I truly believe that many talents have been wasted because the individuals in question could never be in a position to exercise their true calling. We (collectively) bring it upon ourselves, but at a tremendous cost to society as a whole.
If more people heeded the advice you lay out here, no telling where the world would be. (Better for sure)
Regards,
Chip
.-= Chip Wilson´s last blog ..Social Syndication – Leveraging Tribes and Human Psychology to Build Your Online Business =-.
Dave and Dawn,
These are sound economic principles that if properly employed, our Nation would not be in the financial straits it is in at the moment. With our current financial condition (or lack thereof) we need to heed these principles more than ever before. It is definitely time to save even more than 10% of one’s income!
.-= Darlene Davis´s last blog ..Passion For Music – Part I =-.
Darlene,
You are so right!! Thanks for providing your valued input!
Dave and Dawn,
These are sound economic principles that if properly employed, our Nation would not be in the financial straits it is in at the moment. With our current financial condition (or lack thereof) we need to heed these principles more than ever before. It is definitely time to save even more than 10% of one’s income!
.-= Darlene Davis´s last blog ..Passion For Music – Part I =-.
Darlene,
You are so right!! Thanks for providing your valued input!
Dawn you’ve done a great job of bringing these points home to us. Certainly food for thought, and in my case something to ponder in terms of what I should have done over the years but didn’t. No time to lose therefore.
PS
Don’t forget the good side of social security is to help the down & out. How did the Babylonians look after them I wonder?
.-= Stew Shaw´s last blog ..Frank Kern Fail – Toys R Not Us! =-.
Stew,
From what I can tell there were no down and outs in Babylon at least not after the Richest Man in Babylon taught everyone how to follow Steps 1 – 7. They were very big on sharing knowledge amongst all the people so everyone could prosper.
We also need to take steps now to makeup for the prior lack of knowledge, but the missed time will make no difference at all in a few years.
Thanks for your comment and all the good content you offer.
Dawn you’ve done a great job of bringing these points home to us. Certainly food for thought, and in my case something to ponder in terms of what I should have done over the years but didn’t. No time to lose therefore.
PS
Don’t forget the good side of social security is to help the down & out. How did the Babylonians look after them I wonder?
.-= Stew Shaw´s last blog ..Frank Kern Fail – Toys R Not Us! =-.
Stew,
From what I can tell there were no down and outs in Babylon at least not after the Richest Man in Babylon taught everyone how to follow Steps 1 – 7. They were very big on sharing knowledge amongst all the people so everyone could prosper.
We also need to take steps now to makeup for the prior lack of knowledge, but the missed time will make no difference at all in a few years.
Thanks for your comment and all the good content you offer.
I have throughly enjoyed your Babylon series.
Although the principles here are not new to me, it never hurts to revisit these things from time to time.
It used to be pretty easy to purchase a home beyond your means. I think that’s what got a lot of people in trouble, and like Darlene said, has caused a lot of our economic problems that we have right now.
My favorite principle was Increase Thy Ability to Earn. I have always seen the value of improving yourself. That does make you a more valuable employee, but it also increases your value as a person.
Thanks again for sharing this book. BTW, I have now bought the book and can’t wait to read it. Keep on sharing.
.-= Debbie Stevens´s last undefined ..Response cached until Sun 21 @ 3:02 GMT (Refreshes in 11.20 Hours) =-.
Debbie,
I’m very glad to hear you bought the book “The Richest Man in Babylon”. You can now read it and share what you learn. I look forward to hearing your perspective of the book.
In regards to Increasing your Ability to Earn, I just wanted to say that self-education increases your value as an entrepreneur too, not just a more valuable employee. As Jim Rohn always said “profits are better than wages!”
Thanks so much for your comments and insight.
I have throughly enjoyed your Babylon series.
Although the principles here are not new to me, it never hurts to revisit these things from time to time.
It used to be pretty easy to purchase a home beyond your means. I think that’s what got a lot of people in trouble, and like Darlene said, has caused a lot of our economic problems that we have right now.
My favorite principle was Increase Thy Ability to Earn. I have always seen the value of improving yourself. That does make you a more valuable employee, but it also increases your value as a person.
Thanks again for sharing this book. BTW, I have now bought the book and can’t wait to read it. Keep on sharing.
.-= Debbie Stevens´s last undefined ..Response cached until Sun 21 @ 3:02 GMT (Refreshes in 11.20 Hours) =-.
Debbie,
I’m very glad to hear you bought the book “The Richest Man in Babylon”. You can now read it and share what you learn. I look forward to hearing your perspective of the book.
In regards to Increasing your Ability to Earn, I just wanted to say that self-education increases your value as an entrepreneur too, not just a more valuable employee. As Jim Rohn always said “profits are better than wages!”
Thanks so much for your comments and insight.
I love these points. Reading these books and taking action on step 7 has greatly influenced our financial future. Thanks for sharing valuable knowledge with the community. Taking these points to heart and implementing them in our lives can change our future forever!
.-= Julianna Brower´s last blog .. =-.
I love these points. Reading these books and taking action on step 7 has greatly influenced our financial future. Thanks for sharing valuable knowledge with the community. Taking these points to heart and implementing them in our lives can change our future forever!
.-= Julianna Brower´s last blog .. =-.
Excellent post on financial planning. I really enjoyed reading this guys. Thanks for continuing to bring the value in everything you do.
.-= Krista Abbott´s last blog ..Social Media Management Tools: HootSuite =-.
Excellent post on financial planning. I really enjoyed reading this guys. Thanks for continuing to bring the value in everything you do.
.-= Krista Abbott´s last blog ..Social Media Management Tools: HootSuite =-.
Hi Dawn (& Dave!), First I wanted to say I absolutely love, love, love the picture! I love pictures that seem to use the eye as a tool to immerse my mind in the wonderful beauty of the world in the picture!
Second, I think financial advice is the best advice, when it's based on good, sound principles! I can't wait to get this book and the outliers book. I just went out and got three books in order to grow myself like a mysterious flower that waters itself and all the other flowers in my garden!
Thanks for the post!
Thanks dawn, I really do need to dust this book off and start back reading it. Thank you for the reminder.