Jamie Johnson Quotes

I know people socially who live in countries where the wealth gap is more extreme than it is in America, and they live with full-time security. They live with the threat of getting kidnapped, or they live with the threat of people invading their homes.

I was very close with my mother growing up. I have four older sisters who were an important part of my life. And I've been very close to all the women I've dated. I feel most comfortable around women.

The worst thing you can do in a relationship, and what's really unattractive about it, is that people begin to limit each other.

I've always found that I personally love to observe things, and I'm good at observing things.

I'm not really a fashion person.

When vastly wealthy people say, 'I'm not leaving my kids any money,' it's typically not true.

There's an unspoken rule in affluent circles that suggests you can always define an individual's status by measuring his or her proximity to the most influential person in the room. And as the maxim goes, closer is always better.

I obviously enjoy being wealthy. It's enabled me to have a career that I've chosen and not one that I've been forced into.

In affluent communities, where each member is keenly aware of his or her place within the Byzantine order, attracting the right friends is a blood sport. Chumming up to influential figures who are in a position to help can determine the course of an entire life.

Ironically, for the mega-rich, recession brings with it the ability to live well at a lower cost and with less of a hassle.

I was raised not to talk about money. It was considered impolite.

Our family's fortune is growing faster than ever. We're a part of a small number of American families that own most of the country's wealth. But having so much in the hands of so few can't be good for America.

Contrary to common assumption, many of the wealthiest Americans aren't worried about the weakening economy at all. They are actually excited about it.

I had hoped that foreboding economic circumstances would have caused the ultra-rich to think not just of themselves and increasing their own personal affluence. Unfortunately, however, too many of them lack concern, and without this concern, the divisive imbalance will only worsen with recession.

I think people who don't work don't really have interesting and meaningful lives. More than anything, it hurts them. When you're born rich, people just associate you with what you've been given, but the truth is every individual feels better when you create something on your own. Everyone takes pride in the work they do.

Personally, I can't see the appeal in trekking down to D.C. for a networking extravaganza, even if it is built around a special moment in American history. While I find the election of Barack Obama inspirational, I don't have a desire to memorialize it with overly effusive celebration.

For rich children, it'd be very easy and convenient never to take any steps to build an identity outside of your association with your family's wealth.

I think there's something in people where they often want to describe their personal experiences, but when it's regarding wealth, they're obviously very guarded. They're very worried about how people are going to react to what they say.