Why You Too Can Make Money

 “If we are born poor, it is not our fault, but if we die poor, it is!”…… Bill Gates
 

If you take a very close look at the people who have succeeded to make money, you cannot find any visible reason why they made money. It is clear that sex, age, circumstances of birth, luck, destiny, color, religion and even physical disposition had nothing to do with it. What then is responsible? You may say they were lucky. I will say luck played little or no role in it. You may then say God favored them. I will say God favors us all without discrimination. You may even say it is their destiny. I will say destiny favors those who help themselves. To avoid stretching this endless argument further, let us mutually agree that the only discernible reason why these people made it is because they “chose” to make it. This is the incontrovertible truth. Chief M.K.O Abiola would not have made it if he accepted that he was born to poor parents and that Abeokuta was not destined by God to produce a multi-millionaire. Orprah Winfrey would not have made it in life if she accepted that being born black and a female to boot were setbacks deliberately imposed by God to make her a poor second-class citizen in a country of unlimited opportunities.  Colonel Sanders would have died a poor man if he accepted that at 65 he was already too old to become a successful entrepreneur. Jose Feliciano would have been begging in the back-streets of Puerto Rico if he accepted that once you are blind, it was the end of the road for you.

In the business of money-making, what sometimes appear to be a set-back when properly handled could turn out to be a blessing when appropriate and deliberate choices are made. When Arnold Schwarzenegger who later became the Governor of California immigrated to the United States from his native Austria, he was a body-builder. This was the strength that got him into the movies but his thick Austrian accent almost ruined his chances of succeeding in the movie industry. Many people particularly women and children loved his great body and wanted his movies despite his accent which was at the beginning a glaring weakness. Some clever producers exploited this accent which is stuck with the man into a fad and it became an identifying part of his character. This is how the “Terminator” series of movies was born. Every kid in the neighborhood started acting like the lead star in the “Terminator.” When the movies were released, many children started identifying with Arnold, the star of the movies. Many decided to start dressing, looking as strong, as heavily-built and speaking gruffly as the “Terminator.”  This caught-on in the world and a superstar was born. A glaring weakness well exploited was thus turned into strength and stupendous wealth.