Steven

And for a lot of people, they'll experience all of those. And so the idea that life is fragile and the economy is fragile, countries are fragile, is like people don't necessarily want to admit that because it's hard to get out of bed in the morning if you admit that to yourself. But I think it's inevitable. And it doesn't have to be necessarily scary if you have the right –

And for a lot of people, they'll experience all of those. And so the idea that life is fragile and the economy is fragile, countries are fragile, is like people don't necessarily want to admit that because it's hard to get out of bed in the morning if you admit that to yourself. But I think it's inevitable. And it doesn't have to be necessarily scary if you have the right –

psychology around it of just yeah like when times are good i don't expect them to last forever that's not how the world works and the right finances around it of like yeah when times are good i'm gonna save because i know this might not last forever and what i value more than anything with money is independence it's not flashy cars or homes i want to be independent

psychology around it of just yeah like when times are good i don't expect them to last forever that's not how the world works and the right finances around it of like yeah when times are good i'm gonna save because i know this might not last forever and what i value more than anything with money is independence it's not flashy cars or homes i want to be independent

So that when the economy goes south and there is a recession and things are going bad, I want to have a level of control over where I work, where I live, what I'm able to do, my ability to support my family. That's the top of the list. And so when things are going well, and for a lot of people, they haven't for the last couple of years, but for a lot of people, they did.

So that when the economy goes south and there is a recession and things are going bad, I want to have a level of control over where I work, where I live, what I'm able to do, my ability to support my family. That's the top of the list. And so when things are going well, and for a lot of people, they haven't for the last couple of years, but for a lot of people, they did.

I think that's always important. I think it's a major psychological skill in life in general. This goes beyond money. is recognizing when things are abnormally good and preparing yourself for them to go the other way as they inevitably will.

I think that's always important. I think it's a major psychological skill in life in general. This goes beyond money. is recognizing when things are abnormally good and preparing yourself for them to go the other way as they inevitably will.

Yeah.

Yeah.

This sounds like such a squishy BS kind of answer, but I think there's a lot of truth to this, and I'll explain in a second. It is largely a mindset. And that sounds crazy, but I'll explain what I mean. My grandmother-in-law, she passed away a couple years ago. She was 92 when she passed away. She, for 30 years, she lived off of nothing but Social Security.

This sounds like such a squishy BS kind of answer, but I think there's a lot of truth to this, and I'll explain in a second. It is largely a mindset. And that sounds crazy, but I'll explain what I mean. My grandmother-in-law, she passed away a couple years ago. She was 92 when she passed away. She, for 30 years, she lived off of nothing but Social Security.

I think she got $1,700 a month from Social Security. She had nothing else. No savings, no pension, no nothing. She was the happiest person. I've met half a dozen billionaires in my life. I'm sure you have as well. None of them were as happy as she was. And she was technically, she was like financially broke, but she had this level of psychological wealth that was like unparalleled.

I think she got $1,700 a month from Social Security. She had nothing else. No savings, no pension, no nothing. She was the happiest person. I've met half a dozen billionaires in my life. I'm sure you have as well. None of them were as happy as she was. And she was technically, she was like financially broke, but she had this level of psychological wealth that was like unparalleled.

And the reason was off $1,700 a month, that was all she needed. She was perfectly happy toiling in her garden, watching birds, going for walks, hanging out, reading from books from the library, perfectly content with all of that. She didn't need anything else. So she had very little money, but she wanted even less. And so she had a level of independence that a lot of billionaires do not.

And the reason was off $1,700 a month, that was all she needed. She was perfectly happy toiling in her garden, watching birds, going for walks, hanging out, reading from books from the library, perfectly content with all of that. She didn't need anything else. So she had very little money, but she wanted even less. And so she had a level of independence that a lot of billionaires do not.

Because if you are a billionaire, if you have a billion dollars in the bank, but you are so encumbered by your business, your employees, your suppliers, your customers, you're waking up at three in the morning sweating because you got this email and you're stressed out about it, you actually have very little independence in that situation. Your shareholders or regulators are coming down on you.

Because if you are a billionaire, if you have a billion dollars in the bank, but you are so encumbered by your business, your employees, your suppliers, your customers, you're waking up at three in the morning sweating because you got this email and you're stressed out about it, you actually have very little independence in that situation. Your shareholders or regulators are coming down on you.

I mean, we see this. There's no one in particular here, but we've seen very wealthy people kind of become sycophants to politicians. And the truth is a lot of those mega billionaires absolutely rely on politicians and regulators to keep their machine moving. And so my grandmother-in-law on $1,700 a month had a higher level of independence than a lot of those people do.

I mean, we see this. There's no one in particular here, but we've seen very wealthy people kind of become sycophants to politicians. And the truth is a lot of those mega billionaires absolutely rely on politicians and regulators to keep their machine moving. And so my grandmother-in-law on $1,700 a month had a higher level of independence than a lot of those people do.