The Get Rich Slow Scheme

The fastest way to build wealth from zero is to take your time

We’re all slammed by social media in our daily lives. People sharing videos of their diets, their workouts, and the products they buy. And the ones who build followings on these networks have money behind basically all of it. Let’s face it, influencers want to make money just like everyone else, so they’re going to have a deal to promote a certain gym, or supplements, stock trading apps, sports betting apps, investment strategies behind a paywall, whatever floats their audience’s boat. A lot of those are tied to the idea of helping their audience build wealth. But in almost every case the only ones actually benefiting monetarily are the company selling and the influencer promoting it. The audience is just handing money to both of them.

Here’s the reality of wealth building from zero: it’s slow, boring, and simple. The second it gets fast, exciting, or complex enough that you need to buy a course to understand it is the second you’re on the hook of some company making money off of you.

The thing about getting rich quickly is that it’s basically a product. It sells because it goes after a feeling instead of giving you a plan. There’s urgency, like the opportunity is about to disappear if you don’t move now. There’s comparison, where you’re staring at what someone else supposedly has. And there’s an idea that there’s some secret out there that regular people just aren’t being let in on. There isn’t one. The actual way to do it is so boring that ordinary people basically tune it out.

When you strip it all down, building wealth mostly comes down to spending less than you make. That’s the whole thing. All the investing stuff comes after that, and none of it matters if there’s nothing left at the end of the month to put anywhere. Most people trying to get rich fast are really just trying to skip past this part, because there’s nothing fun about it. But it’s the one piece you actually have control over day-to-day.

After that, investing does become the biggest lever. When I say investing, I don’t mean day trading, options trading, or whatever investment strategy or app most companies are selling you. I’m talking about purchasing an asset, holding, and diversifying. Compounding is the closest thing to a real trick, and the only way it works is if you leave it alone and let it sit for years. Your money makes a little money, then that makes a little more, and it keeps rolling. The annoying part is that most of it happens way at the end, after years of it looking like nothing is going on. That’s exactly why nobody can sell it to you, and exactly why it works.

“The stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient.” — Warren Buffett

The best move is to set it up so it just happens without you. Have the money move automatically the day you get paid, before you even see it sitting in your account, so you’re not relying on yourself to remember or to feel like doing it. Someone who puts a little away every month for 20 years and never touches it is going to end up ahead of almost everyone out there trying to “get rich quick”.

None of this is a secret and none of it is exciting, and that’s really the point. If something is being sold to you as urgent, or exclusive, or like you’re going to miss out, it’s because someone is making money off of you. Ignore it, and keep investing into diversified assets and asset classes.

Keep an eye on your money and make small adjustments as needed. Let the noise be noise.