building wealth through unique gifts and talents
I don't usually share posts from my AlignedLife Substack, where I write in greater detail about money, but I wanted to share this one in today's Note because I wanted to share my idea, which I've written and talked about before, and share the podcast episode that sparked the post.
Here's the post originally shared on AlignedLife over on Substack:
On a recent interview on The Diary of A CEO podcast, Morgan Housel shared with host Steven Bartlett that there are two ways to solve the problem of feeling like you don’t have enough money and to build wealth:
Sacrifice more.
Want less.
Sacrifice more meaning working harder, longer, and possibly in a job that doesn’t make you happy—sacrifice your time, happiness, and more in order to make more money.
Want less meaning reducing the desire for more, to spend, and not need to make more money or be able to save more with what you already have.
Morgan’s right.
These are both ways to reduce stress around money, although sacrificing more might bring more stress into life if you’re doing more of something you don’t enjoy, and build wealth. Multiple times in the last twenty years I’ve had to make a recommendation to a client that included one of these options, and sometimes both.
However, I think there is one more solution:
Put your Self in the position to make more money by providing more value to the world through the unique gifts and talents you have been blessed with.
Before I elaborate, I want to encourage you to shift your perspective of money and your income to view it merely as an exchange of value. The income you earn is representative of the perceived value provided to the world, which is converted into a dollar amount—I stress perceived because in many cases we could debate whether or not the value is fair or not and who determines what is valuable and what isn’t, but that is a conversation for another day.
If you can take this view on money and your income, then you can see that the “simple” solution is to find a way to provide more value to the world than you are currently; yes, I know it’s not that simple in practice, but I also don’t believe the opportunity is a difficult as many believe it to be.
How can you provide more value to the world?
Well, you probably need to do something different, or at least do what you are already doing in a different way.
Unique Gifts and Talents
I believe we were all given unique gifts and talents, and it is through these unique gifts and talents that we can find the power to provide more value to the world, make more money, and build wealth—if that’s what is necessary.
In the case of the interview I was listening to, Morgan Housel’s unique gifts and talents are found in his ability to understand personal finances from a behavioral aspect and communicate important principles through his writing and speaking. I’ve long been a fan of Morgan Housel—all you have to do is go back to my first blog All About Your Benjamins and each week that Morgan published a blog, it was the first blog I shared in my curated list of content for the week—because of his ability to use stories to make complex principles simple and easy to understand. He is a phenomenal communicator, which is why he has sold MILLIONS of books and has changed the financial lives of countless people.
I’m sure Morgan could have been a great financial advisor or analyst, but he discovered his unique gifts and talents, leaned into them, and has been able to create the life he wants for him and his family. I don’t know Morgan’s financial situation, but he talks often about his obsession with buying his independence and I’m willing to bet he’s locked in his independence for years to come in a way that he could not have as a financial advisor or analyst. The path to his authentic life and an aligned financial plan was through his unique gifts and talents of writing and speaking.
So, what can you do better than 99% of people on this earth?
I know there is something.
What are you the Morgan Housel of?
If you’re not sure what your unique gifts and talents are, start by looking at the things that you are passionate about, enjoy doing, and often do without being paid for.
Think back to what you loved to do in your youth.
Explore your curiosity.
Experiment with your interests.
Pull on these threads and see where they take you.
Discovering your unique gifts and talents is only the first step towards making more money and building wealth—this isn’t an overnight success path. There is more work to be done. Once you’ve discovered your unique gifts and talents you need to determine how you can bring them to the world, who needs what you have to offer, what the value of your gifts and talents are, how to help the right people, the ones who value what you offer the most, find you, and many more details.
I make no promises that this path will be easy—it most likely will not be easy, but neither is sacrificing more or wanting less.
The path of your unique gifts and talents may allow you to not have to sacrifice more or want less, and the hard work required may not feel as hard because you are doing something that you enjoy and are good at.
Not everyone’s unique gifts and talents are meant to be used to make money and build wealth. Sometimes, the unique gifts and talents have a different purpose and turning them into a job reduces the enjoyment of doing them, which might put you back in the spot you are trying to escape.
Only you will be able to discover the unique gifts and talents you have and know whether or not they are meant to be a part of the financial plan aligned with your authentic life.
So, if you find your Self in the position where you want to change your financial situation or build wealth, you should explore Morgan’s suggestions of sacrificing more or wanting less, and if those don’t feel right, then you might want to explore if you can increase the value you provide to the world through the unique gifts and talents you possess.
You were given them for a reason.
And I believe when used in a way that is aligned with your authentic life, they can have a positive impact on your financial life.
Check out the interview that inspired this post—it’s great:
And be sure to grab a copy of Morgan’s latest book: The Art of Spending Money
If you don’t have The Psychology of Money, then grab that as well: The Psychology of Money
See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,
JC
🦅 Some ways I might be able to help you live your authentic life:
🤝 One-on-Ones Let's hop on Zoom to do a guided meditation, a creative brainstorming session, or an overcoming an obstacle session.
💸 AlignedLife+ A unique relationship offered at Santiago that combines life planning, financial planning and advice, and ongoing coaching to help you discover your authentic life, design a plan to bring that life to your reality, and support to help you evolve with the evolution of your authentic life. Learn more here.
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