Being in debt means using up the future in the present. Essentially, it’s about how we manage our time. Therefore, the most valuable resource for debtors is time, and it depends on which side time favors. Paying off debt is like repaying borrowed future time early. When the ability to generate wealth over time decreases, the future time becomes a burden, and the debtor faces the pain of bankruptcy. Taking on debt is costly. It may seem like borrowed money is repaid with money, but the irreplaceable resource of time is also returned along with interest. With the rise of postpaid credit cards as a common payment method, we’ve become less sensitive to the associated pain and cost. There are two ways to spend money: using present time or future time. The costs and pain are much higher when the future is spent as if it were the present. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”
The most important virtues a business person should possess are, first, keeping my word by myself, even if it seems small; second, not being afraid; and third, having the ability to build structures. Since credit is the essence of money, it plays a crucial role in the exchange of value, starting with keeping one’s word. If you’re afraid, it becomes easy to lie or distort your true self, which can lead to losing credibility with those around you. To collaborate with others, which you can’t do alone in your business and may not fully trust, you must be able to create and manage structures to help grow your business, although with less trustworthy traits. The most critical of these abilities is keeping one’s word. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”