Here's what I was thinking as I wrote that down: "This guy is not 100 times smarter than me. He doesn't dress 100 times better. Heck, he isn't even 100 times cuter. So how come I'm making $31,000 a year, and he is getting $3.1 million?" (Which according to company financial documents he was.) I realized it was tacky, but at some point during every one of my interviews with someone who was rich I'd ask: "What's it like to have all that money?" Invariably, the answer would be: "Nothing really changes once you become wealthy. The only thing that's different is you don't have to worry about not having money."
Upon hearing this, my rich friend Marty Tash nailed the issue right on the head. "That's the 'only' thing having enough money does. Isn't that enough?" he asked. "When I didn't have any money, I used to worry about it all the time." Marty, who runs publicly held Plenum Publishing, doesn't have to worry about money any more. But that puts him in the distinct minority these days. Even though the economy is fine, and unemployment is low, almost everyone I know has a sneaking suspicion that good times won't last -- at least not for them.
That "everyone" includes publishers who have brought out a number of books that attack this concern from every conceivable angle . . .
After five years of writing newspaper features about such things as eight year olds trying to set a Guinness record for carrying a brick, and socialites with too much time (and money) on their hands who had arranged yet another charity ball, I started my real professional life at "Forbes" magazine. While working on a story, I frequently found myself sitting across the table from someone making 100 times, or more, than I was. That is not an exaggeration. I vividly remember sitting on the other side of the desk from the newly named chairman of NL Industries (the old Dutch Boy paint company) as he explained what he was going to do to turn around the company. Oil was hot back then in the early 1980s and NL, he said, was going to concentrate on beefing up the oil services part of its business.
"Frozen Desire: The Meaning of Money" by James Buchan is the most intriguing of the bunch. Buchan, a former correspondent for "The Financial Times," is not so concerned about who makes the Forbes 400, the compilation of the 400 wealthiest Americans, as he is with the psychology of money itself. He is trying to discover what it is about money that affects us so. Buchan draws on novels, history, economics, philosophy and religion to try to find an answer. It is an engaging quest, not surprising since Buchan is a novelist, but ultimately he can't answer the question. That isn't surprising. There is no single answer. In the end, what we see in money, and the things it allows us to possess, is a reflection of ourselves. And just as we all are different, so too are our reactions to the green stuff.
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Andrew Hacker, a professor of political science at Queens College, asks philosophical questions of his own in "Money: Who Has How Much and Why?". As Hacker puts it:
"Two things tantalize us about the people we know and many we don't. The first concerns their sex lives: What do they actually do and how often do they do it? The second concerns money: How much do other people make or have stashed away? With money, as with sex, it is impertinent to inquire . . . Of course, our curiosity comes from wanting to know where we stand in relation to other people in those two realms of pleasure and power."
What is compelling about Hacker's book is not so much his speculations on the reason for the racial and gender gaps when it comes to income, but rather the numbers themselves (which, for the most part, come from government figures). For example, consider what professors earn. Teachers at New Jersey public universities make the most money annually ($90,800) while those who stand up in front of the room in North Dakota make the least ($47,900). And speaking of education, Hacker proves there is an absolute correlation between the amount of education you have and the amount of money you make. (If that is so, how come we don't require more of our high school teachers and pay them accordingly?) Hacker's book could become the required background text for any late night, philosophical discussion regarding why someone is paid as much -- or as little as they are.
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It seems about the only profession that Mitch Gallon hasn't held is philosopher. Gallon, a woman, tells us in "Stop Worrying About Money! How to Take Control of Your Financial Life" that she has been a nightclub manager, seamstress, aerobics instructor, bartender, English teacher, door-to-door vacuum cleaner saleswoman and nurse. Given her eclectic background it isn't surprising that Gallon has written a unique book about money. Oh, there is the usual advice about how you can save more by clipping coupons and holding yard sales to get rid of your junk. This sort of thing is typical: "Just say no! Just like drugs, buying on credit can be addictive. So, when the salesperson says 'Would you like to charge it' just say no." Solid thinking, for sure, but it's not the reason to pick up this book. Rather, the attraction is the tone. In a matter-of-fact style, Gallon begins with the premise that money isn't mystical. As she points out, it is an integral part of your life. Since that's true, you might as well know how it makes you feel and think about how you can control it, instead of having it control you. The ending is typical:
"Live happily ever after! I know this is a fairy tale ending, but where is it written that you must live 'worriedly' ever after? Being happy is easy. It's getting rid of misery and woe that's hard. Good luck! I wish you enduring prosperity."
What's not to like?
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Time and money
You are never going to have the money you want if you can't devote the necessary time to earn it. (Lottery players can be forgiven for not paying attention.) With that in mind, if you consistently have a time problem, you may want to pick up "The Time Trap" by Alex Mackenzie. In the tradition of time managers everywhere, Mackenzie begins by pointing out that the excuse "I didn't have enough time," is silly. You always have all the time there is: 24 hours in the day, the same 1,440 minutes that everyone else has. While Mackenzie is good at offering solutions for 20 typical "timewasters" (everything from the constantly ringing telephone, to people who drop by your office to say "have you got a minute?") he is best at presenting ways to think about how to use your time. His five-part approach:
1. Start with your long-range goals and objectives.
2. Relate the day's activities to those goals.
3. Assign priorities to the day's tasks, according to their contribution to your overall goals.
4. Schedule tasks according to priority and the degree of concentration required.
5. Stay on track, using the plan to guide you through crises and interruptions.
Sounds good to me.
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Paul B. Brown is the author of many business books. He can be reached at PaulBBrown@aol.com.
©1997, ProMotion, inc.
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