What If It Did Work?
What If It Did Work?
Quiet Wealth That Works While You Sleep
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What if your money worked harder than you do? We sit down with Ronald Eugene Ron Kmetovicz, author of Ghost Money: The Pathway to Financial Independence, to unpack a simple, no-gimmick system for building wealth that quietly compounds while you sleep. Forget rented supercars and day-trade dopamine; this conversation is a masterclass in practical investing for people who want lasting freedom, not fleeting flexes.
Ronald traces his roots from a farm in rural Pennsylvania to his first stock purchase in eighth grade and shows how multiple income streams set the foundation for a resilient life. We break down why fans of products often become poor stock pickers, why dividends and yield on cost matter more than hype, and how a low-cost balanced fund can outpace most DIY trading once fees, taxes, and emotions are counted. Ronald’s KMAC curve turns compounding into a series of understandable doubles, proving you don’t need an MBA to reach meaningful milestones—just consistency and time.
We get honest about lifestyle creep, debt traps, and the false security of high incomes. From 30 percent credit card rates to seven-year car loans, we show how small choices compound in the wrong direction. Then we flip the script: automatic contributions, emergency buffers, and cutting expenses give you the power to say no to stress, bad bosses, and burnout. Start with 10 percent as a floor and stretch to 20 or 30 percent when you can, especially in your early years, and let the boring math work.
If you’re tired of paycheck anxiety and ready to build a quiet army of assets, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs a wake-up call, and leave a review with the one habit you’ll automate this week. Your future self is already thanking you.
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Setting The Stage: Ghost Money
SPEAKER_00I never told no one that my whole life I've been holding back. Every time I load my gun up, so fucking two for the stall. I hear a voice like you think you won't let it be.
Ronald’s Money Roots And First Stock
SPEAKER_05Alright, everybody, another day, another dollar, another one of my favorite episodes of my favorite podcast. Because I'm biased. What if it did work? Now, today's guest, it's all about building wealth that works while you sleep. Not hype money, not lottery money, not hope this crypto moons money. We're talking ghost money. Ronald Eugene K Mektivic, author of Ghost Money, The Pathway to Financial Independence, breaks down how everyday people can quietly build financial freedom through systems, compounding, and assets that don't require grinding forever. While most folks are chasing quick wins and flashy lifestyles just to try to be internet famous, Ron shows why boring, consistent strategies are actually the actual wealth, the way to create freedom. Now, if you've ever felt trapped by the paycheck-to-paycheck hamster wheel or wondered how the wealthy make money look just so effortless, this episode is for you because the real question isn't how hard you work, it's how hard your money works for you. How's it going, Ronald?
SPEAKER_01Well, Mar, it's going quite well today. It's uh winter here in uh the Reno, Lake Tahoe area, a little chilly, but uh inside is great.
SPEAKER_05Uh it's one of my favorite parts of the world. Uh downstate line, man. Uh well been there plenty of times.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, well, thank you for visiting us. I've always appreciated.
SPEAKER_05Now I gotta ask, were you always astute when it came to money? Were you always um like did your father, did your family know the ins and outs of money? Because what uh reading the book it was mind-blowing because it's contrary to what like most people believe it. Most people think it's either a scratch off or an inheritance, or or they went to they went to um Hara's or Harvey's down at Reno and and put pulled the progressive slot.
SPEAKER_01None of the above. Yeah, okay. Well, to answer your question, uh, I'm an only child. And I grew up in rural Pennsylvania uh farming. Uh my grandpa was in the business of construction, farming, chicken and egg, sand and gravel, lumber. He had multiple sources of revenue and ran my aunts and uncles through the depression, into World War II. Uh, they lived well through a very difficult period for a lot of people. So I had the benefit of working with my grandpa as I grew up. The second source that I had was my dad. He was into television, radio, and cable TV in the late 40s when it was all happening. So the the engineering side of me was developed by my pop. Uh and what what I came to realize at a very early age is multiple revenue streams define your financial prosperity through life. If you have multiple streams, you're gonna do okay. So uh I bought my first share of stock when I was in eighth grade. And it's been uh one purchase after another through the years. So yeah, uh, I'm a product of my environment. Uh my uh my parents were astute, my grandparents were astute, and most of the members of my family, but not all, okay, had had a pretty good money sense. So I grew up pretty smart with money.
SPEAKER_05Now, Ronald, you remember your first stock purchase was Yes, Pennsylvania Railroad.
Fans Of Products, Not Stocks
SPEAKER_01I was in eighth grade algebra. I had a algebra teacher, his name was George Shebro, who introduces to the fact that uh we could invest in the stock market. And this is we're we're talking here 1959, 1960. Buying stock in those days required that you go into a bank with a pool of money uh to make the stock purchase and you get issued a certificate once you do. So uh I pulled with Mr. Shebro's help the uh the class funds. We collected about a buck from each of the kids in my algebra class, and I went to the bank and made the purchase of the stock. At the end of the year, I think we netted uh almost a 10% return. So people got a about a dime uh return on their uh stock investing. And that algebra class, uh algebra one it was, okay, knew about the existence of the stock market. And at that point on, uh I saw that I could make money, okay, by investing wisely. And Pennsylvania Railroad was a good investment at that time. Uh so I go, hey, 10%. Okay, mom and dad are getting two, three percent in the bank. Uh so pretty simple. As I acclo as I accrued a little more wealth, my my skills drifted towards uh stock market investing.
SPEAKER_05Oh, same here. I remember my first stock. Uh it was eight, I was 18, and it was Intel, because I I kept on reading about Andy Grove, CEO extraordinaire. Yeah. Second the second coming of Christ. He was at the time getting just as much publicity as I I remember it was Jack Welsh, was it was between him, they just every article, every book was written by CEOs like that. So yes.
SPEAKER_01Well, and Andy wrote a uh excellent book on uh semiconductors. I I I worked with his book uh on my master's work uh on semiconductor technology. He's quite the guy, and uh Intel in those days, I I had money in Intel, uh, so I applaud you on uh on your astuteness to invest in that company. It's it's going through a little bit of hard times right now, but uh it was wise.
SPEAKER_05Oh, it it when most stocks, most companies never last, but even if it doesn't pull through with Uncle Sam helping and whatnot, it had a tremendous run.
SPEAKER_01It had a run, and being able to spot when it's starting to peter out, that's important. And uh, you know, some people know how to do that better than others.
SPEAKER_05Well, something that I learned from years of investing and listening to all the big gurus and all that, just because you love a company or you love the CEO, sometimes you can be a fan of the product, but not the stock, not the company, not to purchase it. So a lot of times, though, people feel like when they buy the Apple that that you know they're they're out there in Cupertino, and one it's it's you bought it on the secondary. It really doesn't make a and it's drops. You you you you can still buy the new Apple 20, 21, 22, 23, you can stand in line. But after I and I I think that stock's had like uh not not that I'm I know um earnings are coming out, but eight straight down weeks or something like that, which is pretty rare.
SPEAKER_01For I don't follow Apple too closely. I did when uh Steve was running the company, uh he was the catalyst for uh some of the things that's that's the last time yeah, that's the last time that they've they haven't come out with a home run, yeah.
Boring Beats Flashy
SPEAKER_05Since then the home runs have stopped. It it's it's been everything about subscription and whatnot. They've they've gone to a different different model of making money. So you see investors. Now we'll go back to the now. We'll go back to talking about ghost money. Ghost money. What I love about this two Ronald is you're a contrarian, brother. The the time now, everybody likes the super sexy. They believe the social media, they believe the person that rents the flashy car and rents the house on Airbnb and says, Hey, you know, nine months ago I was mowing uh nine months ago I was a ski instructor, uh uh at at State Line, you know, working for Vail.
SPEAKER_03And before you know it, just came on.
SPEAKER_05Give me send me 50 bucks and I'll show you YouTube how you can live the TikTok dream.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. I I I have uh I have met a number of people, uh the youth, uh, the young adults, and and even into adulthood where people keep chasing the uh the elusive dream. And and they do so not because they know what they're doing. That's the sad part about it. Very few people uh that I know have the skill set to pick stocks. It's it's it's a major mathematical issue that uh you have to go through. Well, people are like boring, Ronald.
SPEAKER_05They don't think here. I'll I'll you're gonna laugh at this one. This was at the end of the year, a friend called, and he's like, you know what? I mean, I'm just disappointed. I'm like disappointed in what? Who knows what this guy's gonna tell. He's like, NVIDIA. I'm like, the company, the CEO, the stock. He's like, I've only gotten a 30% return in the year, and I'm like, and that's that's pretty good.
SPEAKER_03Exactly.
SPEAKER_05Just think if you had every share that hit that a 30% return, and and you you want more, but but right, and and then it's always like everybody wants to go with like there's all these screw buying ETFs, screw buying mutual funds, let's let's go high beta, let's go all out. So any well, yeah, right?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's right, and and you know what uh what I wrote in chapter four is balanced mutual funds that have been around for decades, and you plow money into them consistently every month, and you wait 10 or 20 years, and you're going to have a very nice sum of money to uh to finance yourself, that'll it'll be a minimum your second source of income.
SPEAKER_05Well, Ronald, why why is it that people too, when they look at like with the divin's paying, that they don't understand that that's if you per this the purchase of the stock, you know, the the price of the stock today. Like if you bought uh Philip Morris or if you bought Coca Cola, we'll go safe.
Dividends, Compounding, And Cash Flow
SPEAKER_03Well, Coca-Cola. Everybody loves Coke, everybody loves Coke, Warren Buffett loves Coke, but he's every year the dividend has gone up and up and up.
SPEAKER_05And I read somewhere that right now the dividend is equal to the share price. If you would have purchased the stock and held it back in like I think 1989. Okay. So people don't realize if you're buying and holding and all that compounding, yes, it's not paying 2.8 percent return on your money, it's a lot more than that because you invested it when it was two dollars and something a share, you're you're going at like a hundred percent return.
SPEAKER_01There you go. Uh, dividend paying stocks, and and most of the mutual fund people uh that gravitate to the top of my list. Uh they're a mixture of stocks and bonds. And if you look at the holdings of the stocks that are in the quality uh multi-decade high performance funds, they're dividend paying. You're absolutely right, Omar.
SPEAKER_05It's a no-brainer. And here, I I I love because I'm everybody, everybody wants fast, everybody loves sexy because yes, it's boring. They don't that they don't understand the power. Everybody sees it and hears it. But here, I love ghone, quiet army of assets working while you sleep. Okay, everybody. I think Warren Buffett said if you don't have things that pay you while you sleep, you're gonna be the guy that's 90 years old being at the greeter at either Disney World or Walmart.
SPEAKER_01Aha, I agree with that completely. And I'll I'll add to it, that's why the uh the book title is Ghost Money The Pathway to Financial Independence. If if you have that money coming your way while you sleep, that's your ghost money. It's your ghost account. You have your job, you have a ghost account. That's that's two sources of income right there. Lots of freedom at that point.
SPEAKER_05Well, it isn't that ultimate ultimate freedom because people, this is how people act, though. They're like, Oh, I'm Ron, I'm gonna start investing when I make real money. So, what happens though with this person that has that? They make$100,000 a year, they spend$100,000 a year.$250,000? Yeah, I'll start investing it. Well, you know what the market it's at its peak, or I'll I'll wait for a correction or whatever. They spend that$250,000. And that's why everybody's like, oh my gosh, that guy made millions and he died broke. And then they're shocked, like when they read the story about the janitor or the receptionist, or just an average person that made$40,000 to$50,000 a year, but invested 20% of their money religiously on a consistent basis and just kept on reinvesting all their dividends. And then they wind wind up like two, three, four, or five million and they're shocked.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. And and I I talk about the success stories of people I know. The the book didn't exist, okay, but I know these people and I know what they did. And uh, you know, some of them were bumps in the road type stories, but they still got to a point where they were financially independent in their 40s, 50s, and 60s. It's it's very doable for for anyone, but the discipline has to be there.
Building A Ghost Account Early
SPEAKER_05Well, the discipline has to be there, and what I love is I love the new generation of people that oh yeah, them boomers, and and now them generation X's, they bought everything uh like dirt cheap. I they've they've never heard of inflation. I guess they they felt everybody uh like like when and you're gonna laugh because I remember telling I was in middle school and or junior high. That's how you know I'm I'm younger than you, but not by much. And he's like, What do you want to do when you grow up? And his name was Auerhan. If somebody paid me fifty thousand dollars a year to make pizza, I would make pizza. Now, now, granted, 50 now that was then. I wouldn't say something that stupid now because he'd be like, Okay, Domino's is hiring McDonald's, you can make 50,000. Yeah, people have this war, right? You hear all the oh, while them boomers bought them houses dirt cheap. No, it's called inflation.
SPEAKER_01Yes. And real real estate is a tough game, too. Uh, I know people that are that are in that. Uh I I I gravitate to stocks because it's less work with with real estate. Uh, you're into a very slow process. Uh, there's a lot of hard work associated with the properties. If if you go the uh the investment side of it, there's a lot of risk. So I'm a stock guy. And then liquidity.
SPEAKER_05I'm a stock guy. Because at the end of the day, you know, yes, uh even well way back in high school or when back in the stone ages for me, yes, call someone up, sell.
SPEAKER_04Now five buttons. Yeah, you push a button, it's you know, you get the email from Fidelity or from Charles Schwab or whoever you want to use.
SPEAKER_05And if you need the money, you know, it'll be in your account uh in four days. Try doing that with real estate, it can't happen.
SPEAKER_01It's not gonna happen. We uh it's it's it's sort of family stories now, too, but uh the the the the kiddos in our family when they come across uh a chunk of change, they don't splurge. Guess where it goes? Into the ghost account. And I have a high school junior, my grandson. He's he's he's racking up a couple of nice bucks. He has part-time jobs. Uh he has a side hustle that isn't making a money yet, but it has a shot at doing so. What he makes goes into the account. Uh he's even told me you can't afford a girlfriend.
SPEAKER_03They cost a lot. At any time in history.
SPEAKER_04He's right on that one. 100%.
Debt, Cars, And Costly Credit
SPEAKER_01But but the uh, you know, and the other thing that that that works with uh using him as an example, he has a pickup truck, not not the newest of pickup trucks here, okay, but it works. And you know, some of his buddies are getting these fancy steel bumpers and that that look cool and they would look good on on his truck. He he researched the price of those bumpers. He says, uh-uh, I'm gonna put that money away for the long term. The heck with a bumper, I got one that works. So so it's a lesson that uh, you know, he's learning at a very early age.
SPEAKER_05And you know, my my two daughters are the same way. Uh, my oldest is 20, sophomore at LSU. Uh, my youngest is a senior, she'll be going to Vanderbilt next fall. But they both every every side hustle, every birthday, whatnot, invested money into an account that right now, literally, that if they never took the money out or whatnot, they would be set. Now, the thing is though, we never teach children that. What we teach children is hey, we deserve it. I got hey, we got a$2,500 bonus. What shall we do? Shall we go blow it on a trip? Shall we buy a new jet ski to replace the old jet ski because we need to look cool? And and then a lot of times it's just like to up like everybody's a realtor in the sense that they want to stage their life, they want to stage it to look like they're hashtag winning. And and for what? Because deep down inside, and I tell people psychology of people, yeah, you might get a like or what they're like, oh wow, that's amazing. But 10 seconds later, they forgot because they're too busy, everybody's too wrapped up into their own problems. I I don't have a Ron, I don't have a scorecard of everybody that I ever grew up with. I'm like, okay, check that person went on a way cooler, way nicer cruise. Let's let's see what they're gonna do next. No, man. But yeah, we wanna we we want the sexy and and and what society the media too is pounds on the boring because they would always knock Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett that they're too old. And I remember the last time, this was like eight months ago, that that they were liquidating big time, and it was before that correction. Yes, but the market was still going up. Oh, those guys are old, they're stupid. It it and they were sitting on cash, and then they got to buy everything at a discount. Yeah, and it's like, and they never went for flashy, except for Apple, which was very towards you know the end, and it was because of the cash flow and and how much money they were sitting on. And then I think their last purchase was Google. That was it. They weren't they weren't affected by the dot com, they weren't they weren't heavily invested in and pet dot com and all the other ones that went up. Everybody chases the sexy, and and like I said, the beta's awesome, man. When when the market Opens up and you're up big time, but any correction, you're you're you're looking for the nearest soup kitchen.
SPEAKER_01And and a lot of times, as you know, they don't come back. If if you're holding the wrong issues, they won't come back.
Multiple Streams And Power Of No Debt
SPEAKER_05Oh, oh yeah. Enron. I you're I was I was a I was a financial advisor and I wasn't between I was I wanted for some odd reason because I guess the name I was sitting there, I was I was gonna transfer to Morgan Stanley, and I'm sitting there, I'm listening to their bullpen, and everybody's like, you know what? Enron's at six dollars a share. This is a no-brainer. This was at$82. You would be crazy not to put even more money. No, now, Brandy. We we find out that you know there was retail investors to try to keep the price up, so you know all the big guys could get out, and it's like, wow, you know, oh yeah, and even at that time, I'm like, I'm not working for these people because I'm like, why would you recommend a stock? I mean, we didn't we knew stuff was bad, but for a stock to go from 88, or I think it touched a hundred all the way to a falling knife, yes, yeah, that was just it was gone. But but people also don't want to, they feel like everything comes back, so you you hold something high in beta, you're like, Well, how about if it tears right back up? They don't realize that just because you know it's down, it especially a high flyer like that, it can continue going down.
SPEAKER_01Yes, and and you hear a lot about buy the dip, the the whole thing. Oh yeah, and and and with with you in the uh financial industry, uh what I recommend, Omar, is really boring for people because it's two or three mutual funds that you contribute to on a monthly basis, and you don't do anything else but that. That's it. Uh the funds take care of themselves, so you don't be an advisor out there.
The KMAC Curve Explained
SPEAKER_05There's so much out there, too, with zero expenses, but yet people are like, Oh, I got my guy. You mean the guy that's charging you, and then he's gonna put you in a loaded fund? Yeah, that guy. That guy that's gonna get a four percent. He's giving you a four percent haircut right off the battery his pocket. Oh, that guy, that guy, yeah. And and I tell people, they're like, Oh, how was it? You know, the years that you were doing it, it's a sales job. Here, you know, management, sell Exxon, sell this mutual fund, you know. Or you you're like, it you're just like a doctor. The doctor writes scripts based on the buddy that gave him the the you know the coolest stuff. So you know what? The Lord Abbott guy or the American Funds guy, he really took me out. He's a really nice guy. Let's just put who cares what you know the expenses are, and yeah, it's crazy though that all that information that's out there, and people still do it.
SPEAKER_01They they do it routinely, it's it never stops. The the system encourages trading, okay, which is a sure way to go broke in time. Uh, it encourages churn in accounts, which is another way to go broke. The what it doesn't do is encourage long-term horizon long-term thinking. And the problem that I see most of the time is folks that are into the the fast-paced uh world of investing, they grow up in environments where they have no role models. Role models are really scarce in this uh world of finance. I I think the the number that I've heard is 60 to 70 percent of households are paycheck to paycheck. You mentioned that word earlier. And if you grow up in that, you're doomed.
SPEAKER_05Well, did you know that most people don't even have a thousand dollars in a savings account? That's correct.
SPEAKER_01In this country, in this country, yes, and and if when they get a uh major repair on the engine on the car that's uh borrowed money, okay, there's they're stuck.
SPEAKER_05Okay, well, nevermind they're stuck, but they keep on interest rates. When did we ever see 30 on a credit card?
SPEAKER_01I'm gonna get a credit card with 20 or 30 percent interest to pay for a repair bill on a car that I'm paying 15 on. You know, it's it's it's insane. I I cover that in chapter two, but you know, who's gonna listen?
SPEAKER_05You know, and then the banks keep on they keep on adding more years, more time to these cars. Yes, six, seven year loan. Yeah, it's it's like, are you driving a Rolls Royce? That's guaranteed to laugh by the time they're done, they could have been exactly, and and it's funny because people are like, like, oh, this is awesome. Yeah, if you're the bank, like like the first thing that I heard when when I heard the you know the the newest the 50-year mortgage, I'm like, person's gonna die and and and put like zero percent everything that they ever paid was went to the bank.
Automate Contributions And Double
SPEAKER_01Well, yeah, and uh you know, our our age differential, Omar, but that that was one thing. I mean, I I grew up in an environment where my parents' environment, my grandparents' environment, there was no debt. We paid for what we needed. Okay, if we needed uh equipment on the farm, we paid cash for it. My dad and his uh television businesses, if he needed something to support the business, it was a cash outline. So uh I I I understand that. And so my life now is multiple revenue streams, no debt. That's a cool way to live. It wins all the time.
SPEAKER_05You come from a place of power. If you want to work, because most people have to eat a lot of crap and go, yes, hey, I need you here for the next four Saturdays. Well, if you're living paycheck to paycheck, you're gonna be there. Yes, yes, sir, I will be there. You come from a place of power, you know. You have like five months, six months saved for an emergency fund. You know, you you you have you you have a a major account and all that. Like, no, I don't think I will, sir.
SPEAKER_03Yes, there you go. I think I'm done here.
SPEAKER_05That's success. That that's what people don't understand. Yeah, you you got you got that nice sports car, but you the sports car owns you because you have to work for that now. You have to tell the boss, yes, yes, whatever you want, sir. I hate you, but you know, I'm I'm I'm I'm only my existence here is only to be a tool for your dreams. So, whatever you need from me, I will be there. Excellent. Now, with the wealth building philosophy, Ronald, what's what's just the biggest financial myth that's keeping everybody, all the masses broke longer than necessary.
SPEAKER_01The biggest myth is the simplicity of the KMAC curve. It's it's in the middle of the book. It people don't understand the math behind investing. I have worked darn hard to make that curve math-free, uh, easily understood by high school kids. It's it's the absence of knowledge, I think, that is the biggest obstacle to achieving financial independence. So, and and the world thrives on the experts, the mathematical jargon, the MBAs pumping, okay, they they make people feel small, okay, when when you talk to some people in the investment community, like I know and you don't. So the KMAC curve is one of those vehicles that I'm trying to get to people so that just about anybody, high school and beyond, can look at that thing and say, I got it. Okay, this is what I have to do. I have to do times two seven times. I have to get 10% return or 10% return with each times two increment. And in two decades, I'm gonna have a lot of money.
SPEAKER_02It tells you how to do that.
SPEAKER_05Discipline, but difficult for a lot of people, yes, because people everybody wants it now. Like my my buddy with the 30% return was bad, is because they they wake up one day and they're like, holy smokes, I am 40, I'm 50, and I'm nowhere near where I need to be. And that's why that's another reason why boring investing, yeah, they they get panicked because and uh only the past few years have I turned it around and gone more towards the boring investing. Before it was uh read reading the investors business daily, go momentum swing trading here and there. One uncle Sam loves it too, because you know, and any short-term gain, you know, 40. They're like, Thank you, thank you for working for us. You did a great job, buddy. Yeah, and then you know, you have to you have to be on top of it, and and the accountant charges you up the wazoo because you you know you have to give them a a friggin' stack that that looks like war and peace for for your taxes, so and he he charges you, and and before you know it, and that's why to me, yeah. Any buy and hold 15 to 20 percent to tax is a lot better than paying 40 percent off the hair.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and and buy and hold murder. Well, buy and hold, like with the uh the the funds, like a staple for us has been F balks. We we've hold held it for decades, but but the management of of that fund takes into account the uh capital gains and dividend distributions, and they minimize that. So holding these funds, the tax implications, uh outside of an RRA, they're minimal. They they are really minimal. And the the the companies that run these balance funds, they do the redistribution to if it's 70, 30, 60, 40 stocks and bonds, that all takes place automatically. So the fundholder doesn't even have to do that. You just look at the statement once a year, once a quarter, whatever's comfortable, and you watch it grow, okay, except for when the black swans hit, but even those are they're rare it's and they recover.
Stress, Longevity, And Real Independence
SPEAKER_05I I I mean, I never paid attention to that until I had opened up an HSA, and it asked me if I wanted to invest in something that would rebalance based on my my age and and my risk tolerance. And I was like, no way, because before, you know, you would have to go I want control, you know, you you you you would have to try transfer liquidate and go to you know a balance fund to you know as you as you grow older, not one of and I was like, I'm like, wow man, technology is amazing, but yeah a lot of times too, you're right. Um when you watch C NBC, they they try to jazz it up to make you go like, oh shit, man. But they're like the evada, which it it's it's inconsequential, people, but they they love to say it, and and they'll they'll they'll briskly tell you what it is, and you're still like glossed over, and then you'll you'll eve people will even you can Google it and go, Well, it still doesn't really it's supposed to not make sense. Wall Street, they're magicians, it's called misdirection because they want you to go, oh, this is too rom. I I hear what you're saying, Rob. That's so complex, man. That's why I have my guy. My guy, you want me to? I can introduce you to my guy.
SPEAKER_01The guy, we're back to the guy, exactly. The guy, whatever I yeah, you know, for for for what it's worth, Omar. Uh, I don't have a guy, I haven't had a guy for about four decades.
SPEAKER_05So it's and it's funny because people ask me, like, oh, do you not have a guy because you did this for years, many moons ago? It's like, no, man, because it's just common sense. Why am I why why do I need to give my hard-earned money to the guy? I don't I don't need to upkeep his lifestyle. He's a salesman, he can sell anything. Go sell something else, you know. Oh, I'm and you know, they they have all they'll teach you all the lines, man. Uh, you know, uh on how to make it sound like so complex. But but yes, I I I love your book because it it literally it it's it hits someone over the head at how we have all the answers already inside, Ronald. We just like to make life complex. It's like all those people. Oh, I I I don't know why I'm morbidly obese. Well, I don't know, maybe eating the two large pizzas a day and down in a six-pack a day. Maybe, maybe if you stop doing that. Maybe. And yeah, everybody's waiting for something new. Have you ever noticed that? I'm just waiting for the new diet book to come out, the new fat. It's like, well, yeah, calories in, calories out. I think it's common sense. Oh man, but this this sounds so hard. This investing, no, it's it's it's pretty simple, you know. And especially when you talk about how the money go go out, you know, because because if if you start, if people are like, Well, let me wait. When are you gonna wait till? You're you're gonna always have something you people want the$70 pizza.
Final Principles And Where To Find The Book
SPEAKER_01People will money finds a way of getting into other people's pocket when you have it, and and those people are out there increasing the flow that they they they are good at it. It's it's up to you to you know put on the brakes and uh take control of your financial life. That's it.
SPEAKER_05Everything I I'm getting now like a firm and all that that they can break down the payments, you can buy so much stuff, they'll only take such and such out. And you're like, Oh, yeah, that's good. No, they think you're stupid, they think you're gonna miss the payment or you won't have enough funds. So that's when they start hammering you because that's what most people do is they overextend themselves. There's no bank out there that's miss Fred Rogers out there that doesn't want to make more money off of you. Yep, they're out there. That's that's that's a fact. I mean, that's why they're publicly traded corporations. It's like when people tell, you know, oh with the United Healthcare guy, when they assess, well, you know, United Healthcare, they weren't paying. I'm like, you do know it's it's not a non-for-profit. Insurance companies are to create or are made to create money for the shareholders, and there's a board, too. So every everybody need it needs to be profitable. It's not, hey, let's just give every if everybody needs a nose job, give it to them. Because hey, you know what? We're we're in the business of just making everybody happy, and yeah people if P if you don't start watching your money, someone else will. And and your your book, and you you've seen it, there's plenty of people that are even older than you that when they're working, you ask, are they there because they're bored? Or are they there because they don't want to eat cat food? And this is the only way. Because a lot of people, oh social security's gonna, Uncle Sam's gonna pay my bills.
SPEAKER_01Oh, are they you you bring up a good point, Omar? I mean, you you get to a point with what I write about. I I would say 50 or 55 is the cutoff for developing that second revenue stream in your life. Uh, you get much past those years, you're doomed. If if you're if you were living paycheck to paycheck up to 50 or 55, your your time as the years go by are going to get progressively difficult financially.
SPEAKER_05And that's Ronald, you're like the ghost of Christmas present and future with that one. Next time tell me you're gonna say say say saying I said it. I'll put the ominous music in the background there.
SPEAKER_04People people hate the truth. And that that that wasn't you even Mitch words on that.
SPEAKER_03You were you went for the actual truth.
SPEAKER_01Well, I I've seen it. I I've seen it, I've watched it play out. When you're 78 years old, you see the the sad stories. You go into the we we did uh Christmas Caroling this year, my wife and I, and we go into some of the what they call retirement homes. There are some out there where people are paying the big bucks. They they have a good life in in those facilities, and they're the ones that you see advertised in the brochures and all that kind of thing. But the bulk of the people are not living in those places, they're living in places where the probably the average pay that the facility gets is$2,500 to$3,000. They've sold what little assets they have to be there to live at that level. It's sad. Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_05And people hearing it's sad. But but young, start early.
SPEAKER_01Okay, don't get caught in that trap.
SPEAKER_05Well, here, since you're the you're the ghost, you're the grim reaper. How about people that there's still time? Because you I and I and everybody know this, but they pretend they don't. Can you explain what compounding is finally in the way that maybe we'll give them that aha moment, that click? Oh, that's what it is.
SPEAKER_01Yes, I can explain it. And that's chapter four of Ghost Money. I'd mentioned it earlier. The the way to visualize it without the MBA uh equations where the future value is equal to the present value times one plus i to the n. Or if you want to use logarithmic equations, okay, it that that that that's beyond the scope of of regular people. But what regular people can do is they can visualize a sequence of doubles, double, double, double, double, double double. And you can assign the time it takes to do your double. That's compounding. If if you can double in three years, seven doubles will get you a nice chunk of change. Most of the time, people can double double double double on the front end in two years or less. The latter doubles take a little longer. And it's the latter doubles that are driven by the interest that the account is paying. It's the forward front end doubles that are driven by the contributions the account holder makes. And there's that zone in between where you're getting the effects of contributions and doubling through the uh rate of return that the account is generating. But I like 10%. It's safe, it's doable. Uh just about anybody can get it if if they uh pick a reasonably fine, balanced mutual fund.
SPEAKER_02Now there's always a process.
SPEAKER_05Not tomorrow, not maybe someday, because someday equals to never. But something that the automations they can set.
SPEAKER_01up just immediately yeah it's a process it's definitely a process would you would you tell someone that aha moment that why don't you put 10% like to just to automatically be taken out of your uh if you get paid biweekly weekly whatever just put it into that account oh of of course Omar 10 is the starting point uh when when people are starting out it's most of the time not that difficult to do 20 or 30 percent in the early phases and as as time goes on life happens you you scale back maybe back to 10 in the uh latter years of your wealth building but you're there the compounding is doing most of the work for you so i i i have a Rotarian friend last week we talked about his 12 year old we had a 12 year old do started with$10,000 which is a sort of the reference number I use anyway to uh to guide people because it's not that hard to come by these days but he's 12 years old he's in sixth grade and he figured out his seven two X steps at 10% okay he he would have a nice chunk of change with mom and dad's and grandpa's support by the time he was in his mid-30s the kid left pretty excited and he understands it okay will it happen I don't know but but at least there's one kid that that's been touched by the methodology and the process well you changed someone's life uh on that because something like that better to start young than that aha at 40 45 50 like you said you're right there you're right at the danger zone yes you can do it but it it it takes a lot of not eating the pizza not going not going to Harvey's at at Harvey's or Hara's for spring skiing you you're gonna have to cut back to yeah and the price of live tickets now oh yes it's just they they are really scalping the ski oh oh exactly exactly i i used to when i was married we we take the kids christmas always and it just to wait a line for like a disney world line you're paying there and it's uncomfortable and everybody's price gouging and you're like it's like well hopefully I'm stimulating the economy hopefully some of these businesses are putting a socking away 20 now what's some of the biggest money mistakes you see the high earners make oh that's chapter one it's it's envy envy drives it they they want to look like their buddies they want the house they want the cars they want the boat they want the vacations they they want it all they have the high earners have sufficient monthly income so they they can pile on a lot of debt and they buy these things but where are they uh when they're 65 and I mentioned a a couple of friends of mine that that I know that are in this trap uh when they're 65 they're still working but they need their high earning job to sustain the uh the debt load that they've created for themselves not good uh it's best avoid it if you can't but uh they do it anyway yeah tell me about it and that that's why like what we said earlier people are confounded like oh well that guy he probably has like 10 million and in an account and accrue in interest and it's like no no uh he's making three hundred thousand dollars and he's spending three hundred and ten thousand dollars a year so he's in debt yeah but and what I like we we it's why would you uh have uh come from a place that you need to work just that desperate for that paycheck being uh a tool to someone else's I mean I I I've I've lived both and it's way better when yeah no I don't I don't want to do that then I must whatever you need I must do or to just the simple steps uh will keep the anxiety that people have because when you don't have a thousand dollars saved and any little thing yeah you get a blowout yeah or you get a cold or you you slip and you get a sprain where when you're up to your neck and bills living paycheck to paycheck and paying 20 30 percent to chase and and to citibank and all these that you're killing yourself just based on that anxiety and that stress that you put on yourself. Yeah I don't know what the uh longevity statistics are on paycheck to paycheck living uh but I do suspect it uh I I have a uh a watcher of Peter Atia and I don't know if you're familiar with uh his medical advice but he he has two uh two profiles one is the calendar time you're alive and then the other profile is the quality time that you live over that calendar time and stress is a major reducer of a quality of life so and if if you're up in age and you're still working you're stressed there there's no doubt about it so will will that take off the quality years I think it will I I don't have the data I'm just making that no radius comment well everybody feels that the executive life or because there's all these shows and social media that that that's hashtag winning but financial independence is more like and and this is a book that got a lot of people pissed off the millionaire next door how that that can't be they don't have a Rolex they they don't they don't they don't drive a hundred thousand dollar car yep they'll buy a car that's are a you mean a depreciating asset they they let someone else and then they'll they'll still buy just an ordinary car and and they don't have custom suits what what craziness what type of crap is this book yes yeah yeah well and you know and that's a book that uh people that understand money they know about the millionaire next door the stories are are good in that book it was I was oh it's amazing gurus if if um that are out there always pee on the book and always it's because they can't it it's much easier to go after that than these delusions of grandeur that if you keep on spending all your money so I can teach you the way so you can fly in these luxury jets and you can do all this and you you you'll be you'll be a servant of mine because all your money's going you know people are worried about the evangelists but what to tele evangelists but all these gurus that are out there that you know that'll make everybody millionaires and in social media famous all at the same time wow boy have we covered the ground Omar we we covered the ground running you you went scorched earth man i wasn't expecting you to to throw reality like that like like hey man 1555 if it's like if if it's true but you know you're you're supposed to ease people into like hey I hope you're a great parent and a great grandparent and they take really good care of you you know you just went like you know doom and gloom that it it's like but it it's true now we can talk on and on but you know people need a social media stock then you go on social media to look to go hashtag legendary hashtag winning they need to post their pictures and the spring schemes coming up there's so many good stuff coming up so we have to end it soon but how do people find you more importantly how do they this book Ghost Money the pathway to financial independence by the author who we're having an amazing time with Ronald Eugene Kmaktivitz hey good job how how do people find you more importantly how to how do they buy your book okay the the important thing here is the I have a website ghostmone the book.com so it's one word ghostmoneythebook.com and on that website is a link to Amazon and it's sold on Amazon so if you search Amazon Ghost Money the book it'll pop up uh on my website I I like to talk to people Omar but I'm I'm in the uh Reno Tahoe area so if this podcast reaches anybody that's semi-local okay I like to just go out and talk to groups I uh I use a uh five hand presentation no PowerPoint no nothing uh and just introduce people to what ghost money is about and collect feedback to uh to help people along so it's it's working I'm working with younger audiences primarily up to the 5055 group after that you're on your own but after that Ronald will show you where Harvey's is at a headbig on the progressive slots so I'm pretty easy and the other thing that's pretty easy is my last name if you get the spelling and you could type that in correctly you'll find me at all but that's guaranteed that definitely I'm I'm I'm glad I didn't have I but I got it right at the last time right or was the three times that are you okay good you know I I gotta say thank you for the book thank you for the hour you've you've taught you you you gave people a wake up call because at the end of the day you did and you said this was easy usually someone in your position would be it's very easy but I can show you how but for the low low price you you're just in service you want people to have quality you want people to be successful you want people to live life on their terms and not up knee deep knee deep in debt living paycheck to paycheck saying man if I I can have that one thousand dollars in savings man I might I'll I'll be I'll be like in the top I think it's only like it's less than 50 for it's like 40 percent yeah 30 for 30 40 of the folks yeah half a thousand dollars at least half a thousand bucks yeah and and you and I think that's like like that's like holy smokes when I tell that to people it's usually uh high you know I'm not gonna tell that to the guy at McDonald's because he's I I already know he knows that but when I I tell that to other people they don't they don't think it's true and I'm like well go ask your employees or go ask your the people your associates and yes it's true it well and they'll give you an excuse instead because you know we we love to lie to ourselves we can't be honest and go it's because I blow my money I don't have anything saved I don't have I I just see shiny I buy but the oh well you know it my mom and then there there was this like six years ago and uh uh no you don't have a thousand dollars get that get that rectified quick here I've I've got to ask you I always usually I'm the grim reaper and I want to want something to save me from this doom and gloom but I I'll I'll be a lot more cheerful since you've you've already provided that if you could leave listeners Ronald with one financial principle that could change their future forever what would it be?
SPEAKER_05Simple we've mentioned it a few times in the podcast invest monthly invest wisely that's the secret to a good life so what you're saying is just kiss keep it it's simple not stupid exactly yeah we can't we make we make our lives complicated actuality it's all it's easy everything whether it's to lose weight whether it's to be financially free you don't need to wait for a guru you don't need to wait for the new book you don't need Moses to come down the front tablets with God all the answers are already within us get the book and then you'll be like oh my gosh this is this is like sliced bread it is because we lie to ourselves each and every single day because that's what we do best.
SPEAKER_01Thank you for your time brother oh Mar this was very very engaging and I appreciate the candor the honesty and the platform I hope we uh do some good with your audience.
SPEAKER_05I and I I hope and when I'm back there again I I'll definitely hit you up because I'm always in I I haven't been in Reno or the area in a couple of years but you know I'm I'm I'm trying to uh get my finances back in order. You're welcome here anytime