Shark Tank Investors Kevin O’Leary It’s not the economy that’s to blame for your bank account being empty. He is blaming you. He’s not shy about it.
“Listen, I’m going to tell you something that most people don’t want to hear,” O’Leary said in a December YouTube video titled “If You Want to Get Rich, Stop Buying These 5 Things.” “You’re broke. Not because you don’t make enough money, not because the economy is stacked against you, or because you’re unlucky. You’re broke because you keep buying stupid things that keep you in poverty.”
O’Leary makes it clear from the first line – building wealth does not begin with increasing your income. The first is cutting out the nonsense.
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His first goal? That shiny new car in your driveway.
“Buying a new car is one of the dumbest financial decisions you can make,” O’Leary said. He explains that once you drive a car off the lot, its value drops by 20 to 30 percent, and thousands of dollars turn into ashes—leaving you with nothing but “new-car smell.” And leasing? “Leasing is the absolute worst,” he said. “You’re leasing an asset that’s depreciating … and you’re giving the dealer thousands of dollars for the privilege of borrowing their car.”
His advice was crude and simple: “Buy a three-year-old, certified pre-owned car. Let someone else bear the loss of value. That’s what rich people do.”
O’Leary isn’t just here for your car. He’ll rush to your kitchen—or, more accurately, to the kitchen you refuse to use. “People tell me they have no money to invest. Then I see them buying a salad for lunch for $15,” he said. This is not squandering. This is financial self-sabotage.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American spends nearly $4,000 a year on dining out. O’Leary did the math: Investing the same $3,500 a year for 30 years at 10 percent interest would probably cost more than $600,000. “You’re trading $500,000 of retirement wealth for convenience and a delicious meal you’ll forget about within 24 hours,” he said.
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Pack your lunch. Make coffee at home. “These are not sacrifices,” O’Leary said. “These are smart financial decisions.” But when you go out to eat, he said, at least make it count. “Don’t waste your money on mediocre chain restaurants because you’re too lazy to cook. That’s not living well. That’s financially irresponsible.”
Then there’s the myth of the “forever home.” O’Leary doesn’t buy it – literally or figuratively. “Your home is your greatest responsibility,” he said. “Assets put money in your pocket. Liabilities take money out. And your house—the house you live in—puts money out every month.”
Mortgage, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, landscaping — “It’s a money pit,” O’Leary said. And the bigger the house, the deeper the hole.
The real wealth trap, he said, is when people buy the most expensive homes banks say they can “afford”. This is not a financial milestone, but a 30-year contract that benefits the bank far more than it benefits you. “They want you to owe them money for the next 30 years,” he said. “That’s 30 years of interest flowing into their pockets.”
His solution? “Buy half the house the bank says you can afford.”
It’s a theme O’Leary repeats over and over: wealth has nothing to do with looks. This is about margin. Living within your means is not a punishment, but a path to financial freedom. “Poor people spend money to appear rich. Rich people spend money to become richer,” he said.
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Yes, this includes the clothes you wear. O’Leary doesn’t care if you have the latest sneakers, designer handbag or the latest iPhone. He called it “a museum of bad financial decisions.” True resilience? Growing net worth.
“You know what impressed me?” he said. “Strong investment portfolio. Growing net worth. Financial independence. Not a thousand pairs of shoes that are going to be out of style in six months.”
Not even your subscriptions are safe from his attacks. “It’s like your bank account slowly leaking — $10 here, $15 there,” he said. “Cancel today. Not tomorrow. Today.”
Ultimately, O’Leary boils it all down to five habits: Stop buying a new car, stop working towards a big house, stop eating out regularly, stop chasing fast fashion, and stop wasting money on subscriptions you don’t use. Do this and you’ll have taken five steps toward wealth—no matter how much money you make.
“It’s not about your salary,” O’Leary said. “I’ve seen people making $40,000 a year build significant wealth because they understood these principles. I’ve also seen people making $200,000 a year living paycheck to paycheck because they refused to learn.”
The choice isn’t complicated, he said. Just uncomfortable. “Don’t be the majority.”
If you still think the salad is worth it, just know that O’Leary won’t buy it. But he might buy your house. half.
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This article Kevin O’Leary Says Broke People Will Buy $15 Salads for Lunch But They Can’t Invest – Trading $500K Fortunes Because They’re ‘Too Lazy to Cook’ originally appeared on Benzinga.com
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