Jacob Michael's Key Ideas from The Millionaire Fastlane
by MJ DeMarco

The get rich slow strategy that is championed by society is a losing game. It is anchored on your time, assumes that everything will go according to plan, and doesn’t involve getting rich at a young age.

If you want to get rich, take the Fastlane road.

True wealth is authored by three fundamental F’s:

• Family (relationships). Wealth is strong spirited familial relationships with people.
• Fitness (health). Fitness includes health, vibrancy, passion, and boundless energy .
• Freedom (choice). Freedom is the ability to pursue your dreams and do what you love.

The roadmap to wealth is made up of four key ingredients:

• Your roadmap. The roadmap is the guiding force behind the decisions you make 
• Your vehicle. Your vehicle is you. No one can drive you to your financial destination
• Your roads. Roads are the financial pathways that lead to wealth. You can be an engineer, a plumber, a truck driver, etc. The roadmap guides your actions and the consequences of those actions create your financial life
• Your speed. Speed refers to execution or your ability to go from idea to implementation

Sidewalker mindset:

• Debt perception: Credit allows you to buy things now. 
• Time perception: There is enough time and you could be dead in two weeks anyway.
• Education perception. You don't need to learn.
• Money perception. If you have money, flaunt it
• Primary income source. Whatever pays the most, you will chase it
• Primary wealth accelerator. Luck
• Wealth perception. The one with the most toys wins
• Destination. “I live for today and I’m not bothered about tomorrow”
• Responsibility and control. Indulges in the victim mentality
• Life perception. Life is too short to plan ahead

Slowlane mindset:

• Debt perception: Debt is evil.
• Time perception: Time is abundant
• Education perception. Educations is important as it helps earn more dollars
• Money perception. Each and every dollar must be accounted for because money is scarce
• Primary income source. A job is the primary source of income
• Primary wealth accelerator. Compound interest
• Wealth perception. Savings, investments, and 401K
• Destination. Comfortable retirement in the twilight years
• Responsibility and control. Works to provide for the family by relying on others.
• Life perception. Settle for less, and give up on any dreams

Wealth = (Primary Income Source: Job) + (Wealth Accelerator: Market Investments)

When in the Slowlane, you mindlessly trade your life for a paycheck.

The Fastlane mindset:

• Debt perception: Debt is useful as it allows one to grow their system
• Time perception: Time is far more important than money
• Education perception. Learning is important for growth
• Money perception. Money is everywhere. It reflects the value you create
• Primary income source. Business systems and investments
• Primary wealth accelerator. Making something out of nothing
• Wealth perception. Build business systems for cash flow and asset valuation
• Destination. A lifetime of passive income. Life is what you make of it.
• Life perception. Dreams are worth pursuing no matter how outlandish

The Fastlane is a business system while the Slowlane is a job. In the Slowlane, you trade your time for your employer’s cash while in the Fastlane, wealth is driven by a business system.

The Fastlane wealth equation looks like this:

Wealth = Net Profit + Asset Value

Asset Value = (Net Profit) X (Industry Multiplier)

The Fastlane Roadmap is engineered for two purposes. It’s engineered to create a passive income stream to the excess of your expenses and lifestyle desires, and to make financial freedom a reality, exclusive of age.

• Rental systems. Real estate is an example of a rental system that produces a recurring monthly income
• Computer/software systems. The internet and software programs have created more millionaires than any other system in history
• Content systems. Content systems are systems of information. They include books, blogs, and social networks
• Distribution systems. These are systems that move products to the masses. An example is Amazon
• Human resource systems. Systems that are run by people. Sometimes they can work in conjunction with other systems

The more lives you affect in an entity you control, in scale or in magnitude, the richer you become. 

To exploit the Law of Effection, your business needs to make an impact of either scale or magnitude, or both. 

Within our Fastlane wealth equation, “scale” and “magnitude” are implicit to our “net profit” variable.

NET PROFIT = Units Sold (Scale) X Unit Profit (Magnitude)

• To get to the Fastlane, you need a well-oiled and ready vehicle and that vehicle is you. You are the one responsible for making the journey.
• You can’t pay yourself first if you don’t own yourself. To own yourself, create a corporation that divorces you from the act of business.
• Success is not made up of a single choice but hundreds of them.
• The easiest way to start making better decisions is to start changing your perception.

1. Worse Case Consequence Analysis (WCCA). Analyse potential consequences before making a decision.

2. Weighted Average Decision Matrix (WADM). Weigh the various decisions and see which one is better.

• The commandment of need. Businesses satisfy the needs of people. Don’t chase money. Rather, look at how your business will help other people.
• The commandment of entry. As entry barriers to a business fall, or lessen, the effectiveness of that road declines while competition in that field subsequently strengthens.
• The commandment of control. Play in an organization that you control or you will be at the mercy of someone else.
• The commandment of scale. Increase scale and magnitude in your business.
• The commandment of time. Your business should detach you from your time.

The Fastlane is a conglomeration of information that creates potential speed. You understand the Fastlane roadmap and its wealth equation. You’ve dumped the Sidewalk and the Slowlane.

Ideas are nothing without execution. Execution divides winners from losers. Execution is a process. Ideas are events.