Chapter 20

Was It Worth It?

Way back in Chapter 2 I told you about my ethical trepidation over writing about how to get rich, because of the real risk of worshipping Mammon and losing things that are more important than money in the headlong pursuit of riches. Now that you understand that you have a real choice of two achievable objectives—Safely Prosperous or Really Rich—it's time to consider some soul-searching questions.

1. Can you really resist the temptations that the pursuit of money always brings and that always lead to unhappiness amid wealth—especially if you are on the Really Rich track? These temptations are always easier to resist on the Safely Prosperous track, as you can usually get the cooperation of your spouse, and it becomes a family joint venture that can help you to build a successful marriage.
2. If you decide to become Really Rich, ask yourself why. Do you just want riches to feed your ego, to compete with the Joneses, to have more toys, or so you can climb the social ladder as we did in the 1960s? Those are not only dubious motives, but can be truly soul destroying. If your answer is yes, seriously reconsider the Safely Prosperous route.
3. I'm a big fan of entrepreneurs who are driven to start and build businesses. There is a big difference between an entrepreneur and a small-business owner. The latter just wants to be his or her own boss and own a bar, a beauty salon, or a fast-food franchise. But one who has caught the real entrepreneurial spirit and has invented a widget wants to become McWidgets. However, if the entrepreneur is solely money-driven, rather than a passionate believer in what the product or service can do to bless lives or change the world, I don't like that person much. Nothing will test your character and spirituality like the pursuit of money. And when you do have a lot of it, will you love it? It won't love you back.
4. When you succeed, are you truly willing to be generous and give thanks to God, who has blessed you abundantly, by helping His children when they need that help? As mentioned before, our family used to pray to God to “bless the poor, the sick, and the afflicted.” One day a question struck me: Why were we throwing back to God the assignment He gave us, especially when He has given us the means to be very generous? Ever since that epiphany, my family has prayed for God to help us to find those who need our help so we can bless the poor, the sick, and the afflicted. Since then, it is truly amazing how many people with real needs I have stumbled over, and how good we felt when we have blessed their lives. Remember my account of my great-grandfather Mayberry, who learned he couldn't give it away faster than God would bless him with it. I truly believe in the law of compensating returns. It has been said that at the time of death, you can't take it with you. So what can you take with you? I believe you can only take with you what you have become and the character that you have achieved by giving it away.
5. We are also setting up a family-help fund to aid those who really need and deserve temporary help. I and some of the more affluent family members are providing the start-up capital for the fund, and we are asking all the family to contribute something every month according to their ability, even if it's only a tiny amount.
6. Kay and I try to live modestly, following the principles in Book I. We are comfortably well off, and someday I might be half as rich as everyone thinks I am. If that happens, nothing in our lives will change, except our ability to be generous. We have no consumer debt. I only use my credit cards for necessary travel, and pay them off in full every month. Our cars are all paid for. One of them is three years old with 80,000 miles on it, and the other is seven years old with 200,000 miles, but they're both in great shape, and I will drive one of them until we have to shoot it to put it out of its misery. We owned a 20,000-square-foot mansion in the past, but we have found we are just as happy in our lovely 3,000-square-foot home; and the small mortgage is the only personal debt we have. I do have a small bass boat that is fully paid for, and it's my only indulgence except for dinner out at a modest but nice restaurant two or three times a week with Kay. We live very comfortably on no more than $3,000 a month, although we could afford a lot more. What's more, we have learned to like our lifestyle, and are comfortable with it, so we are trying to practice what I have preached in these pages.
7. Do you want to be rich so you can leave your kids a lot of money to prove you love them? Serious studies have demonstrated that the first generation after you will start to dissipate inherited fortunes, and the next generation will finish the job. I intend to leave my kids everything I had as a child—including poverty. If you truly love them, you want them to be happy, and real happiness is always hard-earned. Struggle and surmounted obstacles are the real happiness builders, and inherited wealth is a happiness destroyer. No matter how rich you become, don't spoil your kids with unearned things. One of the great lessons of life that can bless your kids is learning how to work hard for the things they want. We tried to do this by having our kids work hard in the family businesses for the same wages as any other laborer. It seems to have paid off, and the lessons seem to have been passed on to our grandchildren.
8. I intend to set up a trust fund for the grandchildren's college education. It will pay for tuition, fees, books, and lodging if it's away from home. I will require their parents to match as much of the funds as they are able.

In essence, you need to make a family decision about exactly what you really want out of life. What would make you truly happy? I have been both rich and poor—each more than once—and I can honestly say we have been happy no matter what the bank balance when we have kept our eyes fixed on the things that lead inexorably to happiness. Much of the misery we have experienced has been the direct result of the violation of the principles taught in this book. If you have learned nothing else from my scribblings, I hope you learn this. God bless!