If you want to be wealthy, who should you study? Rich people, right? Well, here are seven habits of wealthy people that you can implement to start building wealth:
Drive modest cars
According to a study by Thomas Stanley in the The Millionaire Next Door
Surround yourself with like-minded people
Steve Siebold, author of How Rich People Think
Avoid the use of debt
When members of the Forbes 400, the wealthiest 400 people in North America, were interviewed, 75% of them say the number-one key to building wealth is to get out of debt and stay out of debt. Yet, the average household debt in the United States is on the rise. According to a recent Reuters article, the United States has posted the largest household debt increase since 2008. As Albert Einstein once said, “Those who understand interest earn it, those who don’t, pay it.” I don’t know about you, but I would rather make interest and not pay it. If you’re in debt and want to pay it all off, check out Get Out of Debt Fast!
Set goals
Tracie Taylor leads Millionaire U which is a three-day real estate training course for “advanced” students. In the class she states, “People with goals are the ones who succeed.” Tracie is not the only one who says setting goals is important. Mary Kay Ash was also an advocate of goal setting. Mary founded Mary Kay Cosmetics, which at the time of her death, had over 800,000 representatives in 37 countries and total annual retail sales over $2 billion. Listen to what she had to say, “We must have a theme, a goal, a purpose in our lives. If you don’t know where you are aiming, you don’t have a goal. My goal is to live my life in such a way that when I die, someone can say, ‘she cared.” For more on this, check out The Importance of Setting Goals.
Try to get the best deal
There are many examples of getting the best deal but the one that works for everybody, whether you are wealthy or not, is clipping coupons. You might think that this is something that is only done by people who “need” to save money but you would be mistaken. Did you know that even movie stars clip coupons? According to an article feature in Yahoo Finance, Academy Award winning actress Hilary Swank clips coupons.
Read non-fiction books
Do you enjoy reading? I am not much of a reader, per se, but I do listen to a lot of audio-books I am a huge fan of Automobile University, that is learning while I drive to and from work. It turns a boring, seemingly unproductive drive to work, into a classroom. If you have a long drive to work, you should consider giving this a shot. If you are old school and like to read paperbacks, you are not alone. Warren Buffett has a stack of books by his chair that he loves to read. It is evident that those who are successful, like to read. As renowned economist Barry Asmus likes to say, “leaders are readers.”
Do work you enjoy
The late Steve Jobs said this at a Stanford commencement speech in 2005, “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle…” Recently there was a documentary released called, “I’m Fine, Thanks.” The movie is about complacency in America. A team of five guys drive around the country to interview people. Through these interviews you get to hear the dreams of everyday people and what they decide to do about them. If you want to be inspired to do what you love, then you need to check out this trailer below!
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We’re doing pretty well except for #7. Derek needs to love what he does. We’re planning for that to be possible soon – we’re all over #4
Glad to hear that he has plans to transition into doing something he loves. It makes such a difference. As far as #4, I am a huge advocate for getting out of debt and it is awesome to hear that you are too!
I like this list, but don’t agree with the debt one. It can be a great way to leverage money to invest. I don’t pay my 2.29% mortgage because I earn more in stocks, or even a 3% savings account.
On the save vein this article is great too http://www.rsvlts.com/2012/09/06/21-ways-rich-people-think-differently-than-average-people/
I agree with Pauline – paying down your debt doesn’t always make sense if you are getting a higher rate of return elsewhere. But that only makes sense if your ‘After Tax’ return exceeds the interest you would pay on your debt!
The challenge is that you might not always get a return that beats your debts’ interest rate. For instance, the “Lost Decade” is a great example of that. The S&P 500 didn’t make anything between March of 2000 to April of 2010. If you had a loan at 6%, you would have been better off paying off your debt than investing it making 0%. I am not anti-investing, but I think people need to prioritize paying off non-mortgage debt before they start investing. Thanks for your input Jon!
Although it is true that many people have become wealthy by using debt, much more than that have become broke by using debt poorly. I think that is why the Forbes 400 said the best way to become wealthy is get out of debt and stay out of debt. Although debt is not bad in and of itself, it can be a snare and hinder people from becoming wealthy. By the way, if you can tell me where I can get a 3% on my savings please let me know. All I can find is less than 1%. Thanks for your feedback Pauline!
My savings account is in the UK, with santander. 3% for a year, then they usually have a similar offer after the term, the only trick is to move your money, because they lower the rate to 1% or something. I make a google calendar reminder and open a new one to transfer my money.
Thanks Pauline, I will check it out!
I’d have to say that I follow all of those…so why am I not rich yet??
It’s simply a matter of patience for most; wealth is not built overnight, that I know for certain.
That is funny, I know what you mean. I do all of these as well and although it has helped our financial picture, we are not wealthy like Warren Buffett. I think you hit the nail on the head though. It takes time to build wealth. We just have to keep on doing these things and sure enough over the next 30 years we just might be on the Forbes 400 list.
Wow these are some really interesting insights. I’m not sure how I feel about buying used cars these days. The price of used cars are so expensive it seems like you don’t save a whole lot buying used.
Hi Lina, I know how you feel about buying used cars because I used to feel the same way. And then I bought a new car. I bought a brand new Nissan Altima and I loved it. It had a push button start, great sound system and drove like a dream. What I didn’t love was the car payment, the insurance that was 60% higher then my current used car and the registration was 4 times what my current car is. I also was not a big fan of losing $5,000 in value in the first year of owning it; Like they say, a car depreciates as soon as you drive it off the lot. I now drive a 2001 Infiniti G20 that I paid $3,700 for. It has maintained it’s value and the monthly costs are substantially less then when I had a new car. Now I know first hand how much money can be saved by purchasing a used car and I will never buy new again.
Great post Deacon,
I’m going to say we follow all of these tips because we want to be comfortable in life. We want to have options in our life and not have money control our every decision. Share on my FB page to see what my fans think! Cheers Mr.CBB
Having options in life and not being controlled by money is key for us too. Thanks for sharing on FB!
These are awesome tips Deacon. It is always fascinating to know what Millionaires do and how they keep their money. Most people strive to become Millionaires, but don’t know how to do it. These are great tips.
Thanks Grayson! It is so true, most people want to be wealthy but they think it is a pipe dream. Hopefully you and I can help change that by teaching others how to manage money well so that they can achieve their goals in life.
Great post!
Its so true that it all seems so simple and common sense, but then why arent we all rich!?! All those little simple things can add up to greatness if you get them all under control in a sustainable way!
The first point about rich people purchasing used cars I never would have guessed! But I guess that’s just another delusion alot of us have to get rid of that being rich means you have to LOOK rich:P
You’re right about getting things under control in a sustainable way. I believe that with discipline, knowledge, and self control everybody has what it takes to become wealthy. It is hard work but, from what I can tell, it is worth it.
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[...] @ Well Kept Wallet writes 7 Habits of Wealthy People – If you want to be wealthy, who should you study? Rich people, right? Well, here are seven [...]
[...] @ Well Kept Wallet writes 7 Habits of Wealthy People – If you want to be wealthy, who should you study? Rich people, right? Well, here are seven [...]
[...] @ Well Kept Wallet writes 7 Habits of Wealthy People – If you want to be wealthy, who should you study? Rich people, right? Well, here are seven [...]
[...] @ Well Kept Wallet writes 7 Habits of Wealthy People – If you want to be wealthy, who should you study? Rich people, right? Well, here are seven [...]
I like the idea of buying a used car, but I did it once when I was young and unbeknownst to me, the previous driver had never had regular oil changes. The car was a real lemon and ended up costing me a lot! Now I buy new and drive them for 10 years or more. Maybe I would consider buying used if the car was a year old or so.
That sounds like a horrible experience. I know how you feel, I bought an old lifted Ford Ranger once and it seemed like I was always fixing something. I think the key is to buy something that has been well maintained (comes with maintenance records) and to check out the known mechanical problems online before purchasing. This has worked great for me on the past 4 used cars that we bought. If you can get a vehicle that is at least 3 years old, it has already depreciated 20-40%, which will save you a lot of money up front.
Cool list! I was always made fun of as a youngster because I never read fiction or any stories for that matter. My face was always planted in the wonderful reference and text books I had that sought to teaching history, science, politics, religion, etc. You wouldn’t believe how easily fascinating the world is with the right books. It’s even better when you are able to recall one of those millions of new nuggets you’ve learned at the right time; like in an argument, solving someone’s problem, or just getting a smile out of someone.
Thanks! That is great that you were into reading at a young age. Unfortunately I always dreaded reading when I was a kid. Now I really enjoy reading but like you said, reading is more enjoyable when it is the “right books.”
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[...] goal to become a millionaire, I do believe that I will be one in the future just because of the habits of wealthy people that I have implemented over the years. Habits like spending less than I make, investing wisely, [...]