HOW TO GET RICH

1. Wealth is created through leverage and specific knowledge

You're not going to get rich renting out your time. You must own equity—a piece of a business—to gain your financial freedom.

Leverage is key. In the modern world, wealth is created through leverage - the ability to multiply your efforts and impact. This can come in three forms: labor (other people working for you), capital (money multiplying your decisions), and products with no marginal cost of replication (code, media, books). The most powerful leverage today is permissionless, like coding or creating content.

Specific knowledge matters. To create real value and wealth, you need specific knowledge - expertise that cannot be easily trained or replicated. This often comes from pursuing your genuine interests and passions, rather than following trends. It's the intersection of what you're uniquely good at and what the world values.

• Examples of specific knowledge:
  • Deep technical expertise in a niche field
  • Unique insights from cross-disciplinary study
  • Rare combination of skills (e.g., technical + communication)
• Ways to develop specific knowledge:
  • Pursue genuine curiosity and interests
  • Learn through apprenticeships and real-world experience
  • Combine multiple disciplines in novel ways

2. Build your personal monopoly by developing rare and valuable skills

Become the best in the world at what you do. Keep redefining what you do until this is true.

Create a unique value proposition. To truly succeed and create wealth, you need to develop a personal monopoly - a combination of skills and knowledge that makes you irreplaceable. This doesn't mean being the absolute best globally, but rather the best within your specific niche or for your target audience.

Continuously evolve. The key is to keep refining and redefining your area of expertise until you've carved out a unique position. This might involve combining multiple skills or applying your knowledge in a novel context. The goal is to reach a point where you have no real competition because no one else can offer exactly what you do.

• Strategies for building a personal monopoly:
  • Identify intersection of your skills, interests, and market demand
  • Develop complementary skills to create a unique package
  • Stay on the cutting edge of your field
  • Apply your expertise to new or underserved markets
• Examples of personal monopolies:
  • A software developer who also understands UX design and business strategy
  • A fitness trainer with expertise in nutrition and psychology
  • A marketer who specializes in a specific industry and emerging technologies

3. Prioritize long-term thinking and compound interest in all aspects of life

All the returns in life, whether in wealth, relationships, or knowledge, come from compound interest.

Think in decades. The most substantial gains in life come from compound interest - not just in finance, but in relationships, knowledge, and skills. By consistently making small improvements and good decisions over a long period, you can achieve exponential growth and results that seem almost magical.

Patience is crucial. The challenge is that compound interest takes time to show significant results. In the short term, it can feel like you're not making progress. This is why so many people fail to achieve their goals - they give up too soon. Embracing long-term thinking requires discipline and faith in the process.

• Areas where compound interest applies:
  • Wealth: Consistent investing and reinvesting
  • Relationships: Building trust and deepening connections over time
  • Knowledge: Continuous learning and connecting ideas
  • Skills: Daily practice and incremental improvement
  • Health: Consistent good habits compound over decades
• Long-term thinking strategies:
  • Set 10+ year goals and work backwards
  • Make decisions based on long-term consequences
  • Prioritize habits and systems over short-term results

4. Embrace accountability and take calculated risks to build credibility

Embrace accountability, and take business risks under your own name. Society will reward you with responsibility, equity, and leverage.

Take ownership. True success and wealth often come to those willing to take on accountability and risk. By putting your name and reputation on the line, you signal confidence and commitment. This builds trust and credibility, which in turn attracts opportunities, resources, and talented collaborators.

Calculated risk-taking. The key is to take smart risks - ones where you have an edge or unique insight. This doesn't mean being reckless, but rather being willing to bet on yourself and your ideas. The potential downside should be manageable, while the upside could be life-changing.

• Benefits of embracing accountability:
  • Builds a strong personal brand and reputation
  • Attracts high-quality opportunities and partners
  • Develops resilience and problem-solving skills
  • Creates a sense of ownership and motivation
• Strategies for smart risk-taking:
  • Start small and increase exposure gradually
  • Develop specific knowledge to gain an edge
  • Build a financial cushion to absorb potential losses
  • Learn from failures and iterate quickly

5. Cultivate happiness through mindfulness and acceptance

Happiness is being satisfied with what you have. Success comes from dissatisfaction. Choose.

Happiness is a skill. Many people believe happiness comes from external circumstances, but it's largely a learnable skill. It involves training your mind to be present, grateful, and accepting of reality as it is. This doesn't mean being complacent, but rather finding peace and contentment in the present moment while still working towards goals.

Practice acceptance. A key component of happiness is learning to accept things you cannot change. This reduces unnecessary suffering and allows you to focus your energy on what you can control. It's about recognizing that most of our unhappiness comes from resisting reality rather than from reality itself.

• Techniques for cultivating happiness:
  • Daily meditation or mindfulness practice
  • Gratitude journaling
  • Regular exercise and time in nature
  • Cultivating meaningful relationships
• Principles for acceptance:
  • Distinguish between what you can and cannot control
  • Practice non-judgment of thoughts and experiences
  • Embrace impermanence and change
  • Focus on internal rather than external validation

6. Continuously learn and adapt to stay relevant in a changing world

If you can't see yourself working with someone for life, don't work with them for a day.

Lifelong learning is essential. In a rapidly changing world, the ability to learn and adapt is crucial for long-term success. This means developing a love for learning and cultivating the skills to acquire new knowledge quickly. It's not just about formal education, but about being curious and open to new ideas and perspectives.

Build a learning machine. The goal is to become efficient at learning itself. This involves developing good reading habits, critical thinking skills, and the ability to synthesize information from diverse sources. It also means being willing to change your mind when presented with new evidence.

• Strategies for effective learning:
  • Read widely and deeply in multiple disciplines
  • Seek out diverse perspectives and challenge your assumptions
  • Apply what you learn through projects or teaching others
  • Develop mental models to organize and apply knowledge
• Areas to focus on for future-proofing:
  • Technology and its societal impacts
  • Fundamental principles in science and mathematics
  • Human psychology and behavior
  • Systems thinking and complex problem-solving

7. Live by your values and seek internal freedom

To be honest, speak without identity.

Define your values. Living a fulfilling life requires clarity on your personal values and principles. These act as a compass, guiding your decisions and actions. By aligning your life with your values, you create a sense of integrity and purpose that leads to long-term satisfaction.

Seek internal freedom. True freedom comes from within - it's the ability to be at peace regardless of external circumstances. This involves letting go of societal expectations, overcoming your own ego, and developing the ability to control your reactions and emotions.

• Steps to clarify your values:
  • Reflect on peak experiences and moments of pride
  • Identify recurring themes in your life choices
  • Consider what you want your legacy to be
  • Test potential values through real-world decisions
• Practices for developing internal freedom:
  • Mindfulness and meditation
  • Stoic philosophy and exercises
  • Questioning your own thoughts and beliefs
  • Cultivating detachment from outcomes

8. Make decisions based on first principles and mental models

If you can't decide, the answer is no.

Think from first principles. Instead of relying on conventional wisdom or copying others, learn to think from fundamental truths. This involves breaking down complex problems to their core elements and rebuilding solutions from there. It allows for more innovative thinking and better decision-making.

Build a toolkit of mental models. Mental models are frameworks for understanding how the world works. By studying and internalizing models from various disciplines (physics, biology, psychology, economics), you can approach problems from multiple angles and make better decisions.

• Key first principles thinking strategies:
  • Question assumptions and dig deeper
  • Ask "Why?" multiple times to get to root causes
  • Seek out fundamental laws and proven facts
• Essential mental models to learn:
  • Opportunity costs
  • Compounding
  • Probabilistic thinking
  • Inversion (thinking backwards)
  • Systems thinking

9. Invest in yourself and prioritize your physical and mental health

My number one priority in life, above my happiness, above my family, above my work, is my own health.

Health is foundational. Without good health, it's difficult to enjoy or pursue anything else in life. Prioritizing your physical and mental well-being is one of the best investments you can make. This means taking care of your body through diet, exercise, and sleep, as well as nurturing your mind through learning, relationships, and stress management.

Create sustainable habits. The key to long-term health is developing sustainable habits rather than relying on willpower or short-term interventions. This involves understanding your own psychology and designing your environment to support healthy choices.

• Key areas of health to focus on:
  • Nutrition: Emphasize whole foods, minimize processed foods
  • Exercise: Find enjoyable forms of movement you can sustain
  • Sleep: Prioritize consistent, quality sleep
  • Stress management: Develop practices like meditation or journaling
  • Mental stimulation: Continuous learning and challenging yourself
• Strategies for building healthy habits:
  • Start small and build gradually
  • Design your environment to support good choices
  • Track progress and celebrate small wins
  • Build a support system of like-minded individuals

Last updated: October 25, 2024