The other day I came across something really interesting.
Richness is not the same as wealth. Let me explain. Richness comes from the amount of money you have. This is the cash at hand and stored away in the bank. Wealth comes from your assets, savings and net worth.
Being rich doesn’t mean you’ll always have money but being wealthy does. Intriguing right? There is a fine line between them and one can easily cross from one side to the other.
Our society is filled with a diverse category of people including the rich and the wealthy. Is there a way to tell who is who? Absolutely.
Rich people invest in luxury and thrive from constant purchase. You’ll see them driving the latest cars, shopping in Prada and Gucci and buying mansions all over Los Angeles and other parts of the world.
On the other hand wealthy people invest in experiences. They chose travelling and learning new musical instruments over driving the latest ferrari that threatens to use up half their salary. Because at the end of the day, items get worn out,outdated and have to be replaced but memories are the one thing that last a lifetime.
Which is why it’s safe to say that:
Rich people=loud money
Wealthy people= quiet money.
In this article, you’ll discover the difference between the two and why you should avoid loud money like a plague.
Have you ever been around someone who constantly talks about their money? Nothing else seems to come out of their mouths except how big their mansion is or how they’re bored of their ferrari and can’t wait for the
newest model to come out.
How did you feel? Were you envious? Happy for them? Or did you find them exhausting to be around?
This is the “Mine is better” kind of talk. It’s very much a competition of the best, most successful and the richest. So what drives people to be here? One simple word, validation.
Loud money hungers after Validation
Honestly speaking, we all have a part in us that seeks a pat in the back, and to be told we’ve done a great job.
We seek this approval from our friends and family and sometimes even strangers. When this part is not tamed, we set ourselves up to be people pleasers.
Looking back, I had to unlearn all these things. I was brought up in a household where something was either right or wrong. No questions were to be asked and there was no compromise. So I grew up pleasing and doing everything my parents said. I would unknowingly do the same with my friends and it led to some of them taking advantage.
When you constantly seek people’s approval, nothing is ever enough. Okay, you have a Lamborghini, a Ferrari is in fashion, get that instead. Your house only has one pool, get one with two. The vicious cycle goes on and one and you keep purchasing not because you want to but you feel like you have to keep up.
That’s why it’s important to know whose opinion matters and whose doesn’t. If they’re not your spouse and are neither feeding nor financing you, then they get no say. Realize that the friends you’re trying hard to please don’t even fit in these categories.
Loud Money brings you Fake Friends.
The rich never walk alone. They’re always in a crowd of friends having a good time. Friends who are more than ready to refill their glasses, laugh at their terrible jokes and even bark when asked to. As a result, the friends get to sit at the high table and collect the breadcrumbs that fall from it a.k.a money.
Deep down they are aware that these people don’t care for them but they’re too scared to be alone. So they go on with it.
When they no longer have the money to spoil them with or when you need emotional support, those friends will be nowhere to be seen.
Loud money makes you arrogant.
What happens to your ego when people fall at your feet to meet your every demand? It shoots and inflates like a birthday balloon full of helium. And just like a balloon pops under pressure, you will too.
You’ll begin to lose your cool with people around you and strangers too. You start causing chaos in restaurants by yelling at waiters and demanding special attention since you believe you’re better than everyone.
Flashy needs Flashy to maintain it.
When you’re used to a high-end lifestyle of showing off, you believe that you have a reputation to uphold. Can’t afford losing face right?
So what happens when you get short on cash? you borrow and borrow. A few loans never hurt anybody right? Wrong.
Loans are only beneficial if you use the money wisely and not for keeping up a high lifestyle.
When you can’t borrow anymore you turn to purchasing items on credit and since your limit is high enough to buy the latest ferrari, you do so. Keeping in mind that the lamborghini you own hasn’t even clocked six months.
So you slowly sink in debt and within no time, you’re the poorest in the neighbourhood even though you look like the richest.
Can Loud money become Quiet money?
The answer is yes. You might think that loud money is limited to those raking in thousands or even millions of collars. No matter how much you make, it turns to loud money when your focus is on spending it and constant purchase of things you don’t even need.
Quiet money doesn’t mean you should walk around in torn shirts and long overdue haircuts. It also doesn’t mean you should drive a 1969 car model that can’t go more than 20 miles per hour. And it certainly has nothing to do with being humble.
It’s about buying what is enough, what makes you feel comfortable. It’s about investing and saving the surplus instead of splurging it.
This does not mean that you deny yourself the fine things in life. A weekend getaway with a loved one or a spa visit once in a while never hurt anyone. Wealthy people know that it all comes down to budgeting.
Similar thoughts and opinions.
I was scrolling through reddit the other day and I came across an interesting discussion about wealth. This is the comment that stood out for me.
“Wealthy people keep “quiet” about their financial status. Their clothes are food quality and tasteful but nothing draws undue attention to itself, where flashy types are covered in brands. They crave your attention and want you to think they are rich
-Back2Bach
When Steve Jobs was the CEO of Apple, he made an interesting observation regarding Apple employees.
“I was seeing a lot of people who worked at Apple and made a lot of money unhappy. They would drive the latest Rolls-Royce, had managers for their houses and even paid for their wives’ plastic surgeries till they turned unrecognisable. I don’t want to live like that.”
As my final thought, I’d like to add that money can’t really buy happiness. Yes, it solves a lot of our problems but there are things we can’t buy with it. So if you get a chance of getting money,control it, don’t let it control you. Travel, have fun and enjoy but stock away for rainy days. Above all, don’t forsake friendships and relationships in it’s pursuit. Because on your deathbed it’s these people who’ll be by your side, not your money.
