How do you make it to a million dollars? Do you have to sell your soul to the devil? Do you have to completely sacrifice your social and personal life and work a gazillion hours a day?
Believe it or not, becoming a millionaire comes down to a little bit of luck and a few little tweaks to your daily habit. But only a small percentage of people are able to make the necessary adjustments to actually reach a million.
In the U.S. today, there are 22 million millionaires. And that shakes out to about 8.8% of U.S. adults. That’s right: less than 10% of Americans have made their way to a million dollars. But, if you want to join that top 10% of the income club, then there are a couple of habits that I’m going to cover in this video that can help you get there.
These are the 6 millionaire habits I wish I knew earlier.
#1: Pay Off Your Credit Card
Here’s one thing that every single millionaire in the world has in common: none of them are buried in crippling debt! Millionaires are all people who have figured out how to manage their money in such a way that they never let themselves into debt. How do you ever expect to get to a million dollars if you’re constantly fighting an uphill battle and trying to pay off your debt?
According to recent statistics, 30% of Americans have between $1,000 and $5000 in credit card debt, 15% of Americans have over $5,000 in credit card debt, and 6% of Americans have over $10,000 in credit card debt.
Those are some pretty astounding numbers and it just goes to show how many people don’t know how to stay ahead of debt. I can’t stress this enough: if you ever want to be wealthy, don’t spend money that you don’t have. Live below your means.
And, most of all, make sure that you’re paying off your credit card debt every month. Personally, I pay off my credit card debt every two days. You need to make sure that you stay on top of it or else you could view your credit statement at the end of the month and find out that you spent more than you thought and, suddenly, you’re in debt and it’s going to be even harder to get back to zero the next month.
then, you’re stuck in a debt cycle in which you’re borrowing more money to pay off existing debts. And, then, you have so much debt that the amount you owe in interest is more than you’re making per month.
Sadly, this happens to so many Americans because they just don’t know how to manage their money. If I had one piece of advice that’s the very first thing you should do on the road to making a million dollars, it’s to always keep an eye on your credit card balance and make sure that you’re not spending more than you can pay off.
Check your credit balance every two days and pay it off as soon as you can. First of all, that’s going to ensure that you have a good credit score, which is extremely important. And, if you don’t know why it’s important, we made a whole video about it. Go check it out.
And, second of all, it’s going to ensure that you don’t spend more than you’re able to pay off and get yourself buried in debt.
#2: Stop Caring About the Opinions of Others
When you’re trying to figure out what to do with your life, there are a lot of people who are going to try to tell you to go the safe route. They’re going to tell you that the best thing to do is get a stable job with a decent salary and go to work from 9 to 5 like everyone else.
But, if you want to be super successful, it’s time to start ignoring all those voices and trusting in yourself. Did you know, according to a 2019 study, 88% of millionaires are self-made and 68% of people with a net worth of over $30 million are self-made.
See, if you have a million-dollar inheritance, you can just play it safe and have a net worth of a million or more. But, if you want to be a self-made millionaire, you have to take chances and believe in your dreams.
Take a look at Richard Branson, billionaire and founder of Virgin Group. He started off in business by selling Christmas trees and then moved into starting a magazine. He then used that magazine to start selling records, which turned into Virgin Records, which was the start of the billion-dollar Virgin empire that exists today.
And you’d better believe that, along the way, plenty of people told Richard that his magazine was never going to be successful and that he should quit his pipe dream and go get a stable job. Imagine if he would have listened to them! Branson would have never built his empire and he wouldn’t be sending ships up into space today!
Along the road to success, there are always going to be people that tell you that you aren’t good enough or that you should take the safe route. But, most of the time, taking the safe route doesn’t make you a millionaire.
Most millionaires in the U.S. own their own businesses. In fact, out of the millionaires that are still working in the U.S., over two-thirds of them own their own businesses. That means that, at some point, all of them had to go out on a limb, take a risk, believe in their vision, and tune out all the naysayers.
Being a business owner means being confident in your decisions and not letting other people tell you what you can and can’t do.
#3: Read the Newspaper
There’s a reason that businesspeople in movies and TV shows are always reading newspapers. It’s because that’s actually true. Successful people actually do read the newspaper.
Did you know that, according to Insider.com, 94% of rich people read newspapers, compared to only 11% of poor people. And what’s the reason for that stat?
Well, there’s a direct cause-and-effect relationship between reading the news and making money. Reading the news helps you stay up to date on the state of the world and that’s going to help you a ton when it comes time to start investing or trying to invent something that’s going to be popular with the public or starting a business.
For instance, perhaps you read a story in The New York Times all about the Metaverse and you use that information to start building your own interactive Metaverse experience. Or maybe you use that information to start investing in Metaverse content creators.
Or, for another example, maybe you read an article about a brand-new solar panel company and you think that this particular company is going to revolutionize the energy industry, so you make a good investment in them.
You see? Reading the paper can alert you to great opportunities in the world of business. It can help you keep your finger on the pulse of the world and give you a better idea of what consumers want. Plus, being able to talk about current events makes other people think you’re smart and that can also lead to opportunities.
Read the The Wall Street Journal and Financial Times. These are probably the two best publications to keep you informed on the business and financial world. The Economist, Reuters, and Bloomberg are also subscriptions well worth having.
Think about it this way: every little piece of information that you read in these newspapers gives you a greater understanding of how things work and will make you a smarter and more informed investor and businessman.
Warren Buffet apparently reads 5 to 6 hours per day, reading five different newspapers. And that dedication to gathering information has made him one of the most successful investors of all time.
Knowledge is truly power, ladies and gentlemen. And, if you’re not reading the newspapers, you’re denying yourself necessary knowledge and putting yourself at a disadvantage.
If you already have a subscription, start reading the paper. If you don’t have a subscription, get one.
#4: Set Your Dreams
In his book, titled Change Your Habits, Change Your Life, author Tom Corely talks about the habits that millionaires practice every day. And one of the main things that he discusses in this book is a technique he calls “dream-setting.” He divides this technique into four main parts.
First, you want to define what your ideal, future life is. Then, you want to write down what that life looks like: where you live, how many kids you have, how much money you make, what your job is, your car, whether you own several houses, who you associate with, and all that other stuff that matters.
Then, separate each of these goals into bullet points so that they’re more clearly defined. After that, you can start to build goals around each of these dreams. These should be as step-by-step as possible.
Give yourself the best blueprint that you can to reaching these dreams. Then, you stick to that blueprint and make adjustments when you have to. But, regardless, you keep pursuing each of these dreams until they’ve all been achieved.
When you write these things down, you give yourself a way to visualize the life you want to live and the path to obtaining each of the things that you want in life. Then, once you’re able to visualize the path, you can begin gaining the necessary skills and knowledge to get where you want to be and start making your dreams a reality.
Trust me, by writing out your goals using this basic structure, you’ll start to visualize a clearer path to the place you want to be in life. You can then refer back to your dream-setting exercise every day and stay reminded of what it is you’re striving for and the ways that you’re going to get there.
#5: Prioritize Your Health
As a successful entrepreneur, you’ll have to be flying around the world, going meeting to meeting, getting up early, and working long hours. And how do you expect to do any of that if you aren’t in good health?
Yes, more and more studies these days are linking financial success to health. That’s because living a healthy lifestyle (getting enough sleep, eating right, and exercising regularly) leads to a higher level of productivity, focus, and discipline, all of which are essential characteristics of a successful entrepreneur.
So, if you haven’t already, it’s time to start prioritizing your health. I mean, look at Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. He was the highest-paid actor in Hollywood in 2019 and 2020, banking over $87 million in the year 2020 alone, and that’s largely due to him being in amazing physical condition.
He works out around 3 to 4 hours per day on average and sometimes logs as much as 6 hours at the gym in a single day. He also works out 6 days a week. And, being in great physical condition not only makes him look like a lifeguard from Baywatch or a soldier from G.I. Joe, but it also gives him the confidence to walk into any room and know that he’s the man.
Let’s be honest: people who are in good shape are just naturally more confident. And confidence is a huge asset in the world of business. So, get yourself in shape, go to the gym, go running, play sports, eat healthy, and also make sure that you’re sleeping 7 or 8 hours every night.
You may think that billionaires are billionaires because they always work and never sleep, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Both Warren Buffet and Jeff Bezos get at least 8 hours of sleep every night. And that gives them the ability to be as productive as humanly possible during the hours that they’re awake.
So, don’t stay up late working if you don’t have to. Get to bed and wake up the next morning feeling refreshed and ready to be a powerhouse. I can’t stress enough how important it is to be healthy.
So, while some of your friends might be out at the bar, eating cheeseburgers, and playing video games instead of going to the gym, if you really want to be a millionaire, you need to start putting your health first. It’s going to give you the power and energy to chase after your dreams.
#6: Talk to People
The great poet John Donne once said, “No man is an island,” and this couldn’t be truer. There isn’t a single millionaire out there that didn’t get some help from someone along the way.
In fact, most millionaires will tell you that they owe their success to other successful people whom they’ve met along their journey. So, if you want to be a millionaire, you need to get out there and be social and network.
You really never know who might help you on your path to success. Maybe the guy working behind the counter at the coffee shop has some great business idea that he needs a partner for. Or maybe one of your neighbors has the tip on a great real estate investment.
By being sociable every day and being willing to talk to people and make new friends and connections, you’ll expand your opportunities. And you might even meet the person who’s going to help you build your million-dollar business.
Leveraging social media to network is also an extremely effective strategy in today’s day and age. Personally, I’ve met some great business contacts through my social network on YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter.
Using these kinds of platforms expands your reach beyond just those in your immediate geographic area. It can help connect you with like-minded people on the other side of the world. And that can be a huge asset.
So, get on social media and start DMing people that you think might help you on your way to becoming a millionaire. And, when you go out into the world, talk to your local barista, your neighbors, or anyone that you pass by in your daily life.
Truly, you never know who is going to become your new best friend or your new business partner.
You must be logged in to post a comment.