the mis-education of poor people
 |
If
you’re the kind of person who’s still wondering, hoping, wishing,
wanting, and even lighting holy candles for some sort of financial
miracle, Tony Fleming wants you to cease and desist with those futile
and fruitless fantasies. No bundles of Benjamins are going to suddenly
swoop down from the sky and land in your lap as if it rode in on
angels’ wings. Don’t expect to be bequeathed a fortune in a posthumous
gesture of love from a relative that you never heard of. Don’t expect
your nephew Pooky to make it to the NBA — and even if he does, don’t
expect him to lavish you with a lovely lifestyle into eternity. If you
have a desire to become wealthy, do expect to begin the process
yourself.
But take heed: Fleming
says never believe that you can become wealthy entirely on your own
merit, as society perpetually purports. “We’ve been trained in America
to think selfishly. They line us up in cubicles. And there’s no team
atmosphere there. It’s like ‘if you win, somebody else has gotta lose,’
” says Fleming, founder of Tony Fleming Enterprises LLC. “It’s never
set up where it’s a win-win situation, so we’re trained that way, to
step on people as we climb the ladder. You have to incorporate other
people into it. A group of people thinking one way is the best way to
become successful.”Develop a relationship with a bank, so when you want
to invest in your business, you can risk with someone else’s money.
“That’s why it’s good to build a relationship with a banker. Borrow
$200. Pay that back. Then borrow $500 and pay that back. Then when a
big deal comes along, you can use the bank’s money,” counsels
Fleming.And Fleming’s take on why we are workers rather than owners?
“We’ve been trained to work. We haven’t been trained to be
businesspeople. We haven’t been trained to own our own businesses,” he
says.
The sheer monotony of routine without growth incites dependency on
substances to cope. “When you get up to go to the same job every day
that you hate, and you’re not growing at all, and you are going through
the motions on the job, the only way to survive is to have a drink, or
two or three or four in the evening, just to take you away from the
miserable life that you’re living,” says Fleming.
Instead of a cocktail, try a taste of Fleming’s sound financial advice. – terry shropshire
