Becoming rich through the path of self employment will be an impossibility if you fail to manage your finances in the right way. In fact, self employed freelancers who fail to properly manage their finances may end up in the same boat as employees. At this point, there are certain realities that you must begin to accept. The first of these realities is that of burn out: as you spend years working as a self employed freelancer, and work at a high pace, you will inevitably begin to become mentally exhausted.
This phenomenon is a natural one, since no human can work indefinitely without rest. Burn out, which we discussed a bit in earlier chapters, can be a debilitating phenomenon. If you naturally have a strong work ethic, and you're forced to rest due to a mental burn out, depression may begin to set in, since you may feel guilty for taking the time off, though this is precisely what you need. Burn out is a reality for those who are self employed, and the danger of being burned out is that you cannot work during this time, and if you don't work, you won't be paid.
This is why it is critical for you to follow proper money management strategies. Remember, your ultimate goal is to have your money working for you, as opposed to the other way around. Until your money is working for you, regardless of how much money you may earn as a freelancer, you cannot consider yourself to be rich. Let me repeat that again: It doesn't matter if you're making a six figure salary as a self employed freelancer, if your money is not working for you, you are not rich. You're just a highly paid freelancer.
If you talk to the general public, you will find that most of them consider doctors, lawyers, and other medical professionals to be “rich.” The reason for this is because the general public often doesn't know the true definition of “rich.” Sure, these people often drive nice cars, live in upscale neighborhoods, and dine out at five star restaurants, but these things do not make a person “rich.” The key thing that separates the rich from the non-rich is the manner in which their income is earned. This is something that you must always remember. Never judge how rich a person is by their appearance, or how much money they make, or even how much money they have. No, the definition of “rich” must be based on the manner in which a person's income is derived.