Which "Millionaire Habits" Are Useful And which Are Bull$hit?
Is Wealth Built From "Good Habits" or Income?
Part of the value proposition of Making of a Millionaire is to filter out financial bullshit from your financial media diet.
In a past article, I reviewed a research study that provided a helpful definition of financial bullshit:
“Seemingly impressive verbal, financial assertions that are presented as true and meaningful but are actually meaningless”.
Many “millionaire habits” are financial bullshit
I recently came across a Tweet from a financial planner that really struck a chord with me:
In another tweet, they made clear that the “millionaire habits” referred to are the ones you’ll see from a lot of self-improvement bloggers:
Getting up at 4 AM
Reading 2 hours per day
Meditating
Eating an “insert latest trend” diet
Exercising at a particular time of day
Ditching friends that don’t meet your definition of “success”
The list goes on and on….
We’ve all seen headlines where these types of habits are associated with famous rich people.
Take this BS headline as an example:
Insert famously wealthy person, tease their daily “routine for success,” and imply you can achieve similar levels of success through a “success routine,” and you have the chef’s kiss of financial bullshit.
As Jamie points out in their Tweet, taking a cold shower at 4 AM won’t help you build wealth if you’re making $35,000 per year.
Some of these habits might help you “feel good” (and some won’t)—but they won’t make you rich.
Building wealth explained in one sentence
To build wealth, you must increase the gap between your income and your living expenses, invest the difference and wait for compound interest to work its magic.
It all starts with income.
I don’t care how many Warren Buffett biographies you read while meditating about your plant-based diet at 4 AM after your ice-cold shower; if you make $3,000 per month and rent is $1,700; you aren’t going to become a millionaire anytime soon.
Personal finance writers talk about frugality as a path to wealth, but here's an uncomfortable truth:
Frugality helps those with a solid income build wealth.
Frugality helps those with a low income to scrape by.
When it comes to building wealth, it all starts with income.
A solid income + actually useful “habits” + patience = wealth
Step 1, focus on income.
Once your income is comfortably above your cost of living, then and only then can you implement certain “habits” to become a millionaire.
By “habits,” I just mean following the basics of personal finance.
Automating your finances.
Being patient.
These are the habits that those with a solid income can follow to build wealth and eventually become a millionaire.
(I do cover all of these topics in detail in my book “The Financial Freedom Equation,” available here. PS: Paid subscribers get a free copy)
What you’ll notice about all of these “habits” is that they aren’t really habits at all. They are individual components of a well-coordinated financial plan to build wealth.
The best part?
None of these actions require you to try and live up to some impossible standard. If you automate $1,000 to move from your checking account to your retirement account each month, it does not matter if you get up at 4 AM or 8 AM.
Focus on increasing your income, build a financial plan, automate it as much as possible and get on with living the life you want to live.
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This article is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered Financial or Legal Advice. Not all information will be accurate. Consult a financial professional before making any major financial decisions.
We’ve built a cult to money in this country (other countries as well, I’m sure) and cult worship always involves magical thinking and rituals of purification or renunciation. Yes, personal habits can build discipline & self-awareness, which could be beneficial to creating financial soundness and other good things. But in this case, calling them out is right because A) they don’t create financial soundness in & of themselves; and B) there’s a false cause & effect in that thinking that actually could undermine the process of building wealth. Isn’t our object here to assume rational, capable, smart management of our finances? I think the spinning off into personal habits that don’t actually affect our financial reality and even might distract from improving it could be a kind of ego-gratifying escapism - the old Rocky Balboa syndrome of drinking a raw egg every morning to demonstrate our commitment to the mission. 😝 I’m glad you addressed this because it’s happening, ridiculously, all over the Internet.
Great reminder. Good to read regularly. Mostly in these uncertain times!
Thanks!