“Money is plentiful for those who understand the simple laws that govern its acquisition.” — George S Clason
In these harsh economic times, there are many people who believe that it’s almost impossible for them to get ahead financially.In fact, most people fail to recognise that it’s not really their lack of money that’s keeping them broke, it’s their lack of financial literacy that’s holding them back.
So where can you obtain an education on financial literacy?
One perennial favourite in the financial literacy library is George S. Clason’s masterpiece The Richest Man In Babylon. This book has been hailed as the “greatest of all inspirational works on the subject of thrift, financial planning and personal wealth.”
Let’s look at what Clason has to say about wealth creation in the chapter The Five Laws of Gold:
Law #1: Gold cometh gladly and in increasing quantity to any man who will put by not less than one-tenth of his earnings to create an estate for his future and that of his family.
Here we see the concepts of ‘pay yourself first’ and ‘save one-tenth of what you earn’ reinforced. This law explains that you don’t need a shortcut to wealth, because steady and consistent savings will earn enough interest over time to create a sizeable estate.
Law #2: Gold laboreth diligently and contentedly for the wise owner who finds for it profitable employment, multiplying even as the flocks of the field.
The law could be simply stated as “cash is king”. Your money will work hard for you when you take advantage of prudent opportunities to put it to good use. Clason emphasises that the owner must be wise in seeking avenues to invest this money.
Law #3: Gold clingeth to the protection of the cautious owner who invests it under the advice of men wise in its handling.
Clason takes his investing lesson a step further by advising you to seek proper financial advice. The old adage “a fool and his money are soon parted” comes to mind as he declares that the careless owner of gold will lose it.
Law #4: Gold slippeth away from the man who invests it in businesses or purposes with which he is not familiar or which are not approved by those skilled in its keep.
Stick to the areas in which you have some experience or talent, and don’t try to make your fortune where you lack knowledge. As Clason says, “The inexperienced owner of gold who invests it in businesses with which he is not familiar, too often finds his judgment imperfect, and pays with his treasure for his inexperience.”
Law #5: Gold flees the man who would force it to impossible earnings or who followeth the alluring advice of tricksters and schemers or who trusts it to his own inexperience and romantic desires in investment.
It seems that the lure of get-rich-quick schemes will always be with us, and the end result will unfortunately always be the same.
Clason points out that these laws of gold are not hidden secrets, but “truths which every man must first learn and then follow.” Will you take heed and abide by his advice?
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8 Responses
As we all know, due diligence is a must especially today as we are going through an Economic Crisis that boggles the mind as to money supply contraction, rolled over expanded debt, unemployment, everyday cusumer price inflation and asset value deflation.
There are two assets to own and hold during such a Crisis. Real Estate and Gold Bullion.
I have been researching where to buy and hold Gold Bullion, free, clear and unencumbered with full and honest disclosure about all of the legal history, financail history, storage guarantees, audit history, costs, commissions of all of the websites of those Gold Bullion Providers.
Amongst most of the Market Makers, Gold Dealers, Bullion Banks I was shocked by one website that I found that such a history could exist, not disclosed, and they are still doing business. That Entity is Monex Gold Depository Company located in Newport Beach, CA.
I compared this to GoldMoney in London, Zurich and HongKong for direct purchases of Gold Bullion. GoldMoney buys directly from Gold Bullion Refiners….not Gold Bullion Banks.
What a difference between Monex Gold and GoldMoney. As in any exploration on preserving one’s purchasing power as a hedge against printed “fiat” paper money, Real Estate and Gold are the only “real money” choices.
Good Due Diligence can dig up a lot of shocking discoveries. Invest the time to discover the downsides “out there” by visiting and comparing GoldMoney against Monex Gold’s website in Newport Beach, CA. What a massive difference in required disclosures and litigation history.
In these times, stay well and prosper.
Jonathan
Dear Jonathan, wow, I can see you have reasearched into gold and sharing your findings with us.
how can i make gold in this present world and how can i get it to good use in nigeria
In law 1, know that the 1-tenth you pay yourself should be a seed that should be sown in a good soil(invested). U Can also accumulate these 1/10th n start a business which would become a new stream of income 4 u .dont spend d money hope i gave u a good tip. let me know
Getting the 1/10th to translate into further investment and subsequent interest is the key to financial intelligence yet it requires a strong sense of discipline and persistence as well as resistance to the temptation of spending it.
These are great insights on money. My problem about handling money is my lack of self-discipline. I cannot really control myself when it comes to spending.
Magneta
I do agree with you that it is not easy to save and self-discipline is really required. Looking into the future and the benefits that will accrue can help you to start savings.
It is also interesting to consider the current perceived crisis against these laws. Where do you think it went wrong?