How to Hack Being Dead Broke

Us broke people, those that are working forty plus hours a week just to make end’s meat look at the super-wealthy almost as some mythological figure. However, in my experience, from studying some of the many wealthy individuals on this planet, becoming rich should not be something so distant after all. Matter of fact, I believe with just a few mental shifts, and a new set of core beliefs, anyone can become rich and attain ultimate wealth.

You’re Selfish

The number one reason you are dead broke and trying to claw from the bottom is because you are selfish. You might be reading this and thinking, “Wait, what? I thought I was broke because I had a horrible job. I thought I was broke because I put too much on my credit card.” Nope. Those reasons are all good, but the number one reason is that you are selfish. You don’t want to be rich. Matter of fact, you like being broke. It gives you more pleasure to complain to your friends and tell them sob stories about how you had it so hard, and how you’re just having horrible luck, instead of actually going out and making a turn-around. Instead of actually thinking of new ways to make massive amounts of money, you’re thinking about your poor self. You are so selfish, that you actually say things like this to your friends, “Yeah, I’m actually glad I’m not rich, because then I would act stuck-up and rude to people.” But who said rich people have to talk a certain way, look a certain way, or even dress a certain way? Why can’t you be rich and still be true to yourself? You see, the more money you have, the more money you can give. The more money you have, the greater the possibility you will have to impact other’s lives. The more you can invest in your community to make a difference. Instead, you’re selfishly holding all the money to yourself, barely making ends meat, barely paying the bills. You selfishly sabotage yourself into believing that too much money is a bad thing, when in reality, more money could bring more positive change. With more money, you could donate and save a child’s life. With more money, you could build a brand new school in your community. With more money, you could build a hospital to treat the sick in your community. Money is not the problem. Your relationship to money is.

Middle-Class Myth

We’ve all been sold this myth: go to college, get a good job, invest in your 401(k), buy a house, and retire when you’re 65 years old. This is a fine option in life, if you want to be just average. Here’s the problem, the middle class is very limiting. When you follow the above-listed plan, you are limiting yourself to a greater possibility, beyond this so-called middle class. Instead of striving for more, you’re striving for just enough. You’re striving just so you can achieve the above-listed goals, and that’s it. But that kind of mindset doesn’t change the world. Do you think Mark Zuckerburg thought about the middle class, i.e. go to school, get a good job, get married, and retire when you’re 65 years old? I doubt it. He’s an innovator. He’s taking risks. He’s thinking beyond just himself, “How can Facebook change the world?” Now look at Zuckerburg, Facebook started off to most as some stupid social app, but has grown to a full-fledged business. Zuckerburg is worth millions, has multiple homes, and is a huge philanthropist, all because he pushed past his normal boundaries.

Big Wins

Stop pinching pennies and keep thinking you’re going to get rich by saving into your 401(k) and not buying lattes at work. Ramit Sethi, New York Times bestselling author of I Will Teach You To Be Rich, explains this concept in detail. He argues that many of us are focusing on the wrong things. Instead of focusing on saving pennies, we should be focused on big wins, such as launching a business, or freelancing on the side to make an extra $1000 a month. People that are rich are not worried about the four dollar latte they spend every day. Instead, they meet with people over coffee who are going to make them tenfold that amount of money, so they can continue to buy lattes for the rest of their life.

Choose Yourself

Technology, outsourcing, productivity efficiencies, have all replaced you. Most jobs that existed twenty years ago aren’t needed now. Just recently in the news, we’ve seen automatic self-driven cars. What does this mean for future industries, such as taxi drivers, bus drivers, Ubers? Pretty soon, none of these people will have jobs.  I got this idea of “Choose Yourself” from writer, James Altucher, who actually wrote an entire book entitled Choose Yourself. He, similar to Ramit Sethi, believes you need to stop relying on the government and your job for stability. History has shown what can happen from broken government promises and extreme financial crises (such as the US housing market crash, the automotive bailouts, and the 50% loss many saw from their 401(k)’s). You need to take control of what happens to your personal assets. Nobody else is looking out for you. You have to look out for you.

The Wrap-Up

Going from dead broke to super rich is not something that is going to happen overnight. For many of us, it means us stepping out of our comfort zone, and taking on an entirely new perspective. To get out of this dead broke mindset and enter a rich life; you need to learn to push past your limits, destroy some of the money myths from the past, and reprogram the mental frameworks surrounding money that limited you in the past.

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Photo: Getty Images