What wealthy people don't tell you.

[The_flying_dutchman]

You gotta work hard for anything in life, just like the AFC has to put forth a tremendous amount of effort to become a DJ. What would you say then, that it's not worth it because he suffered all those rejections or that he wasted years working on his game and thus sacraficed [insert whatever] ?

This is one of those pointless arguements in which whether or not you get your point accross it is of little importance because you ain't gonna gain anything from it (you certainly ain't getting any poontang nor money so why bother).

I'll just say this: different strokes for different folks. The ones with ambition will go out and fight for what they want and the ones who want to cruise through life will do so. Neither is right or wrong.

 

[backbreaker]

There is a saying in sales.. you will get 15 no's before you get a yes.

That's true pretty much in everything. You will fail at something about 15 times before you succeed.

 

[frivolousz21]

money, well you cant take it with you when you go, unless you hide it in your coffin lining and ask to be cremated.

exactly.

so I suppose it just depends on how much someone would sacrafice for it.

 

[Visceral]

... and friends, family, and children are nothing but tear-jerking bliss 24/7

Whatever you care about will make you miserable, no matter what it is.

The way I see it, there are two ways to deal with this problem. The first is to care so much about _______ that even suffering for it becomes a good thing that you take pride and pleasure in. The second is to not care about anything, not even whether you live or die, so that you cannot feel bad about anything because nothing matters to you.

 

[Egoist]

cross posted on another copy of this thread:

this whole BS thread really cracks me up because very few of you seem to realize that people who are truly rich got that way because they did not care about money in the first place.

they cared about achievement, pursuing their own destiny, independence, creativity, not abiding by the rules, never having to blame anyone else for their trouble.

There is a reason why so many rich people who for some reason go broke are able to bounce right back up again. Because they know the real secret of wealth. They know that its all up to them, they know that they are in control of their own destiny, so they get off their chairs and go work, and put their drive, passion, work ethic, creativity into action.

I used to work pretty close to two billionaires and one 1/4 billionaire. I didn't know them that well and didn't talk to them except for occasional greeting, but i noticed enough about them to see that what i said above was true. Money was just a fruit of their labor, maybe a scorecard of how well they served the market. But they all got their satisfaction somewhere else, and it was not from being able to buy the largest yacht or whatever. That was simply distraction.

 

[A-Unit]

Re:

Here's the catch, and EGOIST is 100% right...it is about what you love. Only, schools DRILL into you and me that it's good to work for "the Man."

Ask yourself BEYOND what you need to live (which is really little when you put it on paper), what do you need money for? Most people buy things. BUT, if you like your job LESS than those THINGS, then you're trading time/values for money/things. To me, that's negative. And most people do this, that's why SAVING/INVESTING seems to suck so bad, because people want to blow money/time on crap they don't need. WASTING wealth. Granted SAVING doesn't get anyone rich, just well off if done habitually. HOWEVER...if you invest those dollars into the number one, most leveragable asset, you could have LIMITLESS wealth.

If you're not doing what you love, your passion, what are you doing? Maybe you have to take a job/career FOR now you don't like to survive. So be it. I know a gentleman that actually went to the Deserts in New Mexico when he took the Vow of Nazarine, grew a huge beard, and was a janitor at only 20+ years old after college. He returned 9 months later, with clarity of purpose in his chosen endeavor: Music and Music Instruction.

-------------------------------

Schools have it backwards and my cousin is battling with this, even though I don't say anything in front of his mother...he LOVE computers and graphics. He's good too. Not Gates, maybe never would be, but that's what he would do EVERYDAY of his life, right now, if schools allowed that. Obviously he speaks english well, and knows basic science. He can easily GET things, but he hates wasting time on subjects he doesn't care to know, that he won't need in the future.

Schools miss a basic fact...When people WANT to know something, they can learn it in a matter of weeks, maybe days or even hours. But if they're forced to, they'll go at the pace of the minimum requirements, hence, forced public schooling. The other piece they miss is that you go liberal, not specific on training and education.

I've love anything with investing, and I'm sure STR8UP learned some R/e stuff so fast your head would spin. Thing is, you're never really allowed to pursue what you love because of the belief of the education system. It seeks to use most of kids truly wild and curious lives on wasteful pursuits and specialization.

I watch as kids who don't really WANT to go to college but instead would like to FIGURE out what they want to do battle parents over prehistoric studying styles, over SATS and PSATS that seek to evaluate kids and teens based on 1 or 2 tests that cover JUST english and math. What, those are the only skills?

Wealthy can hail from anywhere. Even you or me. There's no ONE path. But going down that path of accumulating riches in exchange for losing time is trading spaces and places. It's foolish, in my opinion.

The slow route is working a job you like OK, pays above average, saving investing, and retiring around 55, 60, with above average health and wealth. That's ok, too. I know guys like that, who live well now, family, vacations, enjoy their work to an extent. It isn't a passion, but they're good enough at it, high enough up, that they're not grumbling.

The faster route is saving investing now, doing what you truly love. Think of the musician that will do ANYTHING to make their big dreams happen. They don't spend money, they work jobs that coincide with their music, not the other way around. They might do things that don't pay NOW, knowing that they have to do LOTS of things like that to get ONE big pay off. My bro does this in music. In my opinion, at 22, almost 23, his talent is incredible, and he plays a non-common style of music. Even if he didn't make millions, he'd still live a FULFILLED life with no regrets, that money could NEVER buy, because he's played at so many unique places and meets so many unique people. Lots of his shows didn't pay, and now, his jazz and rock (traditional rock) bands are getting MORE exposure in our area where he does a gig or 2 a week, with a few hundred bucks. Over time, who knows? Maybe he falls into some other supremely talented musicians who seek his services and they're HUGE. If not, doesn't matter, because he won't feel his life wasted just because he didn't HAVE big buck.s

NOW, could he learn, earn and save the small sums he makes? Sure. Maybe teach students. Save that, buy Real Estate, learn financial planning, learn how to generate more income from what he does? Absolutely. No question. And I would help with that. But notice, I wouldn't have him trade the music to get a desk job, or construction job, or to be a manager for 100k, JUST to retire well or own great THINGS. Or even to attract hot women that wouldn't be INTO HIM.



A-Unit

 

[STR8UP]

How does that saying go again? ""Anyone who says money can't buy happiness never had any" or something like that...

YES, money CAN buy happiness. But it isn't something that can always overcome sadness. Follow me?

This basically means that if you a happy person money can make you happier. If you aren't a happy person, it's going to make you more unhappy.

There's another saying that makes a lot of sense that goes "Money makes you more of what you already are". If you are an assh0le...you will be an even bigger assh0le. If you are a saint, you will be a better saint.

I don't buy one bit of this "money is the root of all evil" BS.

There were times when I was getting started in business that my g/f at the time got pissed because I had to work 7 days a week, and she didn't get to spend enough time with me, or so she said. What she didn't account for was the fact that one of the things that attracted her to me in the first place was my ambition. So there was a catch 22. She could have the guy with ambition, but she couldn't really have him. It's the whole wanting your cake and eat it too mentality. Things just don't work that way, unfortunately.

The thing about it is, had I stayed in real estate instead of getting involved with business, I wouldn't have put in the hours, days, months, and years of my precious time into something that didn't suit me. I spent a lot of my life spinning my wheels on something that wasn't going to take me anywhere.

This is why when someone says "Wealth is the result of hard work" I have to jump in and correct them. Wealth is a result of WISE DECISIONS. Sometimes in order to be able to make those wise decisions, we have to put in a lot of hard work to gain wisdom and find out what works best for us (such as my experience with business), but to say that wealth is a direct result of hard work gives people the WRONG idea. It's only telling half the story. And by only telling half the story it gives people the impression that "work" is the key, which it is not.

I know several others on this board have a lot of valuable knowledge to share. But sometimes I get the impression that since the majority of their experience is from a business standpoint (which generally requires more WORK) that they are automatically associating hard work with wealth because that is how THEY achieved it. They built successful businesses which in turn became valuable assets. If you learn how to deal in assets that already have value, you can circumvent a lot of the hard work that goes into BUILDING an asset.

There is always a certain amount of sacrifice that is necessary on the road to wealth. If you do the right things you can minimize those sacrifices. Besides that, the entire key is to lead a balanced life. It won't do you any good to have all the money on the world if you aren't keeping yourself happy in the process.

I just have to wonder how many of these people who have money that ARE miserable would be miserable regardless. Remember, money simply makes you more of what you already are.

 

[Egoist]

I don't buy one bit of this "money is the root of all evil" BS.

so true..

"So you think that money is the root of all evil. Have you ever asked what is the root of all money?" - (Francisco's Money Speech in 'Atlas Shrugged')

 

[Egoist]

seriously, everyone should read this:

http://www.atlasshrugged.tv/speech.htm

 

[I love Hyori Lee]

seriously, everyone should read this:

http://www.atlasshrugged.tv/speech.htm

Egoist, do you know Ayn Rand?

Have you read her books?

Have you read the Fountainhead?

Have you read the Virtue of Selfishness?

She makes some good arguments, but all in all, she is a woman who is shallow. In all essence, she is a brilliant businesswoman, because she has overcome emotions and kindness. However, she is the most callous, heartless and foolish woman I've ever known. She is a woman who lives alone in the world. Her beliefs and presumptions are Machiavellian.

He who wishes to be obeyed must know how to command.

It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both.

It is double pleasure to deceive the deceiver.

Men ought either to be indulged or utterly destroyed, for if you merely offend them they take vengeance, but if you injure them greatly they are unable to retaliate, so that the injury done to a man ought to be such that vengeance cannot be feared.

The fact is that a man who wants to act virtuously in every way necessarily comes to grief among so many who are not virtuous.

When you disarm the people, you commence to offend them and show that you distrust them either through cowardice or lack of confidence, and both of these opinions generate hatred.

Before all else, be armed.

Hence it comes about that all armed Prophets have been victorious, and all unarmed Prophets have been destroyed.

Seriously, go to the library and read Virtue of Selfishness by Ayn Rand. She dedicated a book justifying the sefishness of man and why it is beneficial to be selfish. Any person who believes with conviction in those principles is a sad person. A person with no integrity. You would be foolish to abide by her words. A woman like that has an empty and superficial life. She is correct in the acknowledgement of power and money. Rarely will GREAT POWER be associated with KINDNESS. Rarely, will the KIND succeed in the paths of business. In order to achieve POWER, you must absolve kindness. But her views on life entail a superficial, empty and meaningless life. She talks about the importance of success and power but she also acknowledges the fact that people of great power live alone. She discourages kindness, interpersonal relationships, altruism, morality, religion, friendliness, honor, faithfulness, etc. because they are weaknesses and obstacles. What a shallow life.

As for all of you, many of you have misunderstood the words that I have written. Where in the thread have I mentioned that poverty is superior to riches? Where have I mentioned that money does not aid in happiness? Money is important. Money is essential. It is the GREED of wealth that has crushed the souls of people and has shattered nations. I have NEVER stated that money is the root of all evil. I merely stated that the greed of wealth involves a sacrifice. I have never stated that money is evil. Money by itself, does not instill unhappiness. If you read the very first lines of my post:

How do you make substantial and superflous amounts of money?

I am illustrating a point that a person who obtains wealth and riches far beyond his needs and ENDEAVORS to obtain more wealth...has essentially become a slave to his riches.

I have NEVER stated that money is the root of all evil. It is the greed of wealth that denatures the soul of man.

Anyways, don't get me wrong about Ayn Rand. She is a brilliant and talented writer. Her ideas are brilliant and her views advanced for her time. Her books hold the keys to success and power, but her means to achieve this power are morally questionable. Here are some quotes from Ayn Rand.

If any civilization is to survive, it is the morality of altruism that men have to reject.

Evil requires the sanction of the victim.

Religion is a primitive form of philosophy, the attempt to offer a comprehensive view of reality.

In any compromise between good and evil, it is only evil that can profit.

Force and mind are opposites; morality ends where a gun begins.

Men have been taught that it is a virtue to agree with others. But the creator is the man who disagrees. Men have been taught that it is a virtue to swim with the current. But the creator is the man who goes against the current. Men have been taught that it is a virtue to stand together. But the creator is the man who stands alone.

 

[STR8UP]

I've love anything with investing, and I'm sure STR8UP learned some R/e stuff so fast your head would spin. Thing is, you're never really allowed to pursue what you love because of the belief of the education system. It seeks to use most of kids truly wild and curious lives on wasteful pursuits and specialization.

22 condos and a restaurant in just over a year. Most of this was over the course of 6 months. That's a crash course for you.

Sure, I had purchased real estate before. But things change when you get into having to move money around while keeping your credit score up (not easy) to facilitate multiple closings. Add on top of that the fact that we were unfamiliar with this market and several other factors and you learn things REAL quick.

I learn so much when I am pushed into a corner and forced to solve problems OR ELSE. And you could read how to do this or that in a book but until you actually put something into practice it usually doesn't sink in.

I remember graduating high school and wondering what I was going to do with my life. I took a year or so off from school but eventually started taking college courses because I thought to myself "that's what people who want to be succesful do".

I scored honors level on my entrance exams, did fine with the classes (even aced speech class, and that's not my gig at all) but as much as I tried I just could not figure out WHY I was there. What would a degree do for me? Give me the ability to make more money? That's all good and fine but I knew that I would never be satisfied doing something I didn't enjoy regardless how much money it paid.

Thankfully within a few years of quitting college I discovered that the whole "go to school get a good job and save save save" thing wasn't the only way to get through life, and I began laying the groundwork for doing my OWN thing.

Wanna hear something sad?

My mom is in her mid 50's. She became a registered nurse about 20 years ago. Recently she was told that in order to keep her job she would have to get a bachelor's degree. No pay raise, but she had to spend TWO MORE YEARS studying just to be able to keep a job that pays okay.

So anyone can argue that wealthy people work too much, have no time, are unhappy, blah, blah, blah, but I know better.

 

[STR8UP]

If people weren't selfish by nature they wouldn't have survived for millenia. You are here today because your ancestors looked out for their own best interest above all else. People who say that selfish behaviour is bad are simply in denial of their own selfishness. You can cover it up with any amount of good deeds, but the fact remains that we are ALL selfish to the point that we ensure our own well being, even if the methods vary from person to person. Selfishness is GOOD and ESSENTIAL.

That's not to say that cooperating with others is not in your best interest; quite the contrary. Sometimes 2+2=10. They key is to ensuring your own interests first, and then working with others to create a situation that benefits all involved.

 

[NHY]

Ok, heres goes with my reply;

I dunno about the main idea of this original post, hell, I know that sacrifiece is a part of life. Its a driving force for some but sometimes people take sacrifice TOO FAR and end up with success and respect but have an ' empty ' feeling inside. I know what that feels like, I once scarificed following my heart to do something that was ' right ' in the eyes of authority ( no, it was nothing that would send me to jail, get fined or anything like that ) and I ended up with the worst sense of guilt, regret and sadness I had ever felt in my life.

On the idea of being selfish. Look, at some of point in life, we ALL have to selfish at some points in our lives. I've always seen myself as a kind person who'd love to help charity and such but I don't donate to everyone because 1: I'm a poor student and 2: You have to question some of the causes at times.

What I'm trying to say is you have to achieve a balance against both, you can be a good type of selfish ( like the type that will benefit you... on a deeper level ) and the obvious bad type as well as good unselfishness and bad unselfishness ( where you forget about your own needs and feel empty )

I can tell you, it sucks being broke, having to live at home, etc BUT I would not swap that for a job that I'd hate because that would do more harm to me then good! The memoeries of my old job come into cue here. Whats the point in having money when the job is driving you demented because you hate it?

Look what happened to me when my family tried to condiction me to become just another mindless zombie, I became suicidal over it as I thought thier way, while destrucitve and dehumanising was somehow more right than my way, which is the opposite and all thier ideals and is a far better way to live. If societies idea of a family involves the members having alcohol problems, I AM NOT BUYING IT.

I think you should go off and read Tuesdays with Morrie, its an inspirational book ( That was made into a film ) about how one spirit freed himself from the Matrix and passes on his knowledge and ideals of life onto one of his old students in the last few months of his life. I need to re - read that book myself as well.

 

[backbreaker]

let me put it this way, as far as happiness, if you aren't happy with yourself without money, you will in the long run end up being more ****ed up in the head when you DO get money, or you will go broke trying to create happy situtations for you day after day. The "happy" feeling you get when you go buy a new car. Blowing money at Strip clubs every night. Spending large amounts of money on girls for their attention.

I am happy I didn't have instint success, or else I might be broke now. i learned alot about myself while I was struggling.

The ulitimate reason I got out of my business is simply becuase I didn't enjoy it anymore. Why I didn't enjoy it is a page upon itself, but I didn't.. The first day I woke up and said I don't want to do this anymore, I sat down with my GF at the time and told her what I was thinking, and she told me to follow my heart and I did.. I sold my part back to my company and got out. it wasn't for me anymore and I would have been doing the people still there an injustice by staying.

College, for most people, honestly isn't worth it. NOt all, but most. You go to school, rack up a 30k Plus college bill, only to get an 20k entry level job when you get out, and you are lucky to get that.

You go to grad school, the entire nine yards, get about 50k in the whole, and get a job paying 50k a year.

Meanwhile, alot of jobs out there require no HS, and pay just as good and sometimes better, without the debt. A friend of mine is a car salesman, younger than me, and is brining in around 60 a year and has only been at it for like a year. No college debt, going to buy a house later this year, has a 2006 Mazda Speed 6 Grand Turion fully loaded, and he isn't 21 yet.


My mom went to school for 13 years, 13, only to get a job that in the end, ending up paying her about 130k a year selling insurance to self employed people, and to this day, hasn't used one of her 3 degrees.. yet she is still paying off the school.

The flip side of that is I know a guy who is 31 (I think, might be a year or two older), went to school, was the nerd of nerds, just got out of school 2 years ago, and now is a doctor with his own practice, lives in a half a million dollar house, has a BMW 7 Series and a Lexus LS400.. he has debt, but he banks well into 6 figures per year.

Every situtation is different.

What I want to know is, why so many threads on the same thing? It's not that hard... if you want something, you gotta work for it. It's really that simple.

As simple as it sounds, many people don't GET it.

Do you know how many people have came up to me, emailed me, called me in the last year or so asking, telling me they would do Anything to be where I am? And when I give them a foolproof blueprint to scuccess, they don't want to "give up' their lifestyle? Well then, you don't want it bad enough.

Most people don't.

Being rich/wealthy is not luck. It's a choice that you make every day.

Everyday I get up, I make sure NOTHING comes before me making money, even if it is something I don't want to do. In the End, I like my lifestyle too much to give it up for a quick peice of ass, or to hang out with friends while i need to be working.

Perfect example. You ought to see my workout routine. I stopped weights, I only do bodyweight exercises now, as I want to start practicing gymnastics.

Anyway, I get up, run up about a 150 foot hill 10 times, Jog about a mile or so. Later in the day, I usually do exercises with my bodyweight and then if I have time, run sprints until I am exhusted. I watch what I eat.. NO where near as bad as when I was seirously cutting, but I am still cautious on what I put in my mouth.

There is this girl in my place, she's actually not bad looking, but she has had 3 kids, and is bigger than she would like to be.. not fat, but you know..

anyway, she comes up to me and tells me she sees me exercising every morning, and then she asks how can she get in shape?

I tell her to start small, and be consistant.. it will happen in due time. I tell her she can exercise with me. She agrees.

I knock on her door when I get up, as she told me to, and she answers the door, telling me is too tired, while she is eating like 6 peices of bacon and 4 pancakes with coke.

She didn't want to loose weight.. she wanted to be skinny. It's a big difference.

You don't want to be successful, you want money. Money is a byproduct of success.

If you want women, go out of your comfort zone and TALK.. I don't care about what.

I am to the point now, where i, for fun, just put myself in odd situtations and see what happens. I gamed this cashier at subway just to see if I could, because she was being hard, playing hard to get.. she had a BF, and I convinced her to meet me at my place before she went home to see him, all in a matter of about 10 mintues.

Granted, I didn't see her, I cancelled, I'm not going to do that it wasn't worth it at this point, but it's good practice

The ability to do that didn't happen overnight.

 

[STR8UP]

Backbreaker, you are wise beyond your years.

You still need to head down this way so we can compare notes. Hell, maybe I can even get the rest of the Orlando crew (Karma, Tomassi, and DeepDish) together. They're all cool dudes. Let me know when you get some time...

 

[backbreaker]

I swear once i get everything down here taken care of with my living situtation and once horse racing season dies down, I will be on the first plane.

Triple Crown season is heating up which means, more stupid betters, which means more money for me right now.

But you definatly going to see me soon. I wish they had a track down there in Orlando.. I know Gulfstream, Calder and Tampa Bay Downs are all down there, but not in that area

 

[djbr]

Self-improvement is based on sacrifice.

Enough said.

 

[backbreaker]

This is what is wrong with people today. This is the very reason why most people will never be what they want to be in life.

Why do most people, americans at least, go to college?

Is it to LEARN?

NO!!!

Ask 20 people why they go to college, and I guarantee that the majrority of them will say "so I can have a good job"

Learning, and having a security blanket to having a decent job are two totally different things.

My dad is so ass backwards, AFTER I became successful and sold my company, my dad was still trying to talk me into going to college, so I can have something to fall back on.

I told him one day, in all honesty, I love him to death, he is my dad and I will always listen to what he has to say because I respect him and what he has done, but he isn't where i want to be in life, so why should I listen to him?

What qualifies your parents giving you advice most of the time? Because they are older? lol

People have a tendency of thinking of what THEY are capable of doing when they give you advice on your life.

My dad never went to college, not because he had some grand scheme on life, but because he was chasing women.

My dad makes a decent living for himself... but he has to work 2 jobs to do it, but he somehow he makes about 30k-33k a year in all, and he is home by 7 at night 5 nights a week, but he is still hell bent on if he had went to college, he would have done this or this with his life.

I guess he figures that the reason I didn't go to college is to chase women and because I was lazy.

Even when I doing good, he treated my company like it was some sort of side business that should only been done at night, and I , and these are his words, needed to get a part time job at wal mart, something that was stable.

My parants have this facination with me working at Alltel.. maybe becuase I am good with computers. If I would have listened to them, I have no doubt that's where I would be, making about 12-15 an hour, not bad at all for a 22 year old, but no where near what I knew I was capable of making.

I got off track, back to my point.

Get someone talking about school, somewhere along the lines he or she will say "and yeah I got this degree to fall back on". I asked my best friend one day, who is an inspiring musican, why he wasted 4 years going to school, if he wanted to be a musican, and he already was. He said becasuse he needed something to fall back on. So i asked him did he plan on failing? He said 'no man, but just in case"

So I said "what, just in case you fail right?

he said "yeah, you never know"

I said' no, you DO know, you don't have enough faith in yourself to chase your dreams with 110% of your heart"

He said "man, it's not that, but"

I said "but you don't want to be struggling to make a living if something happens right?"

he said "yeah man"

i said "look, I can tell you this, right now, I am going to lay the outline of your next 10 years on the path you are on. You are going to take music seriously for the next 2-3 years, stuff isn't going to happen like you want,and you aren't going to put all your effort into it because you have this "degree" to fall back on. you then will get a part time job or even a full time job, to "get some extra money" but "only until things pick up", then you are going to become used to that extra money, and you start to accecpt being average.. now have managed to convince yourself that you really didn't want to be a successful musican and how it was just a phase, and now you are a full time business man, doing something you don't want to be doing, and probably getting underpaid to do it"

I knew If I would have went to college, I wouldn't have been successful, as funny as it sounds. I know how people work. You have to forse yourself out of your comfort zone. Living off of roman noddles and struggling to pay the rent is wayy out of my comfort zone, but I accecpted it as part of the way to success, and it was a driving force for a long time for me to be successful.

The bottom line is, if you want to chase your dream, chase it with all convection and note it will not be if, but when.


Now, some dreams require college. my old oneitis wants to be a news anchor in the worst way, and she is in school to do it, and will be done with school this time next year.

 

[Egoist]

Egoist, do you know Ayn Rand?

Have you read her books?

Have you read the Fountainhead?

Have you read the Virtue of Selfishness?

i have read all of the books mentioned above, and you could not be more wrong. Her principles? Machiavelian? DID YOU EVEN READ YOUR OWN QUOTES AT THE END?? Do you understand their context? No, no you don't.

You are nothing but a person trying to justify his own personal disdain for wealth. Your argument it incorrect at best, but much more likely just plain idiotic. Everything you've said and quoted so far has been verbal diarhea.

Anyway, its laughable because your own post follows one of Greene's laws of power - denounce that which is unattainable to you.

I am done in this thread.

 

[S1NN3R]

Self-improvement is based on sacrifice.

Enough said.

That's not anywhere near enough said, because that implies that you have to sacrifice anything.

Self-improvment comes from sacrificing what you don't need, to attain the things that you do need or want. Family, friends, relationships, those aren't included. If you sacrifice people for personal gain, you're not improving yourself, you're being a greedy fvck.

Self-improvement is reinforcing the good in your life and eliminating the bad. It is not based on sacrifice.