Did you wake up today and go to work? Great, welcome to being an adult. We like to use “BLUF,” which stands for Bottom Line Up Front in the military. It simply summarizes the email or PowerPoint in the first sentence. For this article: BLUF- You will never truly be free unless you build your own empire.
Yes, you read that correctly. You will never truly be free unless you build an empire of passive income and wealth generators. This mentality flies in the face of common knowledge that tells us that our 401K retirement and social security will be enough.
They tell us that working eight hours a day for 40+ years will lead to a fantastic retirement. But if we don’t do anything extraordinary through our working years, how can we have an amazing retirement?
Living a Middle-Class Life is Stressful
Sadly, working eight hours a day is the bare minimum we can do to survive. I know that many people don’t even do that consistently. However, those people aren’t reading this article. Let’s focus on ourselves.
I have been grinding away in the US Marine Corps for 22+ years—working my eight hours days. I will be better off than most people because my military pension will be incredible. But my military retirement has a huge downside—it is not an asset.
I cannot pass my pension down to my heirs. When I die, my pension goes bye-bye. Therefore, every single penny of my retirement needs to go into investments. So, I need to live off of something else if I want to invest my pension.
Enter passive income. When I started creating passive income streams, I learned how gratifying it is to build an empire. I was in control of my time and money. Things I changed in my businesses created instant modifications to my wealth.
My mindset started to change from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. The more I learned, the more money I made. Every minute I put towards my real estate properties, ebook business, and dividend portfolio is a minute that increases my wealth.
Is Doing 20 Years in the Military Right for You?
I am in complete control of my future income. If I want to sell my bond funds (3% dividend yield) and buy a closed-end fund (10% dividend yield), I immediately increase my income at the cost of security.
If I want to sell covered calls using my blue-chip stocks, I can get immediate income by providing insurance to the buyers. If I want to sell cash-secured puts to buy blue-chip stocks at the lowest possible price, I can increase my dividend income and yield.
All this information comes at the cost of time. I have read and reviewed 65 books over the last year. I spend 4-6 hours a day reading, writing, and brainstorming about my businesses. I am obsessed with creating a better life for my family. I shun the idea of an eight-hour workday.
The eight-hour workday gives us a false sense of financial security. What we really want is to become financially free. We become free by creating and controlling our own assets. We need to buy real estate, build dividend growth and income portfolios, create royalties, start automated businesses, and invest in cryptocurrencies.
Happy Cash Flow Retirement
Do not believe that your job will set you free. Yes, over 40+ years, you can amass an excellent dividend portfolio given the power of compounding. But what if the stock market crashes? Having a business or real estate can help alleviate these pain points. Also, we might be able to use the crash to increase our income.
Going to college, or the military, and getting a high-paying job are the bare minimums. Do not stop in your pursuit of income creation and wealth generation. I know it sounds like I am money-hungry, but what are you doing that is better than creating wealth?
The world tells you that working your eight-hour job is enough stress—to go relax and have fun. Buy a boat, an RV, or a new purse—you deserve the latest luxury items. The world also runs on consumer spending. Do not fall into this dangerous eight-hour workday/toxic consumerism trap. Our mandate is to work hard, save money, invest, and build passive income.
Retire Early as a Well-Rounded Millionaire
One of my favorite books (that I wrote) is “4 Steps to Become Rich (Amazon)” because it describes how to go from zero to hero. Next, you need to go on the passive income grind. I recommend everyone pursue Mortgage Positive and start a small company (of one).
Conclusion. This was a short article because there isn’t much to say. My BLUF said it all. Don’t be fooled into thinking that working eight hours will make you rich and give you enough income to provide for your family for the rest of their lives. We want to “Make Our Family Rich.”
We need assets. If we don’t have assets from prior generations, we need to obtain (buy, build, create) them at all costs. Do not let yourself turn 65 years old and realize that your $3,000/month income isn’t enough to do the things you want to do.
Buy your freedom today! Keep the job, quit the mindset. Learn hard, work hard, and you will reap the benefits of the top 3% of Americans. You will become a millionaire. Enjoy and Happy Investing.
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Disclosure: I am not a financial advisor or money manager, and any knowledge is given as guidance and not direct actionable investment advice. I am an Amazon Affiliate. Please research any investment vehicles that are being considered. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. All Right Reserved Military Family Investing
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