I love to quote the late, great Jim Rohn who said,

“If someone gives you a million dollars, you better hurry up and become a millionaire”

There is a lot of wisdom in this statement. The fact is, most lottery winners end up broke or even worse off than before they won within 3 years. Why is this?

Financial Education

The rules of money are not complicated. But they are hard. And we. as a species, don’t like hard. We like easy. We like quick. Especially in these modern times when almost anything you want can be had with a press of a button, we start to believe that everything is like that. But the fact of the matter is, the things that are important and lasting tend to take a long time to manifest.

We are bombarded with stories of overnight success, internet billionaires and overpaid athletes and think that riches belong to the lucky few or the most talented. This is a lie. 

Money belongs to those who seek it, are willing to pay the price for it, and are dedicated to its principles. 

The lottery winners end up broke because they believe that money is for spending. This is the story that marketers and advertising agencies want you to believe. If you spend your money, you will be buying happiness. The latest gadget will make you cool, and people will envy you. I appreciate that consumer spending helps to drive the economy and that money has to flow from person to person in order to be healthy, but a longer term perspective needs to be inserted into the narrative.

The rich feel differently about money. To them, money is not for spending, it is for investing. Money must be put to work earning more money for it to be really useful. They live by the slogan,

“Cash Flow is KING”

As Robert Kyosaki says, do not buy a sports car with your money. Invest the money and have the investment buy you a sports car. We do this by investing in assets, which are valuable things that generate income for us, even when we are sleeping. 

The rich protect their money. They know that the world tends to be a litigious place and make every effort to protect themselves from the vultures seeking a quick payday by suing them. 

The rich put their money to work in many different ways. This is traditionally known as “Multiple streams of income”. This way, if any one of their investments tanks, they still have income coming from other sources. They diversify and adjust. 

How do They Know?

They read.
It has been said that the average millionaire reads 50 books a year. That is not a small amount - almost a book a week. And these are not dime store novels, these are books that teach them and educate them. They are constantly learning, growing and evolving. They realize that they are the catalyst for change, not the whims of the luck fairy. They realize that no-one is born knowing how to manage money and it is not taught in school, so it is up to them to find the information and execute on it. They are proactive in their approach to wealth building. 

The rich learn how money works, and where to make it grow. They try and fail and then try again. They are constantly striving to adopt,

1. Self Discipline

2. Long-term perspective

3. Self deprivation

4. Patience

Self Discipline

We have all struggled with this concept, whether it is going on a new years diet or trying to hit the gym on a regular basis. We know we should be studying for the final exam, but we go out with our friends because it seems like a lot more fun. This is the foundation for success. Learning to make decisions that are for the highest good, whether you feel like it or not. There is vast power in this skill. Self-discipline is hard for everyone so to  set yourself up for success, you should try to use these hacks

1. Habit. - Repeating good behaviours over and over again makes them automatic and soon they are easy to do because you do it on autopilot. You can start small and build up.

2. Avoid decision fatigue. - Making decisions actually uses up energy and brainpower. The best and brightest tend to wear the same clothes everyday, and eat the same meals everyday and have set up their lives to remove the need to make decisions on things that are not that important. They save their decision making muscles for things that mean something.

Long term Perspective

We tend to make decisions based on the information we have available at the time. If we are struggling financially we will probably make a short term decision that alleviates the pressure in the moment. This is why we perpetuate the cycle. We borrow from a payday loan vendor to pay the bills, but end up getting further and further behind because we cannot manage our money enough to pay them back either. 

Self-deprivation

We need to learn to go without until we can actually afford things. The old saying is “live like no-one else now so you can live like no-one else later.

Patience

Most millionaires took 20 to 30 years to make their money. They worked long and hard, usually at a business, and persevered through many challenges to become millionaires. This is the norm. Anyone who comes into instant wealth is an exception.
So, by “becoming a millionaire”, you then attract money to yourself because you have learned to nurture it and grow it. You respect the process of wealth creation and refuse to believe that you can get something for nothing. Value must be exchanged and you seek to provide massive value. 

I am suggesting that if you are struggling financially, money ,in and of itself, will not solve your problems. Only by becoming someone that knows what to do with money will you be able to earn more of it, keep it and make it grow. 

As Mr. Rohn says

“Don't wish things were easier, wish you were better.”