Buying an amusement park

​

My father, sister Karen (three years younger), and I would sometimes sit around the kitchen table and fantasize about what we would buy if we were millionaires. At that time (circa 1954), I think my father actually thought he would become a millionaire and we kids believed him. My mother, just wanting to have a stable life which we didn't quite have, probably knew that my father would never make a million and she did not participate in our brainstorming fantasies.

​

Both my sister and I wanted to buy an amusement park. Then, we thought, we could enjoy going on any of the rides as many times as we wanted. My favorite was the bumper cars. My sister's was the merry-go-round.

​

 

The idea of becoming a millionaire would occasionally resurface

​

From the time I was out on my own at 22 and earning a living working for IBM in New York City, from time to time, every few years I might think of what it might take to become a millionaire. But I always dismissed it because, as far as I could tell, people who became millionaires had to be willing to work long and hard for it and even then it was not guaranteed. I was clear that was a price I was not willing to pay.

​

​

Before I tell you "how I became a millionaire," let me prove to you that I am one

​

I am defining a millionaire as someone who would have the equivalent buying power of someone who lives in the USA whose yearly income was around $250,000 per year. Someone like that should be able to sock away enough in investments to easily have assets worth a million dollars or more.

​

To get started on this proof, check out 10x your income over the weekend. 

​

I just asked Aiko to give me a list of products or services that a person with an income of $250,000 per year in Jacksonville, Florida (a city similar to DaNang) could likely afford that someone with only $50,000 could not afford.

​

Here was her answer (along with my comments):

​

• Luxury car (e.g., BMW, Mercedes-Benz)​​​​​​

  • Without the hassles of driving, following directions, parking, insurance, car servicing and repairs, dealing with possible traffic violations, drivers license, and car registration, I use Grab (think Uber) to go anywhere I want to go. I've got my own chauffeurs. I rarely have to wait for more than three minutes for a new chauffeur to pick me up at the front door. The cost of each trip here in DaNang varies from $1.75 to $4.00 USD.

• High-end designer clothing and accessories​

  • I have no interest in showing off in this particular way.​

• Expensive vacations and travel

  • I take the most amazing holidays in the world, much more interesting that the "rich" know how to do and, in general, my nine-day holidays in another country, airfare, hotel, and all expenses included have run me less than $700 USD.​ Over the past 28 years, I've visited over 25 cities in Japan (with two long holidays, one lasting 40 days and the other three months), at least 50 cities in China, and every Asian country at least once (except for Bhutan, Bangladesh, and North Korea). 

• Large and upscale home

  • My home is not large (just a three bedroom, two bath, 1200 square feet), but it's huge enough for me and my cat Smokey. It wouldn't be called upscale but if I did rent an upscale place in DaNang, that would take away the richness of my experience. The most upscale apartments in DaNang are populated by relatively rich expats. My life is much richer mixing with the upscale Vietnamese (by their standards) that live in the building where I reside.​

  • I owned a home only once in my life (in Phoenix, Arizona). After selling it, I concluded, that for the more flexible lifestyle I like and to relieve me of the hassles that go along with home ownership and maintenance, it's much better for me to rent. I want the option to easily move when I want, though I generally like to stay settled in the same home unless there is a compelling reason to relocate. Here is my history of moving since 1998.

    • July of 1998, I moved from Scottsdale, Arizona to Hermosa Beach, California. 

    • November of 1999, I moved to Tokyo, Japan.

    • November of 2000, I moved to Shanghai, China.

    • January of 2010, I moved to Kunming, China.

    • April of 2022, I moved to Medellin, Colombia.

    • December of 2022, I moved to Bogota, Colombia.

    • June of 2023, I moved to DaNang, Vietnam.

  • As you can see, my time in Hermosa Beach, Tokyo, Medellin, and Bogota were all roughly about a year, even though when I moved to each of these places I thought I would end up living there much longer than I did. Because I was leasing instead of buying it was much easier to pick up and move and take advantage of the benefits of moving to a new country or city that would better serve me and my lifestyle. However, I did go for long-term leases. I was able to live in the same apartments long-term in both Shanghai and Kunming because I asked for and got five-year leases. That gave me a measure of stability, which was actually a bit one-sided against the landlord since it would have been more difficult for the landlord to push me out than for me to leave. All I had to do to leave at anytime, even with a five-year lease, was to be willing to lose my deposit. That actually happened in both Shanghai and Kunming. In Kunming, I was into my third five-year lease when I informed the landlord I was going to move out. He thought I was being quite fair with being willing to let go of my deposit (which was only about $500 USD) and told me I could leave the apartment in a mess since he was going to have it all refurbished anyway. ​

  • In general, landlords are only hoping for a one-year lease and are quite happy if a tenant wants to commit themselves to more. I signed a three-year lease with my current landlady and I was able to negotiate a lower monthly rent with her because of that. 

• Private school education for children

  • I don't have children. But, if I did, I could easily hire a private school here (or even a private tutor) and still fall within a budget of spending less than $2500 USD per month.​

• Private health insurance with extensive coverage

  • I don't have health insurance and don't need it. Given the cost of medical and dental here, I can easily do out-of-pocket and that has little likelihood of breaking my budget.

• Fine dining and gourmet restaurants

  • Although I wouldn't turn a "gourmet restaurant" down, I generally prefer the food and restaurants that the hoi polloi patronize. Even if I did want to indulge by going to a gourmet restaurant, the out-of-pocket cost would likely be 5-10 times less than patronizing one in Jacksonville, Florida.​

• Membership at exclusive clubs and gyms

  • They'd be much cheaper here if I wanted to take advantage of them, especially if I wanted a private trainer. But I just buy the gym machines (like a whole body vibration machines for $120 USD) that I am likely to use in my home.​

• Regular spa treatments and massages

  • Every Friday a masseuse gives me an hour's massage in my home for less than $13 USD.​

• Personal chef or catering services

  • My personal chef delivers each day's food to my door once a day (selected and prepared according to my vegan instructions). I pay her about $62 per week.​

• Extensive art or jewelry collection

  • Don't have and not interested, even if I had a billion dollars.​

• Frequent international travel in business or first class

  • I might pay an extra $10 (over coach) for a business or first class seat. It's just not an important luxury for me.​

• High-end home theater system

  • I suppose it could be more high-end than my 52-inch TV that I paid a few hundred dollars for. But I am quite happy with what I've got.​

• Extensive landscaping and outdoor living spaces

  • My luxury is passing a lot of interesting people up and down the elevators and on the nearby street. A place to landscape and a big outdoor yard would just get in the way of that.​

• Personal trainer and fitness classes

  • Super easy to afford here at just a few dollars per hour if I wanted.​

• Luxury watches or jewelry

  • No interest.​

• Ownership of multiple properties

  • For what purpose? Just more to manage and take away from the luxury of ease and free time.​

• High-end kitchen appliances

  • I'm as high-end as I need with a blender, a microwave oven, and an Instant Pot.​

• Investment in startups or businesses

  • No need. No interest.​

• Annual charitable donations or philanthropic endeavors

  • With all the flexibility I have with my free time, I "donate" my coaching on Zoom and often to friends or acquaintances without charge. This is much more rewarding (for me) than donating money or things. ​

• Regular attendance at premium sports events or concerts

  • I've been a few times to such events. If I'm interested, watching them on TV in the comfort of my home is more luxurious. ​

• Exclusive VIP experiences

  • Not sure what those are aside from massage, spas, getting my nails done, etc, which I do as much as I want.​

• Fine wines and rare liquors

  • I don't like the taste of alcohol.​

• Custom-made furniture and decor

  • To whatever extent I might want I can easily do that here in Vietnam.​

• Membership in elite social or networking groups

  • Well, if I wanted/needed to be a millionaire in terms of dollars (instead of just the lifestyle a millionaire can enjoy), then maybe such memberships would be important. But I don't and they aren't.​

• Season tickets for professional sports teams

  • I don't enjoy watching sports. And, if I did, watching them on my big TV would be preferable to me.​

• Private yacht or boat ownership

  • No interest and I've heard it's just a big hassle. You may have heard the quip, "The two happiest days in a boat owner's life are the day they buy the boat and the day they sell it."​

• Regular golf outings at upscale courses

  • No interest in golf.​

• Custom-tailored clothing

  • Just a 15-minute walk (or a three-minute Grab drive) from my building I get my shirts custom made according to my design, everything included for about $25 USD per shirt.

• Extensive home automation and smart technology

  • I buy just about all the "smart" stuff as I want with my high-end Mac Mini, the Oculus Quest, and Meta's Bay Ran smart glasses. ​

• Art commissions or collections

  • No interest.​

• Frequent international vacations via private jet

  • I guess it might be nice, but even if I had actual several millions of dollars, I doubt that I would ever consider paying for a private jet.​

• Personal chauffeur or driver services

  • I already have that with Grab.​

• High-end home security systems

  • My home is already super secure (enough). You can park your unlocked bicycle on the street in DaNang without concern that it will be stolen. I rarely even double-lock my door.​

• Membership in private country clubs

  • No interest.​

• Regular use of personal stylists

  • No interest.​

• Ownership of antique or vintage collectibles

  • No interest.​

• Frequent attendance at gala events

  • ​No interest.​​

• Exclusive wine or whiskey tastings

  • No interest.​

• Custom-designed and built home

  • No interest.​

• Personal concierge services

  • No need and no interest. I have hired two Internet researchers who work for me by the hour.​

​

​

How I became a millionaire

​

Several factors account for my being a millionaire (even several times over).

​

• First, already explained, is because, while sourcing my income from the USA, I spend it here in DaNang, Vietnam.

• Second is that I have never been affected by envy. I've never had a show-off attitude about how much money I make and I've never envied another (although I may have admired them) for how much money they earn. I do have a bit of a show-off attitude about how easily and inexpensively I can live nicely. Consequently, brands like Gucci, Prada, or Burberry hold no attraction. And, even if they did, I could easily buy fakes here that would fool anyone but a connoisseur.

• Third, I get special pleasure out of seeing how inexpensively I can buy things instead of feeling restricted by "not being able to afford that." I "increase my income" by reducing my expenses.

• Fourth, I remember that it's all for happiness anyway and 95% of happiness is in the everyday process. Many dollar-denominated millionaires are in golden handcuffs. I am able to create all the income I need for my lifestyle, working for myself (actually playing for myself) as a life coach for about fifteen hours a week. I am not retired (and never will be) and my lifestyle is already better (for me) than any possible "retirement" I could design.

• Fifth, I never incur any debt. I use my credit cards only for convenience and have an absolute policy of paying them off completely every month. I never buy things on a payment plan. I keep a substantial buffer in liquid assets and, in general, ensure that my monthly income is equal to or more than my monthly outgo. While keeping this policy secure, I have the freedom and flexibility to spend extra money should it be temporarily wanted or needed. I never have that "cash flow problem" that so many people victimize themselves with (long ago, I was one of those victims).

​

See also Did you forget that you are richer than the richest man in the modern world?

​