Home / World / The difference between ‘rich’ and ‘wealthy,’ according to New York Times ‘Wealth Matters’ columnist

The difference between ‘rich’ and ‘wealthy,’ according to New York Times ‘Wealth Matters’ columnist


When Paul Sullivan was hired to write his “Wealth Matters” column in The New York Times 13 years ago, Americans’ relationships with wealth and wealthy people were undergoing a rapid shift.

“When I interviewed for the job in 2008, it was the day Bear Stearns collapsed. I was told I could create the ‘Wealth Matters’ column when Lehman Brothers collapsed,” he says. “My first column ran the weekend that Bernie Madoff was being hauled out of his Park Avenue apartment.”

Between then and the publication of his final column in October 2021, Sullivan established what investors might call a robust track record of cataloging the shifting attitudes surrounding what it means to be wealthy in this country. Grow caught up with Sullivan as he embarks on his next project — The Company of Dads, an online community for fathers taking on lead parenting duties — to discuss what it truly means to be wealthy, the money habits of the rich and fabulous, and which billionaire excess is worth the money.

Among his biggest takeaways: “I always drew the line between people who are wealthy and people who are rich,” he says.

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The bulk of Sullivan’s columns either focused on financial news that folks in high tax brackets could use or money lessons from the megarich that middle-class folks could put to good use. But a third genre of Sullivan’s story, one he calls “voyeuristic,” got him up close and personal with the eye-poppingly expensive hobbies of the 1%.

In a world of five-figure workout regimens and private sportscar racing clubs, one indulgence stood out for Sullivan as absolutely worth the money (if you have it). “The only one I would 100% want to do and that I dream about is to fly private,” he says. “It’s so stinkin’ expensive, but I did this story at the Gulfstream factory. I wasn’t even going anywhere. I went to Savannah, turned around, and came home. It was awesome.”

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By writing everything down, Sullivan says, you can establish the beginnings of what he calls a “locus of control” — an intentionality around money that is common among people who have the wealth to freely spend on the things that they want.

“Taking a nuts and bolts approach to your money is a pretty good indicator that someone is going to be successful,” Sullivan says. “If you know how much you earn, what you need to live on, and where your money is going, you have a foundation on which to build your financial future.”

 The article “The Difference Between ‘Rich’ and ‘Wealthy,’ According to New York Times ‘Wealth Matters’ Columnist″ was originally published on Grow (CNBC + Acorns).

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