What It means To Be Truly Wealthy

By: Jamie McIntyre
Submitted: 2007-01-17 16:17:40
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Most of the wealthiest people in the world don’t look that way at first glance. You’d never look at them twice in an elevator or on the street, in fact. That’s because the truly wealthy don’t flash their money by driving high-profile cars or wearing designer clothes. The surprising fact about genuinely wealthy people is that, unlike middle-class folks who try to look richer than they are, the really rich aren't big spenders.

According to the book “The Millionaire Mind” by Thomas J. Stanley, millionaires are far less profligate with their money than most people think. For starters, they live below their means and have very little debt – most of them pay off their credit cards every month, and over a third of them have no mortgages on their homes. They put a large amount of income into savings and investments – 20 percent, on average – and they think about value when they shop, driving older cars and wearing off-the-rack clothes.

Millionaires are also self-made. Most didn’t inherit their money – they earned it themselves through their work as executives or business owners. And most of them are well educated, as 90 percent are college graduates with over half of them holding advanced degrees. They weren’t the valedictorians, however. Most were ‘B’ students, coming out of college with an appreciation for hard work and discipline. Over half of them attend church at least once a month, with over a third of millionaires considering themselves very religious.

So what does this mean to you? It means that the rich aren’t as different from the rest of us as we imagined. Very few of the inherited their money – that means that it’s possible for you to become a millionaire yourself, if you find the right combination of opportunity, attitude and commitment. When asked by Stanley what the ingredients of success were, luck wasn’t a factor. Their answer: integrity, discipline, social skills, a supportive spouse, and hard work.

The biggest difference between the wealthy and everyone else is that they’re investors rather than consumers. They’re frugal with their spending, keeping a close watch on how much they spend on disposable items that offer no return on their investment like food, clothes, cars and household items. Instead, they try to make their money work for them by buying real estate, investing in stocks and mutual funds, and buying insurance with a guaranteed return.

To put it another way, wealthy people look at their money differently. They use it in ways that it will grow, ensuring that they continue to have lots of money in the future. If you’re like most people, you look at money as something to spend – you get paid, then you pay your bills and, if there’s anything left over, you buy something with it. If you’re feeling unhappy or stressed, you buy a DVD or go to a nice restaurant. When you have a sudden emergency, like car repairs or a broken water heater, you pay for it with a credit card because you don’t have the money. Your habits are the habits of poor people, not of rich people, and it affects your bank balance.

So start thinking and acting like a wealthy person. Make a budget and stick to it. Shop for bargains. Avoid credit cards, and pay down the debt you already have. Start putting money into savings, even if it’s just a small amount each month. With the right outlook, you’ll find that your own personal wealth will start to grow.

Article source: Expert Articles