"Wake Up My People, Stop Wearing And Driving Your Money!"

“It’s not your salary that makes you rich; it’s your spending habits.”

Let that sink in.

It’s a quote often repeated, yet rarely embraced in practice—especially in a society where image often outweighs substance, and where perception has become more valuable than reality. But before we talk about spending habits, let’s take a hard look at the bigger picture—because money, power, and privilege in America are far from equally distributed.

Consider this:

• 96.1% of the 1.28 million U.S. households in the top 1% by income are white.
• The 100 richest Americans hold more wealth than the entire Black population.
• The five largest white landowners own more land than all Black Americans combined.
• At current rates, it would take the average Black family 228 years to build the same wealth as a white family today.

Let’s also look at buying power:

• White – $12.1 trillion
• Black – $1.3 trillion
• Asian – $1.0 trillion
• Hispanic – $1.5 trillion
• Native American – $114.6 billion
• Multiracial – $224.7 billion

These aren’t just statistics. They’re signposts pointing to a fundamental truth: income is not wealth. And without changing the way we use our money, we’ll keep feeding a system that leaves many behind.

We've all heard the phrase, "Keeping up with the Joneses." For those unfamiliar, it refers to comparing your life and possessions with others as a measure of success. The term dates back to a 1913 comic strip, but its relevance today has only grown—with social media as its new stage.

Now, instead of peeking over the fence to see what the neighbors drive, we scroll through Instagram and Facebook feeds. And what we see is often a curated fantasy, not reality. Luxury cars. Lavish vacations. Designer wardrobes. It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking these images reflect someone's true financial situation—when in many cases, they reflect debt, insecurity, or both.

As Brittany Kline wrote in her article "The Truth About Keeping Up with the Joneses":

“With the rise of the internet, signals come in the form of the colleges we attend, cars, houses, clothes and other material goods. Social media is a distorted reality that has created a deluded sense of self-worth and value.”

She’s not wrong.

A recent Harris Poll of over 1,000 Americans revealed that:

• 40% said seeing other people’s purchases or vacations increased their own desire to spend similarly.
• 21% admitted they often choose activities or purchases based on how it will look on social media.

Let that sink in too.

This is the cycle we're caught in: chasing validation through spending, while the racial wealth gap continues to widen. The dollar circulates:

• 6 hours in the Black community
• 17 days in the White community
• 20 days in the Jewish community
• 30 days in the Asian community

Six hours. That’s how long a dollar lasts in the Black community before it's spent elsewhere. That means our money doesn’t even make it through breakfast, lunch, and dinner before it’s gone.

Here's the hard truth: We’re wearing our wealth. We’re driving it. We’re broadcasting it online. But we’re not building it.

I’m not here to judge how anyone spends their money—you’ve worked hard for it. You have every right to enjoy the fruits of your labor. But I urge you to ask yourself this: when financial hardship strikes, will the “Joneses” step in to save your car from repossession or your home from foreclosure?

The Joneses won’t be there. And Instagram likes won’t pay the bills.

The road to generational wealth begins with one decision at a time—to save more, to invest smarter, and to stop giving away our power for the sake of appearances.

We all want to be rich. But remember, it's not about how much you make—it's what you do with what you have. Let's build wealth that lasts longer than six hours.