Everyone desires to be wealthy. This is a legitimate desire when you consider that we live in a society with millions of people living in extreme lack and poverty. Many would indeed do anything just to break free from the hold of poverty; thus the acquisition of wealth and fortune is a major driving force for many people.
While it is extremely desirable to amass wealth and fortune it is important for those who strongly desire wealth to come to terms with the pitfalls, the downsides to having lots of money. Those lacking wealth tend to envy those who have it; without ever coming to an understanding of what the Bill Gates’, Warren Buffetts and Aliko Dangotes of this world go through as they control great fortunes. I aim to provide you with a balanced view so that you can see beyond the fancy cars, nice houses, private jets and insanely huge bank balances of the wealthy.
The first pitfall is that having loads of money doesn’t translate to happiness. I know what you’re thinking – when you have more than enough you will be happy. Sadly this is not the case. Having loads of money at the beginning might be a huge ego boost, but after a while it becomes a huge load because it comes with so much responsibility. Stories abound of many wealthy people battling depression and sadness with their wealth instead of being a blessing becoming an albatross. The rate at which millionaire movie stars and entertainers are committing suicide these days should be more than enough to hint you that all is not well with the wealthy. You might not believe it but the rich also cry.
Another major pitfall that I consider one of the most significant when you have fortunes is the reaction of your friends and family members to your wealth. The minute they discover that you have amassed wealth their expectations and attitudes towards you changes dramatically. They may begin to make unrealistic demands and throwing tantrums when you do not pander to their whims. They come to see you with all sorts of schemes, scams and requests for assistance which if you don’t accede to then you have become uncaring and wicked. Being able to balance the genuine from the insincere is no easy task!
Thirdly the amount of power and control you will have over people multiplies endlessly because you have uncommon results. Respect and regards will come from many quarters, near and far. You instantly assume the status of a celebrity with more enemies than friends. In some instances people even stop speaking their opinions around you preferring to take everything you say as gospel. It is sometimes akin to playing God as everyone both old and young defers to you.
It can be quite unnerving to move from being hardly noticed to becoming the cynosure of all eyes. You will now need to fight hard to keep your private affairs and life out of the public domain. People want to know what makes you tick, the good and especially the bad. They want to celebrate your failures because you have been able to do what they have been unable to and they are resentful, wishing they could swap places with you. No area of your life is sacred; they will relish whenever your weaknesses and mistakes are exposed. You have become the stuff that sells gossip magazines.
Now that you have acquired loads of wealth and fortune, what do you do next? What next worthy goal or project are you going to set your sights on achieving? Because amassing fortune has been your driver you might become a bit uncertain about future pursuits to undertake once you attain your financial goals. It is thus imperative to put in motion a plan on what you are going to do after you make it financially otherwise confusion and uncertainty begins to set in that could make one embark on reckless spending of wealth.
Being wealthy can be an extremely lonely place to be. You are easily misconstrued and misunderstood. You may have made a lot of sacrifices to reach your wealthy status which to many people makes you out to be cold, unfeeling and distant. Many terms are used to describe those with plenty of fortune and many of them are not complimentary – ruthless, selfish, greedy, uncaring, mean, indifferent, arrogant, egotistical, insensitive and unfeeling are just a few. You could start building walls around yourself thus alienating yourself from the bigger society due to the fact that it seems everything wants a piece of you.
The money itself is also fighting to take control of your life. Money is meant to be under your control but it never wants to stay that way. It wants to instead control you by forcing you to make every decision based on monetary parameters. Basing every decision by putting money first will cause you to lose rewarding and fruitful relationships from your life. No matter your financial status you will need people, do not by all means believe that all of them have to be as rich as you in order to associate with you.
Finally once you begin to acquire things you used to only dream about you discover that your interest in them begins to wane. The thrill is in buying that car or private jet; but after a short while it doesn’t matter to you as much as before because you now have it. You start to aspire for things at the next higher level and the cycle continues and your excitement on your current possessions drops. Fulfillment is clearly not in having lots of possessions otherwise the wealthiest people would be the happiest.
Truth be told, there is a downside to everything in life, wealth is no exception. There is nothing wrong in amassing great wealth and fortune; however it is extremely key that you remain grounded with your feet firmly on the ground. Determine not to be moved no matter your bank balance. Seek for quality people to associate with and don’t let wealth go to your head. Put money in its place and you can have a rewarding and fulfilling life in all ramifications.
Kenneth Doghudje
