Allow a Rich Person to Explain How Awesome Rich People Are

Business Insider, a well-funded news site about airplanes, trolls its own audience with relative regularity. A piece published last week, however, takes the form to bold new heights.

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Steve Siebold is a self-described self-made multi-millionaire who has written books with titles like 77 Mental Toughness Secrets of the World Class and How Rich People Think. In a listicle entitled "What the Middle Class Doesn't Understand About Rich People," he explains what the middle class doesn't understand about rich people: that they are better, and braver, and harder-working than everyone else. Interesting take—let's dig in.

1. The wealthy are comfortable being uncomfortable.

The poor and the middle-class have been devastated by their own pernicious need for comfort. Why else would they all be on welfare? The great ones—the great ones!—see things differently:

The wealthy, on the other hand, learn early on that becoming a millionaire isn't easy, and the need for comfort can be devastating. They learn to be comfortable while operating in a state of ongoing uncertainty. The great ones know there's a price to pay for getting rich, but if they have the mental toughness to endure temporary pain, they can reap the harvest of abundant wealth.

2. The wealthy dream about the future.

Monetization begins when you stop reminiscing and start remi-now-scing. Poor people are all like, "Remember the old timey days?", but rich people are like, "Let's innovate, baby."

Most of us grew up listening to stories of the good old days, when the world was a kinder, gentler place. The music was better, athletes were tougher, and business people were honest. This tradition of the masses is handed down from generation to generation while its purveyors have no idea how insidious and destructive it is. People who believe their best days are behind them rarely get rich, and they often struggle with happiness and depression.

The wealthy are future-oriented and optimistic about what lies ahead. They appreciate and learn from the past while living in the present and dreaming of the future.

3. The wealthy are more confident.

Believe in yourself. Wealth is a mindset. Think money, have money. Want what you have, and have what you want. Not arrogance: self-assuredness. You're cool, man, 'cause you're a cool man. And rich. Rich and cool. You couldn't even stop it if you wanted to. Surfs up!

The wealthy have an elevated and fearless consciousness that keeps them moving toward what they want, as opposed to moving away from what they don't want. This often doubles or triples their net worth quickly because of the new efficiency in their thinking. Eventually they begin to believe they can accomplish anything, and this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. As they move from success to success, they create a psychological tidal wave of momentum that gets stronger every day, catapulting their confidence to a level so high it is often interpreted as arrogance.

4. The wealthy believe money is about freedom.

Wealthy people are wealthy because they understand that money isn't actually about paying rent, or buying food, or sending your kids to school. It's about freedom.

Rich people can afford to stand up and fight oppression. They can afford to buy their way out of unhealthy work environments, bad bosses, and other unpleasant situations. They have the means to enlist the best doctors when they get sick, and they are able to make themselves as comfortable as possible when they can't get well. When they want to raise money for business, politics, or charity, a few phone calls to their rich friends is all it takes. If they need more money, they throw a party or host an auction and charge $1,000 a ticket. The examples of how much money buys freedom are endless.

This is true, of course. When you're poor, you're beholden to many more forces beyond your control than you are when you're rich. But it isn't so much an illustration of the rich man's capacity for thinkfluencing himself out of any shitty situation as it is a reminder of the awfulness of income inequality. Why you gotta rub it in, Steve?

And finally,

5. The wealthy carefully monitor their associations.

Like attracts like, yet the wealthy are often criticized for having a closed inner circle that is almost impossible to break into unless you are rich. Successful people generally agree that consciousness is contagious, and that exposure to people who are more successful has the potential to expand your thinking and catapult your income. We become like the people we associate with, and that's why winners are attracted to winners.

Don't hate rich people for not associating with the filthy likes of you. Keeping you at arms length is just good business.