When you think “wealthy”, what comes to mind?

Do you think, Warren Buffet-type rich?

Do you think retiree-type rich?

Or, do you think of someone in between?

I guess the point I’m getting to is that there are many levels, or degrees to wealth.

How many?

Well, I’ve been studying the rich since 2004 and according to all of the data I’ve accumulated on the wealthy, here’s my educated assessment of the various dimensions of wealth:

Uber Wealthy – Over $100 Million

The self-made people in this category got there one of three ways, according to my research:

1. They Created Something the Masses of People Wanted or Needed – These would be the Entrepreneurs who pursued some dream represented by a product or service that they believed would be of value to many people. .
2. They Were Corporate CEOs – These are the CEOs of major publicly-held corporations who received the lion’s share of their income from stock-based compensation.
3. They Are the Top of Their Field – They are world-class professional athletes, actors, musicians, software engineers, entrepreneurs, etc. They have a well-known brand and their herd of customers or clients is numbered in the millions.

The Uber-Wealthy can afford to live in the world’s most affluent communities. They can afford very expensive Country Clubs. They can buy yachts, airplanes and beach-front homes. They can fly to Paris on a whim. They can hire people to run their businesses.

Their passive income (income from existing investments) generates more annual income then they spend in a year supporting their lifestyle. They use their passive income to take significant financial risks, without batting an eye, as such losses would not affect future passive income streams.

Near-Uber Wealthy – $50 – $100 Million

Their story is very much like that of the Uber-Wealthy. They do have certain limitations, however, that limits the scope of their spending.

Their toys are similar, albeit, watered-down versions of the Uber-Wealthy.

They have to be more circumspect when taking financial risks, as their passive income is limited due to they scope of the wealth they’ve accumulated. Any investment of their principal (their core wealth which generates their passive income), as opposed to their passive income, must be scrupulously analyzed, as a loss of that principal could impair the lifestyle they’ve become accustomed to.

They are, therefore, equally interested in strategies that help them grow and preserve their wealth.

Respectably Wealthy – $10 – $49 Million

These millionaires made their money one of three ways:

1. Stock Compensation – They were senior executives who worked for publicly-help corporations and received the bulk of their wealth in the form of stock compensation. It took them about twenty years to accumulate their wealth.
2. Virtuosos – They have certain unique skills or knowledge that sets them apart from everyone else. People are happy to pay them a premium for their exceptional services or products.
3. Dreamers – These are entrepreneurs who pursued some dream and succeeded. They could be highly successful small business owners, but most are mid-sized business owners who make millions a year in income.

These millionaires can afford maybe one expensive toy and live in the most affluent communities. They may have two or three homes in different well-heeled places.

They are cautious with their investing – they cannot afford to take significant risks with their wealth. They can travel pretty much where they want, so long as they continue to preserve the wealth they’ve accumulated.

Borderline to Moderately Wealthy – $2 – $9 Million

They made their money in a similar fashion as the Respectably Wealthy, with one additional wealth type – the Saver/Investors.

The Saver/Investors are in the Borderline Wealthy category. They managed to live off of 80% or less of their income and over the course of 32 years or more, they saved and prudently invested their savings.

This joint category of millionaires are the bell-curve – they represent 95% of all of the “wealthy” who exist in the world. And they also happen to be the category of millionaires who were the primary focus of my Rich Habits Study.

They may have a second home, a vacation home. They may belong to a local Country Club. They can afford leisure travel a few times a year. They are cautious with their wealth, focused more on preserving it than growing it.

I’m not sure the purpose of this post, other than to better define what wealth truly means. As you can see, wealth is not one thing. It is many things, with numerous dimensions.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!

Self-interest is hardwired into all living things, everywhere.

Wherever there is life, wherever life exists in the universe, rest assured, its #1 directive will be self-interest.

Self-interest is the most powerful driver, the great overlord, of every single living thing from fungus to humans.

The Universal Law of Self-Interest was the very first law embedded into all living things, everywhere, for one reason and one reason only – to ensure survival.

With the exception of children, all human beings put themselves first.

Our thoughts are about ourselves.

Our actions are directed to benefit ourselves.

We compete to win something for ourselves.

Human self-interest is particularly acute, and on full display, during periods of scarcity. When desperate, humans will injure or kill anything that stands between them and what they need (75 people were injured in Venezuela as they scrambled to get a scarcity – food: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/venezuela/11832443/Woman-80-trampled-to-death-in-Venezuelan-supermarket-stampede.html)

Rich people understand the Universal Law of Self-Interest and leverage it to their advantage.

When you understand that every person you come into contact with is interested in numerouno, you too can use that Universal Law of Self-Interest to your advantage.

One of the millionaires in my study told me that he has a very simple rule he uses to help him get what he wants:

In order to get what I want from someone, I first help that someone get what they want.

When you use the Universal Law of Self-Interest to your advantage, by helping others get what they want, it automatically transforms whoever you help into one of your most powerful assets – they thereafter will become your greatest cheerleader, a champion for your mission, a brand ambassador, and a devoted apostle.

Helping others succeed in getting what they want, separates you from the masses. It puts you in the top 5% – the seemingly consistent few who understand what it takes to succeed in life, and who wind up rich.

And it separates you from the other 95%. – the bulk of human society who consistently do not understand what it takes to succeed in life, and who wind up poor or stuck in the middle-class.

Helping others succeed, creates an emotional bond between you and those you help. Emotional memories are always the most powerful, long-term memories – people always remember those who helped them succeed.

When individuals see you as someone who is willing to help them get what they want, they will automatically elevate you ahead of all others, transforming you into one of their most valued and important relationships.

Once I understood the Universal Law of Self-Interest, it came as no surprise to me when I discovered that 79% of the self-made millionaires in my study, the 5%, regularly volunteered for charities or non-profit groups.

Just take a look at any one of your local community non-profits – you’ll see that many of the individuals on the board of directors happen to be some of the most successful people in the community.

These successful individuals, the 5%, leverage the Universal Law of Self-Interest by making a habit of helping others succeed in getting what they want.

And, by doing so habitually, they become the ultimate beneficiaries of the Universal Law of Self-Interest.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!

Growth in knowledge is critical for success. It was a very common Rich Habit of the self-made millionaires in my Rich Habits Study.

But, it’s impossible to know everything.

Therefore, you must focus your study on specific areas that will create the greatest return for the time you invest in your learning.

Let’s touch on these key areas:

1. Learn everything about your job and the industry you are in.
2. Learn everything about the dream you are pursuing.
3. Learn everything about the people who can help open doors for you – the influencers.
4. Learn everything about significant current events. They might come up in conversation with someone who may be a future door-opener (influencer).
5. Every day, learn at least one new fact related to what you do. Document those new facts. I use a Fact Binder for this.
6. Every day, learn at least one new word. Document your new words. Use them in conversation that very first day you learn the new word. Write down your new words. I use a Vocabulary Binder for this. It’s broken us into various sections: Words to Use in Writing, Words to Use in Speaking, Words Specific to My Industry/Profession. The words we use create perceptions. Being good with words makes you sound articulate and more intelligent. You want others to see you as intelligent.
7. Learn something outside your comfort zone; something that will challenge your thinking and force you to re-evaluate your beliefs. The wrong beliefs will hold you back in life.

Process learning every day. Spend at least 30 minutes a day devoted to learning. Learning causes you to grow. Growth is a prerequisite for success in life.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!

Successful, wealthy people are outliers.

They do certain things every day that 95% of the population don’t do.

It’s not easy to become successful and achieve a life of abundance. It’s a long, hard journey, few are willing to make.

That’s evidenced by the fact that only 5% of the population is wealthy. This 5% has enough wealth to afford a life of abundance.

Most, the 95%, either struggle financially or must drastically reduce their standard of living in retirement.

It takes many years for the positive effects of good habits to return their investment and create a life of abundance. But, they always do return their investment.

So, this truly makes the successful, that 5%, outliers.

What are those certain things the 5% do, that makes them outliers?

• Daily Growth – The 5% invest in themselves every day through self-education: reading, listening to audio books, podcasts, webinars, etc.
• Focus – The 5% intensely focuses on specific daily activities that move them forward in achieving some big goal, life dream or major purpose
• Gold-Plated Rich Relationships – The 5% seek to develop and grow relationships with other success-minded, upbeat, can-do people. They do this through the Giving First Doctrine, daily or frequent communication (Hello Calls, Happy Birthday Calls & Life Event Calls), consistent networking, participating in mastermind groups, and volunteering at local, community-based non-profits (you’ll find many of the communities most successful people on their board of directors).
• Positive Outlook – The 5% have a positive mental outlook. This improves brain performance, decision-making and is an emotional backstop to negativity.
• Blueprint – The 5% create a blueprint for their future lives. This blueprint provides a clear vision of their destination.
• Virtuosos – The 5% develop and hone their skill-sets through deliberate and analytical practice.
• Modest Lifestyles – The 5% lives off of 80% or less of their net income, enabling them to accumulate savings, which they then prudently invest over many years.
• Dream-Set – The 5% pursue dreams and goals that help them to increase their income and their wealth.
• Happiness Mindset – The 5% make happiness a habit by being present during family events, by having a blueprint or plan they are following, by taking care of their bodies and their health and by surrounding themselves with individuals who share their positive outlook on life.

Building wealth is a process. Only those who devote themselves to the process, succeed. They are the outliers. They are the 5%.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!

Relationships are the currency of the wealthy.

Wealthy, successful people are very particular about who they associate with. Their goal is to develop relationships with other success-minded individuals. What I like to call, Rich Relationships.

When a wealthy, successful person stumbles upon someone who they believe possess a similar success mindset, they go to work seeking to build a strong relationship with that special someone. Their goal is to transform these relationships into Gold-Plated Relationships.

How do millionaires create Gold-Plated Relationships?

They help them become successful using a number of strategies:

1. Referral Source – They refer quality clients or customers to their budding Rich Relationship.
2. Door Opener – They tap their inner circle of powerful Influencers to help open doors. These Influencers might be bankers, potential customers, industry power brokers, distributors, suppliers, Virtuosos, college deans (kids), senior executives at publicly-help companies seeking interns (kids), etc. They open doors to help improve the business and personal lives of their newly minted Gold-Plated Relationship.
3. Mentorship – The rich offer guidance and advice to help their new relationship avoid mistakes, pitfalls and potential problems in their business. They offer advice and wisdom in helping them grow their business. The teach them proven processes that the millionaires use themselves. They help them focus on the right paths to take, saving them time and money.
4. Funding – The rich will help them secure funding for a dream, their struggling start-up, or money to help them grow and expand their existing business.

This Giving First Doctrine is very effective in forging Gold-Plated Relationships.

The rich understand that by giving first, their new relationship will feel compelled to reciprocate, in some way (called Law of Reciprocity).

The rich also understand that by giving first, their new relationship will become their biggest cheerleader, a valued external salesperson and an enthusiastic referral source.

Success is a process. Knowing and duplicating the processes millionaires use to help them achieve success, helps minimize mistakes and removes the trial and error of your success journey.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!

Human beings have a herd mindset that is simply overpowering. It’s what made Facebook possible. It’s what causes teens to emulate each other, good or bad. It causes stock markets to go up and stock markets to go down.

People simply want to blend in. They want to follow and be part of the herd. [Read more…]

When you look in the mirror who do you see? Do you like what you see? Do you see someone who is going to make their mark on the world, achieve great things and make the world a better place?

Successful people do not rely on chance. They proactively shape the course of their lives.When they look into their mirror, they see the future version of themselves and that puts a smile on their reflection.

If you’re like most, the reflection you see in the mirror is not the reflection you would like to see.

So, how do change that reflection?

In my Rich Habits research, I uncovered eight strategies to help you change your reflection by creating a blueprint for every aspect of your life. I like to call them the Future Mirror Strategies.

Each strategy provides a clear vision of who you want to be, in every aspect of your life.

Without a clear vision, you have no control over the type of change you desire to bring into your life. Without clarity, your future is determined by chance, which often does not align with the change you desire.

You need change to be programmed or systematic. That is only possible when you have a blueprint that is guiding and directing the change you desire.

Let’s explore each strategy. [Read more…]

Every individual’s daily bucket is filled with the exact same amount of time – 1,440 minutes.

Life does not discriminate with any of us, when it comes to time –  we are all on equal footing.

What we choose to do with the time given us, is where the rich and poor part ways.

Success and wealth happen to only a select few. This select few make the best use of their 1,440 minutes.

How does the average successful person spend their weekday?

Thanks to my five-year study on the daily habits of the wealthy, I have the data. Let’s pull that curtain back:

• 30 minutes or more engaged in reading for self-education for work or to help pursue a long-term goal, dream or major purpose.
• 30 minutes or more engaged in aerobic exercise.
• 15 minutes or more planning their day.
• 60 minutes dedicated specifically to pursuing a long-term goal, dream or major purpose.
• 70 minutes or less making phone calls, emailing, skypeing, etc.
• 420 minutes or more sleeping.
• 40 minutes networking, volunteering, relationship building.
• 500 minutes or more working.
• 75 minutes or less traveling for work.
• 75 minutes or less eating.
• 30 minutes dressing, bathing, etc.
• 10 minutes meditating.
• 45 minutes dedicated to family
• 40 minutes running errands, recreation, cooking, home, miscellaneous.

The average weekday of the wealthy begins at 4:45 am, or approximately three hours before arriving at work.

Success isn’t an event, it’s a process. Successful people drain their daily time bucket by investing their time in activities that will create meaningful deferred future benefits.

The unsuccessful drain their daily time bucket by spending time on activities that do not create meaningful deferred future benefits.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!

A very big part of living a happy life is surrounding yourself with the right type of people.

Who are the right type of people?

They are what I like to call, Rich Relationships.

There are two telltale signs of someone who qualifies as a Rich Relationship:

1. Positive Outlook – They possess an upbeat, positive outlook on life. They seem to be perpetually optimistic and forward-looking.
2. Emotionally Stable – They are in complete control of their emotions. Their emotions are on an even keel. They do not have wild swings in their emotions – happy one day, depressed the next day. They don’t get overly excited when things go right or wrong with their lives.

Your #1 goal in life should be to surround yourself with these Rich Relationship types.

Your #2 goal should be to exorcise from your life those individuals who are Toxic.

Toxic Relationships have many negative characteristics. I’ve written about the traits to be on the lookout for here: Toxic Traits – http://richhabits.net/toxic-traits/

But the most dangerous and destructive Toxic Relationships are those who have a Dependent Mindset.

Why?

Those with a Dependent Mindset constantly seek out favors. They abuse your time and your bank account. The worst trait of those with a Dependent Mindset is that they develop a sense of entitlement – they expect you to continue to bail them out in life.

What makes them the worst of the worst is their reaction when you finally catch on to their habitual shakedown scheme and cut them off. That is when they bite the hand that feeds them, and turn against you.

They will spread false gossip about you to friends, family and acquaintances.

They will attack you and anyone within your inner circle.

They will perform evil deeds in an effort to punish you and those you love.

Beware of the Dependent Mindset. Be very circumspect whenever someone comes looking for a handout. They may be setting you up to be their next victim.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!

How many of you honestly love what you do for a living?

By “love”, I mean:

• You look forward to getting to work, as soon as you open your eyes in the morning.
• You’re excited and pumped up about the day ahead.
• You often think about how lucky you are to be doing what you’re doing.
• There isn’t anything you would rather do for a living.

OK, so you’re not in the “I love my job” camp. But, you also don’t hate your job. In fact, you actually like what you do for a living.

How many of you are in that camp – the  “I like my job” camp?

In my five year Rich Habits Poor Habits Study, one glaring statistic that I found very interesting related to this very topic.

86% of the wealthy in my study said that they liked their job, while only 7% said they loved their job.

How about the poor in my study?

97% of the poor said that they did not like their job and 58% said they actually hated their job.

Probably the most interesting thing about the job satisfaction data I gathered in my study was how it was directly correlated to how much money you made and how much wealth you accumulated.

Those wealthy 7% who loved their job earned the most income every year and had a net liquid worth that was more than twice that of the wealthy who merely liked their job.

When it came to the poor, those who hated their jobs made, on average, $12,000 less than the poor who simply did not like their jobs.

That $12,000 worked out to an almost 40% difference in earnings.

Clearly, there is a financial cost to hating what you do for a living.

What this data makes clear is that if you want to have any shot at becoming rich, you’ve got to at least like what you do for a living.

Hating what you do for a living almost certainly means you will struggle financially in life.

Loving your job and having passion for your job, it seems, are joined at the hip.

The wealth in my study who said they loved what they did for a living, also said that they were very passionate about their job and that that passion gave them seemingly unlimited energy. As a result, they were able to work longer hours and this work ethic enabled them to perform at the highest levels, adding value to those they served.

When you love what you do for a living, you have essentially hit the lottery. You will make more money and accumulate more wealth than those who don’t feel the same way about what they do to earn a living.

My mission is to share my unique research in order to help others realize their dreams and achieve their goals. If you find value in these articles, please share them with your inner circle and encourage them to Subscribe. Thank You!