Roland has 7 rules he follows when it comes to money, and he shares them succinctly in this bite-sized episode.

 

#1: Invest in quality over quantity.

If you’re buying a stock, if you’re investing in a company, if you’re trying to buy a suit, if you’re buying anything in life, if you invest in quality over quantity, you’re going to be happy. Quality lasts. Quality gives you greater utility. Quality generally gives you greater happiness and way fewer problems. 

 

#2: Invest in yourself.

The investment that will pay the biggest dividend is always the investment in yourself. Whether that’s having a great coach, joining a Mastermind of successful people, educating yourself through books/courses/trainings, investing in yourself will generate the greatest returns. You are a renewable resource. You are able to take your skill anywhere. The more skills you have, the smarter you’ll be about making choices, and the more options and choices you’ll have. Always invest in yourself.

 

#3: Use a barbell investing philosophy.

The bulk of your investments—90% of the things you’re investing—should be conservative. Roland has a lot of money in cash so he can take advantage of opportunities when they come up. Invest that remaining 10% in things that could pay off in big ways. Preserve 90% of your cash, have 10% at risk, and know that a few of those risky investments could pay off huge.

 

#4: Think in buckets.

You should have a bucket for cash, a bucket for philanthropy and doing good for the world, a bucket for doing things with/for your family, a bucket for travel/entertainment, and a bucket for savings. Then, every month you allocate a certain percentage of your money into each bucket. This way you’ll always have money for the things you need. It’s a great way to manage your money.

 

#5: Your business should always work for you, not the other way around.

Roland sees so many people who get into a business and stick with it no matter what, because they don’t want to fail. That’s a terrible mistake. Give a business a certain amount of runway and capital, and if it’s not performing, you don’t keep feeding it. Let it go. If it’s not working for you in the time period you’ve allocated to make it go, stop investing in it. It will change your life when you stop working in businesses that really shouldn’t exist. 

 

#6: Buy back your time first.

Whatever it is that you’re doing right now—from walking the dog to mowing the grass to doing your laundry to cooking meals—if you don’t enjoy doing them, use your money to hire someone to do them for you. If they’re worth less than what you could be earning doing something else with that time, then pay someone else to do them. That buys back your time so you can spend your time doing more valuable things. 

 

#7: Money serves to buy you freedom and options.

This one is more of a mindset principle. Money is nothing more than a store of value, so you can do things in the future. It gives you options to do whatever you want to do. It gives you the freedom to spend less time making money. If the pursuit of money is costing you your freedom, or it’s limiting your options in a negative way, then don’t do it. Use that as a guideline. It should govern everything you do. Money should provide you with freedom and options. Don’t sacrifice freedom and options to get money.

 

RESOURCES:

• ethicallyprofit.com
• getepicchallenge.com
• Scalable.Co
• The Ready to Lead podcast