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> I bet the average googler The point is that the average person is not the average Googler. His philosophies are intended for people who aren't lucky enough

> I bet the average googler The point is that the average person is not the average Googler. His philosophies are intended for people who aren't lucky enough to be a Googler, or to inherit wealth, etc.

JamesBarney 7y ago
Getting a job at Google is way easier than starting a large successful software company.
- tomhoward 7y ago
  And both are effectively impossible for many people in the world. His advice is meant to be applicable for people who aren't lucky enough to have either of those options. The option to invest in income-generating assets over costly status-signalling devices is available to far more people in the world. E.g. https://www.kiva.org/about/impact/success-stories https://www.kiva.org/about/impact/success-stories
  - opportune 7y ago
    One (starting a successful large software business) is still much harder than the other (getting an offer at google, which people like me have got). It's a matter of order of magnitudes of difference
    - tomhoward 7y ago
      Sure, that may well be true for you, because you're lucky enough to have at least one of those options. It remains the case that both options are largely/completely out of reach for many/most people in the world. Naval's advice is applicable for many more people in the world than the few who are lucky enough to be able to get a job at Google or start a successful large software business. That's the whole point of his list of recommendations.
  - JamesBarney 7y ago
    So he's arguing buying stock instead of a nice car will make you wealthier? No argument here.
    - tomhoward 7y ago
      Well yes, buying stock, sure - though a small shareholding in a mature stock is not going to get you very far. But a significant shareholding in a small-medium business that provides a valuable product/service and ends up generating steady cash flows over the long term seems like the optimal approach in terms of risk/reward, and is something that a lot of people in the world could figure out how to do if they put their mind to it over a long enough period of time.
      - n4r9 7y ago
        How easy is it to go from nothing to a position where you can afford to make a "significant shareholding" in a small-medium business?
        tomhoward 7y ago
        If you start a company yourself you own 100% of it. If you have nothing to invest in it, and if it needs capital to get started, then you need to borrow funds to invest or sell part of the company to an investor. In the former case your net worth will be the value of the company less the value of your debt. In the latter case you'll own less of the company, but you can still own most of it. This applies whether you're in a rich western country starting a company that needs big amounts of capital, or in a developing country and starting a small business with micro-loans or micro-investments through bodies like Kiva. But none of this is about what is easy. It’s never easy to attain something that is prized and scarce. It's about what decisions will give the greatest probability of the outcome you want, given the opportunities and resources that you have available to you.
      - xorfish 7y ago
        > though a small shareholding in a mature stock is not going to get you very far. Sp500 Average real return is 6.5% per year. So If you invest $1'000 per month, you will be a millionaire in today dollars in 30 years with just over 1.1 Million Dollars That is a save income of around $38'500 per year.
- ht_th 7y ago
  True, but usual you do not start with a large and successful software company. I think starting a small software company is much easier than getting a job at Google. However, growing a small company into a large and successful one will be significantly harder. If for nothing else, it will take much more time and effort.

JamesBarney 7y ago

Getting a job at Google is way easier than starting a large successful software company.

tomhoward 7y ago
And both are effectively impossible for many people in the world. His advice is meant to be applicable for people who aren't lucky enough to have either of those options. The option to invest in income-generating assets over costly status-signalling devices is available to far more people in the world. E.g. https://www.kiva.org/about/impact/success-stories https://www.kiva.org/about/impact/success-stories
- opportune 7y ago
  One (starting a successful large software business) is still much harder than the other (getting an offer at google, which people like me have got). It's a matter of order of magnitudes of difference
  - tomhoward 7y ago
    Sure, that may well be true for you, because you're lucky enough to have at least one of those options. It remains the case that both options are largely/completely out of reach for many/most people in the world. Naval's advice is applicable for many more people in the world than the few who are lucky enough to be able to get a job at Google or start a successful large software business. That's the whole point of his list of recommendations.
- JamesBarney 7y ago
  So he's arguing buying stock instead of a nice car will make you wealthier? No argument here.
  - tomhoward 7y ago
    Well yes, buying stock, sure - though a small shareholding in a mature stock is not going to get you very far. But a significant shareholding in a small-medium business that provides a valuable product/service and ends up generating steady cash flows over the long term seems like the optimal approach in terms of risk/reward, and is something that a lot of people in the world could figure out how to do if they put their mind to it over a long enough period of time.
    - n4r9 7y ago
      How easy is it to go from nothing to a position where you can afford to make a "significant shareholding" in a small-medium business?
      - tomhoward 7y ago
        If you start a company yourself you own 100% of it. If you have nothing to invest in it, and if it needs capital to get started, then you need to borrow funds to invest or sell part of the company to an investor. In the former case your net worth will be the value of the company less the value of your debt. In the latter case you'll own less of the company, but you can still own most of it. This applies whether you're in a rich western country starting a company that needs big amounts of capital, or in a developing country and starting a small business with micro-loans or micro-investments through bodies like Kiva. But none of this is about what is easy. It’s never easy to attain something that is prized and scarce. It's about what decisions will give the greatest probability of the outcome you want, given the opportunities and resources that you have available to you.
    - xorfish 7y ago
      > though a small shareholding in a mature stock is not going to get you very far. Sp500 Average real return is 6.5% per year. So If you invest $1'000 per month, you will be a millionaire in today dollars in 30 years with just over 1.1 Million Dollars That is a save income of around $38'500 per year.
ht_th 7y ago
True, but usual you do not start with a large and successful software company. I think starting a small software company is much easier than getting a job at Google. However, growing a small company into a large and successful one will be significantly harder. If for nothing else, it will take much more time and effort.