I Wanna Be Rich

“I wanna be rich” by Calloway is ringing in my ears, “I want money, lots and lots of money.” When I was on Facebook I added “Decamillionaire in the Making” to my profile name. I was reminded by so many people my financial goals may not be realized working a regular 9 to 5 unless of course, I won the lottery like so many people desired. I read a lot of financial books and the most common thread repeated in these books are business ownership is the yellow brick road that leads to “lots and lots of money.”  I remember a colleague once stating you will never get rich working for the government. I recently finished reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. He stated the tax laws are more favorable towards entrepreneurs which I am quite aware. As a single, childless taxpayer, I fit the profile to be taxed in a higher bracket so I had to educate myself to keep more of my money. Each year my goal was to minimize earned income from my employer through various financial tactics and strategically spend my independent self-contractor income on business trade expenses, therefore, reducing my taxable income. (Shameless plug: If you’re not subscribed to my blog already, subscribe and receive a pdf on how I optimized my income and boosted my net worth in 4 easy steps.) After reading books on business ownership and being enrolled in an online program that guides me on how to create an online business, my greatest life lessons on entrepreneurship has come from Uber, the ride-sharing application.

Solve a problem. First, my business idea does not have to be anything groundbreaking it just needs to solve a problem. The co-founder of the Uber company, Garrett Camp, exact words in a YouTube interview (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vxk4Z1u7RE) was “I was just stranded on the curve in San Francisco so often that I just got sick of it.” Now, Uber is a household name and a multinational company. This year alone, I’ve taken an Uber in Dubai (U.A.E.), Accra (Ghana) and Johannesburg (South Africa). This movement is all about getting from point A to point B with a push of a button and the company is making billions being the medium between drivers and passengers.

Surround yourself with like-minded individuals.  In that same YouTube video, Garrett Camp stated he had been an entrepreneur since he was 22 years old but it was not until he moved to Silicon Valley with other Tech masterminds and he met his partner in Paris, France at a Tech conference that the Uber movement began. There wasn’t a huge Tech network in Canada so he made a lot of mistakes as a young entrepreneur with his first business venture. I recently realized the importance of communicating with like-minded individuals which has prompted me to rejoin Facebook and connect with groups that are aligned with my entrepreneurial goals.

Do the hard work on the front end and see the profits roll in. Uber transacts billions of dollars through an application that can be downloaded on your smartphone. Applications can take anywhere from 5 to 20 weeks to be created that is one month to five months with no income being generated. Uber started in 2009 but it didn’t really take off until 2010. I think it was worth the wait.

Think globally & Continue to evolve. Since I’ve been an Uber user on both spectrums (driver and passenger), it has always been a cashless experience until I visited Accra, Ghana. Many people in Ghana do not use credit cards. Uber became aware of this issue so there is a cash payment option for those riders. The drivers that receive cash payment are able to pay Uber via Mobile Money (payment for services with a mobile phone). Genius! In addition, their constantly expanding – UberEats, UberPool, and even UberCopter.

This life observation has encouraged me on my pursuit of full-time entrepreneurship by reminding me that opportunities are everywhere. I just have to recognize them. This new way of working will aid me in reaching the highest, truest, fullest expression of myself and prayerfully, “lots and lots of money.” Join me in “finding yourself”, and discovering new ways of thinking, new ways of living and new ways of working. You’re invited!