I equate "rich" with 100% financial independence. It means much more than just being able to retire. It means if I want the latest Cadillac, I go down to the dealership this morning and order it. It means if I want to get on a plane and go to London to hang out with Karl Groom next week in his recording studio, I book the flight and go. It means if I want to buy my mother a new house I buy her a new house. It means if I want to travel the world for a year, I book a flight to my first destination, or maybe charter a jet and go. It also means if I want to work I work if I don't want to work I don't work.
Complete financial independence. Being able to retire is just one component of it.
That's more than independence, although, I suppose we just have a different view in that regards. What you're claiming for rich means nobody is rich, though, you have to draw the line somewhere. If I want to buy a military to match the US's but can't afford it, all of a sudden I'm not rich?
Yeah, he's really describing filthy, stinkin' rich in my book. If that's what he requires to be rich, that's fine, but I disagree. I buy the financial independence thing, but for me that would mean maintaining my current lifestyle without having to work another day, not increasing my lifestyle to ridiculous excess while not needing to work another day.
Well, as we can see from this thread, "RICH" means different things to different people.
Look at the poll results. There are some people here who feel "rich" is someone who makes $100k per year. To me, that's certainly a "good living wage" (I have a few staff at that income level) but it's pretty far from rich.
But rich is a relative term. A lot of people here are very young compared to me and just starting out in life. I'm close to 50 years old with a lot more road behind me than in front of me. Perspectives change. I suspect a lot of you will be in the same position I am in when you reach my age. You'll be homeowners, you'll have 401k accounts or some other retirement plan. You'll have investments, savings, equity in your home, etc. You will have accumulated some wealth. And you'll look up one day and you'll realize that the lifestyle you have is one you used to envy. You just have to work hard and be smart to get there.
Hell, man, like I posted above, about 13 years ago all I had ON THE ENTIRE PLANET was less than $200 and a bag of clothes.
At that point in my life when I looked at my future brother-in-law, who was a cement truck driver making about $50k per year, he seemed rich to me. Yes, it is a relative term. But now I just think to be rich is to be financially independent as described in that wiki. I've used a little hyperbole in this thread to describe it (traveling the world, buying cadillacs, etc) but the fact is I just think that financial independence (as described in the wiki) is "rich" and if I had money like that I would do something like what Bill Gates is doing with his money. I'd try to make a difference with it somehow. Have a positive impact.