The first type is labor leverage, which means having others work for you. Labor leverage is one of the oldest forms of leverage, but in modern society, its effectiveness is not the best. [1] I even believe it is the most outdated form of leverage. This is because managing other people is an extremely complex and challenging job that requires superb leadership skills. If done poorly, the manager might end up ostracized and devoured by their subordinates.
Capital is the second, relatively better form of leverage. Capital leverage means using money to expand the influence of decisions. [1] Capital is a more modern form of leverage, and while utilizing capital leverage has some difficulty, it requires a certain skill set. In the 20th century, people achieved astonishing wealth by utilizing capital leverage. Capital leverage was the primary form of leverage in the 20th century. If you survey the wealthiest people, you will find that the richest are bankers and politicians in corrupt countries—they are essentially all people who can mobilize large amounts of capital. Look at the top executives of large companies; aside from tech companies, the CEOs of the vast majority of established large companies are actually doing financial work. The amplifying effect of capital leverage is very obvious. Managing capital is easier than managing people because as capital continuously grows, the difficulty of managing it is far lower than managing an ever-expanding team.
The last type of leverage is the newest and the most accessible to ordinary people. This leverage is “products with zero marginal cost of reproduction.” This includes books, media, films, and code. Among all leverages that can be used without needing permission from others, code is arguably the most powerful—it only requires a computer.