Persistence pays off … eventually
Scrooge’s riverboat business flops because railroads became a better option. After that, he goes west to become a cowboy, but that business dries up as well. A copper-prospecting opportunity almost makes Scrooge rich, but family tax troubles force him back into poverty. However, Scrooge remains optimistic and persistent throughout his journeys, even after multiple gold-mining efforts come up short. There wasn’t gold at the end of most of Scrooge’s rainbows, but in “The New Laird of Castle McDuck,” he reaffirms his overriding optimism by exclaiming that “there’s always another rainbow!” Scrooge’s story is familiar to many entrepreneurs and self-made men, who often go through several failed ventures before they find one that really works.
Sometimes what you really need is a stroke of luck
In “King of the Klondike,” Scrooge spent years trying and failing to strike it rich around the world before finally finding a gold deposit in the Yukon. The value of hard work and an expert knowledge of prospecting surely helped him discover the gold. However, in Scrooge’s origin story, it’s made clear that much of his success comes from having arrived in the Yukon before the gold rush began, and then happened to chance upon a completely isolated spot in Canada. It was only because of a spirit quest in the Australian outback (I am not making this part up) that Scrooge decided to venture to the Yukon. In every other failed prospecting adventure, he was simply following the news of other discoveries.
Why do some brilliant people succeed and other similarly brilliant people fail? Sometimes it’s strategy. Sometimes it’s connections. Sometimes it’s just a matter of being in the right place at the right time.
Put your money to work for you
Two years after Scrooge found gold in the Yukon, he’d pulled enough out of the ground to become a millionaire. At the prevailing exchange rate of the day, that means he’d managed to dig up about 3,300 pounds of the stuff. After that, he decided to become a businessman — and that business, naturally enough, was bank ownership. According to “The Billionaire of Dismal Downs,” Scrooge became a billionaire within five years of transitioning from laborer to lender, which is a pretty incredible growth rate of almost 300% per year. We human beings probably won’t come close to matching Scrooge’s annual rate of return, but the lesson is clear: Investing your money in good businesses is smarter than simply stashing it away in a money bin. Scrooge himself makes it clear that his money bin is just a part of his total fortune, much of which is in banks and properties around the world.
Are there other lessons to be learned from Scrooge McDuck? Let the world know by leaving a comment.
The article 5 Important Tips for Success From Scrooge McDuck originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Alex Planes.
Fool contributor Alex Planes holds no financial position in any company mentioned here. Add him on Google+ or follow him on Twitter, @TMFBiggles, for more insight into markets, history, and technology.The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Walt Disney.
Copyright © 1995 – 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
