7 Life Lessons credited to Confucius and how they apply to money today
There is value in looking back on history and studying those whose words have remained true over time. Wisdom and truth stay relevant no matter when you are alive. Recently, I was studying and learning about the life of Confucius. I remember studying him in my philosophy class in college many years ago.
During Confucius life he shared many nuggets of wisdom, but I have narrowed down 7 life lessons he is credited with and how they apply to money today.
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1. When it is obvious that goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, but adjust the action steps.
Most goals, like New Year’s Resolutions, are set and then abandoned quickly. If you are not where you want to be financially, don’t give up, change your actions. So many times I see people throw in the towel on saving money each month. I see people become complacent with their current life situation. I even hear people lowering their expectations on life and retirement. Don’t lower your goals ever! Increase your commitment and activity towards your goals.
2. It doesn’t matter how slow you go, as long as you don’t stop.
In finance I witness people become frustrated with their lives, goals or nest egg only to stop contributing, stop taking action and give up. It’s OK to have a slow year. It’s not OK to quit or stop. Progress is the goal, not perfection. Remember Aesop’s fable of The Tortoise and the Hare? The tortoise never stopped, never took a break nor became discouraged. He just kept going, believing that each step was moving him closer to his goal.
3. Never establish a friendship with someone less virtuous than yourself.
Be cautious of who is helping you with your money. Whether you are doing real estate and need a realtor and loan officer or you are in the stock market with a stock broker. It is your responsibility to know who you are working with, their background, what their current clients think of them and the strategies offered, etc. A quick way to lose money is to work with less than virtuous people.
4. What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others.
I believe too many Americans have outsourced their retirement and investments. I agree with Robert Kiyosaki of Rich Dad Poor Dad when he says we have entire generations of Americans that don’t understand money or investing. You are ultimately responsible for your financial success. Read books, take courses, seek to understand your investments. Andrew Carnegie believed you should have your money in only a few baskets and then watch those baskets closely.
I don’t put money into anything until I fully understand it, read as much about it as I can and see how it has fared for others.
5. Extravagance in the small things will bring a great cause to ruin.
In early 1929 Americans were rich on paper. Then President Coolidge, told the nation they were a rich nation because of American industry and hard work. The truth was people were rich on paper and spending money like it was their job. Debt was high. Eventually the growth came to a stop and the markets crashed.
We saw this in 2000 with the tech bubble and in 2008 with the great recession. Don’t assume everything will rise forever. Don’t live outside of your means. Don’t take on debt you can’t afford or investment debt that doesn’t easily pay for itself and turn a profit.
I hear so many people complaining about not having enough and yet they have nice cars, new phones, new clothes and take vacations. Their priorities are out of line. Peace of mind comes from having a plan and a plan b.
6. Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart.
This wisdom applies to investments as much as it does the jobs you take to earn money. You will spend most of your life working a job. You should be interested and passionate about what you do or you will resent the work you do. You should value the money you work so hard to earn and put it to good use. You should be committed, interested and passionate about the investments you make or you won’t be able to weather the storms that come with investing.
Warren Buffet loves Coca Cola, he loves insurance companies and he loves banks. Therefore, he takes time to learn all he can about the leadership of the companies he has stock in. He works to understand their business models and how they plan to grow and expand. He has been successful because he has put his whole heart into what he does.
7. Respect yourself and others will respect you.
As you become more successful you will encounter haters. It’s completely natural. It is OK to have money and seek to be wealthy. Don’t let anyone shame you over your success or your wealth. It is OK to want to do more than just survive. With that said, it is also good to donate time and money to those that need help. This is a great way to stay humble and helpful and keep the spitting at your back to a minimum because no one wants to spit on someone who helps others.
This wisdom may show up in fortune cookies, but the fact that this wisdom has been around for over 2000 years, tells us that it has a place in how we behave as humans and how we behave with our money. These life lessons will teach you to behave better with your money so you can pass your own life lessons and money on to future generations. Who knows, maybe 2000 years from now your family will be quoting and praising you for the financial path you set them on.
Like learning about money, history and hearing crazy stories? Check out my YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3VlRtY0ARsTRR5Eq8QE1Yg
