10 Assets that MAKE YOU RICH!

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10 Assets that MAKE YOU RICH!

Jaime Schekaiban • Jun 05, 2020

Retire Early, Become Financially Independent by Owning These Assets Now

When you think about money and personal finances, the most important thing that SHOULD come to your mind is FIRE.

FIRE is an acronym for “Financially Independent, Retire Early”. It is the epitome of personal finances, where your life makes sense and you become 100% happy and successful.

In order to achieve FIRE, you need to use your time and energy to create wealth. Once you receive the money, you should put it where it will grow more with time and multiply.

You also need to take care of expenses. If you want to fill up a tank with water, and FIRE is the upper most level in the tank, it would not help to have a big hole or two under the tank. The more water you pour in, the more water that drains from the bottom.

One of the most effective ways to achieve FIRE is by creating and growing assets. I will be talking about the 10 most effective assets that WILL MAKE YOU RICH and achieve FIRE.

1. CASH

Although cash is a depreciative asset, since it loses value over time due to inflation, it is important to have cash on hand.

Not only for the sake of having it, or for an emergency fund, but in order for you to take decisions and negotiate.

He who carries the cash on hand has the best leverage to negotiate. When someone is presented with a great opportunity to invest, you need to have the money available to take it. If you need to start looking around for investors or lenders when the opportunity presents itself, you will most likely lose it.

Don’t let other people tell you that holding cash is a bad thing. Not investing is a bad thing. Having 100% of your wealth in cash is a bad thing.

Having a PORTION of your wealth in cash is what Billionaires do (Warren Buffett, Apple, Amazon, etc.) to be able to access opportunities when they present themselves. Also, in a downturn, cash is king.

2. Real Estate

I cannot emphasize more the importance of Real Estate in your asset portfolio. There is nothing better for you to own than Real Estate.

Either residential or commercial Real Estate has several advantages over the other assets.

• They appreciate with time just by holding them, if bought in the right area.

• Someone else pays the mortgage for you and makes you richer.

• They give you tax advantages like mortgage interest and depreciation.

• It gives you CashFlow every month which you can live with.

If you haven’t explored the world of Real Estate, I suggest you start with a Single-Family Home as a rental. It is the most convenient way to learn and expand your horizons of investments.

3. Stocks, Bonds, Mutual Funds, and ETF’s

The stock market and government bonds are a good way to secure some of your money for the long term.

Markets have historically given you around 7-10% return in ETF’s, which is a group of companies that you can invest on and diversify your risk.

If you own a specific stock, beware of the fluctuations of the market. Owning stocks with companies that will always be there is a great way to grow your wealth.

Dividends from stocks are paid every month or quarter, and they can also guarantee you a “salary” to live without having a full-time job!

Whether you invest in a mutual fund or ETF, beware of the commissions you pay. Sometimes, these commissions make it harder for someone to achieve financial independence.

4. Patents & Trademarks

When you create something new and unique that serves the world and makes money, you need to protect it from the rest. There will be people that will want to copy it.

You utilize a patent to protect an invention or an idea, while you use a trademark for a specific design, logo, brand, or slogan.

If someone wishes to use your idea, they have to pay you. This is a great asset to have and doesn’t require much time to maintain. Once it is created, you only need to follow up with it.

Imagine how much money the inventor of the “coffee sleeve” made when companies like Starbucks decided to place it in every drink they served worldwide!

5. Brand

Building a brand is a long-term asset and takes time. Whether it is an online brand or a physical one, you need to market yourself and people have to identify you.

This is the reason why famous people such as actors, singers, sports players, and politicians always create a brand of their own.

They see this big opportunity to create a business where the main thing they sell is THEIR OWN IMAGE. People want to buy makeup from Kylie Jenner because it is hers, not because of the quality.

I am not saying she doesn’t sell quality products, but the reason her company is successful is because of her image. She created a brand for herself with the reality show on TV.

6. People

If you are a business owner, you need good people. They are hard to find. Recruiting is a pain in the butt and a waste of time.

Sometimes you get people in interviews that lie really well. They get hired and they do not bring any value to the company. They get fired. You lose time and money.

Hiring a recruiting agency who has enough experience is always the best move. Do not intend to do it yourself.

They are being motivated because of the sales commissions they make when they land a successful candidate that stays for 6 months.

When you have someone in your team that is “highly valuable”, do not LET HIM GO. Offer a promotion, a raise, or a bonus to incentivize this person to stay in your company.

You will regret losing good people. There are a lot of people out there, but around 5% of them are highly efficient professionals that will kill for your company and bring you back 1000% of their cost in value.

7. Digital and Physical Content

When you create content, this content stays there forever. You just need to market it to bring it back to life after some years.

Writing a book, creating a training course, seminar, giving a conference, sharing your knowledge to the world is one of the best assets someone can have.

YouTube is perfect for creating content and categorizing it as an asset. If you only use YouTube as a hobby, you will not see the benefits of creating an asset.

If you build a brand, create a portfolio of good videos, sell books and trainings online, answer to your followers, achieve to pull many more into your channel, and get sponsors interested in your brand you will have a really good asset.

8. Royalties and Unique Rights

This is related to patents, trademarks, brands, and digital content. When someone decides they want to use your content which is protected to make money, they have to pay a Royalty.

Royalties come in the form of cash they pay every month or every time they use your content. It is unlikely someone will pay you a Royalty for a video, but they will for a book or patent, even for a business. (franchise)

Royalties come and give you cashflow over and over again in the course of your lifetime. Creating a course, book, or patent is not an easy task. It is hard work that takes from 6 months to years!

Once you create your content and start receiving Royalties, you are good for life. Do not hesitate to start exploring this option of wealth!

9. Proprietary Business Models

Several industries changed how things were done in the world. Microsoft did it back in 1985 when Bill Gates created Windows. The way we use computers today is very different because of that.

Facebook did it back in the 2000’s with Mark Zuckerberg creating a way to communicate with everyone and share your feelings.

Uber did it again with the way we transport ourselves when we are not driving our own vehicles. Air B&B transformed the way we choose to stay in other places that are not hotels.

There are a lot of good examples of how people have transformed the industry and made billions of dollars. Even if your idea is not to make Billions, you can still transform an industry and become FIRE.

By changing the way things are done, you can start a new niche and monetize from it. If you do, you can protect your ideas with Patents and Trademarks and live in FIRE for the rest of your life!

10. TIME

Everyone has this asset. People don’t realize how important it is. It is limited and will not come back to you ever.

Use your time wisely. Create assets, buy assets, multiply assets. If you are working a 9-5 job, save as much money as you can and start putting it into these assets.

The end goal is for you to achieve FIRE. Once you achieve it, you may choose the option to continue working your job! That is the best job you can possibly do.

One that doesn’t require the pay to be happy. You are doing it because you enjoy it.

Closing Thoughts:

There is no need to explore all 10 of these assets. With some of them, you can greatly increase your wealth over time and achieve FIRE.

Time is your ally in all this. You need it in order to achieve FIRE. Do not waste it on things that will not bring any value to your life or TAKE IT AWAY! Smoking, Drinking, and taking Drugs excessively will subtract time from your life. You are losing money every time you do it.

Once you add some of these assets into your portfolio and achieve FIRE, you will be happier and feel more successful. You can enjoy life at its fullest, your job, your family, friends, and significant other. You can travel and stop worrying about money.

There is time to do it. The time is NOW.