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Live Below Your Means |
By Bob Bly
A favorite ploy of some who sell "get rich quick" in copywriting or Internet marketing ...
... is to boast about the luxury cars and other expensive toys they have bought - presumably with the money they made from the skill they are offering to teach you.
One, whom I am personally quite fond of and greatly admire, brags about his new $350,000 Rolls Royce.
Another sends us a photo of her with her new Jaguar.
A third describes the multi-million-dollar home he is having built.
Now, there's nothing wrong with wanting or having these possessions.
But if - like me - you don't care about the trappings of wealth....
.... then not being extravagant in your spending can actually give you an advantage as a freelancer or entrepreneur.
The best business advice I ever got was from Florida freelance writer DK, who told me:
"Live below your means."
It is advice I have always followed ... and I am glad I have done so.
You see, I'm a tightwad by nature. Not with others. But with myself.
Given the choice between dinner at a 4-star restaurant and plain old food ... I'll take Denny's any time.
This year, for instance, I needed a new car.
Now, I can't afford a Rolls Royce.
But I can afford a Jag, a Lexus, a Benz, or most of the other luxury cars - and keep in mind, I always buy my cars for cash.
I never lease or loan.
In fact, I live a lifestyle that allows me to have no consumer debt of any kind -- except mortgages on investment properties.
So what car did I settle on?
A new 2008 Toyota Prius Hybrid.
It cost me - including taxes - only $23,500.
I love driving it. Handles well. Looks great. Very sporty. Fits in small parking spaces.
Most important, it gets 45 miles per gallon.
Why do I advise that you live below your means - as DK and I do?
It's simple.
By living below your means, you remove unnecessary financial pressure from your life.
That way, you can make business decisions ... e.g., what clients or projects to take on ... based on what you want to do - and not financial need.
When you live below your means, you can do what you want to do ... when you want to do it ... which to me is a recipe for a happy and rewarding life.
When you live way above your means, you become a slave to your possessions - working to pay for the toys you have -- and buy the next ones.
That may be a good way for some people to live.
But not for me.
And maybe not for you.
Of course, it's your call.
Sincerely,
Bob "Skinflint" Bly
P.S. If you like the idea of spending less money on your car, like I am with my Prius, check out www.cheapcartips.com
Bob Bly Copywriter / Consultant 22 East Quackenbush Avenue Dumont, NJ 07628 Phone 201-385-1220 Fax 201-385-1138 www.bly.com
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