10 most bad ass financial quotes ever - or are they?

10 most bad ass financial quotes ever - or are they?

I'm going to burn a post by giving you 10 financial quotes for consideration.  Some of these quotes I've taken personal satisfaction from.  Others, personal insult.

10 most bad ass financial quotes ever - or are they?

    On this beautiful fall Monday, I thought that I'd do something a little different than my traditional blog post about retirement or changing your life. Today, I'm going to burn a post by giving you 10 financial quotes for consideration. Some of these quotes I've taken personal satisfaction from. Others, personal insult. Others still, motivation.

    10 most bad ass financial quotes ever

    Which ones do you believe are badass enough to make it into YOUR quotation Rolodex?

    First, I thought that I'd start off with a quote from my own father, spoken so off the cuff 17-some-odd years ago shortly after I graduated college - a quote that never truly registered with me then, but certainly does now:

    Some people are on the 10-year plan - my dad

    He was referring to the idea that some people graduate from college and immediately start saving like mad, more or less spending the first 10 years of their post-education life by saving money and living extremely frugally, then calling it quits for the rest of their life. For the record, my dad retired at 49.

    Too many people spend money they haven't earned, to buy things they don't want, to impress people they don't like. - Will Smith

    Spoken like a true financial poet, Mr. Smith.  Sadly, it's also true. Here is something less poetic: How many people spend stupid money on stupid shit to impress a bunch of people that they don't know or like? Probably more than you think. In fact, YOU might be guilty.  I sure was.

    The safe way to double your money is to fold it over once and put it in your pocket  - Frank Hubbard

    In other words, don't spend it. If you invest your dough instead of folding it over and putting it in your pocket, doubling your money is only the beginning.

    Too many of us look upon Americans as dollar chasers. This is a cruel libel, even if it is reiterated thoughtlessly by the Americans themselves - Albert Einstein

    Now that's a brain teaser if I've ever heard one - and leave it to Albert Einstein to tease your brain. Do you think that Americans deserve the label of "dollar chasers"?

    We make ourselves rich by making our wants few - Henry David Thoreau

    The "less is more" theory, and definitely one of the most badass personal finance quotes that I've ever read. Controlling our wants enables us to totally take control of our future. By doing so, I was able to retire from full-time work at 35 years old.

    In investing, what is comfortable is rarely profitable - Robert Arnott

    Whoa, really?  I gotta say that I'm doing fairly well and am pretty darn comfortable. Or, maybe my comfort zone has just moved or continues to move so I quickly become comfortable where ever I happen to be. What say you?  Are you enjoying "comfortable profits"?

    Money frees you from doing things you dislike. Since I dislike doing nearly everything, money is handy - Groucho Marx

    Perhaps Mr. Marx was just being a Grouch-0, but does he have a point? How many of the things that you dislike disappear as you collect more and more coin? Maid services? Pool cleaning crews? Car washers?

    Don't tell me where your priorities are. Show me where you spend your money and I'll tell you what they are - James W. Frick

    This one might hit a little below the belt with some, but it's also a to-the-point statement dripping with cold, hard truth. Reminds me of the age-old "Actions speak louder than words" phrase that I'm sure we all heard as kids - especially me!

    It’s money. I remember it from when I was single - Billy Crystal

    Touche, Mr. Crystal! But, I personally have much, much more money now than back when I was single. If you're able to get your spouse on-board with your hair-brained scheme to achieve financial independence and retire early, your wealth potential can skyrocket. How about you?

    The four most dangerous words in investing are: 'this time it's different' - Sir John Templeton

    This might be my favorite one...because, well, things are almost never different. Whether you're talking about a plan to "get rich quick" or lose weight or start a business, if you keep doing what you've always done, you'll keep getting what you've always gotten. Hey, that's another quote!

    What are some of your favorite financial quotes that you live by?  Do any of these suit your fancy?

    S

    Steve Adcock

    774 posts

    Steves a 38-year-old early retiree who writes about the intersection of happiness and financial independence.