Do you have a millionaire’s mentality?

“Like it or not, there is a thing that can be called The Millionaire Mentality. There is a frame of mind which puts an individual a long way ahead on the road to success. In short, The Millionaire Mentality is one which is always and above all cost-conscious and profit-minded.”

J. Paul Getty – “How to be Rich” was the richest man in the world in 1957, worth over $1 billion. When he died in 1976, his estate was estimated to be valued at $4 billion. He was the person to have coined the phrase “The Millionaire Mentality”.

John Paul Getty said:

“Luck, knowledge and arduous work – especially arduous work – are all necessarily for a man to become a millionaire. But above all that, he needs what can be called the ‘millionaire mentality’: that essential state of mind and conscience which mobilizes the intelligence and all the talents of an individual to accomplish his tasks and realize the goals he has set for himself in business.”

KEEP AN OPEN MIND

True millionaires see the world slightly differently. Their minds are open to opportunities. A good example of this alternative way of thinking is Richard Branson, the boss of Virgin Airlines. The story goes that he had taken a bunch of journalists to LA for his inaugural flight to that city. After a pleasant few days in a top hotel, the journalists were all in the lobby waiting for a limo to take them back to the airport. One young woman went up to Branson and asked him the following question:

“Richard, I don’t want to be a hack all my life, what is the secret to making money?”

Branson looked around and said, “Just keep your eyes open and the answer jumps right at you. Look at those outdoor heaters the hotel has around the pool, for example. I’ve never seen them before, and with the English weather the way it is, I’d bet they would sell like hot cakes at home. Find out who makes them and see if you can get the UK distribution rights.”

Out of interest, the woman checked it out and was told she could buy the rights for $3,000. She didn’t bother. Last year, the company that did buy those rights was sold for $25m.

GOALS

Goals are the roadmap to our success. With a good map we get to our destination with the minimum of fuss. Without one, we flounder and get lost.

Every millionaire – whether they have the money yet or not – is goal-focused.

What does all this goal-setting do for you? It give you:

FOCUS

Real millionaires, and millionaires-in-waiting have the ability to focus on achieving their goals to the exclusion of all else. They simply do not allow themselves to become distracted.

Regular people are like butterflies. They skip from one good idea to another, attracted by the next big promise or clever sales line. Then they complain that none of the schemes they try ever work. It isn’t the scheme, it is the schemer. People who reach the top in any endeavor do so by staying focused on their prime objective.

Estee Lauder said, “First comes the shy wish. Then you must have the heart to have the dream. Then, you work. And work.”

And Dale Carnegie, who knew a thing or two, said, “Condition yourself to determine clearly in your mind the goal that you want to achieve, and then, without letting yourself get sidetracked, head straight for your ideal.”

SELF BELIEF

Nobody ever got rich by thinking that they couldn’t. Absolute self-confidence is a vital part of the real millionaire mentality. Everyone has nagging doubts the whole time, it is part of being human. True achievers know how to conquer negative thoughts and smother them with ever more positive ones.

Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald’s, had a great technique. Whenever he had negative thoughts, he would imagine himself writing them out in detail on a blackboard. Then he would visualize an imaginary hand wiping the board clean. He was reprogramming his sub-conscious to concentrate on the positive things and not focus on the negatives.

As Walt Disney said, “If you can dream it, you can do it.” That applies just as much to the bad things you can dream as the good. So why make the bad things come true?

So, you may ask, am I a millionaire? I believe I have the millionaire’s mentality. As or getting the cash, no problem. It is on my list.