As a teenager I took a summer job in Hawaii. I thought it would be a fun way to make some extra money while enjoying the islands. I had no idea when I signed up how very difficult it would be. My assignment was to plant pineapple. Planting was done by hand with a simple tool much like a small garden shovel. Plastic strips on the field indicated where to place each young plant. The strips also kept track of how many pineapples we planted.
Our pay was based on production but we were expected to each plant at least 2500 plants per day. The ultimate goal for all the planters was to be able to plant a whopping 10,000 pineapples in a single day and become a member of the “elite” 10,000 club. Everyone wanted to be a member. It seemed at first like an impossible goal, and the more the summer wore on the more it appeared truly unattainable. No matter how fast or hard I worked, I came to the conclusion that the human body was not capable of planting that many pineapples in one day.
In frustration I asked a local expert how I could ever plant 10,000 pineapples. He surprised me by responding that I couldn’t – that nobody could. After letting his response sink in for a moment he then added, “But can you plant a single row in 12 minutes?” A row held 250 plants and I had often planted single rows in under 10 minutes. I told him that I could certainly plant a row in 12 minutes to which he replied, “Then just do that, and when you are done do it again and again.” Following this simple advice, and working my tail off, I spent the next day planting single rows of pineapples in under 12 minutes, over and over again. When I left my summer job with Dole Pineapple, I was pleased to see my name engraved on the company wall plaque under the heading “10,000 Club.”
Americans are obsessed with wanting to be millionaires. Everyone wants to be a member of that club. We often think of these as the lucky few who “hit it big,” but I can tell you from my experience working with many millionaires that most are very normal people who had very average jobs. They usually didn’t just go out and make a million bucks, but rather they found a way to save and invest a few hundred dollars, then they did it over and over again.
The curse of our nation seems to be an inability to break things down into manageable pieces. We are buried in debt because we want everything, and we want it now. Congress passes complex 3,000 page omnibus spending bills that no one reads or understands. Imagine, just for fun, what it would be like if our leaders wrote and approved spending bills one item at a time – the way families do every day.
Investors often make terrible decisions because they try to accomplish too much too quickly. The key to success in investing, and in life, is to calmly break down long term goals into small manageable steps – and then patiently do them over and over again. Once people learn this secret it is an amazing thing to see how it changes their financial life. You may not be able to save a million dollars, but could you save $1,000? Then do that and do it again and again. You will be surprised at how quickly you will be seeing your name engraved on that plaque under the heading of “Millionaire Club.”
Dan Wyson, CFP® is a long running national financial columnist, author of several books and CEO/Founder of Wyson Financial/Wealth Management 375 E. Riverside Dr. St. George, UT 84790 – 435-986-9525 Securities and Advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, member FINRA/SIPC, a registered investment advisor.
