Worldly Philosophers Club

The Worldly Philosophers, Vol.1, Number 13	July 20, 2007
THE Worldly Philosophers Club For Individualists Who Seek Worldly Wisdom

Archives

About the Editor

Doug Casey Ted Nicholas

Rick Rule John Schaub

FOUR LIBERTARIAN MILLIONAIRES REVEAL THEIR SECRETS
By Mark Skousen

In this issue . . .

	the story of four self-made millionaires who are uncompromising defenders of liberty.
	the best ways to become rich today.
	the smart way to help your children achieve financial independence without destroying their self-esteem.
	why most charities are a waste of money.
	two productive, self-sustaining causes worthy of your support

"The unsung heroes today are entrepreneurs who create wealth for themselves and for others."
--Ted Nicholas

Dear Worldly Philosophers,

I just returned from my private conference, FreedomFest, in Las Vegas, where a thousand individualists met to learn, network, and celebrate the luckiest day of the century: 07-07-07!

FreedomFest is an open forum where "free minds meet" to learn about "great ideas, great books, and great thinkers." In addition to sessions on geo-politics, philosophy, history, science, the arts, and healthy living, we had a 3-day investment conference that one attendee called "off the charts" in value.

The highlight was my chance to interview four multi-millionaires on their philosophy on how to earn, spend and give away their fortune. I moderated the "Millionaires Panel," the most popular session there.

Four Men of Worldly Wisdom and Wealth

The four millionaires are all worldly philosophers par excellence:

--Doug Casey, speculator extraordinaire and gadfly financial editor of Casey Research, who made his millions in penny mining stocks and exotic real estate (Aspen, Hong Kong, Florida, Spain, among others).

--Rick Rule, supreme broker and money manager at Global Resource Investments in Carlsbad, California.

-- John Schaub, wealthy real estate guru from Sarasota, Florida, and author of the bestseller "Creating Wealth One House at a Time."

--Ted Nicholas, bestselling author and the world’s most successful marketing guru, now living in Switzerland. Over the past 30 years as a consultant, he has helped companies sell $4.9 billion worth of products and services.

All four financial gurus have varied backgrounds in business, but have one things in common: They are all self-made multi-millionaires who believe in the libertarian principles of individual initiative, self-esteem, entrepreneurship, and a refusal to accept government handouts.

Beware of Inherited Wealth!

They all rejected the notion of giving away their money to their children. Ted Nicholas told the audience, "It is a big mistake to give lots of money unattached to your children." Better, he said, to give teach them skills to make money on their own. Rick Rule said that he’s known wealthy clients where inherited money is a hindrance, and other times, a help. The key is to leave a legacy of tools to maintain one’s wealth -- a work ethic and intellectual capital.

Alternatives to a College Education

Should you go to college? All four were skeptical of the benefits of formal education. Doug Casey thought it was a "misallocation of time and money" unless you need a degree to pursue a profession (medicine, law, engineering). He favors self-education, such as taking courses on audiotape and video from the Teaching Company. Ted Nicholas seconded Doug’s suggestion and argued that "how to" books are a better education. "They are more applicable if you want to get really rich." I specifically recommended two books: "Richest Man in Babylon," by George Clason and "How to Be Rich," by J. Paul Getty. If you do go to college, Rick Rule said "the faster the better." He confessed that he dropped out of college because he was "too busy making money to finish his degree," and thought it ironic that he was making three times more than his "boring" professors.

Best Places to Become Rich Today

What are the best places now to become rich? Ted Nicholas said the information market is the fastest, most profitable industry. His advice: Sell unique information on the Internet. You can leverage a small amount of capital into a huge profit. (Later that evening he gave a talk, "17 Life-Changing Secrets" to a packed audience -- this talk is available on CD. See below for details.)

John Schaub thinks that real estate is still holds great promise for leveraged profits. "With foreclosures up 13% in the past year," he said, "There are great opportunities in buying houses." But he warned against the "get rich quick" mentality of many real-estate gurus today. "Buy smart, buy below the market, and hold for the long run," he advised.

Both Rich Rule and Doug Casey said that the financial services business is still wide open for the aggressive young person. According to Doug, it’s best to specialize in a skill or knowledge that others don’t have, especially if you can use those skills in another country. Rick Rule said that, above all, be passionate about a market that others consider drudgery.

Smart Ways to Invest Your Wealth: Avoid Most Charities!

The most controversial comments by the panelists came when I raised the issue of what to do with your hard-earned wealth. Should you spend it or give it away to charity?

The panelists were critical of most charities, who they said squander your donations on unproductive projects or allow endowments to pile up at foundations and aren’t invested properly. Doug Casey was especially cynical about billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett who like to play "big shot" and lack imagination in use of their billions. "They would be smarter to continue investing their funds in business and create jobs. With few exceptions, giving money to charity does not create wealth."

Both Rick Rule and John Schaub support giving money to organizations that are self-sustaining and productive. Rick gives heavily to the Grameen Bank, founded by this year’s Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus (Yunus spoke via video to our audience at FreedomFest). The Grameen Bank is a for-profit bank that makes micro loans to disparately poor people in Bangladesh. John Schaub gives money and builds homes for Habitat for Humanity. Both organizations are funding "entrepreneurship."

Rick concludes: "The best way to be philanthropic is to make a lot of money."

Ted Nicholas added, "The unsung heroes today are entrepreneurs who create wealth for themselves and for others."

I’ve only covered a small portion of this fascinating panel discussion on making, spending and giving away money. All four panelists spoke several times at FreedomFest, and I urge you to get the CDs of the Millionaires Panel and all the other sessions. The highlight of FreedomFest was the Big Debate on Saturday, 07-07-07, on U. S. foreign policy, which pitted Doug Casey and Congressman Ron Paul (the libertarians) against Larry Abraham and Dinesh D’Souza (the conservatives). It's the best debate I’ve ever seen.

The entire set of top 100 sessions/speeches/panels/debates can be obtained for only $249 from Ensign Productions, 1-866-254-2057. Highly recommended. To see the line-up of speakers and topics, go to www.freedomfest.com.

I also made a "big announcement" about the freedom movement at FreedomFest. Go to www.freedomfest.com for the announcement and how you can participate.

Good living, AEIOU,

Mark Skousen