The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago.
The second-best time is now.—Ancient Proverb
By all accounts, Sylvia Bloom was an unremarkable woman.
I dare say, if you had passed her on the street, you never would have given her a second look.
She was simple. She was frugal. She was low-profile.
Sylvia behaved this way for good reason:
- She was the daughter of Eastern European immigrants who had moved to Brooklyn, New York. She was born in 1919, and she had grown up bearing the hardships of the Great Depression.
- This had instilled in her an eternal desire to live below her means and maintain stability.
- So she lived in a rent-controlled apartment. And she worked as a secretary at the same law firm for 67 years.
Now, here’s what’s intriguing about Sylvia’s story:
- We live in a world where social mobility and materialism is commonly held up as the benchmark of success.
- Therefore, if you went by that benchmark, you might assume that Sylvia hadn’t achieve very much at all in her life. In fact, Sylvia appeared to be socially stagnant. She was earning a pittance in terms of her salary. Nothing to invite envy at all.
- And yet — surprise, surprise — when Sylvia died in 2016, at the age of 96, she left behind a fortune of over USD $8 million.
- Well, as it turns out, Sylvia was a very sharp investor. She had a generous portfolio of stocks. Her wealth was spread across three brokerage houses and 11 banks. It’s just that no one knew about it.
Her niece, Jane Lockshin, explains:
‘She was a secretary in an era when they ran their boss’s lives, including their personal investments. So when the boss would buy a stock, she would make the purchase for him, and then buy the same stock for herself, but in a smaller amount because she was on a secretary’s salary.’
Good investing is a marathon, not a sprint.
Source: Image generated by OpenAI’s DALL-E
The secret of Sylvia Bloom’s success comes down to two things: patience and prudence.
- She understood that buying and holding equities is the greatest wealth generator in human history. She also understood the propulsive power of compounding. When you put two and two together, you get magic. This is how Sylvia successfully snowballed her wealth over the long run.
- Indeed, the stock market is a force multiplier not to be ignored. So, as we take baby steps into this new year of 2024, ask yourself: are you missing out on the power of compounding?
- We are analysing five major quantum trends that could have a significant impact in the 12 months ahead. This could be a make-or-break moment. Absolutely critical for global wealth. I urge you not to miss this…
Your first Quantum Wealth Report is waiting for you:
