Being a millionaire is wonderful but the real rewards have very little to do with the actual money itself. Of course, it is amazing to be able to be financially secure and independent to live the kind of lifestyle I choose without having to worry about finances. However, at the end of the day, the real reward for my hard work is not the paychecks I take home but the freedom that success has offered me.
Financial freedom allows me to dream big and reach towards the things I want. It also offers me the ability to constantly improve my life.
The money and even the freedom it offers, however, wouldn’t mean very much without my family and friends around to enjoy it with.
That is why, as tempting as it can be to pour yourself 110% into work and disregard personal relationships, you may find that down the line, once you are alone in your big fancy house, all alone with no one besides your millions to keep your company, you really missed the point.
Alternately if you are someone who has a family but is so invested in the rat race of trying to “get ahead” or “make it rich” and you are missing your children reach milestones, you may look back many years from now and wish that you could have those times back.
Don’t lose your head in this game.
Success should open doors and opportunities, not close them.
If you have been investing in your business but not your personal relationships and fulfillment in life, you might want to reconsider your priorities.
Enjoy your road towards success and wealth
So often in the battlefields of work and business, we do not take the time to properly celebrate victories when we have the opportunity. We get mired down in the struggle and don’t take the chance to come up for air even when given the opportunity.
It is so important that you pepper the sizzling steak of your career with rewards and moments of celebration. Special trips, little gifts to yourself and for those who are helping you to advance your dreams.
When you look back at your career you probably won’t remember exactly what was happening to your conversion rates in the 3rd Quarter of 2017 but you would likely never forget taking time off to take a trip you had dreamt of since childhood.
Now of course I am in no way advocating that taking yourself out of the mission is more important than learning into tough moments and finding solutions. However, so many entrepreneurs get so mission focused, they forget to take care of themselves.
They forget to do nice things for those around them. Sometimes you might deny yourself the proper food, rest, exercise and a million other things in your pursuit of glory but you need to remember how important these kinds of investments can be in supporting your financial ones.
Enjoy the road towards success and wealth. Take time to be patient and humble. Reward yourself when you’ve put in the work and make sure you are investing in your long term emotional wellness in addition to your economic position.
You can have all the money in the world but if you don’t know how to have a good time and unwind, is any of it really worth it?
Value family and true friendships
Make sure you are doing everything you can to support and honor the people who do so much to care for you on a daily basis. Whether that means complementing your colleagues when they make smart decisions or surprising your significant other with highly personal gifts.
It is so important to use the money you have to enrich the lives of other people. This is what it means to share the wealth.
At the very least, make sure you are accurately valuing the people you live and work around. Remember the sacrifice your family and teammates are making and give back to them when you can.
Many years from now, as you build a network or friends, family and trusted partners you will see how special it is to take care of people and to bring them along on your journey to success.
Build bridges of connection, tear down walls of separation. Open your heart and remember the value of giving back to the people around you.
Pay it forward, do good things with your wealth if you are fortunate enough to make it big
Finally, once you get the chance to actually accumulate some real wealth and you are feeling secure in your position, consider giving back to the community.
Use the money you have to affect positive changes in the world around you.
Whether you are creating jobs, anonymously donating to charities you support or supporting public works, arts or cultural programs, you can be assured that you are making a positive difference.
Having money is amazing but really it’s all about what you do with it.
You can sit on your stacks and get nice and fat and lazy or you can spread your wealth, influence and power around bringing new opportunity to people both near and far.
It’s up to decide what kind of man or woman you want to be.
Will you rule the money or will the money rule you?
Anyone can be rich but not everyone can be wealthy, even fewer of those who reach the point of true wealth make the decision to use their money to enrich the lives of others.
The choice is yours but don’t forget: “It’s not just about the money!”
