Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

July 21, 2014

Greetings from the filthy rich,

I started a list of words which have changed since I was young.  Not so much what they mean, as in how they are defined, but the connotation.   It’s not a hard list to make, just relative to technology, but there are other examples too.   Post. Bad. Thong. Bandwith. Gay. Friend.

But the word I got stuck on was this one: millionaire.

At one point, the millionaire was the gold standard of wealth.  (Gold standard?)  A millionaire was the epitome of affluence.  The word ‘millionaire’ meant ‘rich.’

When I think of millionaire, I have this image of the little Monopoly Man.  He has a cigar and a top hat and wads of cash and one of those big self-important mustaches.  That was a wealthy person.

My impression of millionaires was formed by ‘Richie Rich’ comics, by Bruce Wayne and Thurston Howell III.  I didn’t know any Rockefellers when I was young, but I figured they lived in stately mansions in faraway states like Philadelphia.  My view of the word millionaire was this: unlimited money.  Lighting cigars with hundred dollar bills. 

Today that image has changed.  Millionaires are at the grocery store with you.  Clipping coupons.

The image of a wealthy person has tilted toward oil sheiks and internet geeks. Maybe add to that list Washington politicians and powerbrokers, Lions of Wall Street, and cocaine tycoons.

The year I was born it is estimated that there were 27,000 millionaires in the U.S.

This year it is estimated there are nearly 10 million millionaires.  Not exactly as common as dirt, but you can see the trend.  An easy illustration is this: if you know 25 people, it is probable that one of them is a millionaire. 

I am not an economist, but I have a general understanding of the effects of inflation and population growth on this outcome.  And implied in that is the fact that a million dollars doesn’t go as far as it used to.  So people born in the last 10 years will have a whole different impression of what it means to be a millionaire.

Maybe the new wealthy icon is ‘billionaire’.  Or not.

Millionaires are just as vulnerable as the rest of us to the vagaries of the economy and to financial calamities that lead to bounced checks.  Sure, it might take a little longer to fritter the paycheck away on Mountain Dew and Twinkies, and there’s a little more flexibility at the end of the month when the cable bill comes due.  But the term millionaire does not have the cache it once had.

In my subconscious, I still think of a millionaire as someone rich, but when I have the occasion to think of it, I know better.  I’m conscious of a paradigm shift when it comes to wealth, or more important, that which makes us rich.

I have learned that ‘wealth’ and ‘happiness’ are not always linked, nor are they mutually exclusive.  I know many people who are financially secure, wealthy even, and who live rich, fulfilling lives.  But these are people who already understand that the money does not define the life.

In the last several years I have met quite a few young adults for whom the old definitions of wealth are no longer relevant.  I’ll admit I first thought that this was the naïve posturing of people who don’t know that you need money to make your way in the world.  But I can see now that there is more substance there.

I am not talking about fringe factions living on communes, or trust fund babies pretending not to know what hedge funds are.  I don’t mean the innocent college grads still living in their parent’s basement hoping that the Xbox doesn’t fail.

There are new ‘millionaires’ cultivating their lives right now, and what they are building is not wealth you can measure in productivity or net worth.  I am impressed with these people who intentionally focus on living simply, carefully choosing careers that align with their core values, and then resisting accumulation of ‘things’ as a part of maintaining their lifestyle. 

They are focused more on relationships, and on experiences.  They have learned the value of community, the courage required in self-sacrifice and in genuine altruism.  The work ethic they employ is not only in pursuit of financial security, but to create a life that reflects their beliefs. 

It is inspiring to be reminded of this definition of richness.  It may be hard for me to shake the picture of the little Monopoly Man, but I’m trying.  It’s worth it.

Hope this finds you wealthy,

David