Why Our Parents Are So Rich?

Well, my father is not that much rich. He was a farmer (now retired), and did not make a lot of wealth in his lifetime.  but some times, money is not a measurement for one's greatness.

This is not the case with many of my friends. Their parents are rich. So rich that they take care many of their children's needs. They sponsored not only their children's education, but also paid their education loan,  sponsored their marriage, provided down payment for their cars/flats,  take care of their emergency situations like medical emergency or vehicle maintenance. Many of my friends take it for granted that their parents are the ATMs for them.

But think from where our parents get this unlimited money? If you ask them, you can hear the story of their struggles in their young age. How they survived with minimum government salary, how they paid hard their home loan, how they waited until their last years at their work to purchase their first car.  You will find it boring, but the answer to their richness lies in these stories.

The fact is that they missed many of the luxuries in their young age that we enjoy now. They did not have cell phones. They did not have computers. They did not have flat TVs. They did not have so much eat outs. They did not have branded clothes.

On the other hand they had a guaranteed pension. They started investing early thanks to the mandatory Provident Fund and Gratuity. I know we also have PF and gratuity, but we switch jobs in every 3 to 5 years, and the PF/gratuity is paid as down payment for our new cars/flats. Our parents missed the boom in equity markets, but all their investments in real estate and gold paid well.

Now the question is are we going to be so rich as our parents when we retire? The possibilities are less. Our parents lived poor and retired rich. We live rich and will retire poor?

Think about it. If you think your retirement is far away, remember our parents started investing for the retirement from the first month they started working.

Can we live the same way our parent did? Of course it is not possible to give up your cell phone or washing machine to live like them. However, you can learn to live within our means. Let's learn to say no to purchases on EMI. Let's use things until they wear out. Most importantly let's  learn to invest regularly.

Please let me know your thoughts through comments.