It’s the last day of November and I want to tell you a story that Rich Dad told Kiyosaki.
There was a town that lacked water because the stream was very far from town. Now the government in a bid to help the town, gave contracts two young men to supply water to the town at a cost.
Person A immediately took a bucket and started hauling water to the village at 10 dollars per bucket. Now the town needed water, so he was cashing out real big.
Person B left the town and was away for 6 months. Within that 6 months, he raised funds from banks and investors, friends and family members. Then he came back and hired workers to set pipes from the stream all the way into the town. He bought filters and purifiers. Then started charging 8 dollars per bucket for cleaner healthier water.
When person A saw what person B had done, he went out of his water to start hauling 2 buckets at a time and crashed his price to 5 dollars per bucket.
However, his doubled effort couldn’t match the supply speed and quality of person B, so he hired two people to join him in hauling water, 2 buckets each, then he would pay them half, which was 2.5 dollars. That way, he was back to making 10 dollars per each time they hauled water to the community.
The problem was that they couldn’t haul water more than 5 times daily.
Person B on the other hand was supplying water every minute of the day.
The two of them were cashing out.
While person A makes at least 50 dollars daily, hauling water with all his strength and might, person B makes 1000 dollars daily reading newspapers at his balcony and sipping fruit juice. Out of his 1000 dollars, 800 dollars goes to servicing his loans, paying investors and paying workers. So he is left with 200 dollars daily.
10 years later, person B is now left with making 2000 dollars daily after salaries and settling investors.
He travels around, have fun with his wife and kids, pays attention to their needs and enjoys his life.
Person A after 10 years has become weak. He can’t haul upto 3 buckets a day now. Same with his workers. His waist is hurting, he can’t stand erect, his hands are weak and so are his legs. He can’t spend time with his family because he’s always out hauling water. Ill health took over. He looks 30 years older than his age and his business is going down. To make 10 dollars daily is now war.
According to rich Dad, one of them was *Self-Employed* while the other was an *Entrepreneur*. And once you are able to distinguish within yourself and your business, you have begun your journey to financial freedom.
Are you hauling water or are you laying pipes?
For me, there are too many self-employed people calling themselves entrepreneurs. The type that wouldn’t make any money if they didn’t go to work. Somehow, they call themselves CEOs because they registered their CAC through fresh law graduates that couldn’t find a good law firm to work for.
They sell bags, shoes, perfumes, revamp wigs, sell thrifts, fix nails, hairs, sew clothes, cook food, etc. So they become Chief Executive Officers of a company that has no board or board members.
I am not ridiculing your honest hustle. But it is what I just called it; an honest hustle, and it’s the best way to survive in a difficult economy like ours.
However, if you want to be a CEO and reach the level of financial freedom, then you must stop hauling water and start laying pipes.
Though laying pipes takes time, it brings us back to what I have always said. To be financially free, you have to learn and be comfortable to stay WITHOUT MONEY and to work without getting paid. The choice is yours!
May December favour you
yali nations