{"id":163,"date":"2012-07-22T09:22:16","date_gmt":"2012-07-22T09:22:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.apisbull.com\/blog\/?p=163"},"modified":"2012-07-22T09:22:16","modified_gmt":"2012-07-22T09:22:16","slug":"common-millionaire-myths","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.apisbull.com\/blog\/?p=163","title":{"rendered":"Common Millionaire Myths"},"content":{"rendered":"
We have a little quiz for you today.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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How do you think the majority of rich people got rich?<\/span><\/div>\n

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It\u2019s not meant to be a trick question. But if you ask people off the street, they almost always get it wrong.\u00a0<\/span>The correct answer is not only interesting. It can help you achieve your own wealth and success if you follow the cues.<\/span><\/div>\n

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But before we tell you what that correct answer is, it is helpful to understand the misperceptions that most people have…<\/span><\/div>\n

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Because hanging on to these \u201cmillionaire myths\u201d can prevent you from attaining the success you desire.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
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Common Millionaire Myths<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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A clever marketer asked the simple question years ago:<\/span><\/div>\n

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\u201cHow do you think the average millionaire became a millionaire?\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n

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Surprised at the initial results, he walked the streets and visited malls throughout the country and asked everyday working folks the same question.\u00a0<\/span>The results were the same. And the number one response was predictable…\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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Most people thought that millionaires inherited their wealth.\u00a0<\/span>Not so, says Thomas J. Stanley, author of\u00a0The Millionaire Next Door<\/em><\/span>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n

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In fact, in this 1996 best seller, he reported that less than one in five of all millionaires had inherited their wealth.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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What\u2019s remarkable is how that number has been shrinking ever since.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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In a more recent survey taken by American Express Publishing and Harrison Group, the number had dwindled to less than one in 20.\u00a0<\/span>Clearly, inheritance is no longer the primary way people become wealthy. The \u201cnouveau riche\u201d have all earned their wealth.<\/span><\/div>\n
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So how have the \u201cnew rich\u201d become millionaires?\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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Stock market? Real Estate? Gold? A lucky weekend in Vegas?<\/span><\/div>\n

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Nope.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The Vast Majority of Millionaires\u00a0Own a Business<\/strong><\/div>\n
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And the majority of them built their businesses from the ground up.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Think about some of the wealthiest people of our generation. They got there by building up (and in some cases selling) a business:<\/span><\/div>\n

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\u2022 Bill Gates (Microsoft)<\/span><\/div>\n
\u2022 Warren Buffet (Berkshire Hathaway)<\/span><\/div>\n
\u2022 Jim, Alice & Robson Walton (Wal-Mart)<\/span><\/div>\n
\u2022 Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)<\/span><\/div>\n
\u2022 Sergey Brin & Larry Page (Google)<\/span><\/div>\n
\u2022 Michael Dell (Dell computers)<\/span><\/div>\n

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Each person on this list is worth over $15 billion each. Bill Gates is worth about $60 billion. That\u2019s more than the yearly budget for the entire nation of New Zealand!<\/span><\/div>\n

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All these mentioned (and there are hundreds of others) started as regular, middle-class folks who made their fortunes during their own lifetimes. Sometimes in a very short span of time…<\/span><\/div>\n

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But all of them did it the same way. Thy started their own business and reaped the capital gains.<\/span><\/div>\n

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The world is filled with millions of smaller scale success stories.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Just think about where you live. Most cities or towns have at least one area that is the \u201cwealthy part of town.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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The locations may differ from town to town. In some places the wealthy may build their homes up on a hill. Or near a lake. Or on the beach.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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But no matter where you live, the make-up of the \u201cwealthy section of town\u201d is quite similar. The majority of the people living in those areas are the local business owners.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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It\u2019s the people who own the restaurants and car dealerships and antique shops and beauty salons and bowling alleys, etc.<\/span><\/div>\n

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These people are generally career entrepreneurs. And while not all entrepreneurs are millionaires…<\/span><\/div>\n

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…most millionaires tend to be serial entrepreneurs.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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Which means they have a different outlook on life. One which you may consider adopting.<\/span><\/div>\n

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You see, while most of the working-class sees starting a business as a great risk, the financially successful see working 9 to 5 for someone else as much more risky.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Working for someone else means you aren\u2019t in control of what happens. You\u2019re at the mercy of your boss.<\/span><\/div>\n

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But even more limiting is how much you can make.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Even high-end wage earners are limited by the amount of time they have. For example, a surgeon is a highly skilled professional who can easily make a high six-figure salary.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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But she only has so much time. And the money she makes by doing surgery is limited to the number of surgeries she can perform.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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Entrepreneurs prefer to build a business with no ceiling on how much money they can make.<\/span><\/div>\n

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And that\u2019s why the most successful and ultra wealthy have done it primarily by starting a business of their own.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Capital Gains the\u00a0Ultra-Wealthy Love<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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A couple weeks ago we told you about Mark F., a member of the ultra-wealthy whom we intervied.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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One of his words of wisdom was this:\u00a0the rich hate capital gains<\/strong>.<\/span><\/div>\n

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He was talking about buying stock or real estate with the goal of netting a capital gain.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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He called that speculation, not investment. His idea of investment is something that produces dependable income.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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That\u2019s how he invests and grows his own money.<\/span><\/div>\n

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But what we didn\u2019t mention in that newsletter was that Mark is all for \u201cspeculating\u201d in his own business ventures.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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In fact, like most of the ultra-wealthy, Mark made the vast majority of his $50 million dollar fortune through capital gains. But his gains came from businesses he started from scratch.<\/span><\/div>\n

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He started — and subsequently sold — \u00a0at least three different businesses in his career. He retired after each sale … only to \u201cunretire\u201d once he got a new idea.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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Like we said, the ultra-wealthy tend to be serial entrepreneurs.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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How You Can Cash in On This<\/strong><\/div>\n

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So where does this leave you? Especially if you are NOT a serial entrepreneur?<\/span><\/div>\n

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First, remember, most people aren\u2019t going to have the billionaire-type success of a Bill Gates or Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg.<\/span><\/div>\n

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But you don\u2019t need that kind of fame and fortune to be extremely successful. Or wealthy and happy.<\/span><\/div>\n

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For you, starting your own business may be the way to go. For others, a side home business may be a better fit.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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And even within the small-business or home-based business models, there is a lot of diversity. Some businesses are more hands-on. Others are more passive.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Mark F. talks about some of the high-level attitudes you need to be successful in his interview.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

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But it\u2019s in the strategy on increasing your cash flow where you\u2019ll find the most valuable information on how to start a business \u2013either a part-time home-based venture or your own full-time business.<\/span><\/div>\n

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There you\u2019ll also find a link to an assessment that can help you discover how your own natural strengths, weaknesses and talents can best fit in to the process of starting a business.<\/span><\/div>\n

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For now, we give you all the resources you need to investigate and make the right decision for yourself.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Starting your own business doesn\u2019 just happen. It takes some thought, some education and some planning.<\/span><\/div>\n

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The time to get started is now. Don\u2019t put this off. We\u2019ll help you take the first step right here …<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Read this book to understand it.<\/strong><\/div>\n
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