That's rich

So now I know the economic boom is peaking in this country, and maybe even in this province. That's because recently an event was held that promised to show everybody HOW TO GET RICH IN CANADA!

This FREE lecture featured “Canadian 'Rich Dad' Darren Weeks”, who was going to show all and sundry how to Get On the Canadian Fast Track to Success. Weeks, is in his own words “the most successful Facilitator of CASHFLOW events in Canada,“—which is interesting because I've never heard of anyone facilitating these events except him.

I don't know how many people showed up for this event, but I'm betting they were all there for the same reason. They think that everybody right now is making a fortune and they're not.

These how-to-get-rich seminars always appear near the end of an economic boom because they're aimed at the lowest end of the scale—ordinary workers who feel they've somehow missed out because they're “working for someone else.”

You know the drill. Their lives suck because they have to (in Weeks' words):
     Deal with rush hour traffic
     Limit holidays to two weeks per year
     Send their kids to daycare
     Order the cheapest items on the menu at an expensive restaurant
     Argue with their spouses about money
     Worry that they won’t have enough money each month

Well, I've got some news for these people—that's life.

Everybody has to deal with traffic, limit holiday time, mind their money, and worry—whether they're working for someone else or not.

Underlying these kind of events is usually advice to get into your own business, often through some system—franchise or other—the event holder is selling. Why else would this kind of “financial education” be free?

And while entrepreneurship may be a way to “get rich,” it's usually not in the way it's presented in these seminars.

First you have to define what rich is. For most entrepreneurs rich means independence, not money. In fact most entrepreneurs earn less than workers, but are happier because they're their own bosses.

And if everything on the above list bothers you, wait until you get into your own business. You'll be rushing around (it's called selling) all day; you'll be overjoyed to get two weeks of work-free holidays per year; you'll gladly send your kids to daycare because you'll probably be working 60 to 80 hours a week; and you'll constantly be worrying about money each month—it's part of your job to

Look, despite the prevalence of these kind of rah rah seminars, entrepreneurship is not for those who dream of an easy life.

Success takes a long a long, long time, and it's damn hard work. And you have to weather a lot of hard times—like when the economy sours.

And, judging by the timing of this seminar, it's about to.