[dmix]

The Rockefeller quote is interesting

  "If your only goal is to become rich, you'll never achieve it."

But I've always felt Citizen Kane's was more accurate:

  "It's easy to make a lot of money, if that's all you want to do 
  is make a lot of money."

[tluyben2]

I think if your goal / all you want to do is make a lot of money you have a pretty sad life. However it's not very hard. I don't know in what context the Citizen Kane quote was used. A lot of money varies a lot from where you are and what kind of insane thoughts you picked up from the internet.

A lot of money can be $1 million in a lot of countries, $10 million in most countries, $100 million in all countries, $1 billion in silicon valley.

Your first million is the hardest they sometimes say but if you have that, you SHOULD not ever have to work ever again if you are smart. That smart part messes most of those cases up.

If you have $10 million you are done unless you are a complete idiot. Again, this idiot part messes most of those cases up.

So currently most blahblah about getting rich is focused on $100 million or above. I read with much amusement how people in Monaco who have 'only $10 million' feel poor and unhappy. What a sad moron you are. Even in Monaco you can easily live a super nice life, the rest of your life, with $10 million, but apparently people IN Monaco are so insane they consider this poor.

Anyway; I believe Citizen Kane was right if he means 'a lot of money' in the sense of being rich/never having to work again in your life. If he means $100 million or over, he is wrong IMHO. Nor did I ever met anyone who had as only goal to make money while I know a lot of rich people (who are rich in the sense they never have to work); even 2 with the magical 'over $100 million and they didn't even ever think about money much, they did what they did best and it shot to the top. That's the best way IMHO, but then again, I don't live in SV.

[eli_gottlieb]

So if it's so easy, how do you make your first million?

[tluyben2]

'So easy'? Well, you don't want to hear this, but HN is not a reflection of reality. Most millionaires get to their first million over 55 years of age. Not the 25 y/o millionaires/billionaires you see passing the homepage here. The Citizen Kane quote was done in the context of someone who spends all his money rather than saves it. That's the clue here; if you live frugal and save all you can of your wage, you'll be a millionaire around 60 without effort. Remember; all you want to do is make a lot of money so you don't want to spend money on fun stuff, kids, family, vacations etc. In the area from the Netherlands I came from (and this goes for other parts on earth too i'm sure) all old farmers are millionaires. They NEVER spent $0.01 they didn't absolutely had to spend.

So, again (and this is the reason why most people are not automatic millionaires after a certain age) IF getting a lot of money is ALL you want to do, you will sacrifice things; you will move to a cheap place, you will eat and live cheap. So yes, it's easy, but maybe not what you wanted to hear.

I don't want to wait that long so I have the next easiest thing; software services. Works great, no competition. It's much harder than the above, but it's also much quicker.

[eli_gottlieb]

Sarcasm, bro. My remark was intended to point out that most people simply never will make a "first million", and doing so is quite difficult.

[bluekeybox]

Not so sure. I've met enough people whose only wish was to make a lot of money, yet who failed to achieve it. In a competitive environment, you almost certainly have to be ridiculously good at something else (anything from programming, I suppose, to brain surgery to dealmaking to leadership) to make a lot of money.

Also, Rockefeller's quote applies in the sense that, once you make a lot of money, your definition of what "a lot of money" is changes.

[TwoBit]

I always thought that what Rockefeller meant was that you need love something else and the money will come from hard work at that. Loving money itself won't bring you it.