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一個人變富的開始：少相信人，多相信書 — Transcript

by 納瓦爾思想 · 6,078 words · 954 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00Open your phone and you'll see people
0:02everywhere teaching you how to make
0:03money. The writer Lao Qian once said
0:06something that is worth pondering
0:07repeatedly. He said that when it comes
0:10to making money, you should trust books
0:11more than people. Most people seeing
0:13this for the first time will think it's
0:15too absolute—who can live in this
0:17world without listening to the advice
0:18of those around them? Could everyone's
0:20experience really be useless? Only
0:23after seeing more and hearing enough
0:25real stories of rise and fall do you
0:26slowly grasp the weight of this
0:28statement. Schopenhauer said the
0:30greatest weakness of human nature is
0:32gullibility. Many young people find
0:34this too pessimistic, believing that
0:36trust between people is the most
0:38precious quality. Later, one realizes
0:40that the "gullibility" mentioned isn't
0:42about guarding yourself against
0:44everyone, but rather that when it
0:46involves real money, you shouldn't
0:48easily make others 'words the sole
0:50basis for your decisions. Especially
0:52the words of those who don't have to
0:54bear any consequences for your losses.
0:56The human brain has an innate tendency
0:58to trust acquaintances; this is an
1:00instinct left over from evolution. In
1:02primitive tribes tens of thousands of
1:04years ago, people spent their lives
1:06dealing with just a few dozen others.
1:07If an acquaintance said where the prey
1:09or the predators were, believing them
1:11meant survival; not believing them
1:12could cost you your life. Back then,
1:14trusting acquaintances was the best
1:16choice because everyone knew each
1:17other's history and interests were
1:19deeply tied. Anyone who cheated others
1:21couldn't stay in the tribe. But now
1:23it's different. We live in a society of
1:25strangers where hundreds of millions
1:27cooperate. The people around you may
1:29come from completely different circles,
1:31and you have no idea what stance lies
1:33behind their words or what information
1:35they might be missing—or perhaps they
1:37themselves are being kept in the dark.
1:39But our brains haven't kept up with
1:41this change; we still instinctively
1:43feel that what acquaintances say is
1:45reliable and for our own good. It is
1:47precisely this instinct etched into our
1:50genes that causes many people to fall
1:52into massive traps. There is a widely
1:54circulated real-life case involving an
1:55ordinary office worker named Lao Zhang,
1:57who works in administration at a small
1:59local company. He usually lives
2:01frugally, sharing a two-bedroom
2:02apartment in the old city with his wife
2:05. His daughter is in junior high, and
2:07while they aren't wealthy, life is
2:09stable and secure. In fact, he is
2:11usually a very cautious person. He
2:13never takes high-yield investment
2:15flyers handed out on the street, and he
2:17walks around those insurance promotion
2:19booths at supermarket entrances
2:20offering free eggs. He always tells his
2:22family that pies don't fall from the
2:24sky, and anything that does is a trap.
2:26In 2021, the cryptocurrency bull market
2:28grew crazily, with Bitcoin's price
2:30surging to 60,000 dollars, and myths
2:32about wealth creation in the crypto
2:34circle were everywhere online. They say
2:36someone invested a hundred thousand and
2:38made enough for a house in just half a
2:40year. Someone quit their job to trade
2:42full-time and achieved financial
2:43freedom. Old Zhang originally knew
2:45nothing about these things and couldn't
2:47even figure out what Bitcoin actually
2:49was, until his childhood friend of over
2:5120 years invited him out for a meal.
2:53That friend had always been seen as
2:55well-connected, often claiming to know
2:57this CEO or that boss, talking about
2:59multi-million dollar projects at every
3:01social gathering. That day at the table
3:03, he leaned in and told Old Zhang he
3:05was working on primary market
3:07cryptocurrency projects. He claimed to
3:09have inside channels to secure an
3:11allocation, and that entering now was a
3:13guaranteed win; in half a year, he’d
3:16at least triple his money. He patted
3:18Old Zhang’s shoulder, saying their
3:20lifelong bond meant he could never lie
3:22to him. He said he doesn't tell just
3:24anyone about this opportunity, and if
3:25it weren't for seeing Old Zhang
3:26struggling and wanting to give him a
3:28hand, he wouldn't even bother talking
3:29about it. If you miss this chance, you
3:31might never find such a great
3:33opportunity to turn your life around
3:35again. Think about it from another
3:36angle: if you were facing a childhood
3:38friend you’d known for 20 years,
3:40someone who knows you inside and out,
3:42sitting across from you, pouring their
3:44heart out and promising you returns,
3:46wouldn't you be tempted? Old Zhang was
3:48hesitant at first, saying he didn't
3:50understand these things and didn't dare
3:51to invest blindly. The friend didn't
3:53pressure him, but just messaged him
3:55every day, sending screenshots of his
3:57account making tens of thousands daily,
3:59sharing chat logs of group members
4:01buying cars and houses, and even taking
4:03him to two so-called high-end industry
4:05mixers. The people at those mixers were
4:07all dressed in fancy clothes, chatting
4:09about blockchain, Web3, and the next
4:10generation of the internet, throwing
4:12around talk of valuations in the
4:13hundreds of millions. Sitting there
4:15watching these "successful people," the
4:17defensive wall Old Zhang had maintained
4:19for decades slowly began to crumble.
4:21Later, he made a decision that still
4:23haunts him: he mortgaged the house he
4:25lived in to the bank, added 3x leverage
4:27, and dumped all the money into the
4:29project his friend mentioned. For the
4:31first month, his account balance was
4:32indeed going up. At its peak, he had
4:34over 400,000 in floating profit. Old
4:37Zhang couldn't even focus on work back
4:38then, feeling he’d slogged for half
4:40his life and was finally about to make
4:41it. He even promised his wife they’d
4:43trade up to a large three-bedroom in a
4:44school district once they cashed out,
4:46and send their daughter abroad for
4:47college after high school. But in less
4:49than six months, the entire crypto
4:51market suffered a total crash. Bitcoin
4:53plummeted from over 60,000 dollars all
4:55the way down to 20,000. His leveraged
4:57position was liquidated instantly; he
4:58didn't have a penny left in his account
5:00and ended up owing the bank over 1.2
5:02million. At this point, he tried to
5:03find his childhood friend, but he had
5:05long been blocked on WeChat, his phone
5:07was always turned off, and when he went
5:09to the office he had mentioned, the
5:11place was already empty. After asking
5:13others who had attended the meetings,
5:15he realized that the friend himself was
5:17just a downline. The people above had
5:18run off with the money, and his own
5:20investment was completely lost; he
5:22didn't even know where he was hiding.
5:24Just like that, Old Zhang and his wife
5:26lost the savings of half a lifetime and
5:28were left with over a million in debt;
5:30their once stable life collapsed in an
5:32instant. His wife cried at home all day
5:34, his daughter's tutoring was canceled,
5:36and the plan to move to a new house was
5:39out of the question; the family is
5:40still renting and paying off debt to
5:42this day. In this situation, the
5:44childhood friend who dragged him into
5:46the trap is certainly at fault. Harming
5:48a friend for a commission is truly
5:50unethical, but looking at it another
5:52way, what if Old Zhang hadn't trusted
5:54him so blindly and had taken the time
5:56to understand what this really was? If
5:59he had asked why such a profitable
6:00opportunity would be offered to him for
6:02no reason, and remembered the most
6:04basic investment principle—don't
6:06invest in what you don't understand,
6:08and don't leverage everything you have
6:09—would he have ended up in this state
6:11? Taleb wrote a line in The Black Swan
6:14that perfectly cuts to the core: people
6:16rely too much on the experiences of
6:18acquaintances while ignoring systemic
6:20risk. It means that when people around
6:23you tell you something is a guaranteed
6:25win. They might have just happened to
6:27see one or two people succeed and think
6:29this is a path everyone can take,
6:31failing to see the ten thousand others
6:33behind them who lost everything. They
6:35also fail to see that market risk is
6:38independent of individual will. It's
6:40not something you can avoid just by
6:42knowing an insider. Many people fail to
6:44realize a more painful truth: most
6:46people giving you free financial advice
6:49are inherently biased. This bias isn't
6:51necessarily intentional deception; it
6:53could be their own cognitive limitation
6:55—they truly believe what they're
6:57saying is right. Like Old Zhang's
6:59friend, he might have believed the
7:00project was profitable at first, or it
7:02could be determined by his position. He
7:04gets a commission for your investment
7:06and money from your purchase, so of
7:08course he'll only talk about the
7:10benefits and never the risks. Just like
7:12real estate agents will always tell you
7:14prices are going up, insurance sellers
7:15will always say their product is the
7:17best deal on the market, and
7:19franchisers will always tell you that
7:20you'll break even within three months.
7:22It’s not fair to call them all
7:25scammers, but what they say always
7:27serves their own interests, not yours.
7:30The advice given to you for free is
7:32often the most expensive, because
7:35you’re not just paying a few dollars
7:37in fees; you’re paying with your
7:39hard-earned savings, years or even
7:42decades of effort, and your family's
7:44financial security. Human nature
7:46inherently prefers shortcuts, always
7:48hoping someone else will show us the
7:50way to make money. We want results
7:52without having to think or make
7:54mistakes, just by following others. But
7:57in reality, most advice is based on
7:59limited perspectives, not wisdom that
8:02has stood the test of time. No one can
8:04take responsibility for your life
8:07except yourself. So, someone might ask,
8:09if I shouldn't listen to others, what
8:11should I believe in? Believe in myself?
8:14But if I’ve never invested or started
8:16a business before, how would I know
8:18what’s right and what’s wrong? A
8:20research firm once spent five years
8:22tracking hundreds of self-made
8:24billionaires globally to figure out
8:26what common traits they possessed that
8:29ordinary people could replicate. The
8:31results were quite unexpected: it
8:33wasn't that their IQ was higher than
8:35the average person, nor that they had
8:37family connections, nor even that they
8:39were just luckier than others. 88%of
8:41them maintained one very simple habit:
8:44reading for at least 30 minutes every
8:47day. 30 minutes is really not much; you
8:50probably spend two or three hours a day
8:52scrolling through short videos and
8:54social media. But by sticking to just
8:5730 minutes of daily reading for 10 or
8:5920 years, the gap between people
9:02becomes immense. These wealthy
9:04individuals didn't read "get rich in
9:06three days" success guides. Most read
9:08biographies of famous figures, learning
9:10lessons from legends who had navigated
9:12various cycles, and they read history.
9:14They studied the economic booms and
9:16busts of the past centuries, human
9:18nature, finance, and technology to
9:19understand the underlying logic of how
9:21business works. Many also read
9:23philosophy and psychology to understand
9:25human nature and themselves. Nassim
9:27once said that books are the world's
9:29cheapest asset, yet they can make a
9:31person incredibly wealthy. Many people
9:33think this is just intellectuals
9:34talking when they are young. "What,
9:36just reading a few books?""Can it
9:38really just conjure up money?" It’s
9:40only after reading many books and
9:41witnessing several economic cycles that
9:43you finally understand what this
9:44sentence really means. For just a few
9:46dollars, you can buy a book containing
9:48the wisdom and experience someone spent
9:51years, decades, or even a lifetime
9:53gathering through countless stumbles
9:55and research. Is there any better deal
9:58in this world? If you think about it,
10:00when someone tells you a project is a
10:02guaranteed success, they don’t have
10:04to take any responsibility for that
10:06statement. If you lose money, they
10:08might just say they didn’t expect the
10:10market to turn out that way, clearing
10:11themselves of all blame, and you’ll
10:13have nowhere to go to hold them
10:15accountable. But books are different.
10:18The classic works that endure have
10:20stood the test of time, passing through
10:22the filters of years, decades, or even
10:24centuries. Countless people have read,
10:26verified, and questioned them; the
10:28logic within is built to withstand
10:30scrutiny. To write a single book, an
10:32author might read thousands of
10:34documents, conduct over a decade of
10:36research, and spend years refining the
10:38content. They must be responsible for
10:40every word they write, because the book
10:42is there for all to see; if they are
10:44wrong, they are wrong, and countless
10:45readers will point it out, perhaps even
10:47pinning them to the pillar of
10:49historical shame. Many people know
10:50Buffett is a legendary investor, and
10:52when asked about the secret to his
10:54success, he said, "My job is
10:56essentially just reading." Many think
10:58he is just being humble, assuming he
11:00must have insider information or
11:02resources that ordinary people cannot
11:04access. But if you look at his
11:06biographies and years of interviews and
11:08shareholder letters, you realize he is
11:10telling the truth. Buffett was
11:12sensitive to numbers and business from
11:14a young age; while other kids played
11:16ball or games after school, he was in
11:18the library devouring books on stocks
11:20and business. By middle school, he had
11:23read every investment book in the local
11:25library, and in college, he spent most
11:27of his time there as well. Beyond
11:30finance and investment texts, he read
11:33extensively on biographies, philosophy,
11:35and psychology. He said these books
11:38helped him understand people and why
11:40markets react irrationally. Later, when
11:42he started his business, whether he was
11:44on a plane for a trip or in between
11:46meetings, his bag was always filled
11:48with books and newspapers, which he
11:49would read whenever he had a spare
11:51moment. He once calculated that he
11:53spends about five to six hours a day
11:56reading. Charlie Munger, Buffett's most
11:59important business partner, once put it
12:02bluntly: "I have known no wise people
12:05who didn't read all the time—none,
12:08zero." These two men, with a combined
12:10age of nearly 200, still maintain the
12:12habit of extensive daily reading; those
12:15richer, smarter, and more successful
12:17than you are all constantly reading and
12:19updating their understanding. What
12:21makes you think that by listening to a
12:23bit of insider information and
12:24following others to invest some money,
12:26you can easily make a fortune? Some say
12:28reading is useless, that they forget
12:30what they read after finishing a book
12:31and haven't seen much money from it. In
12:33fact, this is the biggest
12:35misunderstanding about reading. Reading
12:37isn't just for passing school exams;
12:39you don't need to memorize every
12:41sentence, nor will reading one
12:43investment book immediately tell you
12:46which stock will make you rich. Reading
12:48is a discipline with compound interest,
12:51much like the food you eat every day;
12:53you won't remember a specific meal from
12:55ten years ago, but that food became
12:57your bones and flesh, supporting your
13:00life until now. Reading is the same.
13:03Every book you read and every principle
13:05you remember will slowly merge into
13:07your way of thinking. It changes how
13:10you see the world and the logic behind
13:12your decisions, helping you avoid many
13:15pitfalls at critical moments. It helps
13:18you seize opportunities you couldn't
13:21see before; the market is always full
13:23of people who rush in blindly when
13:25prices rise, thinking they are the
13:28chosen ones, and panic-sell when they
13:30drop, fearing losses. After chasing
13:32highs and selling lows for over a
13:34decade, they end up not only failing to
13:36make money but losing a significant
13:38amount; ask them why they bought that
13:40stock or project back then. The answer
13:42is always that a friend recommended it.
13:44Everyone is buying, so it must go up;
13:46ask them why they sold, and the answer
13:48is that everyone else is selling, so
13:50they'd better sell before it hits rock
13:52bottom. Why does this happen? Because
13:55they lack their own cognitive framework
13:57. All their judgments are driven by
14:00emotion. They have no idea what the
14:03things they buy are actually worth.
14:05Without knowing where the risks lie,
14:08they can only be led by the nose by the
14:10market and become the ones being
14:12harvested. If you look at those who
14:14consistently make money in the market
14:16over the long term, their decisions are
14:18never based on insider tips or blindly
14:21following others; their judgments are
14:23all based on the cognitive framework
14:25they’ve built through years of
14:27reading and practice. They know the
14:30boundaries of their abilities, know
14:32what money they can earn and what they
14:35shouldn't even touch, and know to
14:37remain calm when the market is euphoric
14:39and rational when it is in a panic. No
14:42book will give you direct answers to
14:44these things, nor will it tell you what
14:46to buy or sell tomorrow, but books will
14:48teach you how to think, how to judge
14:50right from wrong, and how to build your
14:52own principles and systems. These are
14:54the things that will benefit you for a
14:56lifetime. Many people have a major
14:58misunderstanding about making money,
15:00believing it depends on luck,
15:01connections, or having a mentor to pull
15:03you up. In reality, the further you go,
15:06the more you realize that, in the end,
15:08making money is a competition of
15:09cognition. You will never make money
15:11beyond the scope of your cognition,
15:13unless you rely on luck. However, money
15:15made through luck is often lost through
15:17your own incompetence in the end. This
15:19is inevitable. Every cent you earn is a
15:22realization of your perception of the
15:25world; every cent you lose is because
15:27there is a flaw in your perception of
15:29the world. The greatest fairness in
15:32this world is that when a person's
15:34wealth exceeds their cognition, society
15:36has a hundred ways to harvest you,
15:39until your cognition matches your
15:41wealth. This isn't just empty chicken
15:43soup; it is the most honest conclusion
15:44drawn from watching countless people
15:46build mansions, host guests, and then
15:47see it all come crashing down. So,
15:49where does cognition come from? It's
15:51not something you can get from having a
15:53few meals or drinks with others, nor is
15:56it built by scrolling through short
15:57videos or reading a few "insider"
15:59articles. Those fragmented pieces of
16:01information are just things others have
16:03chewed up and fed to you; you can only
16:05remember a few points, unable to piece
16:07together a complete system, and many of
16:09those points are even wrong—made up
16:10just to grab your attention. The most
16:12reliable and cost-effective way to gain
16:15cognition is to settle down and read.
16:17Returning to reading, the biggest
16:19headache for many at the beginning is
16:21choosing books. With so many new books
16:23released every year and such a wide
16:25variety of reading lists online, what
16:27should you actually read? Many people
16:28have fallen into the trap of picking
16:30bad books and have read plenty of
16:31worthless material. Once you've stepped
16:33into enough traps, you can gradually
16:35summarize some practical experience.
16:36Actually, you don't need to start
16:38reading with a strong utilitarian
16:39mindset. Don't expect that after
16:41reading a book, you'll get a raise or
16:42make a fortune the next week. Doing so
16:44will make it hard to read, and you'll
16:46easily be deceived by those trashy
16:47books disguised as self-help guides.
16:49It’s like eating; you don't expect to
16:51gain strength immediately from a single
16:53bite, but you still eat it because you
16:54know it's good for your body. Reading
16:57is the same. Just start reading, and
16:59gradually you will know what you are
17:01missing and what you need to read. If
17:02you often feel like you never have
17:04enough time, staying busy from morning
17:06till night, only to realize by the end
17:08of the year that you haven't achieved
17:10anything significant, you should start
17:13by reading books on time and energy,
17:15such as The 7 Habits of Highly
17:16Effective People. It has been in print
17:18for nearly 40 years, and there’s a
17:21reason why so many still read it
17:23repeatedly. This book doesn't teach you
17:25little time-saving hacks, like how to
17:28listen to books while eating or how to
17:30stretch your day into 48 hours; it
17:32covers fundamental principles. For
17:34instance, you must distinguish between
17:36what is important and what is urgent,
17:38rather than being led by urgent but
17:40unimportant tasks, and focus your time
17:42on things that truly matter and bring
17:44long-term value. For example, before
17:47starting a task, clearly define the end
17:49result you want; otherwise, the harder
17:51you work, the further you may drift
17:54from your goal. For many, the biggest
17:56takeaway from this book is realizing
17:58that much of their busyness over the
18:01past decade was aimless—using
18:03tactical diligence to mask strategic
18:05laziness. There is another thin book
18:07called Pomodoro Technique Illustrated.
18:10You can finish reading it in a single
18:11afternoon. The method it describes is
18:13so simple that you might even think
18:15it’s a bit silly. Work for 25 minutes
18:17, then take a full five-minute break;
18:19this cycle is called a "Pomodoro."
18:21During this time, you can't do anything
18:23unrelated to work, no scrolling on your
18:25phone or replying to messages. Sounds
18:28simple, right? But once you actually
18:30try it, you'll find it solves a problem
18:32most people have today: distraction.
18:34Our attention is too easily scattered
18:36these days. Every time the phone pings,
18:38we pick it up; after working for ten
18:40minutes, we want to scroll through
18:41short videos for two, and before we
18:43know it, half an hour has vanished. By
18:44the end of the day, you might have
18:46spent less than two hours actually
18:47focusing on your work. This method is
18:49essentially a way to train your
18:51concentration, helping you gradually
18:53learn to do only one thing at a time.
18:55If you stick with it for a while,
18:56you'll find that your sense of control
18:58over time returns, and your efficiency
19:00improves significantly. You can finish
19:02your work without needing to work
19:03overtime every day. You'll regain
19:05control of your time, channel your
19:07energy into what’s truly valuable,
19:08and earning money will simply be a
19:10byproduct. More important than time
19:12management is the mindset in your head.
19:14Many people live for decades without
19:17ever seriously examining the thoughts
19:19in their own minds. Those ideas you
19:21take for granted—like "a stable job
19:23is the only good job,""entrepreneurship
19:25is a distraction," or "you need
19:27connections to make money"—were
19:29actually instilled in you by your
19:30parents, influenced by those around you
19:33, and passed down by society. You have
19:35never truly considered whether these
19:37ideas are correct or if they are
19:38actually right for you. These old
19:40concepts act like invisible shackles,
19:42blinding you to other possibilities and
19:44making it impossible for you to earn
19:46money beyond your current level of
19:47understanding. There is a book called
19:50Cognitive Reframing. The author,
19:52Richard, says that your perspective in
19:55life is not set in stone; you must
19:57constantly update your beliefs, or you
20:00will eventually be left behind by the
20:02times. He explains that reshaping your
20:05cognition isn't as mysterious as people
20:08think. The first step is to pause, look
20:11back at those ideas you take for
20:13granted, and distinguish between proven
20:16truths and fallacies you were told.
20:19Then, discard the outdated, wrong
20:22beliefs, dig into the underlying logic
20:24of everything rather than just the
20:27surface, and gradually build your own
20:29system of thought. The book combines
20:32neuroscience research with real-life
20:35cases of ordinary people, avoiding
20:37empty success slogans. After reading it
20:40, you'll realize that many things you
20:42previously thought were impossible were
20:44only prevented by the old beliefs
20:47binding your hands. Another book many
20:49have likely heard of is The Awakening
20:52of Cognition. It explains how our
20:54brains work from a scientific
20:56perspective, noting that our brains are
20:58divided into three layers: the
21:00innermost instinctive brain handles
21:03basic physiological reactions, like
21:05eating when hungry or running from
21:07danger. The middle emotional brain
21:09governs our joys and sorrows,
21:11preferring instant gratification and
21:13hating effort or waiting; the outermost
21:15rational brain handles logical thinking
21:17, such as long-term planning and
21:19delayed gratification. However, the
21:21power of the rational brain is actually
21:23quite weak; most of the time, our
21:24decisions are dominated by the
21:26instinctive and emotional brains. Look,
21:28why do many people know that scrolling
21:29through short videos is a waste of time
21:31, yet still can't stop once they start?
21:33Even knowing they should save money and
21:35invest in themselves, people can't help
21:36but impulsively spend on a bunch of
21:38useless things. Even knowing high-yield
21:40projects definitely carry risks, people
21:41still can't resist investing money to
21:43try and make a quick buck. Essentially,
21:44this is all because the instinctive and
21:46emotional brains have gained the upper
21:48hand. Your rational brain is simply no
21:50match for them. Once you understand
21:52this, you will realize where many of
21:54your irrational behaviors come from,
21:56and gradually find ways to break free
21:58from instinctual control to make more
22:00rational decisions. The book also
22:02covers many underlying principles of
22:03personal growth. For instance, how to
22:05overcome anxiety, cultivate patience,
22:07and improve self-control. Many people
22:09realize after reading it that they have
22:11lived the past twenty or thirty years
22:13in a daze. Only after finishing this
22:15book did they feel they had truly woken
22:17up. Of course, if you want a more
22:19direct understanding of what money is
22:21all about and want to improve your
22:22financial IQ, there are also a few
22:24books worth reading. One book is called
22:26"Poor Economics," written by two
22:28economists who spent 15 years traveling
22:30to the poorest regions across five
22:33continents to conduct extensive
22:34research. The book describes many
22:37fascinating phenomena. For example,
22:39many poor people who earn only a few
22:41dollars a day would rather go hungry to
22:43save up for a brand-name TV or
22:45expensive jewelry, or even spend years
22:48of savings on an extravagant wedding.
22:50Many know that education could change
22:52their children's fate, yet they would
22:54rather have them go to work early to
22:56earn some money than send them to
22:58school. Why does this happen? It is not
23:01because they are lazy or unintelligent,
23:03but because their environment prevents
23:06them from seeing a long-term future.
23:08Their cognitive level is too limited;
23:10they can only see immediate gains and
23:12cannot grasp the returns brought by
23:14long-term investment. Because they lack
23:16sufficient information and don't know
23:18what better choices exist, they fall
23:20into the trap of poverty time and time
23:21again—the busier they are, the poorer
23:23they become, and the poorer they are,
23:25the busier they stay, unable to break
23:27free. This book isn't meant to make you
23:29pity the poor; it is meant to help you
23:31see clearly what exactly is holding you
23:33back. It shows how those thoughts and
23:35habits you take for granted are the
23:37very reasons you keep failing to make
23:39money. There is another book with a
23:41rather kitschy title called "Secrets of
23:44the Millionaire Mind." When many people
23:46first see the title, they assume it’s
23:48just another get-rich-quick scheme, but
23:50after flipping through a few pages,
23:51they realize it contains very practical
23:53truths. The book discusses many
23:55differences in mindset between the
23:57wealthy and the average person. One
23:58point that leaves a deep impression is
24:00that when facing setbacks, the average
24:02person's first reaction is to complain
24:04—blaming the economy, their lack of
24:05background or luck, or others for not
24:07giving them a chance. When facing the
24:09same situation, those who are good at
24:11making money first think about how to
24:12solve the problem and change the status
24:14quo, refusing to waste time on emotions
24:16. Many people spend their whole lives
24:18holding onto their existing ideas,
24:20unable to listen to any opinion
24:22different from their own, always
24:23assuming they are right. But those who
24:26truly make money know their own
24:27limitations; they are willing to accept
24:30new things and overturn their own past
24:32misconceptions. There are also many who
24:34dream every day of starting a company
24:36or traveling the world once they’re
24:37rich, but after years of thinking,
24:39they’ve yet to take the first step.
24:41Yet, those who really make money rarely
24:43wait for everything to be perfect
24:45before acting; they have a general
24:47direction, start doing it, and adjust
24:50or solve problems along the way. These
24:52principles sound simple, but if you
24:54look at your own daily life, you will
24:56find that often you are exactly the
24:58person the book describes—someone
25:00limited by your own thinking. This book
25:02won’t teach you specifically how to
25:04make a million a year, but it will help
25:06you clear out, bit by bit, the wrong
25:07ideas in your head that are hindering
25:09your success. Only when your mindset is
25:11right will your actions be right, and
25:13only then will the final results be
25:14right. Surely some will say that with
25:16the internet so advanced today, can't
25:19we learn from watching short videos and
25:21influencer shares? Why must we spend
25:23time reading thick books? There is
25:25indeed a lot of useful information
25:27online, but one must understand the
25:29inherent limitations of such content.
25:31Short videos and most online articles
25:33are essentially fragmented content;
25:35their core goal is to grab your
25:37attention, provide immediate
25:39stimulation, and keep you entertained.
25:41You are willing to like and share
25:42because, while scrolling, every single
25:44clip feels like it makes perfect sense.
25:46You feel like it resonates with you, so
25:48you save it, telling yourself you’ll
25:50use it later. But after you finish
25:51scrolling and put down your phone, you
25:53haven't remembered anything, and you
25:55won't actually take any action. Because
25:56what you get are just scattered points
25:58of view, lacking complete logic and
26:00systematic methods, so you have no idea
26:02how to apply them to your own life.
26:04Furthermore, the quality of online
26:06content is uneven; many people haven't
26:08even figured out a subject themselves
26:10before acting like teachers to instruct
26:12others. One day they talk about this
26:13trend, the next about that profitable
26:15project; you can't distinguish what's
26:17right, what's wrong, or what’s just
26:19someone trying to brainwash you into
26:21spending money. Books are different.
26:24From completion to publication, a book
26:26goes through repeated revisions,
26:28polishing, and layers of editorial
26:30review; its content is systematic and
26:33follows a logical chain. The process of
26:35reading a book is not about passively
26:37accepting the author's views, but
26:39following the author’s train of
26:41thought to understand an issue
26:42thoroughly, from beginning to end,
26:44inside and out. This process exercises
26:46your critical thinking, teaching you
26:48how to analyze problems and judge right
26:50from wrong on your own. Especially
26:52classic books that have stood the test
26:54of decades or centuries; they have been
26:57read, verified, and questioned by
26:59countless people, making them far more
27:01reliable than clickbait content online.
27:03This doesn't mean you can't consume
27:05online content, but rather that you
27:07shouldn't rely on fragmented
27:09information as your primary way of
27:11learning. You must first build your own
27:13knowledge system and establish your own
27:16standards of judgment through reading.
27:18With this foundation, when you look at
27:20online content, you'll know what is
27:22useful, what is trash, and what is just
27:24someone trying to brainwash you for
27:26money; otherwise, you'll be led astray
27:29by all kinds of information. One day
27:31you think this blogger is right, the
27:33next you think that expert makes sense,
27:35and soon your brain is a mess, having
27:37learned nothing while easily becoming a
27:39victim of scams. Some people always say
27:41they are too tired from work, chores,
27:43and childcare to find time to read, but
27:45the truth is, time is something you
27:47have to squeeze out. If you spend 30
27:49minutes less scrolling short videos and
27:5130 minutes less on useless group chats
27:53and social media, you've already found
27:55your time. You don't need to read a
27:57book a day, nor start with difficult
27:59ones; read 20 pages a day, and that's
28:02over 7,000 pages a year, equivalent to
28:0420 or 30 books. Keep at it for three to
28:06five years, and the gap between you and
28:09those around you will slowly widen;
28:11besides, reading doesn't always have to
28:13be done sitting formally at a desk. You
28:15can listen to audiobooks during your
28:17commute, read a few pages of an e-book
28:19while waiting in line, or read a
28:21physical book in bed for half an hour;
28:24if you really want to read, you can
28:26always find the time. A master once
28:28said something that exposed a truth
28:30many are unwilling to admit: the most
28:33reliable way to make money is never by
28:35listening to others, but by learning
28:37yourself. Many people spend their whole
28:39lives looking for shortcuts, hoping for
28:41a mentor to pull them up, wanting to
28:43make money easily off others'
28:44experiences without wanting to spend
28:46time learning or thinking for
28:47themselves. But how many shortcuts are
28:50there really in this world? Without
28:52sufficient insight of your own, you
28:53wouldn't recognize a mentor even if
28:55they stood right in front of you, and
28:56you wouldn't be able to grasp a golden
28:58opportunity even if it fell into your
29:00lap. The biggest risk on the path to
29:02making money is never market volatility
29:04, policy changes, or fierce competition
29:06; it is your own lack of understanding.
29:09If your insight is insufficient, even
29:11the best opportunity will seem like a
29:13trap to you, and even if you make money
29:15by sheer luck, you will eventually lose
29:17it all through your own inability. This
29:19is a principle verified by countless
29:21people with their own hard-earned money
29:24. Instead of spending your days
29:25networking, searching for shortcuts,
29:27asking others what’s profitable, or
29:29listening to unreliable advice, it is
29:31better to settle down and read a few
29:33good books that have stood the test of
29:35time. Transform the wisdom that others
29:38have summarized only after countless
29:40failures into your own. Everyone is
29:42very anxious nowadays, all wanting to
29:44make money and achieve success quickly.
29:46Seeing people around you buying houses
29:48and cars, and seeing young people
29:50online achieving financial freedom. You
29:53get anxious and want to take shortcuts
29:56to get results fast, but remember one
29:58thing: fast is slow, and slow is fast.
30:01If you spend a year or two settling
30:04down to read, think, practice, build
30:06your own cognitive system, and find
30:08your own path, you will benefit for
30:11decades to come; this path looks slow,
30:13but it is actually the fastest.
30:15Conversely, if you always want to make
30:17quick money and rely on others 'tips to
30:20chase trends, one wrong move could cost
30:22you ten years of savings, and it will
30:24take even longer to climb back out.
30:26What looks fast is actually the slowest
30:29. Reading has never been an elitist
30:31activity, nor is it something only
30:33students need to do. It is the
30:35lowest-cost way for ordinary people
30:37like us to improve ourselves. It is
30:39something you can do regardless of your
30:41age or your current circumstances. You
30:43don't need a lot of money, and you
30:45don't need special connections or
30:47backgrounds. For just a few dollars,
30:49you can buy a book and converse with
30:51the world's brightest minds, learning
30:53the experience and wisdom they gathered
30:55over a lifetime; this is the fairest
30:57opportunity our era offers to ordinary
31:00people. I'm talking about this today
31:02not to tell you that reading will
31:04definitely make you a billionaire; I
31:06wouldn't say such unrealistic things. I
31:08just want to tell you that in this era
31:10filled with noise and people looking to
31:12take your money, you must have your own
31:14backbone and your own criteria for
31:16judgment; you cannot simply believe
31:18whatever others tell you, and reading
31:20is the best way to help you build that
31:22backbone. You don't need to force
31:24yourself to read difficult classics
31:26from the start; begin with books that
31:28interest you. Once you get started, you
31:30will slowly find your rhythm, and as
31:32you read more, you will find that your
31:35perspective on issues has changed. You
31:37will no longer be easily swayed by
31:39others' emotions, nor will you easily
31:41believe in things that seem too good to
31:43be true. Your decision-making will
31:45become more rational, and you will
31:46gradually realize what you really want
31:48and which path you should take. By then
31:51, you will realize that making money is
31:53actually just a byproduct of doing your
31:56own work well. If you haven't
31:57subscribed to this channel yet,
31:59remember to click the subscribe button
32:01and turn on the notification bell next
32:02to it, so you'll be the first to know
32:04whenever we upload a new video. If
32:06you're interested in topics like this,
32:07feel free to leave what you'd most like
32:09to talk about in the comments, and
32:10we'll chat next time. Y

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