How to Live Like a Billionaire Right Now
By Michael Masterson
"There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval."
--- George Santayana
If you make a six-figure income, you can live as well as any billionaire.
I'm not kidding. Except for ego gratification (which isn't all that good for you anyway), you can enjoy all the same comforts, pleasures, and experiences on a $100,000-plus income as a billionaire can.
Let's start by looking at a very important part of life: sleeping. Most of us spend between 25% and 33% of our lives sleeping. In terms of time spent, sleeping ranks with working as one of life's two most important activities.
What are the elements of a billion-dollar sleep?
I can think of only three:
1. That your sleep is uninterrupted
2. That it leaves you pain and ache free
3. And that you wake up rejuvenated
How can you get those three benefits? Simple. You must go to bed with:
a clean conscience
an empty stomach
and a peaceful mind
None of those conditions require money. You have the same opportunity to achieve them, as would your average billionaire. (Actually, you might have a better opportunity, assuming your life is less stressful.)
There is one other thing that matters: a good mattress. Besides the above conditions, there is nothing more important to getting a good sleep than a great mattress.
Consider this: The world's best mattress costs, maybe, $1,500. That means you can buy yourself a million-dollar sleep on a billion-dollar mattress for no more than $1,500. If you are making $100,000 a year, you can afford it.
So if you want to sleep as well as a billionaire, don't do anything you are ashamed of, don't eat after six, enjoy your life, and go out and buy the best mattress you can find. Buy it and don't worry about the price. When you go to sleep each night, you with be content to know that a billionaire could not possibly have it any better.
Buying Yourself the Best
When you shop for your "best" mattress, don't make the mistake of shopping for a brand name. While it's true that some brands are generally better than others, what you want is a durable, well-built mattress that works for you.
This utilitarian approach to purchasing should guide you in all your buying decisions. You should be willing to pay top dollar for something of good quality, but pay only for the quality, not for the cachet.
Take steak. Ask someone who knows beef and you'll find that the quality of steak is entirely a matter of the meat you buy.
Buy a New York strip at Ruth's Chris and, for $30, you're eating the best steak money can buy. Eat the same piece of meat at Le Cirque and you'll pay $75. The difference is prestige.
The same thing is true for clothing. Beautiful, comfortable clothes aren't cheap, but they don't have to cost a fortune. You can buy the world's best pair of slacks for $150 or for 10 times that amount. The difference will be the label on the waistband.
In All Marketers Are Liars, Seth Godin makes this point with regard to footwear:
"Stephanie was about to buy a pair of limited edition sneakers from Puma: $125 for the pair, about what she earns, after tax, after a long day of hard work. ... She was imagining how she'd look when she put them on. She was visualizing her dramatically improved life when other people saw how cool she was. ... The way Stephanie felt when she bought the Pumas was the product. Not the sneakers (made for $3 in China). She could have bought adequate footwear for a fraction of what the Pumas cost."
To own the world's best sneakers, you are certainly going to have to pay a lot more than $3 - even if they are made in China. But it's highly unlikely that you'll need to spend more than $100 so long as you are willing to ignore the prestige value of a famous brand and concentrate on comfort and durability. (And if you make more than a hundred grand every year, you can certainly afford a hundred-dollar pair of sneakers.)
And so it goes. The point is this: The best material things in life are affordable. They aren't cheap - quality never is - but if you buy them selectively and use them with care, you can enjoy a life as materially rich as a billionaire.
Here's how you can live rich, starting today:
Your Dream House
Think about the houses you most admire. They are probably NOT huge and flashy. One of my current favorites is a modest, three-bedroom house in Cleveland, which has been transformed by the owner into a lush, luxurious museum of travel, dance, and learning. Every room is a gem. I am completely comfortable and endlessly amused in this rich and interesting house.
Its value? As great as Bill Gates' 40,000-square-foot monstrosity in Seattle - yet this one has a market value of about $150,000.
Your Car
I have a wealthy friend who loves cars, especially sports cars. He drives a Camaro, which he says is as good as a Corvette, a Porsche, or even a Ferrari. Instead of forking out $150,000 plus ... he gets his thrills in a classic car that costs one-sixth that price.
You do have to pay more for prestige. But you can buy yourself prestige at affordable rates. For example, I drive a mint-condition NSX that looks brand-new. My car is worth about $30,000 - a third of the cost of a new one.
You should never buy a new car. If you shop around, you can find a 5- or 10-year-old car with low mileage that will cost 25% or 30% of the new car price, and be just as good.
Your Wardrobe
If you can forget about brand names and learn about quality, you will spend much less and look much better. As with cars, you'll do better by going after a classic look. That's because you won't have to discard perfectly good clothing simply because the lapel has changed.
Ralph Lauren - who has the money to dress as rich as can be - wears the same thing almost every day: classic-cut jeans and a T-shirt. Pat Riley, one of the best-dressed men in America, wears nothing but Armani suits. He has a number of them ... but fewer than you'd think.
Get yourself two or three pairs of slacks (or skirts). One or two suits (or dresses). Two or three pairs of shoes. Buy only what you love.
Make sure your socks are cashmere ($19.50 at Banana Republic) and that your T-shirts and underwear are the finest cotton (or silk). Use only one cologne or perfume, but love it. Do the same with hair products and cosmetics. The rule is to have much less, but love everything you have.
Buy classic. Insist on quality. Few are better than many. Simple is better than complex. Understated is better than flashy. Do this and you will have what billionaires can afford: a very pleasant feeling each time you pull on your shirt or buckle your belt.
Food and Drink
Want to have a billion-dollar meal? Take a baguette of freshly baked bread, some cheese, cold cuts, butter ... and go to the nearest park with a friend or loved one. You need only a knife and a fork to prepare and serve a truly memorable meal.
If there's an expensive restaurant you are dying to try, go ahead and treat yourself. But, as someone who has eaten countless expensive meals, I can remember few that surpassed the simple lunches my wife and I have enjoyed together.
Music, Books, Movies, Etc.
With today's audio technology, even a $300 boom-box sounds great. Don't try to tell me you need to spend more than $1,000. The secret is in the music you select.
The great thing about music: The best costs no more than the worst. The same is true for books, movies, theater, and just about any form of entertainment. So listen to, read, and watch only that which makes you feel richer afterward.
Your Office
Warren Buffett, one of the world's richest men, keeps his office in a simple building. His walls are paneled plywood. His desk is a tabletop. But his office is uniquely his, with a comfortable chair and a place for everything he needs. On the surfaces and hanging from the walls are souvenirs to inspire him.
That's what you want in your office. The right amount of space. Good lighting. A very good chair. And toys that stimulate and inspire you.
Everything else is a distraction. And anything that is there simply to make you seem "important" will only turn off your guests and visitors.
Your office should be luxurious in a personal way. You will spend most of your waking life in your office, so put as much thought and care into it as you do your home.
The 2 Most Important Things That Money Can Buy
If you fill your life with all the best luxuries ... a great home, great clothes, delicious food ... but you are too busy running around to enjoy them, you've missed the boat. Of all the things money can buy (it can't buy happiness ... I admit that), time and freedom are the most important.
Here's my prescription for buying time. Think about your schedule and pick yourself a half-hour a day to do nothing but luxuriate. Take this half-hour and do something that a billionaire might do. Sip a cup of espresso. Smoke a cigar. Contemplate how good life is. Thank God for your good fortune. Breathe deeply. Smile.
Now ... get back to work.
"There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval."
--- George Santayana
If you make a six-figure income, you can live as well as any billionaire.
I'm not kidding. Except for ego gratification (which isn't all that good for you anyway), you can enjoy all the same comforts, pleasures, and experiences on a $100,000-plus income as a billionaire can.
Let's start by looking at a very important part of life: sleeping. Most of us spend between 25% and 33% of our lives sleeping. In terms of time spent, sleeping ranks with working as one of life's two most important activities.
What are the elements of a billion-dollar sleep?
I can think of only three:
1. That your sleep is uninterrupted
2. That it leaves you pain and ache free
3. And that you wake up rejuvenated
How can you get those three benefits? Simple. You must go to bed with:
a clean conscience
an empty stomach
and a peaceful mind
None of those conditions require money. You have the same opportunity to achieve them, as would your average billionaire. (Actually, you might have a better opportunity, assuming your life is less stressful.)
There is one other thing that matters: a good mattress. Besides the above conditions, there is nothing more important to getting a good sleep than a great mattress.
Consider this: The world's best mattress costs, maybe, $1,500. That means you can buy yourself a million-dollar sleep on a billion-dollar mattress for no more than $1,500. If you are making $100,000 a year, you can afford it.
So if you want to sleep as well as a billionaire, don't do anything you are ashamed of, don't eat after six, enjoy your life, and go out and buy the best mattress you can find. Buy it and don't worry about the price. When you go to sleep each night, you with be content to know that a billionaire could not possibly have it any better.
Buying Yourself the Best
When you shop for your "best" mattress, don't make the mistake of shopping for a brand name. While it's true that some brands are generally better than others, what you want is a durable, well-built mattress that works for you.
This utilitarian approach to purchasing should guide you in all your buying decisions. You should be willing to pay top dollar for something of good quality, but pay only for the quality, not for the cachet.
Take steak. Ask someone who knows beef and you'll find that the quality of steak is entirely a matter of the meat you buy.
Buy a New York strip at Ruth's Chris and, for $30, you're eating the best steak money can buy. Eat the same piece of meat at Le Cirque and you'll pay $75. The difference is prestige.
The same thing is true for clothing. Beautiful, comfortable clothes aren't cheap, but they don't have to cost a fortune. You can buy the world's best pair of slacks for $150 or for 10 times that amount. The difference will be the label on the waistband.
In All Marketers Are Liars, Seth Godin makes this point with regard to footwear:
"Stephanie was about to buy a pair of limited edition sneakers from Puma: $125 for the pair, about what she earns, after tax, after a long day of hard work. ... She was imagining how she'd look when she put them on. She was visualizing her dramatically improved life when other people saw how cool she was. ... The way Stephanie felt when she bought the Pumas was the product. Not the sneakers (made for $3 in China). She could have bought adequate footwear for a fraction of what the Pumas cost."
To own the world's best sneakers, you are certainly going to have to pay a lot more than $3 - even if they are made in China. But it's highly unlikely that you'll need to spend more than $100 so long as you are willing to ignore the prestige value of a famous brand and concentrate on comfort and durability. (And if you make more than a hundred grand every year, you can certainly afford a hundred-dollar pair of sneakers.)
And so it goes. The point is this: The best material things in life are affordable. They aren't cheap - quality never is - but if you buy them selectively and use them with care, you can enjoy a life as materially rich as a billionaire.
Here's how you can live rich, starting today:
Your Dream House
Think about the houses you most admire. They are probably NOT huge and flashy. One of my current favorites is a modest, three-bedroom house in Cleveland, which has been transformed by the owner into a lush, luxurious museum of travel, dance, and learning. Every room is a gem. I am completely comfortable and endlessly amused in this rich and interesting house.
Its value? As great as Bill Gates' 40,000-square-foot monstrosity in Seattle - yet this one has a market value of about $150,000.
Your Car
I have a wealthy friend who loves cars, especially sports cars. He drives a Camaro, which he says is as good as a Corvette, a Porsche, or even a Ferrari. Instead of forking out $150,000 plus ... he gets his thrills in a classic car that costs one-sixth that price.
You do have to pay more for prestige. But you can buy yourself prestige at affordable rates. For example, I drive a mint-condition NSX that looks brand-new. My car is worth about $30,000 - a third of the cost of a new one.
You should never buy a new car. If you shop around, you can find a 5- or 10-year-old car with low mileage that will cost 25% or 30% of the new car price, and be just as good.
Your Wardrobe
If you can forget about brand names and learn about quality, you will spend much less and look much better. As with cars, you'll do better by going after a classic look. That's because you won't have to discard perfectly good clothing simply because the lapel has changed.
Ralph Lauren - who has the money to dress as rich as can be - wears the same thing almost every day: classic-cut jeans and a T-shirt. Pat Riley, one of the best-dressed men in America, wears nothing but Armani suits. He has a number of them ... but fewer than you'd think.
Get yourself two or three pairs of slacks (or skirts). One or two suits (or dresses). Two or three pairs of shoes. Buy only what you love.
Make sure your socks are cashmere ($19.50 at Banana Republic) and that your T-shirts and underwear are the finest cotton (or silk). Use only one cologne or perfume, but love it. Do the same with hair products and cosmetics. The rule is to have much less, but love everything you have.
Buy classic. Insist on quality. Few are better than many. Simple is better than complex. Understated is better than flashy. Do this and you will have what billionaires can afford: a very pleasant feeling each time you pull on your shirt or buckle your belt.
Food and Drink
Want to have a billion-dollar meal? Take a baguette of freshly baked bread, some cheese, cold cuts, butter ... and go to the nearest park with a friend or loved one. You need only a knife and a fork to prepare and serve a truly memorable meal.
If there's an expensive restaurant you are dying to try, go ahead and treat yourself. But, as someone who has eaten countless expensive meals, I can remember few that surpassed the simple lunches my wife and I have enjoyed together.
Music, Books, Movies, Etc.
With today's audio technology, even a $300 boom-box sounds great. Don't try to tell me you need to spend more than $1,000. The secret is in the music you select.
The great thing about music: The best costs no more than the worst. The same is true for books, movies, theater, and just about any form of entertainment. So listen to, read, and watch only that which makes you feel richer afterward.
Your Office
Warren Buffett, one of the world's richest men, keeps his office in a simple building. His walls are paneled plywood. His desk is a tabletop. But his office is uniquely his, with a comfortable chair and a place for everything he needs. On the surfaces and hanging from the walls are souvenirs to inspire him.
That's what you want in your office. The right amount of space. Good lighting. A very good chair. And toys that stimulate and inspire you.
Everything else is a distraction. And anything that is there simply to make you seem "important" will only turn off your guests and visitors.
Your office should be luxurious in a personal way. You will spend most of your waking life in your office, so put as much thought and care into it as you do your home.
The 2 Most Important Things That Money Can Buy
If you fill your life with all the best luxuries ... a great home, great clothes, delicious food ... but you are too busy running around to enjoy them, you've missed the boat. Of all the things money can buy (it can't buy happiness ... I admit that), time and freedom are the most important.
Here's my prescription for buying time. Think about your schedule and pick yourself a half-hour a day to do nothing but luxuriate. Take this half-hour and do something that a billionaire might do. Sip a cup of espresso. Smoke a cigar. Contemplate how good life is. Thank God for your good fortune. Breathe deeply. Smile.
Now ... get back to work.
posted by The Blue Collar MLM Guy @ 7:49 PM
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