Author spent 5 years interviewing 177 selfmade millionaires to find their secrets. Findings inside.

[ChrisV]

"Corley conducted a survey by interviewing 233 wealthy people who make $160,000 or more in annual income and hold at least $3.2 million in net liquid assets (177 of whom were self-made, coming from poverty or the middle class) and 128 poor people who make less than $35,000 per year and have less than $5,000 in assets. Over five years, Corley posed 144 questions in 20 categories to each person and saw distinct patterns emerge.”

There are some very distinct differences that we see emerge, many having to do with self discipline. The rich are extremely disciplined. They would rather sacrifice today for a better tomorrow. The prefer $7 tomorrow to $5 right now.

Some of his specific findings: the wealthy read constantly, exercise regularly, eat a healthy diet, hang out with other successful people, pursue their own goals, get up early, have multiple sources of income, are positive, and have great etiquette (thank-you notes, birthday cards, calls on special occasions, etc.)

His full findings:

You can read the rest of his work on http://richhabits.net/


Edit 8/16/18 - This is a different Author who had similar findings:

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

I think that's fascinating, especially given how many of us on this forum, myself included, are trying to go it alone.

But you aren't going it alone, that's why you're here. That's why you read books.

 

[Merging Left]

This is the tidbit that stood out the most to me:


I think that's fascinating, especially given how many of us on this forum, myself included, are trying to go it alone.

Perhaps networking is the most critical skill for building wealth...

 

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[Kak]

I see a lot of examples of locus of control there.

 

[GPM]

Essentially using this forum and finding like minded individuals IS like having a mentor of sorts. Compare this to never knowing anyone ever.

The biggest take away for me are how they "think" about being rich. Poor believe in chance luck, rich believe in working hard to make your luck. Huge locus of control here.

Also reading. Reading changes the world. By choosing to read you can literally unlock all the knowledge that the world has ever had EVER. By choosing not to read you are skipping all that, for whatever bonehead reason. "I don't read", "I don't like to read" = lazy and ignorant. There is no way around that.

 

[Fox]

Interesting to see the influence of parents, mentors, and connections.

You become what you surround yourself with - choose wisely.

 

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[ApparentHorizon]

There are some very distinct differences that we see emerge, mostly having to do with self discipline. The rich are extremely disciplined. They would rather sacrifice today for a better tomorrow. The prefer $7 tomorrow to $5 right now.

The Stanford Marshmallow Experiment covers this with kids.

You put the marshmallow on a table, and you say. You can either have 1 now, or 2 later.

The ones who waited, had better outcomes later in life.

 

[GoGetter24]

Nice. I thought these were insightful:

bought a used car
alcohol
exercise
read biographies of successful people
lying is part of wealth creation

And especially this one:
learned good success habits from parents

As I always say: you have no choice if you inherit shit genes from your parents, but you do have a choice where you inherit your ideas from. If your parents are shit, rebel and get guidance elsewhere from the wisest you can as soon as possible.

 

[Argue]

Cliche but this forum is my mentor. I learned so much during my stay. Still learning, too.

 

[Xeon]

Essentially using this forum and finding like minded individuals IS like having a mentor of sorts. Compare this to never knowing anyone ever.

THIS. Tbh, without this forum, I would never even know some things are actually possible, and would still be subscribing to the idea of "people get rich through luck and lies". Would never even have survived the desert of desertion. This place is like a source of power that holds everything together. It's like a classroom here where you learn new things daily.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

“ If you have a 1% chance, try 100 times.” - Saygin Yalcin

Great quote.

And therein lies the essence of probability. The odds might be poor, but the more tickets you push into the game, the more likely you'll get lucky. All of these "rich habits" are simply more ways you can get more tickets into the game, hence, manipulating probability.

 

[MakeItHappen]

Really irks me when people talk about LUCK but they never talk about PROBABILITY. They're conjoined twins.

Yup, also you can't compare entrepreneurship which gives you a lot of chances to hit it big with a 40 year long career...
Like Marc Cuban said in business you only have to be right one time and you are set for life so try again and again until the PROBABILITIES are in your favor.

One quote that I like very much:
“ If you have a 1% chance, try 100 times.” - Saygin Yalcin

 

[SquatchMan]

Unhappy Due to Finances
Rich: 0%
Poor: 98%

How many of those 98% say that money can't buy happiness?

It is not possible that 100% of Rich self-made respondents have a CPA... that must be a typo. My experience is that most self-made rich are driven intrinsically and a CPA is a classic "my parents think I should go slave away in a big accounting firm for four (?) years because it is a great security blanket" way of thinking (certainly not FL thinking!)

"Having a Certified Public Accountant (CPA)" generally refers to using the services of a CPA, which makes much more sense than 100% of wealthy people "being a Certified Public Accountant."

 

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[Fox]

Another key take away.

This was a great share.

 

[Velocke]

It is not possible that 100% of Rich self-made respondents have a CPA... that must be a typo. My experience is that most self-made rich are driven intrinsically and a CPA is a classic "my parents think I should go slave away in a big accounting firm for four (?) years because it is a great security blanket" way of thinking (certainly not FL thinking!)

I thought something similar at first. Then I figured that means they use the services of a CPA, not that they personally have the credential.

 

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[Aragorn]

Excellent work, ChrisV

I drew my own conclusions from the data. Very interesting indeed. I looked into Tom Corley's website and found the following entry I want to share with folks here on the forum:
http://richhabits.net/what-it-means-to-be-an-entrepreneur/

The essence of entrepreneurship according to Corley boils down to the following list. Well, it's more the enemies of entrepreneurship. If one avoids these the road seems less bumpy:

If you believe you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur, you need to become aware of the many things that can derail entrepreneurship. These are the enemies of entrepreneurship:

• Fear & Doubt That Causes Inaction
• Procrastination
• Complacency
• Victim Mindset
• Feeling Hopeless
• Desire for Safety & Security
• Perfectionism
• Quitting on Yourself
• Lack of Persistence
• Lack of Consistency
• Poor Processes or No Processes
• Bad Habits
• Negative Thinking
• Limiting Beliefs
• Under-Capitalization
• Poor Health

There are also structural enemies of entrepreneurship:

• Heavy Government Regulations
• Socialist or Communist Economic Systems
• Dictatorial Government Leaders
• Crony Capitalism

These structural enemies make is difficult, if not impossible, to succeed as an entrepreneur. Countries who encourage entrepreneurship, embrace capitalism. They also have low business taxes, tolerable regulations, and minimal government interference with businesses.

I for my part had to overcome a combination of two of these enemies: Inactivity due to doubt and perfectionism. If I think of it more deeply it becomes clear that my perfectionism was a consequence of my self-doubt. Where did that come from? My upbringing that didn't prepare me for the scripted world I sought at some time (more on this in a separate thread). How I overcame this? For years I read everything from spiritual to scientific literature. I gave pretty much every philosophy a try (I hear your scream MJ), looked into religions, beliefs, philosophies, theories and eventually realized that it is all about me. Not rocket science, but I guess the "normal" way to one's self.

I cut it short here. Again, thanks for sharing.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Really irks me when people talk about LUCK but they never talk about PROBABILITY. They're conjoined twins.

 

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[ChrisV]

There are some gems here in the patterns on 'rich people' side. It's even more interesting to look at the contrast between the two.

That’s where I found 90% of the value in this. One of the things I found interesting was how frugal Self-Made Wealthy are. It’s funny because people think that the wealthy just throw money around, but it was the opposite. 0% of the Self-Made said they would buy a new car, most of them carried Credit Cards that offered reward points, etc. The patterns I noted was that the wealthy were almost obsessively focused on profits, no matter where they could get them. They milked every gain and minimized every loss, Rich-Dad/Poor-Dad style. Which may sound obvious, but it’s funny how the public thinks that the rich throw around money, when in reality it’s the opposite.

 

[ChrisV]

I think this is why you get a lot of guys on here like “I tried but I just can’t do this!” ... They just don’t have the inner stuff figured out yet.

 

[Invictus]

I see a lot of examples of locus of control there.

This caught my eye immediately.

That picture is worth a million words.

Not going to analyze it, but what I find just as interesting as who says the American Dream is no longer possible is who says the American Dream means home ownership.

 

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[ZCP]

This is the tidbit that stood out the most to me:
View attachment 20797
I think that's fascinating, especially given how many of us on this forum, myself included, are trying to go it alone.
Perhaps networking is the most critical skill for building wealth...

If you are on this forum and have not reached out to a possible mentor or joined a group that is holding each other accountable, why not?!?!

 

[ZCP]

If you are not going in and talking to middle school kids, please do. They need to know the reality of the world. Not the CNN version. The 'you can make it if you want to' mentality. The positive 'opportunity is everywhere, though it will not be handed to you. you have to go get it' mentality.

 

[masterneme]

LOL the THINKING category is f***ed up, no wonder why they're poor.

 

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[ZF Lee]

only 1% below 40, since this the demographic a lot of us are aiming for, im dissapointed.

The survey didn't cover the younger folks anyway.
Folks our age are less likely to get up to speed with networking, formation of growth mindset principles and others. Apparently society is still SCRIPTED to believe that 20-30 year olds are to be somewhat green and naive.


But the patterns in great habits and usage of assets like relationships, networking and good hobbies are excellent benchmarks for us to aim for.

I didn't expect the survey to cover specific choices, like luck and work ethic. Whoever did the survey gets my respect for the thorough job. I've seen too many surveys go bland and biased.

I'm happy to get some boxes ticked off for my case, according to the findings. I think there is still room for me to level up on business relationships, management of credit cards (mostly should be directed to set up credit lines for business, something to think of later) and physical exercise though.

 

[ChrisR]

Seriously one of the best threads I've seen in a long time. Lots of incredible information.

Rep transferred!

 

[ChrisV]

The Stanford Marshmallow Experiment covers this with kids.

You put the marshmallow on a table, and you say. You can either have 1 now, or 2 later.

The ones who waited, had better outcomes later in life.

Yes, the Stanford Marshmallow experiment was a topic of my study for a long long time. I was planning on writing a thread on that as well. In relation to this thread, while self-discipline is part of Thomas Corley’s research.. it goes way more into depth than that. But Self-Discipline seems to be at the core.

 

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[luniac]

only 1% below 40, since this the demographic a lot of us are aiming for, im dissapointed.

 

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[Bulgano]

What a waste of time - collecting this survey.

Just FYI, millions of people are able to do what they love, as well as have successful careers.

My frustrations from these surveys is that people spend so much time trying to be like rich people, instead of leading rich lives themselves.

These messages you posted are a direct contradiction of each other. First you say the person who did the survey is “wasting their time”, and then proceed to say; ‘millions of people are able to do what they love, as well as have successful careers.’

Did you perhaps consider the person who made the survey is ‘doing what they love’, or, God forbid they just wanted to provide the world with free knowledge.

No offence, but if you are in a mindset where you are complaining (or saying people are wasting their time), by providing you with FREE and insightful information, then you aren't going to get far.

 

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[Manchild_Unbound]

Related:

 

[rogue synthetic]

There are some gems here in the patterns on 'rich people' side. It's even more interesting to look at the contrast between the two.