Work for Respect, Not Status

There is a massive difference between respect and status.

There’s this good ol’ book — Rich Dad, Poor Dad.
It was one of my first books I read about business.

It introduced me to the idea that:

There is a difference between rich and poor that goes beyond money.

Over the years, this idea has become more and more nuanced.

There are “rich” people that don’t have money,
and there are “poor” people that have money.

When I started out, I thought:

Status = Success = the Wealth Generated.

But I learned over time:

You won’t make it if the business is just about earning a lot of money.

A business to me is a way to provide for my family
and be a good steward of what God has given to me.

Here’s the interesting pattern you can work for:

  • You gain respect from the rich by outworking them.
  • You gain status from the poor by outspending them.

The amount and attitude toward your work
will influence your relationships with rich people.

The ability of buying shiny status toys = status from the poor people.
But when you own a Lambo or Rolls Royce, people will think you’re rich and that you’re cool.

It’s about status.

Yet the attitude you bring to your work
will be about your diligence.

This will bring you the respect of those ahead.

As Patrick Bet-David said:

“I am not afraid of someone that outspends me,
I am afraid of the person that outworks me for longer.”

Because outworking means you will stack the imagination through your work ethic.

So it’s better to work for respect than for status.

Similar Posts

  • A side hustle won’t save you!

    Hey Reader, When I look around, most men want to start a side hustle to get the business off the ground. I love the idea and motivation they have—to provide for their family and spend more time with them. There is only one flaw on that side:They plan for a side hustle, not for an exit strategy. The numbers tell the difference. Most people starting a side hustle are happy about any money they can make.They start to offer low-price digital products:A template for $20 or an ebook for $8. While…

  • Impact over Income

    Impact over Income I see it so often online – People are always looking to make money fast. The focus is to get rich. The longer I’m building my business – It’s been 7 years now – the more I enjoy the art of business. The Art of Business is to understand that Impact is bigger than Income. Income is important, but it is the side effect of Impact. Every business should make our world better. The blacksmith made better tools that the farmer could take on the fields. There was always more impact…

  • The Spiral of Salaries

    Hey Reader, Right now we feel the pressure. Many economies seem to struggle. There are many news reports about prices going up. A friend of mine said the math for January:Over the last five years, prices have risen by 30–60%. Even for singles—more for families with kids. Yet the economy is still feeling the pressure. The big danger is still ahead. Because in Germany there are a lot of people asking for a raise. They want to earn more. I fully understand this. People speak up to raise the…

  • Don’t play business

    Hey Reader, There is a big misconception about a Personal Brand and creating content. Most Personal Brands don’t make any money. They are just creating noise. Let me tell you a little story: My son recently started to “play dress-up.”He puts on my boots and gets a loud voice.Then he walks around the house pretending to be Papa. He has a blast and we all enjoy watching him.He looks pretty cute. I see a similar pattern in most Personal Brands. They play pretend business.They see the big guys on…

  • Don’t Judge a Business by Its Social Media

    It is so interesting. A lot of people judge the business by their social following.He got 100k followers—he must have a massive business! Somehow we doubt that small accounts are bigger businesses. I stopped looking at the following and started to look for the actual interaction. There is a lot to be said about the right likes. You can tell fast which small accounts don’t work — because they tell you. With bigger accounts, it’s getting harder to see the difference. The funny thing is: A lot…

  • The Era of Information Inflation

    We live in the era of Information Inflation. Most of us hear about the economic inflation. The numbers are going up. We can buy less with the money we have. The same is also true with Information Inflation. We live in a world where information itself is worth little. It used to be that books were so expensive. There was only one Bible in the town that the priest could read. Today we have Google, ChatGPT, and YouTube. We can read, listen, and watch more information all day every day of the…