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I am a millionaire. Move on… say it out loud to yourself. Feels good, doesn’t it? Most people adore millionaire status even if they are not money oriented; there is still an appeal to being one. But it’s worth understanding the idea of what being a millionaire really is before embarking on a journey into that life. So here are five lessons learned from self-made millionaires.
Before we begin, let me say that some of these lessons are mine. By the mid-1920s, I had already built and lost two multi-million dollar fortunes. It got very gloomy and very dark for me at one point. Suffice it to say I went through the mill and came out the other side. But since then I have rebuilt my fortune on much firmer ground. I am a millionaire, but I achieved that as a consequence rather than a goal.
Anyway, enough about me. Let’s take a look at these five lessons learned from self-made millionaires.
Related: 8 Traits Common to Millionaires Under 30
Contents
1. If you have a million dollars in the bank, you are not automatically a rich person
This is a enormous rule for many people. A million dollars is a line in the sand. It’s a rubicon to cross, and on the other side lies happiness and stability, right? The problem with this approach is that with that money, no attention is paid to your character. If you don’t work on yourself, having a million dollars won’t magically change your charisma, character traits, and personality.
Millionaires can be just as frugal with their finances as the rest of us. So if you’re drawn to the freedom and joy that a million dollars would bring you, make That your goal. Not the money.
2. Money is not the root of all evil.
I don’t know if you’re like me, but I grew up in a Christian and conservative family. My parents immigrated to the UK from Zimbabwe before having children, bringing their anti-consumerist values with them.
Now, in a sense, they were right. Money won’t solve you. you you have to solve. But a million dollars won’t turn you into a purring, evil genius, either. Our western society has held on to the belief that a millionaire is a modern ogre. But at the same time, our society also worships millionaires.
Money itself has no moral compass. It’s just an attendant. It will reinforce who you are, so I suggest you get that under control first.
Related: 6 Money Management Tips for Startup Entrepreneurs
3. Time is more valuable than money
This may sound like a tone-deaf proposition if you are someone who has a lot of stress around money because you don’t have enough or have to work hard to get it.
But it is true. An important factor for people becoming millionaires is achieving the lifestyle they want actually wanted. They just assumed they had to be a millionaire to experience it. Then they realize they don’t want to sacrifice any more of their time.
Ask any millionaire what they personally pay the most for, and you’ll likely find it a time-saving good or service. Personal: I pay for first class travel. Yes, because I like the luxurious nature of it, but more than that, the ability to skip the lines and get more work done on a flight saves me a huge amount of time. I have a maid and a nanny and pay others to help with my daily activities. This allows me to operate efficiently and I no longer take time with administrative tasks.
I (and my clients) value my time. It would help if you were aware of that in every business. You need support from others. There aren’t enough hours in a day to do it all yourself (which makes a mockery of the whole “homemade” stuff).
Related: The 5 Traits of Superior Entrepreneurs
4. Find a mentor
This cannot be overstated. To reiterate the last point: your time is precious. It’s the only product they don’t make anymore. If you have a mentor, you can skip one lot of trial and error.
No one is really “self-made”. We all stand on the shoulders of giants in one way or another, so make sure you stand on the shoulders of the tallest giant you can find! You’ll make more progress toward your financial and business goals in one phone call or luncheon than in ten years of trying to figure it out on your own. Believe me.
5. Practice gratitude
Gratitude is such a tremendous exercise. It’s one of the most effective ways to change your experience and it costs nothing! Your subconscious is determined to look for things that support the status quo and ultimately keep you safe. To this end, the reticular activation system filters out irrelevant information. So you can hunt and flee from danger.
Or, to put that into modern context, when you enter a Starbucks, you’re engulfed by the menu boards, not what the guy in the corner is wearing. Your subconscious is just trying to maintain the status quo: it didn’t kill you. That’s how basic programming is, but when you consider that this is the oldest part of your brain, it runs on “pre-intellect software.”
However, this does not mean that it cannot be reprogrammed. You have to learn to code in his language, also called emotional energy. If you can start dripping food on it, it proves that a new situation is not only safe but also desirable. It will help you find more of it. Gratitude is one of the most incredible hacks for this.
By practicing gratitude (ie actively seeking things to be thankful for in any scenario, no matter how small), you are essentially hacking your subconscious. You pollute your environment with gratitude, which will begin to snowball into success. This will help you in your growth because you will realize (like me and many others before me) that a million dollars can’t give you a life to be thankful for.
Only you can do that.
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.