Auto-generated description: A vintage poster for the Barnum & Bailey Greatest Show on Earth features performers diving into water at the Great Coney Island Water Carnival.

I didn’t realise that PT Barnum was 60 years old when he co-founded the travelling show that became the Barnum & Bailey Circus. And he was 70 when he turned one of his lectures into a book called The Art of Money Getting.

Core Principles

  1. Don’t Mistake Your Vocation

Barnum’s first rule: pick the work you’re built for, then aim to be the best at it. Most people get this backward. They take whatever job pays and spend decades fighting upstream. The people who succeed have a knack for what they do. Find your knack first.

  1. Avoid Debt Like the Plague

Debt eats self-respect. Barnum says young people, especially, should avoid it. The moment you owe somebody money, you’ve handed them a piece of your freedom. The whole game is keeping income above outgo.

  1. Whatever You Do, Do It With All Your Might

Half-doing is expensive. Barnum watched neighbors spend whole lifetimes poor because they only kind of worked, while somebody else got rich doing the same job thoroughly. The people who go all in pull ahead of the ones who don’t.

  1. Preserve Your Integrity

Nobody buys from someone they don’t trust. You can be the friendliest merchant in town, but if a customer suspects you of cheating, they’ll walk to the next shop. Dishonesty might pay this week. It costs you over a lifetime. Reputation is the actual asset.

Source: Cool Tools

Image: Public Domain Pictures