BIG HAT, NO CATTLE: How the Majority of Americans Live

BIG HAT, NO CATTLE

July 23, 2018

I think you know what this is about. You can EASILY picture the big hat, the flashy watch, the leased car. You have heard the stories or seen the headlines: "75%+ of Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck"

The fact of the matter is, most of the materialism we see today is fake. It is a fraudulent front propped up by Payment Plans, Lease Deals, Credit Cards, and Con-Artists making you think your financed couch is a good idea. These are the lifeblood of the Big Hat, No Cattle propaganda and it needs to stop!

I feel bad for the people who tie so much of their self-worth to their material belongings. Not only is it sucking them dry of their valuable cash soldiers that could go to war to make them more money, but these people just don't realize that NOBODY cares what they are wearing, or driving, or anything of the sort. Why risk your financial freedom? We all know that these people spend money that they don't have on things that they don't need to impress people that they don't like.

Ultimately, it boils down to confidence.

For example. I really like the new Porsche 911 Turbo. Could I afford a Porsche by the "normal" person's standards? Yes, I could meet the monthly payments on a Porsche 911 right now. I COULD go to the dealership tomorrow and lease one "No Money Down" and get a "Great Deal" as many people would say, paying probably around $900-$1000/month. So why don't I? People would love it right? Maybe. BUT I DON'T GIVE A DAMN WHAT OTHER PEOPLE LOVE! I don't need a Porsche right now. I need to get to work (which is less than a mile away from my house), I need to invest money for my future, and I need to spend time with people that I love to be around. I don't need a Porsche to do the things that I want to do with my life right now, so I won't spend money on something just to impress other people. I am confident in myself and in my financial plan, I know in my heart that what I am doing is the right thing to do.

I can't imagine firing up a $1000/mo car every morning to drive LITERALLY ONE MILE to work. That just sounds ridiculous. I am confident enough to pull up in an economy car and know that every dollar I am saving on the Porsche now is going to multiply itself many, many times over due to my investing.

Like I mentioned in THIS POST, cars are a terrible investment in general. (The same goes for most consumer goods) You do not want to lease them, and you definitely don't want to buy one new unless the depreciation hit it takes every year is SO MINIMAL in comparison to your net worth that you don't care. (I.E. You are worth $100 Million and you drive a $250k Ferrari.) The cost and subsequent depreciation per year (around 30-50k/year) is less than one tenth of one percent (0.1%) of your net worth.

Thinking about things in percentages like this helps to put them into perspective. Like when you see someone driving a leased BMW for $500/mo (not including insurance, gas, tolls, etc) and you KNOW they make 55k/year (about 45k after taxes). Now you will look at this ding dong and think: "Holy guacamole, that meatball is spending over 10% of their pre-tax income on a CAR." AND they don't even get to keep the car, it goes back to BMW after the term of the lease. They probably didn't save ANY money at all to buy a used car in cash (the best deal in the car world) so they are going to get into another 3-year lease. You know they CAN'T downgrade, because what would everyone say about them going from a BMW to a Honda? You get the jist, this downward spiral continues forever.

Because we know that most people doing this really don't have ANY Cattle (cash, investments, savings) at all, we can make the leap of faith and assume that whatever they are doing is not working. We need to be radically different from them and stay away from the fancy financing deals or the lease specials. We need to smell the roses and realize that to be financially free, we need to be very different.

If YOU live the big hat, no cattle life, I want you to know that your self-worth is not tied to the type of shoes you wear, or the car you drive. It comes down to who you are as a PERSON, and that doesn't have anything to do with how much money you have. Why put yourself under the stress of meeting these excessive lease payments? Why buy a house that will cost you 50%+ of your monthly income? Save the stress. Live below your means. And if one day you want to buy a big hat, you'll be able to say you have the cattle to match.

MDAS

If you thought this was helpful, terrible, or somewhere in the middle, please leave me feedback in the form of a Direct Message on instagram @MakeDollarsAndSense, or feel free to send me an e-mail/text to the information on my Home Page. I truly appreciate constructive criticism and opposing views, so bring em on!

P.S. New blog posts coming your way every Monday!

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