Debt is for people who don’t understand leverage. I understand leverage. I just don’t have any liquidity to prove it.
Look. We need to talk about the word “debt.” It’s a word that poor people use to describe their financial situation. In contrast, rich people have different words. Better words. Words like “leverage,” “capital deployment,” and “strategic liquidity position.”
I am in a strategic liquidity position. Some might look at my credit card statements—all four of them, with a combined balance that I’m told is “concerning”—and see debt. However, that’s because they’re thinking like employees, not entrepreneurs.
The Mindset Shift That Changes Everything
Here’s what most people don’t understand: money is a tool. And right now, credit card companies are essentially giving me tools. Consequently, interest rates are just the rental fee for those tools. Would you not rent a bulldozer because it costs money? Exactly.
My current strategic liquidity position is approximately $34,000. That sounds like a lot if you’re thinking small. But I’m thinking big. Specifically, I’m thinking about the opportunities that $34,000 of deployed capital has created for me.
What opportunities? Future ones. They’re coming. I can feel it.
Why I’m Actually In A Great Position
Let me break this down simply. If I had zero debt, I would also have zero leverage. Similarly, I’d have zero stake in the game. The banks would look at me and say, “This guy isn’t even trying.” That’s not the reputation I want.
Instead, they look at me and say, “This guy is maximally deployed.” They keep sending me offers for more cards. Therefore, that’s not a sign of failure. That’s market validation.
The Interest Rate Question
People always ask about interest rates. “Dalton, aren’t you paying 24.99% APR on most of that?” Yes. But here’s what they don’t ask: What if I find an opportunity that returns more than 24.99%? Then I’m in profit.
Have I found that opportunity yet? I’m in a transitional phase. Nevertheless, the opportunity landscape is always shifting. The key is to be positioned when it shifts. I am positioned. Maximally.
What The Wealthy Know
Jeff Bezos didn’t build Amazon by being afraid of debt. He probably had debt. I haven’t looked into it, but it feels right. The point is, wealthy people think differently about money. As I explained in my piece about turning divorce into a tax strategy, every setback is actually an opportunity in disguise.
Sure, I’m paying a rental fee on that fuel. Additionally, the fee is increasing monthly. Sure, I’ve had to move to a smaller apartment that I still call “luxury” because it has a pool I never use. But I haven’t given up. And that’s worth something.
The Bottom Line
If you’re reading this and thinking, “Dalton, this sounds like you’re just reframing crippling debt as something else to avoid feeling bad about it”—I hear you. And I’m going to choose not to engage with that energy.
I’m in a strategic liquidity position. Furthermore, I’m leveraged for opportunity. I’m one good break away from everything changing.
And until then, I’ll be here. Optimizing. Grinding. Paying the minimums. Building the dream.
Not financial advice.
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