Mr. Wonderful Says You Need $5m.
I am a big fan of the TV show Shark Tank. During the COVID pandemic, my family and I watched almost every episode available. I thought it was great education to supplement online school. Elementary school kids need to understand the valuations of a company, product viability and the art of a great pitch just like the rest of us.
My favorite cast member has always been Kevin O’Leary aka Mr. Wonderful. I bet, even if you haven’t watched the show you know who I am talking about. He always sits in the middle and plays the Simon Cowell role.
Mr. Wonderful is shrewd, harsh, likes royalty deals and occasionally tells an entrepreneur to take their idea behind a barn and shoot it. I told you, he is my favorite, but not for the perceived unkindness. No, he plays the role of the cynical realist very well. He has done well for himself in business and makes very few deals on the show. He is honest and real about what he sees and is not afraid to speak his mind.
Over the last 12 months or so, several people have sent me the same article featuring Mr. Wonderful. Perhaps it is my affinity for him or my work in the retirement space and O’Leary’s take on what is needed. In any case, this keeps coming my way.
O’Leary says you need $5 million dollars to make it anymore. This warrants a variety of feelings from those that encounter his message.
That’s impossible.
What does this billionaire know?
$5m is a ton of money.
How would I ever get there?
Is he right?
Some combination of all of those is correct and Mr. Wonderful’s realism is not wrong. Life in the US is getting very expensive and retirement is proving his theory to be a pretty viable option, though unattainable for most.
Shoot, I wrote an entire book called The Future Poor about the gap between what O’Leary says you need and the ability of most people to achieve that.
Take a look at the article and then come back to my book (yes, this is a plug for my book) when it comes out. I do not think that me and Mr. Wonderful are wrong. We are both realists and I believe we could be great friends should we ever have the opportunity to meet.
Anyway - he’s been on his $5 million kick for a year or so now and I’ve been at The Future Poor journey since 2020. Maybe we are seeing the same thing from two different perspectives.
Here is a link to the original article.
As always, if you come across a financially related article you’d like to send my way please do!
Best place to send them is to me.
More next time!
Jonathan