5 Brutal Truths About Building Wealth
5 Brutal Truths About Building Wealth
Cindy Lamothe Mon, November 24, 2025 GOBankingRates
Building wealth isn’t all sunshine and Instagram-worthy moments. While everyone loves talking about side hustles, passive income and shiny financial freedom, the truth is a bit grittier. There are no shortcuts, no magic formulas and, yes, some tough lessons along the way.
Here are some brutal truths about building wealth that will help you in the long run.
1. It’s a Long, Slow Game
“Building wealth is unfortunately about playing the long, slow game,” explained Brett Horowitz, principal and wealth manager at Evensky & Katz / Foldes Financial Wealth Management.
He said most people know someone who struck it rich by buying Apple stock 30 years ago or Nvidia stock 10 years ago. “The truth is that those investors had to sustain long time periods where they either lost money, or barely made money,” he said.
Both companies were mostly irrelevant at some point and investors who held those stocks were extremely fortunate, or proficient, but mostly fortunate, to have made so much money holding those stocks. “Picking individual stocks is often a recipe for failure and the best way to make money is through hard earned saving,” he said.
2. Trading Is Hazardous to Your Wealth
While some may view trading as a way to build wealth, it may not be a good option. According to Horowitz, the more often you trade, the worse you do. “Or as we say ‘your portfolio is like a bar of soap, the more you play with it, the smaller it gets,'” he said.
He noted that overconfidence can explain high trading levels and the resulting poor performance of individual investors. “Our central message is that trading is hazardous to your wealth,” he said.
Horowitz explained that trading typically involves fees and taxes, so the more you trade, the more these costs drag down the portfolio’s return.
3. Your Fear Is Costing You Big
TO READ MORE: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/5-brutal-truths-building-wealth-160605824.html