The Only Way to Get Really, Really Rich

Want to be remarkably successful? Want to get really rich? (While there are many ways to feel "rich," in this case we're talking about monetary wealth.) Then check out this little gem of an investment opportunity.

It's a simple investment. You only have to invest almost all of your money. On the upside, after a year you might earn 3 percent more. The downside? Any day you could lose it all, for reasons usually outside your control and that you will almost never see coming.

Would you make that investment? Of course not.

Yet millions of people do--every day they go to work for someone else.

Of course the analogy isn't perfect. Until you're laid off or fired you do earn a salary. But when you work for someone else, your upside is always capped--sure, you might occasionally get a raise, but in most cases 3 to 4 percent is the best you can expect.

Yet your downside is always unlimited because getting fired or laid off can make your income disappear overnight--and with it the considerable investments you've made in time, effort, dedication, and sacrifice.

Extremely limited upside. Unlimited downside.

That's a terrible investment.

Rich in Wealth

So if you hope to get really rich, working for someone else will never get you there. But don't just take my word for it, the government agrees.

The IRS Statistics of Income Division, a place where fun surely goes to die, has published "400 Individual Tax Returns Reporting the Largest Adjusted Gross Incomes Each Year, 1992-2009," or in non government-speak, "400 People Who Earned a Freaking Boatload of Money."

In 2009, it took $77.4 million in adjusted gross income to crack the top 400. (That just barely got you in; the average income of everyone on the list was $202.4 million.)

Where it gets interesting is how the top 400 made their money:

• Wages and salaries: 8.6 percent
• Interest: 6.6 percent
• Dividends: 13 percent
• Partnerships and corporations: 19.9 percent
• Capital gains: 45.8 percent

A few conclusions are obvious:

• Working for a salary won't make you really rich.
• Making only safe "income" investments won't make you really rich.
• Investing only in stock of large companies won't make you really rich.
• Owning a business or businesses could not only build a solid foundation of wealth but could someday...
• Generate a huge financial windfall--and make you really rich.

Don't trust the IRS? Fine. Check out the top 10 on the Forbes billionaires list. Gates. Buffett. Ellison. Koch. Walton. Adelson. All entrepreneurs. (I worked my way down into the 200s and still couldn't find an employee, so I got bored and stopped looking.)

Clearly getting really rich in financial terms is the result of investing in yourself and others, of taking risks, of doing hundreds of small things right...and then doing one or two big things really right.

But what if you don't get one or two big things really right? There's another way to get really rich.

Rich in Life

I've spoken to hundreds of entrepreneurs, and each and every one does the same thing. When we talk about the financial side of being an entrepreneur--exit strategies, revenues, IPOs, cashing out--they're interested but far from animated.

But when we talk about the life of an entrepreneur, about how it feels to be an entrepreneur, they all light up. They start to gush about the challenges, the responsibility, the sense of mission, the sense of purpose, the sense of fulfillment and excitement of working with and for a real team, the amazing feelings of empowerment and the control over their own destinies....

It happens every time.

The bootstrappers with infinite dreams and negligible revenues light up.

The successful entrepreneurs such as Joel Gascoigne, who helped expand Buffer from a personal project into a business with a talented team with real revenues, light up.

The hugely successful entrepreneurs such as Scott Dorsey, who helped steer ExactTarget out of a garage, into an IPO, and then into an acquisition by SalesForce.com, light up.

Every entrepreneur lights up when we talk about being an entrepreneur because they feel alive: free to chart their own courses, to make their own decisions, to make their own mistakes--to let the sky be the limit not just financially but also (and almost always more importantly) personally, too.

And in that way, regardless of financial return, they feel really rich. And they are really rich -- regardless of income or wealth.

Really, Really Rich

That's why the only way to become really rich financially and really rich personally--in other words really, really rich--is to start your own business. Even if it's just on the side. Even if it's just a slightly stepped-up hobby.

There's no reason not to. You don't have to quit your job right away; in fact, you probably shouldn't. (One of the best ways to minimize your risk is to keep your full-time job while you build your foundation for success.) Plus the basics of starting a business are easy; you can do it in one day.

Here's the deal. In return for less freedom, less control, and less fulfilment, every day you go to work for someone else your upside is always capped and your downside is always unlimited.

The downside for entrepreneurs is also unlimited--but in return, they enjoy the possibility of an unlimited financial upside and an unlimited personal upside.

Take a chance on yourself. Try to get really, really rich. Maybe you'll only become really rich.

One out of two is still awesome--and you will have achieved it on your terms.

If your friends and family think you were crazy for starting a business, show them this article. If you've been thinking about starting a business and people say you're being foolish, show them this article.

If the people around you don't understand how personally fulfilling taking a chance on yourself can be, have them check this out.

And then get started on your entrepreneurial journey, even in the smallest and safest way. Every step you take will bring you closer to becoming at the very least really rich--and maybe, just maybe, really, really rich--and will let you join a group of people who live their lives their way, on their own terms.

Who are those people?

Entrepreneurs. Be one.

It's the best investment you can make--because it means you're investing in yourself.

http://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/the-only-way-to-get-really-really-rich.html?cid=sf01002

Seven Secrets of Self-Made Multimillionaires

First, understand that you no longer want to be just a millionaire. You want to become a multimillionaire.

While you may think a million dollars will give you financial security, it will not. Given the volatility in economies, governments and financial markets around the world, it's no longer safe to assume a million dollars will provide you and your family with true security. In fact, a Fidelity Investments' study of millionaires last year found that 42 percent of them don't feel wealthy and they would need $7.5 million of investable assets to start feeling rich.

This isn't a how-to on the accumulation of wealth from a lifetime of saving and pinching pennies. This is about generating multimillion-dollar wealth and enjoying it during the creation process. To get started, consider these seven secrets of multimillionaires.

No. 1: Decide to Be a Multimillionaire -- You first have to decide you want to be a self-made millionaire. I went from nothing—no money, just ideas and a lot of hard work—to create a net worth that probably cannot be destroyed in my lifetime. The first step was making a decision and setting a target. Every day for years, I wrote down this statement: "I am worth over $100,000,000!"

No. 2: Get Rid of Poverty Thinking -- There's no shortage of money on planet Earth, only a shortage of people who think correctly about it. To become a millionaire from scratch, you must end the poverty thinking. I know because I had to. I was raised by a single mother who did everything possible to put three boys through school and make ends meets. Many of the lessons she taught me encouraged a sense of scarcity and fear: "Eat all your food; there are people starving," "Don't waste anything," "Money doesn't grow on trees." Real wealth and abundance aren't created from such thinking. 

No. 3: Treat it Like a Duty -- Self-made multimillionaires are motivated not just by money, but by a need for the marketplace to validate their contributions. While I have always wanted wealth, I was driven more by my need to contribute consistent with my potential. Multimillionaires don't lower their targets when things get tough. Rather, they raise expectations for themselves because they see the difference they can make with their families, company, community and charities. 

No. 4: Surround Yourself with Multimillionaires -- I have been studying wealthy people since I was 10 years old. I read their stories and see what they went through. These are my mentors and teachers who inspire me. You can't learn how to make money from someone who doesn't have much. Who says, "Money won't make you happy"? People without money. Who says, "All rich people are greedy"? People who aren't rich. Wealthy people don't talk like that. You need to know what people are doing to create wealth and follow their example: What do they read? How do they invest? What drives them? How do they stay motivated and excited? 

No. 5: Work Like a Millionaire

 

-- Rich people treat time differently. They buy it, while poor people sell it. The wealthy know time is more valuable than money itself, so they hire people for things they're not good at or aren't a productive use of their time, such as household chores. But don't kid yourself that those who hit it big don't work hard. Financially successful people are consumed by their hunt for success and work to the point that they feel they are winning and not just working. 

No. 6: Shift Focus from Spending to Investing -- The rich don't spend money; they invest. They know the  tax laws favour investing over spending. You buy a house and can't write it off. The rich, in contrast, buy an apartment building that produces cash flow, appreciates and offers write-offs year after year. You buy cars for comfort and style. The rich buy cars for their company that are deductible because they are used to produce revenue.

No. 7: Create Multiple Flows of Income -- The really rich never depend on one flow of income but instead create a number of revenue streams. My first business had been generating a seven-figure income for years when I started investing cash in multifamily real estate. Once my real estate and my consulting business were churning, I went into a third business developing software to help retailers improve the customer experience.

Lastly, you may be surprised to learn that wealthy people wish you were wealthy, too. It's a mystery to them why others don't get rich. They know they aren't special and that wealth is available to anyone who wants to focus and persist. Rich people want others to be rich for two reasons: first, so you can buy their products and services, and second, because they want to hang out with other rich people. Get rich -- it's Global.

http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/222718