WHO WANTS TO BE A BILLIONAIRE?
I went to visit one of my clients recently and overheard him shouting at his bank’s Account Officer threatening to withdraw all his funds from that bank. I understood that the bone of contention was the extra N1o.50k that bank charged him on a transaction. I was amazed at how distraught my client got just because of a little difference and besides, the Account Officer is his very good friend who introduced him to the bank. I considered that reason alone should make him soft pedal. When I probed further, he told me point blank “Uloaku, in every transaction, every 50k is as important as One Million naira. This is how I have been able to make it. How should I patronize a bank at a higher expense when I know that I can get the same service at a cheaper rate? There is no sentiment in business and anyone who intends to make it financially in life must be frugal.” he concluded and I pinched myself wondering how many of us could be so stringent to our friends in situations like this. I might overlook that money because I know I have bigger money somewhere but that is not the same with millionaire/billionaire minded people. Billionaires/ Millionaires make up just two percent of the population. They get a bad rap during recessions for being wasteful with their money and are frequently used as examples of excess. Many people who became millionaires have one thing in common. They have read biographies and autobiographies of people who made it and how they made it. They have been smart with their money all along and have not lost it all and had to remake it. These are the kind of people you want to learn from when it comes to spending your money. Billionaires/ Millionaires are just like us only that they have a lot more money. They do not cite anything rare as the secret of their success but rather the steady application of wise investing strategies, hard work, and, believe it or not, a degree of frugality. Nearly 70 percent of the economy is based on consumer spending. To keep the economy going we need to keep spending but not waste money in the process. This is where the millionaire lifestyle comes in. Frugal millionaires are unique thinkers when it comes to spending money. They can easily delay their need for gratification when purchasing. They are resourceful in getting what they want by carefully timing their consumer purchases. They make living below their means painless. They do not like wasting anything (especially money). Their sense of “self-entitlement” is highly minimized and spending is alright with them depending on what they are buying (appreciating versus depreciating assets). The millionaires keep more money than they spend. That is why they are rich. Their tactics work for them so they will work even better for anyone that wants to attain their status. They do not look at shopping as a sport as most people who are still struggling with their finances do. They shop efficiently and spend their time doing more important things with their lives. Here are some of the things that Billionaires/Millionaires do not just to attain the status but to increase and remain there. Start early to avoid financial pitfalls. People often get into trouble by racking up personal debt early on, which acts as a big drag on their earnings. Learn how to live within your means and how to delay gratification; these are the habits that you need to maintain on the way up, so you can keep your millions when you get there. Believe that you can do it. Before investing in real estate and becoming a millionaire, Alan Corey, the author of ‘A Million Bucks by 30’ read as many biographies and autobiographies of millionaires as he could find. According to him, he was searching for a common characteristic that could help him in his own quest and discovered that all those who made it had an incredible self-belief that they would be financially successful. Embracing that level of self-confidence can help one get to the top. Articulate your vision for success. Everyone wants to be rich but saying “I want to be rich,” is too vague. Instead imagine what your ideal life as a millionaire will look like. For example: “I want to have N2oo, 000,000 invested so that I can live off of the interest. Then I will quit my job, have enough time to do volunteer jobs, travel, exploit new fronts and enjoy vacations with my family.” Practice smart budgeting. Track down how much you spend each month, and do it religiously. Every month, download your transactions into a spreadsheet to keep your spending on track. Invest against the grain. Making investment decisions based on the exact opposite of what everyone else is doing can be helpful so long as you are investing for long term purpose. Right now, for example, stocks are relatively cheap because of the crash and so many people have sold off shares. Anyone buying can get them at a discount to their values from a year ago. Shop around for best bargains. Like my client rightly said, there are no sentiments in business. Shop around for better interest rates, conditions of service and good quality at discounted rates. Remember that loosing the money you consider little is enough to destabilize you. ds from that bank. I understood that the bone of contention was the extra N1o.50k that bank charged him on a transaction. I was amazed at how distraught my client got just because of a little difference and besides, the Account Officer is his very good friend who introduced him to the bank. I considered that reason alone should make him soft pedal. When I probed further, he told me point blank “Uloaku, in every transaction, every 50k is as important as One Million naira. This is how I have been able to make it. How should I patronize a bank at a higher expense when I know that I can get the same service at a cheaper rate? There is no sentiment in business and anyone who intends to make it financially in life must be frugal.” he concluded and I pinched myself wondering how many of us could be so stringent to our friends in situations like this. I might overlook that money because I know I have bigger money somewhere but that is not the same with millionaire/billionaire minded people. Billionaires/ Millionaires make up just two percent of the population. They get a bad rap during recessions for being wasteful with their money and are frequently used as examples of excess. Many people who became millionaires have one thing in common. They have read biographies and autobiographies of people who made it and how they made it. They have been smart with their money all along and have not lost it all and had to remake it. These are the kind of people you want to learn from when it comes to spending your money. Billionaires/ Millionaires are just like us only that they have a lot more money. They do not cite anything rare as the secret of their success but rather the steady application of wise investing strategies, hard work, and, believe it or not, a degree of frugality. Nearly 70 percent of the economy is based on consumer spending. To keep the economy going we need to keep spending but not waste money in the process. This is where the millionaire lifestyle comes in. Frugal millionaires are unique thinkers when it comes to spending money. They can easily delay their need for gratification when purchasing. They are resourceful in getting what they want by carefully timing their consumer purchases. They make living below their means painless. They do not like wasting anything (especially money). Their sense of “self-entitlement” is highly minimized and spending is alright with them depending on what they are buying (appreciating versus depreciating assets). The millionaires keep more money than they spend. That is why they are rich. Their tactics work for them so they will work even better for anyone that wants to attain their status. They do not look at shopping as a sport as most people who are still struggling with their finances do. They shop efficiently and spend their time doing more important things with their lives. Here are some of the things that Billionaires/Millionaires do not just to attain the status but to increase and remain there. Start early to avoid financial pitfalls. People often get into trouble by racking up personal debt early on, which acts as a big drag on their earnings. Learn how to live within your means and how to delay gratification; these are the habits that you need to maintain on the way up, so you can keep your millions when you get there. Believe that you can do it. Before investing in real estate and becoming a millionaire, Alan Corey, the author of ‘A Million Bucks by 30’ read as many biographies and autobiographies of millionaires as he could find. According to him, he was searching for a common characteristic that could help him in his own quest and discovered that all those who made it had an incredible self-belief that they would be financially successful. Embracing that level of self-confidence can help one get to the top. Articulate your vision for success. Everyone wants to be rich but saying “I want to be rich,” is too vague. Instead imagine what your ideal life as a millionaire will look like. For example: “I want to have N2oo, 000,000 invested so that I can live off of the interest. Then I will quit my job, have enough time to do volunteer jobs, travel, exploit new fronts and enjoy vacations with my family.” Practice smart budgeting. Track down how much you spend each month, and do it religiously. Every month, download your transactions into a spreadsheet to keep your spending on track. Invest against the grain. Making investment decisions based on the exact opposite of what everyone else is doing can be helpful so long as you are investing for long term purpose. Right now, for example, stocks are relatively cheap because of the crash and so many people have sold off shares. Anyone buying can get them at a discount to their values from a year ago. Shop around for best bargains. Like my client rightly said, there are no sentiments in business. Shop around for better interest rates, conditions of service and good quality at discounted rates. Remember that loosing the money you consider little is enough to destabilize you.
