In a world that often glorifies quick fixes and magic solutions, I want to offer a different perspective.

In this article, I’ll make the case that the slow or “boring” path to wealth is actually the fastest way to get to financial independence .

While many of you will be on board with the idea of simple investing, let me explain exactly why it destroys seemingly speedier alternatives.

Despite the enticing idea of getting rich quick (which we know is a scam), we’ve also heard the statement “slow and steady wins the race.”

And while it garners a few yawns and eye-rolls, it’s a universal and widely applicable piece of wisdom. When it comes to building wealth, opting for a boring approach is surprisingly effective in reaching your goals.

Let’s begin with a look at the “fast” path to wealth, AKA Get Rich Quick.

Strategies to Get Rich Quick

I must say, I never thought in a million years that I’d write those words in an article!

Anyway, here’s a few of the typical get rich quick strategies people employ:

• Speculative stocks (and relying on ‘hot tips’ from friends and forums)
• Trading options / CFDs (without really knowing how it works)
• Crypto moonshots (pump and dump types appropriately termed sh*tcoins).
• Using lots of leverage

But then there’s the business approach, like making money online. That might mean trying to find an untapped product people might want, setting up an online store, buying ads on Facebook and then waiting for the riches to roll in.

I t could also be buying an online course, to learn how to sell courses to other people who want to learn how to sell courses. Well, that’s one kind of circular economy!

Now, there’s nothing necessarily wrong with any of these ideas in and of themselves. I’m not saying they can’t work; people try them precisely for the reason that they can work.

But let’s think in terms of probabilities of success for the average person. Not lucky outliers. Not geniuses with iron-stomachs. Not the ‘right place right time’ kinda people. Sure, they exist. But those are the exception to the rule.

In most cases, the individual involved does not get rich quick.

Why Get Rich Quick fails

You know the line – if something seems too good to be true, it usually is. That applies perfectly to damn near every get rich quick strategy.

There are countless reasons why these strategies fail:

• Many are based on lucky or rare cases that are hard to repeat
• Scams, frauds, and false promises in marketing materials
• They require much more time, skill, effort and stress than assumed
• Results rely on unsustainable returns or overhyped markets
• They involve complicated and confusing leveraged instruments

What are the more common outcomes of the get rich quick approach?

The person gets burned and loses many thousands of dollars. Sometimes tens or even hundreds of thousands!

The most dangerous thing is actually the strategy works in the beginning. Because this causes the person to tip even more resources into it, only for their luck to turn later.

In fact, many recent scams involving crypto actually employed this tactic. They’ll pay you out small sums of money at the start to ‘prove’ to you it’s legit. Then, when you tip your life savings in to get your 100% monthly returns…the company ceases all communication with you. It’s terribly sad, and very clever.

When you realise boring is better

Another common outcome is the person simply gives up. After a few months (or perhaps year) of trying, it becomes clear the chosen strategy is flawed.

They’re left with the realisation that this path to riches isn’t paved with the gold they thought it was. Even in the case that it kinda sorta works a little bit, they realise the time, risk, stress or hassle involved is far more than it first seemed.

The savviest ones catch on in the first six months. For countless others, though, the idea of getting rich quickly is so enticing that they stick to it for many years. But instead of sticking with the same method, they’ll hop from one get rich quick strategy to another.

After a lengthy period of disappointment, the individual will then look for a more reliable strategy. Something that seems like it has a much higher chance of creating wealth over time.

That could be building a small business, or investing in reliable assets like a diversified share portfolio or rental properties. In short, they begin to embrace a more boring approach.

The contrast between Get Rich Quick and Reliable Wealth

As you might tell, there’s quite a few differences between the two approaches.

In fact, they are fundamentally opposites. I put together a table to summarise some of the key contrasting features of the strategy itself and the personal traits of the individual.

Just look at that table. Imagine the mental state of the person following each approach. One of peace, one of stress. Even if the Get Rich Quick approach actually worked, there’s a mental toll to pay.

Now, switching from the left side of the table to the right is no easy task. You can’t just wake up one day and become a boring investor! For those stuck in the get rich quick mindset, it’s a learning curve and requires retraining yourself.

At first, it’s about understanding which choices and actions are most likely to lead to the outcome you want. Thinking in terms of probabilities, not possibilities.

Then, like any new behaviour, it’s about practising these new habits and ways of thinking.

But enough of that! I’m sure if you’re reading this, you’re already well on board with the boring path to wealth. So let me reinforce your good behaviour with some important reminders :)

Why the boring path to wealth wins

For so many reasons, the boring path works out better (and faster) in almost every case. Here’s a few key points worth fleshing out briefly....

More sustainable. Wealth built on a boring strategy is more reliable and sustainable than an exciting high risk strategy with a high chance of failure. Growth may not be as fast as we’d like, but it’s far more likely to occur and won’t disappear!

Fewer mistakes. Compound interest is on your side if you pick a boring approach from the start. No strategy-hopping, no scams, and no nasty blow ups and years of time wasted to recover from. Any mistakes made along the way will be far less damaging than a riskier approach.

More empowering. The more your strategy relies on your own actions, the more motivating it is – because you can directly affect it! Not only that, but you have far more control over the result, making it more empowering. I’ve found that when people feel more in control, they really ramp up their efforts to get the result they want.

More enjoyable. Less exciting strategies create less stress and are easier to stick with. You develop a more appropriate long-term outlook and feel more relaxed about your plan. And a plan that you can stick to and feel excited about is going to be far more effective than one that provides frustration and stress.

One problem, though… is that most people equate boring with slow and ineffective.

Does boring mean slow?

It can, but it definitely doesn’t have to be.

The idea that boring = slow is a common misconception. The assumption is probably driven by the stories we hear of huge success in a short time – those outlier cases I mentioned earlier.

But remember the probabilities are what we care about. What’s the most likely result for the vast majority of people?

Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t try another strategy that you think has potential, where you're committed to put the time and energy into learning it fully. But the truth is, boring investing is likely to be the most profitable and effective approach.

And here’s the thing: you can still make powerful progress with a less exciting strategy.

Some of the biggest things you can do to move the needle actually have nothing to do with investing. Sure, there are the obvious things: choose low-fee, diversified funds and use a low-cost broker.

These things will improve long-term returns. But the power moves are made in your personal finances.

This means figuring out how to generate more income, while also learning how to live on less of the income you already make. Improving both of these numbers gives you a ton more fuel to grow your investments at a rapid rate. You can find more details in the article: How to grow your portfolio faster.

Long story short: most people focus too much on investments, when 99% of their energy should go towards getting more money to invest!

Otherwise, you just end up tinkering and fluffing around, wondering why your portfolio isn’t getting any bigger. Then you’re left frustrated at the lack of results, thinking investing ‘isn’t working’.

Here’s the truth: your portfolio grows in direct proportion to the amount of money you put into it. And your wealth grows in proportion to the amount of income and gains you keep, invest, and compound.

Final thoughts

The reason the boring path to wealth is the fastest is because it’s far more controllable, repeatable, and dependable, without the chance of huge blowups and setbacks that come with the get rich quick approach.

If you want to speed it up, you have multiple levers you can pull which will directly improve the outcome. Earnings. Expenses. Fund choices. Leverage. Tax strategy.

So you can actually take the boring approach and put an aggressive twist on it. Because if you’re anything like me, you don’t want to just make steady progress for 30 years before having more freedom and abundance in your life.

There’s nothing wrong with a genuinely slow path to wealth, but I’m far more impatient than that. Which is kind of ironic, I suppose – taking the boring approach, but with the impatience of someone wanting to get rich quick!

I hope this post has dispelled the assumption that boring = takes forever. That’s certainly not true. Because while boring may describe your approach, it doesn’t have to describe your rate of progress.

Until next time, happy long-term investing.

Dave