The most important attitude for financial success is long-term thinking. Successful people think a long way into the future and they adjust their daily behaviours to assure they achieve their long-term goals. In a longitudinal study done at Harvard University in the 50s and 60s, they studied the reasons for upward socio-economic mobility. They were looking for factors that would predict whether or not an individual or family was going to move upward and be wealthier in the future than in the present.
They studied factors like education, intelligence, being born into the right family, or having the right connections. In every case, they found individuals who had been born with every blessing in life who did poorly. They also found individuals who had been born or come to this country with no advantages at all who had been extremely successful. What was the distinguishing factor?
They finally determined that there was only one key attitude that mattered. They called it "Time Perspective." Time perspective refers to the amount of time that you take into consideration when planning your day to day activities and when making important decisions in your life.
People with long-time perspective invariably move up economically in the course of their lifetimes. When you spend weeks, months and years developing your skills and ability and expanding your experience in order to be successful, you have long-time perspective. The average professional person has a time perspective of 10, 15 and 20 years. Begin to see that everything that you are doing today is part of a long-time continuum, at the end of which you are going to be financially independent or financially unfortunate. People with short-time perspective think only about fun and pleasure in the short term. They have what economists call "The inability to delay gratification." They have an irresistible tendency to spend every single penny they earn and everything that they can borrow.
When you develop long-time perspective, you develop the discipline to delay gratification and to save your money rather than spending it. The combination of long-time perspective and delayed gratification puts you onto the high road to financial independence.
Now, here are two things you can do to develop the attitudes of financially successful people:
First, think long-term about your financial life. Decide exactly how much you want to be worth five years, ten years and twenty years from today. Write it down. Make a plan. Take action on your plan every single day.
Second, develop the ability to delay gratification. Instead of buying something on impulse, put off buying decisions for a day, a week or even a month. Decide in advance to "think it over" before you buy anything. This can change the way you spend money almost immediately
According to a recent study of self-made millionaires headed by Dr Barbara Walls at Chicago Business School, apparently 80 per cent of the tycoons put their success down to possessing certain characteristic traits.
The researchers conducting the study found that self-made millionaires had a number of character traits in common, and towhich they accredited their business success. These were:
Can't Resist A Challenge
All tycoons quizzed admitted that they could never resist a challenge - particularly when they had been advised against it.
They each had the willingness and courage to take that "leap of faith" and risk everything to start a business, regardless of lack of resources. They have the self-belief to carry on against the nay sayers and doubters, and the passion to keep going when times are tough.
For instance, Alexander Amosu, 33, who made his first million composing ringtones for mobile phones, says: "There are many times when people have said to me, 'What the hell are you doing? You're wasting your time.'"
"But I don't get put off when people are negative - it spurs me on. If you don't try something then you have failed yourself"
Another millionaire who can't resist a challenge is Mark Ellingham. When he first came up with the idea for his Rough Guides to foreign countries, he was told that the name was 'off-putting'. Against all advice, he published them himself - and later sold the company for £10 million.
Most self-made millionaires admit to being manically optimistic. As one pundit remarks: "For them, the glass isn't half full, it's positively spilling over!"
Google the search string think like a millionaire [without quotation marks], and you’ll find that exact phrase still shows up on page 35 of the search results. Obviously, the idea that millionaires think differently is accepted wisdom.
Suppose your goal is to retire a millionaire. What would it take to get yourself there?
Becoming a millionaire takes the same passion, focus, drive, and vision as any job goal you might set.
Whether you aspire to be the headmaster of the school where you teach, the top research biologist, or an Olympic gymnast, without incredible luck, you just won’t get there, unless you . . .
- a. believe it’s possible.
- b. decide that nothing will stop you.
World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov didn’t get to be the best by thinking that he would never be at that level. Nicole Kidman didn’t become an A-List Actress and the highest paid public speaker in history by waiting for chances to come to her. Ian Fleming wasn’t dreaming about who’d play James Bond when he wrote the first book in the series.
All three of them knew where they were going and they got there.
“If you want to achieve something you have never had before, you must become someone you’ve never been before.” -Jill Koenig in her book, How to Become a Millionaire.
Let’s follow her thinking a little further.
“I am not talking about ‘fake it ’til you make it.’ I am talking about redirecting your thoughts, energy and actions into the type of person who would absolutely manifest that Goal.”
So what does Jill say that she did? You can find it her article with the same name as her book, How to Become a Millionaire.
This author who has become a millionaire and an expert in the field of strategic goal setting lays the path in plain language. To become a millionaire, she paid attention to millionaires whom she admired, using their actions as models. The path Jill Koenig took is set out plainly. You could do and so could I.
7 Traits Millionaires Have in Common
- Millionaires rise early, show up, and keep their promises. Hard work doesn’t scare them.
- Millionaires invest time in motivational activities and personal development.
- Millionaires keep a regular routine — one they know keeps on their “best game.”
- Millionaires keep their heads and hearts point toward their destiny.
- Millionaires see opportunity, not obstacles.
- Millionaires know how to say “no,” to a negative influence.
- Millionaires are people other folks want to do business with, or they could never have become millionaires.
Go ahead, replace the word millionaire with any goal or role you might long for. Those traits define peak performance and people we like to work with.
Any peak performer owns his or her goal. Don’t just wish. As Ghandi said, “Be the change.” Make your goal your identity. Once you do, people around you will start to agree and the support will move you toward where you’re going.
Be a millionaire or be something even better. If you are willing to become your goal, you’ll get there. You’re the only one who can talk you out of it.
It’s a matter of being willing to win.
Can you think like a millionaire?
