To add to what I wrote earlier....

I think I only realized these lessons when I read one of those "Rich Dad Poor Dad" books by Robert Kiyosaki.... (I don't remember which one right now, they've kind of all blended into a whole in my mind.... :) )

He writes about the difference in being SELF-EMPLOYED versus being a BUSINESS OWNER.

The difference, as he puts it, is that being SELF-EMPLOYED means that you stop making money when you stop working. But if you're a BUSINESS OWNER, you keep making money, even when you stop working.

For example, doctors, lawyers, these people are all SELF-EMPLOYED. If a doctor stops working, he stops making money. This is true of most experts who are selling their expertise.... There may be exceptions (but I'd have to think about it)....

However, if you are a BUSINESS OWNER, you continue to make money when you stop working. In this definition, for example, owning a house which you rent out makes you a business owner -- the cash keeps flowing in (from the rent money), even if you don't work at it. (You can outsource everything, and let a real estate agent handle the tenants.... If you bought it at a good enough price, you can STILL make profits. While I don't do this myself, a good friend of mine does this, and he's now looking to buy his third house....)

Anyway, just thought I'd add that little note to round out what I wrote before.... :)

Cheers,

Dien