Wealthy Discoveries: The Millionaire Next Door

I enjoyed reading The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley and William Danko. The authors studied the lives of wealthy Americans almost scientifically.

My “brief” review won’t do justice to the book. I just featured it in my blog because it motivated me to my goal of becoming rich someday.

While reading the book, you would be surprised that wealthy Americans don't live in posh neighborhoods or drive luxury cars. They don't even wear the most expensive suits or take extravagant vacations.

Surprised yet? Being wealthy in America doesn’t necessarily mean having a high annual income. In fact, not all high-income producing individuals such as physicians, lawyers belong to this elite group.

Stanley and Danko identified seven common denominators of real millionaires:

They live well below their means.
They pursue wealth very efficiently.
They have little interest in social status.
They got no financial help from their parents.
Their adult children pay their own way.
They identify profitable markets.
They choose occupations wisely.

The book opened the possibility that anyone can become wealthy in spite of having low or middle-income. Don’t fret if you don’t belong to the high-income bracket yet because in most cases, high income translates to high consumption and upgraded lifestyle.

The book also made me realize that time is our ally. The earlier we start the richer we become.