“Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Common Financial Fantasies
1. I'll receive a large inheritance.
2. I'll win the lottery.
3. I'll start a website and make a killing off advertising.
Various books and websites promise to help you get rich by creating websites that generate advertising income. Sometimes, these books and websites advocate making "junk" websites that do not have any useful content, but that are still likely to show up high in search engine results, get lots of traffic, and thereby make lots of advertising dollars. Others advocate getting rich through creating legitimate websites or blogs that provide content of real value to users and selling advertising on those sites. Sounds great, right? Who wouldn't want to sit back and have the money come flowing in for simply creating a page and paying for a URL?
While the success stories of people who make a full-time living from either "junk" or legitimate websites and blogs can make anyone want to quit their day job, running one of these sites is not as easy as it sounds. Popular advertising programs, such as Google AdSense, hire people to keep an eye out for sites that clutter the web and make it more difficult for people to find valuable information online. If advertisers discover that you are running a junk website, your account is likely to be terminated and your profits forfeited. It is certainly possible to make money from running one or more legitimate websites or blogs, but it's not a viable get-rich-quick scheme. Any website that gets considerable money from ad traffic has done so from hard work and thousands of dollars spent in design, content and upkeep.
4. I'll make a ton off an initial public offering (IPO).
Reality Check
If you've been hanging on to these fantasies as the only answer to your money problems, they've probably been holding you back from reaching your full potential. There are many more realistic ways to become financially comfortable, if not wealthy. Here are several tried-and-true plans:
1. I'll start my own business.
Why wait until someone you love dies to be comfortable financially? When done correctly, starting your own business can be a great source of financial freedom. While salaried employees receive the same incentive no matter how little or how much work they do (assuming they manage to hang on to their jobs), those who are self-employed are limited only by the number of clients they're able to secure and the number of hours they're willing to work.
Further, being able to set your own hours and choose your own vacation days can make being self-employed feel like financial freedom compared to working for someone else, even if you're still working 40, 50 or 60 hours a week. If you do want to start your own business, however, keep in mind that this isn't a get-rich-quick scheme, either. Many small businesses fail within the first two years because of inadequate planning and poor execution.
2. I'll finish college.
3. I'll make passive supplemental income through investments.
If you save and invest a little bit of every paycheck, your money will eventually start working for you in the form of dividends. Investing in dividend-paying stocks and mutual funds can put more money into your account with very little work on your part. However, you'll need to make regular investments for this strategy to pay off, because the more shares you own, the higher the dividend payment you'll receive.
4. I'll buy a house.
While buying and selling real estate isn't a surefire investment strategy, there are several relatively proven methods for achieving success in this field. Taking in a renter to help pay down your mortgage faster than you could on your own, buying property in an up-and-coming neighborhood, or fixing up a downtrodden property can all create wealth if you're willing to make the necessary sacrifices. However, as the burst of the housing bubble has shown, buying property can have pitfalls, so do your homework carefully before jumping in.
Be Realistic and Rely On Yourself
The best person to rely on to achieve your financial goals is you - not an improbably lucky lottery ticket or an ailing grandparent. Bury your financial fantasies, work hard, spend and invest wisely, and build the odds of financial success in your favor.
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