.The 5 Secret Levels in the Game of Money
The 5 Secret Levels in the Game of Money (and How to Beat Them…)
By The Money Wizard August 20, 2019
According to two of the planet’s most brilliant minds – Elon Musk, aka the real life Iron Man, and Neil deGrasse Tyson, a genius astrophysicist and NASA award winner – we’re all living in a simulation.
In other words, everything we see, feel, and experience in this wonderful world around us may all be nothing more than high tech computer code mixed with stunning graphics.
Yeah, I’m not quite sure I buy it either…
That said, the older I get, and the higher my net worth grows, the more I’m convinced of a somewhat similar concept: Money is nothing more than a real life video game.
And not just any game, either. “Money” might as well be the most complex Role Playing Game (RPG) ever developed.
Think about it. We each control a main character (ourselves) who we pilot through a timeline. We make decisions, build skills, and choose battles. As we progress through those pivotal moments, our character is either rewarded with income or penalized by the harsh reality of the system.
Make no mistake, the game of money is filled with levels to beat and bosses to conquer.
But here’s the part that gets me so excited. By design, the structure of any game means that its prone to a step by step strategy that if followed, can progress beginners into experts.
So, what are the levels of the money game? How do I plan on beating them? And how can you too?
Level 1 – Building An Earnings Base
Level 1 begins how all games start. You choose a path, which sets the course for the rest of the journey.
Start - how to beat the money game
In the game of money, this most often relates to choosing a career field.
Most game players attack this level by strategically choosing a high paying college major.
MBA graduates and CPA holders call this part of the game “building an earnings floor.” With enough credentials behind their names, they all but ensure a specific salary for the rest of their working life.
In a way, I did something similar. By graduating with a degree in Finance and a second degree in Economics for good measure, I’ve essentially “floored” my earnings at entry level finance work.
Given that entry level bankers earn about $50K a year, it’s extremely unlikely my salary would ever drop below this, barring a complete implosion of the financial system. (Which, frighteningly, seems less impossible by the day. Just more reason to keep leveling up!)
Of course, a high paying major isn’t the only way to move on. Even a lower paying degree mixed with a lot of passion can be enough to give you the edge needed to beat this level.
Other game players go a different route entirely – choosing to go to trade school or learning an intangible skill, like sales.
In either case, the goal is always the same – taking care of your base, and then eventually, using that base to springboard into more and more income.
Level 2 – Expanding The Base
This is the part of the game when you’re grinding.
From wikipedia:
‘In video gaming, grinding is performing repetitive tasks, usually for gameplay advantage… The general use of grinding is for “experience points”, or to improve a character’s level.”
Sound familiar?
Those first few years at your career, when you’re:
1. Doing tons of grunt work
2. Building your reputation as a hard worker
3. Schmoozing the bosses and playing office politics
You’re grinding!
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