#IWannaBeRich #ThinkingRich #RichMindset #OpenToOpportunities
The duo Calloway sang it best in 1990: “I Wanna Be Rich.”
But, Personal Finance columnist Barry Ritholtz writes that just thinking about getting rich won’t make you rich.
“What’s the main thing that separates the rich from the poor? Ask any of the financially free people, and they will tell you the same: their mindset,” Ritholtz writes in his column, also published in the April 16, 2018, edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Ritholtz calls this thinking, “deceptive nonsense … rampant in the marketing materials aimed at gullible and desperate consumers.”
Still, he writes, Napoleon Hill’s 1937 classic “Think and Grow Rich” sold 20 million copies. “In the context of that very difficult time (the Depression era) we can give Hill a pass for reminding Americans of their can-do attitudes and boosting their self-confidence,” he writes.
For the less cynical, people who succeed first have to believe that they can. They have to have a strong “why” that pushes them to do what they need to do.
So the message in Ritholtz’s column should be: put your positive thoughts into action.
As leadership expert John Maxwell has said, the axiom “if you can believe it, you can achieve it” may not be true in all cases. To be a great opera singer, for example, one must not only believe they can be one, but have the natural talent and put in the hard work to hone that talent. Naturally, without the God-given talent – not just the ability to carry a tune — all the belief and hard work you can muster probably will not get you to the Met.
But positive thoughts, and the desire to succeed, are vital to success. Many of us have been engrained to “settle” for security. A good education gets you a good job, which gets you a good life.
But if you indeed want more than that – if you have a dream you believe you can achieve – you have to have your head in the right place.
You also have to be open to opportunities that may be presented to you, and recognize them as such.
There may be folks out there who want more than just security, have a great mindset, but don’t really have the vehicle to get them to where they want to be. If you are among those, there are actually many such vehicles out there. To check out one of the best, message me.
Ritzholtz is correct in saying that there is a whole industry out there that involves get-rich-quick schemes that don’t include hard work.
For some things, no matter how hard you work at them, you’ll never achieve what you want.
But, most of us are smart enough to know the difference between real and phony opportunities.
Some “millionaire mindset” suggestions have value, Ritholtz acknowledges. He cites becoming goal-oriented, living within or below one’s means, using extra money to invest in yourself or the stock market etc.
“You can become rich – but only if you meet or create great demand for a real service or product,” Ritholtz writes.
To shorten his message, think of it this way: “Just thinking or (believing it) does not mean that you will achieve it,” he writes. “Doing, on the other hand, at least gives you a shot at it.”
Peter