Artists can get rich too (guest post)
How to Get Rich Slow by Mark Clearview
This week, I’m ceding control to my friend Mark Clearview, who shares excellent and actionable advice about how artists can get rich slow. A slow approach is not only insanely realistic, but genuinely profitable. I’ve done this for years with amazing returns.
This might be the most practical article on the entire Substack. If you’re an artist wondering how you can guarantee long-term financial security, this is for you.
I’ll let Mark take it from here:
Hey magicians, artists & freelancers, how you doing?
Good. Enough small talk.
Nobody talks about money. Which is insane, because it’s not that hard!
Here’s the truth: you have to invest in your future. It’s the least magical part of show business, but the one that’ll actually make your life more magical. So here’s a short essay that will change your life in 10 minutes. I do all of this. And I’m on TV. So you can trust me:
1. Invest 10% of your monthly income.
2. Do it automatically with withdrawals you never have to think about.
3. Pay yourself first.
4. Use a robo-advisor that buys ETFs for you.
That’s it.
The Get Rich Slow Scheme:
If you invest a little each month, and that compounds over time: you’ll be rich in 20 years.
It’s not magic… It’s math! The market always trends up over time.
Shall I dumb it down even more?
START INVESTING.
No seriously. Right now.
To quote The Wealthy Barber book series:
“The best time to plant an oak tree was 20 years ago…
The next best time is right now.”
How it works:
Back in the day, you’d hand your money to a broker who charged 2% to put it in a mutual fund that earned around 10%. Now? The robots do it better:
You tell an app (Wealthfront, Robinhood, Acorns, Wealthsimple, pick your poison) how risky you want to be. It buys stocks and bonds for you. Rebalances them. Reinvests the profits. And targets an 8-10% average monthly return. It charges you a tiny 0.25% fee. You sit back and sip your over-priced mocktail.
The Breakdown:
Let’s say you put in $100/month at a 9% return:
You’ll have $67,581.40 in 20 years.
That’s $43,581.43 in pure growth just for putting it away.
Now let’s be real with ourselves. You’re a magician. You’re an artist. You’re making more. Sometimes you’re making less! But you still want to get wealthy.
Say a slow month is $5k and a good month is $10k.
You’re averaging $7,500/month.
Investing 10% = $750/month.
Now?...
After 20 years you have: $506,860.73
After 30 years: $1,393,184.58!!!
That’s $1.1 million in interest…while you were doing fucking card tricks.
If you’d kept it all in a high-yield savings account? You’d only have $572,000.
See why you should start investing now?
The Simple Steps:
Go to a robo-advisor site (Wealthfront, Robinhood, Acorns).
Open an investment portfolio. Choose “long-term growth.”
Connect your bank.
Auto-withdraw 5% on the 1st and 5% on the 15th.
Treat it like rent. It goes out no matter what.
If you wait to invest what’s left over, you’ll never invest.
If you pay yourself like you’re a bill, you’ll always hit your goals.
Tax-Smart Stuff (the boring yet sexy part):
Do it in a tax-sheltered account:
Traditional IRA: Lower your taxable income now, pay taxes later.
Roth IRA: Pay taxes now, let it grow tax-free forever.
Let it compound... Uncle Sam doesn’t get a cut.
You can contribute up to $7000/year in each…so do it!
Also… HISA vs. Investing:
I’ve heard it before: “Yes I invest! I have a high yield savings account!” Okay… Good, yes. Those can be great. Get one for sure. But this isn’t for long term investments.
Your High-Interest (or yield) Savings Account (HISA) is for cash you might need.
Emergency fund, car savings, slow months.
It usually grows around 4.5%, and it’s liquid, meaning you can grab it anytime.
Think of it as “money you might need to touch” that still works for you.
Debt:
If you’ve got credit card debt, handle that first. Debt compounds too. Just against you, in a pretty insidious way. $10,000 owed at 30% annual interest becomes…$13,000 next year.
If you make the minimum $200 a month payment over the entire year…you still owe $9600. Meaning for $2,400 in payments, you only paid down $400 off the principal.
In 5 years with no payments?...$43,800.
Yikes. You can’t out-invest credit card debt.
In Conclusion:
Eliminate debt.
Save 6 months of expenses.
Auto-invest in your IRA.
Boom. Welcome to wealth.
Want more?
We actually do free finance talks for artists through our Polite Society event series. A salon for magicians, burlesque performers, and other creative degenerates who want to retire before their knees do. Join our list while it’s free at politesocietysalon.com and come to a talk. It’s in your best interest… Literally.
Thanks for having me Max, you handsome bastard!
-Mark Clearview
Magician. Funny Guy. Financial Genuis.