Many of you might want to ask this question if you aspire to become one. Everybody wants to know their habits. I mean, you cannot find out how they make money unless you find out what they do all day, right? But this is not an easy question to answer.
Rich people don’t really spend that much money. If you are someone who is struggling financially, then listen up because I’m about to show you how to become rich! It really is simple. The problem is that people don’t want to do what it takes.
Millionaires are happier than the average person, but it’s not because of how much leisure time they have — it’s because of how they spend it
Millionaires are a happier bunch than most, but it’s not necessarily because they have more money.
It’s because they treat their leisure time differently than the average person, reported Dawn Teh for Forge , a Medium publication. Both millionaires and the average person allocate the same amount of their time for leisure (around 46% of their time), she wrote, citing a new study published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science .
The study surveyed over 800 millionaires in the Netherlands and a nationally representative sample of around 1,200 people.
Turns out, millionaires dedicate more of their leisure time (22% of their time) toward active activities than the general population does (15.7% of their time). That includes things like praying, socializing, maintaining close relationships, exercising, having hobbies, and volunteering, wrote Teh. Meanwhile, the general population devotes more leisure time (30.2%) to passive activities like napping/resting, relaxing, and watching TV than millionaires do (24.3%).
And, while both groups spend around the same amount of time working (16% to 19% of their time), millionaires have more autonomy at their jobs. “We learn that when financial constraints are removed, the things people gravitate toward are active leisure activities and job autonomy,” wrote Teh.
It’s worth noting that these stats apply to millionaires and the Netherlands only; percentages are likely to fluctuate in different parts of the world.
How we use our time affects our ability to build wealth
The study echoes findings from research conducted by Sarah Stanley Fallaw, the director of research for the Affluent Market Institute and author of the book ” The Next Millionaire Next Door: Enduring Strategies for Building Wealth .”
She surveyed more than 600 millionaires in America and found that how a person dedicates their activities and thoughts can influence how much wealth they build . “The decisions we make, particularly related to the allocation of our time, energy, and money, impact our ability to become financially independent,” she wrote.
Millionaires, for example, seem to put more energy toward personal growth. They spend roughly 5 1/2 hours a week reading for pleasure and nearly six hours a week exercising, while the average American spends two hours and 2 1/2 hours, respectively, on those activities, according to Stanley Fallaw’s research.
What’s more, the average American allocates more of their time to perusing social media or playing video games, which millionaires tend to spend less time doing: Millionaires spend an average of 2 1/2 hours a week on social media, compared with the average American’s 14 hours. For comparison, the Social Psychological and Personality Science study found that millionaires and the general Netherlands population both spend 12% of their time on the phone and computer.
Stanley Fallaw also found that the wealthiest people are better at managing distractions. “Successful individuals are keenly aware of how they spend their resources, including their emotional and cognitive resources,” she wrote.
They read consistently.
The rich would rather be educated than entertained.
Corley wrote that 88% of rich people “devote thirty minutes or more each day to self-education or self-improvement reading” and that “most did not read for entertainment.”
“The rich read to acquire or maintain knowledge,” he said.
Corley found that they tended to read three types of books: biographies of successful people, self-help or personal development books, and history books.
They exercise.
“Seventy-six percent of the rich aerobically exercise 30 minutes or more every day,” Corley said. Aerobic exercise includes anything cardio-focused, such as running, jogging, walking, or biking.
“Cardio is not only good for the body, but it’s good for the brain,” he wrote. “It grows the neurons (brain cells) in the brain.”
He added: “Exercise also increases the production of glucose. Glucose is brain fuel. The more fuel you feed your brain, the more it grows and the smarter you become.”
They hang out with other successful people.
“You are only as successful as those you frequently associate with,” Corley wrote. “The rich are always on the lookout for individuals who are goal-oriented, optimistic, enthusiastic, and who have an overall positive mental outlook.”
It’s equally important to avoid negative people and influences, Corley said, emphasizing that “negative, destructive criticism will derail you from pursing success.”
They volunteer.
To surround themselves with good people, many self-made millionaires turn to charity, Corley said.
“This is why so many wealthy people volunteer for charitable organizations, civic groups, or trade groups. It helps them expand their network of other success-minded people,” he wrote.
Of the millionaires he studied, 72% volunteered five hours or more every month.
They practice “dream-setting.”
“Dream-setting involves scripting your ideal future life,” Corley said. “In this process, you define your future life, the future you, by imagining all your dreams coming true; then you put it to paper in five hundred to a thousand words.”
In his study, 61% of the self-made millionaires reported practicing this planning strategy.
They pursue their own goals.
“Pursuing your own dreams and goals creates the greatest long-term happiness and results in the greatest accumulation of wealth,” Corley wrote.
While too many people make the mistake of chasing someone else’s dream — such as their parents’ — rich people define their own goals and pursue them relentlessly and passionately.
“Passion makes work fun,” Corley wrote. “Passion gives you the energy, persistence, and focus needed to overcome failures, mistakes, and rejection.”
They sleep at least seven hours a night.
“Sleep is critical to success,” Corley wrote. In his study, 89% of the self-made millionaires reported sleeping seven or more hours every night.
“Sleep accomplishes so many things behind the scenes,” including memory formation, he said.
They get up early.
Nearly 50% of the self-made millionaires in Corley’s study said they woke up at least three hours before their workday actually began.
It’s a strategy to deal with inevitable daily disruptions, such as a meeting that went too long, egregious traffic, or having to pick up your sick kid from school.
“These disruptions have a psychological effect on us. They can drip into our subconscious and eventually form the belief that we have no control over our life,” Corley wrote. “Getting up at five in the morning to tackle the top three things you want to accomplish in your day allows you to regain control of your life. It gives you a sense of confidence that you, indeed, direct your life.”
Conclusion
Rich people view money differently. They’ll ask themselves if something is mostly a waste of their time, or if it will make them money in some way. I can see why you want to make money, but I’m not sure it’s the right reason. The smartest people on earth are reading this blog post right now. You are on the road to success if you are awake right now. If you are reading, making less than $10 000 a year, you will earn more than most people in the planet within 10 years.
Most rich people like to collect hobbies. Just imagine that you can either work 8 hours or spend 4 hours working and then 4 hours of doing the things that matter most to yourself — what would you choose? For some, it’s more important to feel free and independent and less about making money.