Read this true story of two men:
- Mr. Reese*, a millionaire Austrian businessman, and
- Warren Buffett, a billionaire American investor.
By seeing what brought one man to the point of losing everything and what allowed the other to become even wealthier, it is much easier for young entrepreneurs to discover the hidden keys to lasting wealth.
Both men know how to earn money, but they are examples of two different approaches to and beliefs about money. By seeing the results of different goals and values in life in these two true stories, you will be able to rethink your life and your own possibilities, avoid making mistakes and realize your own achievements.
Mr. Reese, aged 47. Austria, February 8, 2010.
Mr. Reese, a businessman from Austria, is selling all his belongings, including a luxurious, nearly 3,500 square foot villa on the lake with a breathtaking mountain view of the Alps, valued at £1.4 million as well as his spacious farmhouse in Provence with 17 hectares of land, priced at £613,000. He has already sold a luxury Audi A8, worth £44,000, and a collection of six gliders worth £350,000, plus other valuable items, including his furnishings and business accessories. He is planning to give away his entire small financial fortune to charity.
His Story
Mr. Reese comes from a poor family where money had always been considered “bad”. In order to get more money he had to work more, exchanging his time for the things he wanted to buy. His hard work was immediately reflected by the rising amount of possessions he was buying: luxurious hotels, exotic holidays, homes in spectacular locations. He built a small fortune of more than £3 million.
“For a long time I believed that more wealth and luxury automatically meant more happiness,” he said. “I come from a very poor family where the rules were to work more to achieve more material things, and I applied this for many years.” But while making more money, and collecting more things, his emotional life was severely lacking. One time while on vacation in Hawaii he just couldn’t bear the reverential treatment he was receiving, the isolation that money gave him or the ability to buy everything he wanted.
Philanthropy
It was then that he decided to give away all that he had. “My idea is to have nothing left. Absolutely nothing,” he told journalists. “Money is counterproductive – it prevents happiness from coming.” He felt guilty while visiting South America, thinking that there was a direct correlation to “our” wealth and “their” poverty for which he was partially responsible.
Now his money will go to a microcredit charity, which will provide small loans to Latin America in such countries as El Salvador, Honduras, Bolivia, Peru, Argentina and Chile. After selling all his belongings, he is planning to live in a small wooden hut in the Alps or in a small bedsit in a city nearby.
Inner chaos is expensive.
The question is:
how can you use money as a tool to give you what you want while helping the world at the same time and staying firm inside your heart?
To read Warren Buffett’s story see the part II of “Young Entrepreneurs“.
To read the part III of the story click here “Young Entrepreneurs”
* his real name has been changed to protect his privacy
[…] Young Entrepreneurs: Part I […]
[…] To read the Part I of the story click here: “Young Entrepreneurs” […]
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