I’ll cut to the chase. Who is a lifelong earner? Well, a lifelong earner is you. That’s right – Y.O.U. Go ahead and point that index finger right back at yourself and say it with me: “I’m a lifelong earner.”
I hope you don’t mind that I have taken the liberty to give you a new qualifier for your identity. It’s a bold move, but stick with me here, I’m going somewhere.
So, what does lifelong earner mean exactly? I’m so glad you asked.
I’ll share with you my definition with a quick look back but ultimately, I encourage you to create your own meaning for what and how this descriptor can apply to you.
The Brief Story of How Lifelong Earners Began
When brainstorming ideas to truly capture the purpose for this new financial wellness community, many thoughts crossed my mind. Some were too serious. Some were too cheesy. Others simply didn’t fit my style or weren’t fully aligned with the objectives for what I hope this community will accomplish.
As I thought about my own personal finance evolution over these last few years, the idea of learning has been a consistent theme. I have been soaking up information about money, savings, investing, real estate, and more. Nowadays, there are so many free and easy-to-access resources from books, blogs, podcasts, and more.
I was introduced to Dave Ramsey in my 20’s. The prescribed debt snowball and baby steps saved me some early heartache with practical advice. However, my journey with money began to accelerate in 2020 when everything was closed and we were confined to our homes. The world had shut down, but in many respects my mind was beginning to open up to new personal finance ideas and ways of thinking.
Accelerating pretty quickly to deep dive into more texts, my starter book that really got me going was the classic Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. I had heard about the book and seminars for years, but really never paid it any attention. I wish I had. It is required reading for personal finance.
Without too much of a spoiler, Kiyosaki compares and contrasts two dads. Pretty clear from the title, right? Kiyosaki’s dad is a government worker, university professor. He was highly educated and intelligent. He had a beautiful family and seemed to play pretty much by the rules his whole life. I could relate on so many levels. I also tend to play things pretty safe and have invested large portions of my income to pay for advanced degrees.
By contrast, Kiyosaki’s friend’s dad barely finished high school and didn’t hold down a consistent job. However, he was a business owner and real estate investor.
When young Kiyosaki asked his dad to teach him about money, he told him to learn from his friend’s dad instead. And, through a series of twists, turns, and tons of intrigue Kiyosaki’s monopoly began (quite literally and figuratively).
My explanation
So for me, it’s actually more than just making a lot of money for a long time. Being a lifelong earner is about enhancement, purposeful education, and being the best version of ourselves thorough the acquisition of both knowledge and resources.
As you can see, a lifelong earner is self-educated and understands that this path is unique to those who decide to take the journey. It’s not a race. While there are many roadmaps to financial freedom, we all are on our own pace and have our respective money stories based upon our backgrounds, families, incomes, careers, mindsets, and experiences.
A lifelong earner is also committed and not easily swayed to get off track because we’re in it for the long haul.
A lifelong earner has perspective, patience, and can see the bigger picture. As lifelong earners, we care about impact for the present and legacy for the future.
A lifelong earner is a content creator, not just a content consumer. We seek out multiple pathways to acquire wealth and financial freedom. We understand that money is a tool and system which can be learned and leveraged.
A lifelong earner is a part of a community and seeks to share the knowledge and lessons they acquire for the benefit not only of themselves, but also for others. Both money and learning are forms of currency. They flow more when we give them away.
So, this is my explanation and definition of a lifelong earner and what it means to me. But, better yet, how will being a lifelong earner define you?