What do rich people do for fun, you ask? I’m glad I got here first. Let me tell you that on any given weekend in Palm Beach or on the Park Avenue in New York City, there are several parties to attend. Some are lavish affairs on yachts on either coast, while some are smaller gatherings with just a few friends.
There is truly something for everyone when it comes to the activities of the very wealthy. For some, reality television is their best escape. Others can be found enjoying fashion shows or sporting events in town or far away. Here are what they enjoy doing.
The wealthy like to golf.
By far the most common recreational activity of the wealthy was golf. 51% regularly played golf. It was, by far, their number one favorite recreational activity. 45% of our wealthy golfers were members of a private golf club and the rest hoofed it at local public clubs. 37% who played golf combined their love of golf with business, killing two birds with one stone.
The wealthy like to boat.
Water activities seem to be a favorite common recreational activity of the wealthy. 38% of the wealthy in my study owned a boat and used their boat for weekly excursions, typically with family but also with friends and business associates. 68% used their boats for various water sports activities such as waterskiing, tubing, water trampolines, jet skiing, fishing, swimming, or sailing. 21% of the boats owned by the wealthy were yachts.
The wealthy like to play tennis.
38% of the wealthy played tennis one or more times a week. Many were members of more than one competitive league. 60% of our wealthy tennis players were members of a private club and the rest were members of one or more local public tennis clubs.
The wealthy like to collect things.
Perhaps the most surprising recreational activity I uncovered in my study was that the wealthy liked to collect things. 36% of the wealthy in my study were collectors. Art, cars, boats, wine, and sports memorabilia were among their favorites.
The wealthy like to ski.
Perhaps the one recreational activity most associate with being rich is skiing. And my study did not disappoint. Skiing rounds out the top five recreational activities of the wealthy. Of the 33% of those who like to ski, 12% owned a vacation home by a ski resort.
Car racing
Life in the fast lane appears to appeal to the rich and famous. Hollywood superstars from Steve McQueen to Paul Newman have bought and raced classic cars – proving that whilst money may not be able to buy happiness, it can certainly get you a whole lot of excitement.
Polo
The classic ‘rich game’, polo is a sport that exudes wealth. From the royal family to superstars such as Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy, polo has held appeal for generations of the rich.
Owning a vineyard
Drinking fine wines may be a pastime of the rich, but many venture out of their heavily-stocked cellars to grow the grapes themselves. Arnold Palmer, Brad Pitt and Francis Ford Coppola have all owned their own vineyards and wineries.
Mentorship
Mentorship can also be huge, particularly as you are learning the ropes in your field. One of the best mentors I had was the first financial advisor that hired me. He was a million-dollar producer and had almost a decade of experience under his belt. I immediately gained access to his knowledge since his office was just next door and, believe me, I learned as much as I could.
They Budget & Prioritize
Whether you like it or not, a budget is truly a wonderful thing and rich people know this.
What rich people do with their money is to make sure every dollar is accounted for and every bill is paid on time so no charges are incurred.
They use systems like the Empower app* for both budgeting help and savings.
The wealthy don’t waste time manually tracking their spending or using a spreadsheet, no need when Empower automatically tracks your spending and gives you updates on where you are against the weekly and monthly spend limits you set up.
Empower makes budgeting so easy. No need for multiple apps for saving, budgeting and banking as these are all features of the Empower app.
Action – Find out more about the Empower app here and sign up for your free 14 day trial.
In The UK?
In the UK, wealthy people are using apps like Monese.
Monese has a Spending Overview tool and monthly and weekly budgeting so you can track where you are with your money whenever you want. Even better, Monese has instant notifications whenever you spend or receive money.
Having the option to have up to 10 different savings pots with Monese means you can have your sinking funds all in the same place.
Sinking funds are a key part of what rich people do with their money. They have money set aside for both expected and unexpected expenses and Monese makes it so easy to do.
Action – Open your account with Monese today and make this rich person’s habit, your habit.
Create Long Term Goals
Goals and targets are a very important part of how people become rich. I’m not talking just about financial goals either, although they are very important.
I’m talking life goals, life expectations for the family and targets they want to achieve within certain time-frames.
When you set goals you are also creating a plan on how you are going to get there.
Because you have those long term financial goals you do what you need to do in order to achieve them.
Without goals you have nothing to strive for, nothing to make you stretch your comfort zone.
ACTION – Take some time now and draft your long term goals.
- Where do you want to be in 5 years time?
- What financial situation do you want to have achieved in 20 years?
- How much money do you want to have saved for retirement in 10 years?
Review your goals every quarter or monthly to check progress and plan how to achieve them.Related post
Don’t Spoil Kids With Material Goods
As a parent I have always budgeted for Christmas and birthdays, trying hard, in my mind, to not spend too much.
Knowing that many families around me (both with and without money) think nothing of spending much more, as in hundreds of dollars more, on each of their kids at Christmas.
Buying presents is one area where rich vs poor habits are often starkly different. If you want to know what do rich people get for Christmas, the answer is not much!
My wealthy family members really don’t splash the cash on their kids at these times. Indeed they might only get 2 or 3 presents in total and not to the tune of hundreds of dollars.
In fact one Christmas it was remarked upon how many presents DD2 had received – oops! I had tried so hard to stay on budget but I also tried to ensure she had a number of presents to open.
This year she had loads, they were on the cheaper end so I hadn’t completely blown my Christmas budget!
ACTION – consider using the 4 present method at Christmas:
- Something they want
- Something they need
- Something to wear and
- Something to read
Conclusion
Rich guys have it made. They don’t have to worry about working, renting, or even pinching pennies. They have their own money, fancy cars, and live in huge estates which are sometimes right on the beach. As you can imagine, it may be hard to decide what to do with all that extra time and money!