I’ve never been as astounded by the allure of “free money” that was not worked for, as I was this year in Nigeria.
I was discussing with a friend how anyone who is observant will notice how hard people with genuine wealth work. They work hard for their money! And yet people who don’t want to work have no problems stretching out their open palms to them. They don’t want to do anything, not even to attend a business mixer that will afford them the opportunity to network and move their business forward. Yet, they claim they want to “make it” in life.
I never paid attention to the “free money” culture until now. Even though I’m acquainted with the basics of 419, I never viewed it through the lens of wanting money that someone else worked for.
It’s hard to find a wealthy person who doesn’t work hard, be it Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates or Aliko Dangote. They often work and achieve more every week than most people do in months. They wake up early, work hard all day, and even when they lie down at the end of the day their minds are still working! Many of these people have to deliberately discipline themselves to rest and sleep. And it’s not surprising. Building wealth requires
- Making sacrifices
- Putting in the hours
- Constantly improving your value by learning and studying
- Being deliberate and focused
- Working hard
Not many people are willing to do these things. They merely dream of making money, and then try to do so by gambling and betting, or by jumping on the next Ponzi ship that offers returns on investment too ridiculous to be legitimate.
There truly are not short cuts to real wealth. Are you ready to work hard? Are you ready to put in the required effort? Or are you simply too lazy to ever truly be rich?
If you constantly dream of being rich, pay attention to the details of this wealth you’re expecting to come to you. Is the breakthrough you’ve been praying for going to be dropped in your lap? Or are you looking for opportunities to build wealth by bending your back to work and reaping the fruits of your sweat and passion?
The heights by great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night. ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
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