How close are you to be a millionaire?

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Myths of a Millionaire

Think of a millionaire lifestyle now. So what did you think of? Super cars? Fancy restaurants? Or owning an island?

Whenever we think of a millionaire, images of them driving super cars, dining at the finest restaurants or owning the huge property with a castle built on it are generated in our mind. Yet how much truth are there in these pictures? I believe the media and fairy tales have shown us too much false images of the guys in the “Super Rich Club”.

Research has shown otherwise. 80 percent of the millionaires generated their wealth in one generation and on average, millionaires live a decent lifestyle instead of the luxurious lifestyle that we thought of. Most of the millionaires are frugal and they may be driving a normal 1.6L car instead of a Ferrari.

Case Study: Warren Buffett VS Michael Jackson

Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett is one of the world’s richest man and he is unique among the billionaires as he generate his wealth purely by investing.

Buffett is extremely frugal and is always protecting his capital. He buy clothes off the rack instead of having it tailor make and drive his own car instead of having a chauffeur. He is still living in the same house he bought 50 years ago for $31,500.

He is a classic example and role model for us to follow in order for us to become a millionaire.

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson is one of the most famous people in the world and he make a great name for himself in the music industry. He has made millions and splurged millions.

He once spent $6 million in a single store(I’m really curious what he really bought there) and he live an extravagant lifestyle. He bought a piece of land near Santa  Ynez, California and built Neverland Ranch which consist of Ferris wheels, movie theater and an exotic menagerie at a cost of $17 million.

He got into some financial issues and ran up debts by millions. Neverland Ranch was closed as a cost cutting measure in the end.

He is a great star with great talents, what let him down is his poor financial management skills.

Lessons

First of all, we had debunked the myth of millionaires must live in big houses and have chauffeurs driving them around. We can see that Buffett simple lifestyle got him to where he is today so choosing him as your role model isn’t a bad choice.

In Michael Jackson’s case, we can see that the false image of millionaire is doing him more harm than good. Splurging, extravagant lifestyles and not making profitable investments are the reasons for his downfall.

8 Habits of a Millionaire

1. Frugal lifestyle - In order to grow our wealth, we need to make sure that we are thrifty and not spending more than what we earn. If we are making $5000 per month and spending $10,000 per month, how is it possible to accumulate wealth? It is just like a pail with a hole and water is leaking non stop!

2. Cut off debt - Try your best not to get in debt but if you are in debt now, do your best to clear them up before the interest devour you. As we know compounding interest can help us earn great money but if the interest is growing in debt and going against you instead, it can be fatal.

3. Delayed Gratification - Most of the people cannot get rich because instant gratification always caught up to them. They want to enjoy the benefits now instead of having the patience to wait for future benefits. As a result, they splurged their money on things like cars and designer bags that give them instant gratification. If you are able to fight off your need of instant gratification and have a greater patience for future benefits, money will multiply into a great fortune sooner than late.

4. Being responsible - How well your wealth grow depends on you. It does not depends on your boss or others. Taking charge of your life and change the circumstances in your life if you need to. Be responsible for you own wealth and take 100 percent responsibility for it. You can complain and whine about not being in the “lucky sperm club” that are born with a golden spoon in the mouth, but that is not going to help.

5. Love and respect money - Some people tend to have a bad impression about money, with terms such as “money is the root of all evil.” I believe in the opposite instead. I believe that the lack of money is the root of all evil. So many times tragedies happened because of the lack of money. There will be people who also think that being rich will bring them lots of problems but even if you are poor, you are facing problems too, so why not face problems with a fat wallet instead?

6. Invest in yourself - Keep learning and always be willing to invest in yourself. Only by keep on learning and improving, you can then provide more value which means getting better money. Why the master always earn more than the apprentice? It is due to the difference in education and experience.

7. Be proactive - Proactive people tends to make things happen. If there are no opportunities for proactive people to make money, they will go and create their own opportunities. By far, I believe this is a very powerful attribute to have as being proactive can help to overcome any obstacles in life. Reactive people are always waiting for things to happen to them and they have no control in their life. **Note: Things rarely happen for reactive people.

8. Habit of doing more - By doing more than you are expected to, you will slowly gain recognition for your ability and you will find that there are going to be more opportunities that comes knocking on your door. If you have a $5000 sales target to hit and you are always giving in $10,000 sales figure. What do you think will happen? Your boss will recognize your talent and you can expect to be the first to get the pay rise rather than your colleagues that are doing just fine. Even if your boss did not recognize your effort, I believe that other companies does!

Do you have any other traits that you think millionaires should have? What are the traits that you possess now and what are the traits that you wish to acquire? Remember to share your thoughts at the comments section.

Cheers
Vincent
Personal Development Blogger

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