Those who aren’t “good”. They would have complete control of the resources - then how would society look like?

We need more “Daves” and “Ericas” out there who counter those who aren’t “good”

-Erica

I agree that philanthropy has, for me, become the major motivator behind wanting wealth. But my definition of “wealth” has expanded to include a lot more than money. Like freedom, time and meaningful relationship - these are often sacrificed in the acquisition of wealth, with this assumption that they will naturally follow once a certain level of wealth has occurred. I absolutely MUST be fascinated by what I am doing all day, and I realize I am willing to sacrifice money if it makes me richer in those other areas. So weirdly I actually define myself as rich already, in that I wake up when I want, take care of my clients at my own speed, think about where I want to have lunch with my partner who I adore and am so greatful I get to spend all day with everyday, and think about where we want to travel next. I think there’s nothing wrong with saying I will sacrifice this amount of time to reach this goal. It just didn’t work for me personally, and yet in another way I’m rich in a way I never dreamed of already. For philanthropy to make up for not having tons of money I started an investment club and then philanthropy blog where I know I motiviated a group of others so that donations inspired by my own fumblings through figuring out financial literacy and then philanthropy resulted in multiple amount being donated than I had to give myself. In short, a lot of this can be done outside the box. But thanks Ericka again for another very simple but illuminaing post.

Like you Erica, I’m into that passive income thing. It didn’t take me too long to realize wage slavery was not where is was at. Besides you tend to get into the flow more easily when you know your efforts are going into your pocket and not your employer’s:)

Personally,I started creating high net worth buying raw land, especially waterfront or commercial. You can get good deals and the taxes (carrying costs) are much lower. Unlike houses, people just have to like your location to buy when you sell.

Now I am creating niche websites on the things that interest me, such as aquaculture, bioremediation, and green living and creating income through affiliate programs and Adsense.

You made another important point Erica about the giving. I’ve always felt that my blessings should overflow into the lives of others. I’m not interested in monument building but I also don’t want my life to be little more than footprints in the sand. The interesting thing is the more I give, the more I seem to receive. Stew

@Marty: Agreed 100%!

@Espen: Seeing the looks on people’s faces when I’ve helped them is what motivates me to go on. For instance, one of the things that keeps me motivated to blog is the steady stream of emails I get from happy subscribers. One of the things I enjoyed most about my web hosting company was knowing that people were satisfied with us. It is really about knowing I’ve made a difference. I realize everyone may be a bit different in this regard, but I don’t consider this to be selfish.

Thank you all for your comments!

The politically correct reply would perhaps be “to inspire others to do the same thing”. Still I suspect that the real motivation behind this would rather be the feeling of being the savior. No problem. Whatever makes you happy, but I am surprised you think “it’s not about you”. Because it really is.

Someone recently told me I was too greedy and I should think more about all the starving people in the world. I said “I can’t help them if I’m poor!”

However, I get stuck on the “how.” I don’t know how to quickly get to even your “play it small” level of $10 million. Given a few decades, sure, no problem. But I’m always looking for ways to speed up the process.