The Hard Money, The Easy Money and The Smart Money
by David Lim
There are 3 types of money that can be earned:
1. The Hard Money
How many times have you been told that there is no such thing as a free lunch? Or you may have cynical friends that tell you if something is too good to be true, it probably is.
Basically, the attitude is that we don't get something for nothing. If we get something, the giver expects something in return. Similarly, to get a certain amount of money, we are expected to give a certain amount of time and/or effort.
Most of us are earning the Hard Money. We get paid based on the time spent or effort needed, whether it is on an hourly wage, a monthly salary, or on a per project basis.
There's nothing wrong with earning the Hard Money. But we all have only 24 hours a day and as such, our earnings are limited by that.
2. The Easy Money
Ever visited a site that claims to have Internet marketing down to a T? Absolutely nothing is required except your $9.95 per month subscription. And you do have to log in occasionally to check how many thousands of dollars you have already earned.
That's an Easy Money site. Chances are you are still paying Hard Money but not seeing much of Easy Money yet.
There are also ponzi, pyramid and chain letter sites. You put in $5 and in time, you get tens, or even hundreds of thousands back. Do take note that a lot of these schemes are actually illegal.
And there are the rest of the sites offering a combination of products, ponzis, games and what-have-you. They are all characterized by the fact that the returns promised are grossly disproportionate to the time and/or skills required.
Offline, you have your lotteries, sweepstakes and bingo sessions.
It is also worthwhile to note that if you have the charm, and are willing to fight off hordes of other girls, a rich husband is also a good way of earning Easy Money.
(Note to self: a rich wife will also work equally well. Now who do I know that is rich?)
3. The Smart Money
Take the case of Mr HardWorking. He's a very hardworking insurance agent. In the mornings, he does cold calls, during lunchtime he distributes flyers at busy intersections and in the afternoons, he will send out mailers to prospective clients. But his sales are, at best, average.
Mr Vacation works in the same office. Half the time he's on vacation at some exotic locale, the rest of the time he spends on the golf course, or at his country club. But it's seems that every time he steps into the office, he has closed another million dollar policy.
What Mr Vacation does is to vacation at spots favored by the rich, join clubs favored by the rich and do stuff favored by the rich. He gets to know rich people, finds out about the policies they have and lack, and at the opportune time, makes a convincing proposal. Half the time he gets the sale.
Needless to say, although Mr Vacation "works" much less than Mr HardWorking, the sales of Mr Vacation is far superior. Mr Vacation is earning the Smart Money.
The Smart Money focuses on results. Not how many hours you work, or how much effort it took, but what result you got.
4. Conclusion
The Easy Money is, well, easy to earn. :) But you need a lot of luck, run the risk of running afoul of the law and have only a small window of opportunity. And did I mention you need a lot of luck? Even if you are making Easy Money, the returns or income cannot be guaranteed and most likely will fall drastically over time. (with the exception of the "Rich Husband" scheme)
The purpose of this article is to get you to focus on the Smart Money.
Start with just earning the Hard Money. Work hard and learn as much as you
can. Keep your eyes and ears open. And give those gray cells of yours a good
workout. And in no time at all, you too can be earning Smart Money.
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David Lim is the webmaster of http://QuittingYourJob.com, a business resource
for the entrepreneur looking to start, or grow an online home-based business.
This article may be reprinted freely, provided this resource box
remains intact.
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