Money, It's a Gas

  Surviving through a money-driven world

“Money, get away, get a good job with more pay and your O.K.” Pink Floyd sang that through their hit song “Money”. They couldn't have sang a better song about money and how it’s the driving force in life. Without it, one could not eat or drink, nor can one gain shelter or even have a bed to sleep on. The expenses required for us to live has been rising and rising, thus making money a necessity for us to live.

We have seen the destitute scrounging for their next meal. Just like the stray cats you see wandering the mamak places in search for food, these people are no different. They beg at the side of the road, all skinny and helpless, hoping for people to provide them with money.  Can we really blame them? If you think about it, if you were in their shoes, wouldn’t you have done the same? Being uneducated and have no knowledge of how to earn money, how else are they to survive?

For us fortunate souls, here is what I think of money. With references from the book, “The Richest Man In Babylon” by George Clason, I’ll explain what knowledge I have gained from it, for Aristotle was once quoted saying “Those who know, do; Those who understand, teach.”

The problem most people have when it comes to money, is that once you get it, you will not hesitate to spend it. And without even realizing it, you’ve already spent everything that you’ve earned. Every single individual in this world is filled with desire. Adam couldn’t resist the desire to eat the forbidden apple and since we are all children of Adam, we are no different. But once we learn to limit our unlimited desires, can we learn to make money work for us.

Everybody has expenses they do not require yet spend on it because they know they have a paid job and will continuously get the same amount every month. But what if one day, a tragedy occurs and that job of yours is lost? You’ll be left with nothing just like the beggars on the streets. And if you have a family, imagine what would become of them. Not to mention the loans you took, if you did take any.

Arkad, a character from the “Richest Man In Babylon” who is also known as the richest man in Babylon in the fiction book, had said it best, “A fat purse quickly empties if there be no golden stream to refill it.”

There is a thing called saving little by little, hence the Malay proverb, “Sikit-sikit, lama-lama jadi bukit.” (literal meaning: little by little, will become a mountain)  By practicing to save money, one would not only acquire a golden stream to refill one’s fat purse but also acquire a sense of discipline. But saving is only the first step.

Once an individual has learned to save, problems can be solved, especially since problems come and go throughout our lives. Arkad has also mentioned that the money you have gained does not belong to you. This is because you require the requirements you need to survive.

You have a car and it gets into an accident. You are in need to fix it, thus your money will go to the mechanic. You require food & beverages, your money will go to the restaurant or supermarket owner. You require a house, your money goes to the architect and the constructors. And in the end of the day, none of it will be yours. Unless of course, one takes the time to save a sum of the amount one gains, one will be considered as not earning any money at all.

There may be companies like PERKESO to save your money for you in case of emergencies and there is also the EPF system as well. But of course, there is always a better route – I know of two.

Money Tree (image courtesy of https://www.google.com.my/images)

One route would be investment – a knowledge most people neglect to desire only because they either don’t care or lack the knowledge to do so. Investment is, if not only, the best way that can multiply your fortune. But to invest, one requires the knowledge to do so. And to gain the knowledge required, one needs to ask those who are within the profession.

For example, one would not go to a bread maker to gain knowledge about iron, one would go to the blacksmith. If one requires knowledge on bricks, one would not go to the architect, one would go to the brick maker. But one must also constantly keep up to date with the times, for “wealth grows wherever men exert energy.” The items or products men are attracted to the most, is the one that should be targeted for investment.

The other route would be royalties. Is it any wonder why everyone wants to be a rock star? By becoming a vaudevillian, every time you perform your craft, you gain money. And when I speak of craft, I speak of artists, designers, writers, musicians, actors and everyone else who is also a part of the performance and arts scene. For these are talents that can be used for throughout your life. And once your talent has been published or produced, royalties will come knocking on your door.

However, that does not mean that if you have the talent, money will simply come towards you! No. Talent is one thing, marketing is another. One must know how to sell and attract an audience. For example, a writer will not gain any readers if his title or headline is not attractive to the eye. The same applies to the other professions. If one does not know how to market one’s work, or understand the targeted audiences, one will not acquire the royalties one wishes for.

Some might say they are free and would spend their money however they want to, but no one would truly be free if one has no safety net to back his income. Spend wisely, save smart. Try applying it and a new dawn will you wake up to. By gaining new habits, a new man will you become. For those who seek more knowledge on what I speak, look out for the book ‘Richest Man In Babylon’ by George S. Clason. “In language as simple as the bible, this book will explain in detail, an assured road to happiness and prosperity” – the description that lured me to reading the book.