Notes

The Foundation of Wealth Building Financial freedom is a goal that anyone today can achieve, of course, provided we have the courage to pursue the life we truly desire. As a famous saying goes: “It is not the difficulty that makes us give up, but rather that we give up, which makes it seem so difficult.” If we keep the laws of money in mind, we will find that our financial situation is steadily improving. Nothing can stop a mindset that aligns with the times. This applies to everyone’s life. Nothing can prevent us from enjoying the right we are born with—prosperity. A life of dignity and financial ease aligns with our natural laws. As long as we don’t give up, nothing can prevent us from reaching this goal. ...

Statement 1: If you have succeeded, it indicates that you worked very hard. Statement 2: If you don’t work hard, you won’t succeed. Statement 3: If you haven’t succeeded, it indicates that you didn’t work hard. Which of the above statements is the logical deduction of the original proposition?

Gambling activities everywhere should be legalized, because we simply cannot avoid it. Gambling is an inseparable part of life. The moment you sit behind the steering wheel or say your wedding vows, you are gambling. The “gambling” here is an ambiguous word.

One benefit of being able to recognize and address logical flaws is that it prevents us from unknowingly falling into logical misconceptions. It is one thing to “feel” that a logic is flawed, and quite another to specifically point out where the problem lies. This is similar to how a person might feel unwell but be unable to say exactly what illness they have; only after seeing a doctor does everything become clear.

What is the difference between “telling a blatant lie” and “exaggerating facts”?

· False Dichotomy We cannot assume that one must be correct just because there are only two choices presented. Many things are not “either/or” or “black/white.” “Since you don’t support free trade, you must support protectionism!” · Middle Ground Many people like to take the middle ground between two choices because it avoids either extreme, so sometimes this approach is called moderation (or the Doctrine of the Mean). “The junior high teacher believes that the school should arrange a fixed timetable. But the parents believe that students should be able to choose courses freely. So the best way is to combine the two.” ...

“Mr. Willie’s desk is always a mess because he is incompetent. A messy desk indicates a confused mind, which can only mean one thing: he is unfit for his job.” This sentence is actually very simple: “Incompetent, therefore the desk is messy; because the desk is messy, therefore he cannot be fit for his job.” · Counter-argument When we conclude that something is true simply because it “has not been proven false,” or conclude that it is false simply because it “has not been proven true,” our judgment contains a logical flaw. For example, although no one has found evidence of Atlantis’s existence yet, this does not mean that Atlantis does not exist. ...

· Error of Affirming the Consequent We cannot conclude that “when B is true, A is true” simply because “when A is true, B is true.” This error is also known as the “conversion error.” For example: “Every time I go on vacation, I feel very relaxed. Therefore, when I feel very relaxed, I must be on vacation.” Feeling relaxed during a vacation does not mean that relaxation only occurs during a vacation; one might feel relaxed at home, while eating dinner, or while chatting with friends… Therefore, the fallacy of the above statement is obvious. ...

First, we must clearly distinguish between inference and assumption (or hypothesis). What is called an assumption is the premise part of an argument, and it is an inseparable part of the argumentative process.

I’ve figured out how to allocate my money. I’m going to dedicate 50% of my income to my ‘goose’, put 40% into my dream savings fund, and use the remaining 10% for spending.

“There are many reasons,” the old lady explained to me. “First, because sometimes I like to hold these things in my hands and appreciate them. I really like gold and banknotes.” I looked at her with slight disagreement, thinking that liking money in this way—I wonder if it’s normal—and yet she admitted it so frankly… But then I immediately recalled the scene that day, when Marcel and I looked at the things in the box and counted them one by one. How delightful it was when we touched each gold bar! Shouldn’t an old lady enjoy the same sense of happiness when opening the box? Besides, all these things belong to her. Mrs. Tao continued, “Second, this money is kept for emergencies. No matter what happens, the things I put in the box are enough for me to spend for several years.” “That might be too much!” I said with a laugh. “That depends on how much money you own in total,” Mrs. Tao explained, “If you keep cash at home that exceeds 10% of your total assets, it’s meaningless.” I whistled softly. This old lady must be very wealthy. “Third, I have invested a large portion of the money in stocks, which involves a certain risk. Therefore, it is wise to keep a portion of the money on hand. I will explain this point to you again when we have the chance.”

To live a happier and more satisfying life, one must change oneself. This has nothing to do with money; money itself neither makes one happy nor brings unhappiness. Money is neutral, neither good nor bad. Only when money belongs to a person will it exert a positive or negative influence on them. Money can be used for good purposes, or it can be used for bad purposes. A happy person will be happier when they have money; conversely, a pessimistic or anxious person will have more worries the more money they possess.

“You only incur a loss when you sell the stocks. If you keep these shares, someone might be willing to pay more for them in the future.” “So, during this time, I won’t get anything?” I wanted to know everything. “No, during this period, you participate in all the dividends.” The old lady immediately put my concerns to rest. “Whenever the company makes a profit, it distributes the profit to all the shareholders. This is called dividends.” “Meaning, Marcel has to regularly set aside a portion of his income and give it to us?” Monica asked excitedly. “The company calculates its profit once a year, and then decides what to do with that money. For example, it can use a portion of the money to buy new equipment, which makes the company run better, and the remaining portion is distributed to all the shareholders.”

When the stock market first plummeted, my reaction was exactly the same as yours. I hated myself for buying these stocks, and I was extremely worried that the market would continue to fall. At that time, newspapers were filled with pessimistic predictions, claiming it was the start of a global economic crisis—the eternal winter of the stock exchange.

Almost no profit

So you had better not invest too much. And if the market continues to fall, wouldn’t it be better if you still have funds available to buy in again?

No one knows; all experts attempting to predict future trends always make miscalculations, and there are many unexpected scenarios. For this reason, you should always keep some cash reserves. You absolutely cannot invest all your money in stocks or funds.

Mrs. Tao Mu, however, asked him how he planned to manage this money and how to make it continue growing. Our conclusion was: to invest in the same fund again. Thus, Marcel immediately realized that selling the fund now would be pointless.

This is the reason why you haven’t found an opportunity yet. People who don’t go looking for opportunities, at most, will just pick up a pie from the sky when they are lucky. You only need to go look for suitable opportunities, that’s enough. Focus on what he knows, what he can do, and what he possesses. But I am thinking that there is no nursing home around my house, and doing that is obviously unwise, especially since Qianqian has repeatedly reminded me how I should proceed.

First, at any time, you must not rely solely on one job. Its duration won’t be as long as you imagine, so you must immediately look for another alternative job. Second, you will definitely encounter some difficulties, difficulties that are hard for you to foresee right now. When that time comes, you will be able to see it.