How to Get Rich Quick!

First of all, if you are looking for a good stock tip, or the name of the long-shot in the 6^th race at Sam Houston Race Track, or the combination of
numbers in the Mega Powerball Global Lottery (3-13-23-33-43, 34 Powerball
number) this is not the place.

Getting rich is somewhat subjective. Each of us has an idea of what rich is. For some, perhaps most, rich is having enough money to live and enjoy the things that we

like without having to worry about where the money is coming from. It could
also be about job satisfaction and self-fulfillment. For others, rich is living
a lifestyle that we only see on “The Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” or
“Private Islands for Sale”.

Regardless of how you define rich, getting rich for most of us is a matter of planning, saving, investing and highly dependent on the type of work that we do.

In his best selling book, Soft Selling in a Hard World, Jerry Vass suggests that there are only three ways to get rich,
to make exceptional money:

· To work in a place nobody wants to be,

· To perform work nobody else wants to do, or

· To perform work that nobody else can do.

Yes there are exceptions to this. You could have worked or are working for a company that recently went public and your stock options now allow you to go and shop for
your own private island.

However, it is Vass’s third option that could apply to everyone in the working world regardless of the type of work that you perform. Let me explain.

To perform work that nobody else can do does not imply that unique, one of a kind talent is required to do that type of work. It does imply that no matter what type of
work you do, that you do it the best that you can, that you bring passion,
dedication, a strong work ethic, determination, a thirst for learning,
initiative, creativity and achievement to your work. In other words you make
your work, Your Work and no one else can do Your Work.

This sounds easier than it is. It also sounds intuitive. Doesn’t everyone approach their work this way? Doesn’t every employer look for people with the above mentioned
attributes? The answer is NO. If everyone approached work this way and
employers only looked for these types of candidates, then everyone would be
rich. And we know that is not the case.

But why not? What is preventing workers from approaching their job with the attributes mentioned above and making it something that only they can do? What is
preventing employers from looking for employees with these same attributes that
will make them (the employees and employer) rich?

These are each the $64MM question. And if I had the answers I would be rich, be on my private island and blogging about the availability of fresh limes for my
imported Key Lime Pie.

Do you have the answers? Or are you just waiting for that next hot tip or winning lottery number (3-13-23-33-43, 34 Powerball)?

Comment by Ann Willingham, SPHR on July 30, 2010 at 1:13pm: She attended all the right schools, earned a professional designation, requested resume-building projects, led affinity groups, arrived early and left work late. She has eighteen months on a previous job, two years on the job before that, six months on the current job and already a recruiter is reviewing her resume. She’s fast tracking herself by microwaving her career. She’s out to get rich quick. No doubt she can perform the job for which she’s being considered, but is she a good fit for the company? Will the hiring manager view her as a job hopper or a go-getter?

In my humble opinion, most companies just aren’t ready for such a force. They’d rather have an employee whose passion for the job will give way to tenure and loyalty to the company – an employee who decreases turnover and one who doesn’t need to be challenged. However, the get rich quick mentality has an unquenchable thirst. The candidate in the above scenario positioned herself to be the best, and therefore, the best is what she expects in return. Running up the corporate ladder is her goal. It doesn’t matter which company owns the ladder as long as she’s always a step closer to more riches.

So to answer one of Nick’s questions, an employee who’s out to get rich quick is not easy to manage. That’s why a hiring manager would more than likely dismiss such a candidate as being a job hopper rather than view her as a short-lived opportunity to get rich quick – much like an aggressive investment strategy.

Does anyone have a different opinion or an answer to one of Nick’s other questions?