My Goal To Be A Very High Net Worth Individual VHNWI (starting from negative USD 10,000)

I have to admit I am a bit nervous starting this blog. Money seems to be one of last 2 taboos of the Western world - the other being sex, in case I need to point it out. Most people only really seem to find it socially acceptable to be in the middle part of the spectrum for both taboos. Any deviation and you are going to subject yourself to ridicule. But, here goes anyway...

I have a goal* to be completely financially independent for me and my family. To me, that goal is to have a net worth of at least USD 5 million. This status has a name with it as well. Its called a VHNWI (pronounced Vee plus Henry with a w instead of a r). With a net worth of USD 5 million I can't conceive it would be at all necessary to generate income for my family from my labour any more and should be able to live entirely off the income from the USD 5 million capital.

In case you want more info on this, one of the main socio-economic classifications is the HNWI tiers:

1. HNWI (High Net Worth Individual) Someone with a net worth of at least USD 1 million, excluding primary residence, collectibles, cars, possessions, etc. (I have already been a HNWI for a couple of days this year (in September 2014) before the USD dollar leaped in value and stocks dipped, so having this as a goal at this stage seems a bit of a cop out)
2. VHNWI (Very High Net Worth Individual) Someone with a net worth of at least USD 5 million, excluding primary residence, collectibles, cars, possessions, etc. From a wealth perspective, this is the entry-point of the Transnational Capitalist Class (TNC), although at the very wide-end. (This is a goal that is challenging, but I can reasonably expect to achieve in my lifetime)
3. UHNWI (Ultra High Net Worth Individual) Someone with a net worth of at least USD 30 million, excluding primary residence, collectibles, cars, possessions, etc. From a wealth perspective, you are definitely well into the TNC. (Update as of 17 Oct: Credit Suisse has now increased the lower limit for a UHNWI to USD 50 million)

This blog is about my journey to be a VHNWI. I will tell you about my progress and things that I learn along the way.

Why do I want to be a VHNWI? Well, I am not power hungry, in fact quite the opposite - office politics sucks the life out of my soul. I want to be a VHNWI because of the freedom to do many things full-on that I can only do sparingly now - either from lack of time or lack of money. More time to spend with my family (I have 4 kids), more time to travel, more financial security, etc...

Who am I? I'm a 40-ish year old Canadian citizen working for a company in Europe, who is making an OK income, but it wasn't always that way. My childhood was, what I would consider, in the established working class - my parents were never unemployed, but I certainly felt like one of the less well-off kids in the class in what was a VERY rural state school. (In later years, I checked to see that my high school was in about the 30th percentile of the national rankings.) I graduated from university with about CAD 12,000 in student debt and zero assets.

This September I joined the ranks of the HNWI class for about 2 days and it felt pretty odd. I have usually been a fairly diligent saver (although I have fallen off the waggon occasionally, (unlike, it seems Mr Money Moustache); I also do not make the salary of a CEO or investment banker (well maybe on par some of the not-very-good investment bankers). I have 4 children and my wife has been a full-time mum for over 10 years.

* I have other life goals as well, (I'm not that one-dimensional) but I won't be blogging about them here.