‘Shark Tank’ Investor Kevin O’Leary Not blaming the economy for your empty bank account. He is blaming you. And she’s not ashamed of it.
“Listen, I’m going to tell you something a lot of people don’t want to hear,” O’Leary said in a December YouTube video, “If You Want to Get Rich, Stop Buying These 5 Things.” “You’re broke. Not because you don’t make enough money, not because the economy is rigged against you, not because you’re unlucky. You’re broke because you’re buying stupid things that keep you poor.”
From the very first line, O’Leary makes it clear – wealth building doesn’t start with more income. It starts with cutting the crap.
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His first goal? That shiny new car in your driveway.
“Buying a new car is one of the dumbest financial decisions you can make,” O’Leary said. A car’s value drops 20% to 30% when you take it off the lot, he said, turning thousands of dollars into dust — except for “that new car smell.” And rent? “Lease is the worst,” he said. “You’re leasing a depreciable asset… You paid thousands of dollars to the dealership for the privilege of borrowing their car.”
His advice is brutal but simple: “Buy a three-year-old certified pre-owned car. Let someone else hit the depreciation. That’s what rich people do.”
O’Leary doesn’t just come for your car. He’s coming for your kitchen – or more accurately, the one you refuse to use. “People tell me they don’t have money to invest. And then I see them spend $15 on a salad for lunch,” he said. That’s not a splurge. It is financial suicide.
According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American spends about $4,000 a year. O’Leary runs the math: Investing $3,500 annually for 30 years at 10% can add up to more than $600,000. “You’re trading half a million dollars in retirement property for amenities and fancy meals that you’ll forget about in 24 hours,” he said.
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Pack your lunch. Make your own coffee at home. “These are not sacrifices,” O’Leary said. “These are smart financial decisions.” But when you eat out, he says, at least make it count. “Don’t waste money on generic chain restaurants because you’re too lazy to cook. That’s not living well. That’s being fiscally irresponsible.”
Then comes the myth of the “forever home”. O’Leary doesn’t buy it—literally or figuratively. “Your home is your biggest liability,” he said. “An asset puts money in your pocket. A liability takes money out. And your home—the one you live in—takes money out every month.”
Mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, landscaping — “It’s a money pit,” O’Leary said. And the bigger the house, the deeper the hole.
He says the real estate trap is that people buy the most expensive house when the bank says they “can afford it.” It’s not a financial milestone – it’s a 30-year deal that benefits the bank more than it benefits you. “They want to pay you for the next 30 years,” he said. “That’s 30 years of interest payments flowing into their pockets.”
His solution? “Buy half the house the bank can afford.”
It’s a theme O’Leary returns to again and again: wealth is not about appearance. It’s about the margin. Living below your means isn’t a punishment—it’s a path to financial freedom. “Poor people spend money to look rich. Rich people spend money to be rich,” he said.
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And yes, that includes the clothes you wear. O’Leary doesn’t care if you own the newest sneakers, designer handbag, or latest iPhone. He called it “a museum of bad financial decisions.” Real Flex? Increasing net worth.
“You know what impresses me?” He said. “A fat investment portfolio. Growing net worth. Financial freedom. Not a thousand pairs of shoes that go out of style in six months.”
Even your membership cannot escape his fire. “It’s like a slow leak in your bank account — $10 here, $15 there,” he said. “Cancel them today. Not tomorrow. Today.”
Ultimately, O’Leary boils it all down to five habits: stop buying new cars, stop stretching for a bigger house, stop eating out constantly, stop chasing fast fashion, and stop wasting money on memberships you don’t use. Do that, and you’ve taken five steps toward wealth, regardless of how much you earn.
“It’s not about your salary,” O’Leary said. “I’ve seen people make $40,000 a year because they understood these principles. And I’ve seen people make $200,000 a year because they refuse to learn.”
The choice is not complicated, he says. It’s just uncomfortable. “Don’t be too many people.”
And if you’re still arguing that the salad was worth it—just know that O’Leary didn’t buy it. But he can buy your house. for half.
Read next: Wall Street’s $12B real estate manager is opening its doors to individual investors – Crowdfunding without intermediaries
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The article Kevin O’Leary Says People Spend $15 on a Salad for Lunch But Say They Can’t Invest – Trading $500K in Wealth Because They’re ‘Too Lazy to Cook’ originally appeared on Benzinga.com.
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