Ever since I was a child, I have looked up to my father for everything related to money. He seems to have the perfect answers for all my money related problems. I’ve learned a lot of money lessons from him, but there’s one lesson that will forever be etched in my mind. He told me that ‘It’s easy to make money. The hard job is to hold on to it. And that’s exactly what differentiates the rich from the broke’.
Wealth doesn’t come with a stroke of luck. It’s rather a gradual process that needs intention and desire to take control of your finances. And the one who is able to adopt healthier and smarter money habits in their day-to-day life is always likely to find success in accumulating wealth. I have personally come across people who make a lot of money but a few bad money habits keep them away from being wealthy. So if you think that your paycheck decides the amount of your wealth, think again! More often than not, it’s your money habits that decide how rich you can be.
The good part is as long as you have discipline and intention to achieve financial success, it’s never too late to adopt good money habits in your life. So if you want to get going on the path towards financial freedom, here are a few money habits of the rich that you can imitate starting now:
1. They Say ‘No’ To Friends And Children – If there’s anything common that I’ve seen in people who have a lot of savings, it’s their tendency to say ‘No’ to friends and family very often. When hanging out with friends at pricey restaurants and bars, expenses can get out of hand that can set you back on your budget which is why wealthy people often choose to say ‘No’ when they can.
Similarly, wealthy people consider it important to say ‘No’ to their children every once in a while, especially when they insist on buying something that doesn’t serve any purpose. Of course, no parent would want to make their child feel deprived. But refusing to give in to their unnecessary demands can make them understand the true value of money besides helping you save some money.
2. They Sleep On Their Buying Decisions – Practicing delayed gratification is something that has helped me tremendously in controlling the habit of impulse buying. My Mom, who always manages to save money irrespective of the income, used to teach me about sleeping on your buying decisions before actually buying anything. It helps me gain perspective on whether I really need the thing or I simply wish to own it because I have money.
3. They Are Always Ahead On Their Bills – Being ahead on their bills, if not paying them in advance, helps the rich in focusing on other important financial aspects such as retirement planning, building a house or buying a car. When you are ahead on your bills, you are simple sorting out your immediate financial expenses to focus on the ones that will take place in future.
4. They Talk Money With Their SO – Talking money with their family helps the rich in getting the much needed support to comfortably walk towards their long-term goals, together. While your SO may have a different understanding of his financial future, talking with him about your own long-term goals will help you arrive on a consensus about how you can together go about achieving your common financial goals. Besides, holding yourself accountable to your loved ones will help you keep a check on your spending habits.
5. They Save Like Crazy – People who are able to build wealth have one thing in common – they have a lot of self-control when it comes to spending money. They don’t splurge on things they don’t absolutely need. They sure make a lot of money but what truly helps them save most of it is their ability to control their instinct of spending it on unnecessary items.
6. They Invest A Lot – The best way to build wealth that most of the rich people swear by is investing the money. From the stock market to the real estate avenues, there are many investment areas that can help you build wealth depending on your risk appetite. Investment allows you to multiply your savings by gaining a bit of awareness about how the economy works.
7. They Are Always Trying To Gain More Financial Knowledge – While saving money needs real efforts, what really helps rich people build wealth is their extraordinary money management skills. While money management is a skill that doesn’t require you to get a University degree, it certainly needs you to put in real efforts to gain knowledge in the area of personal finance through books and articles.
8. They Have Financial Goals – You might have been making a lot of money but if you don’t have a financial goal in sight, you won’t be able to find sense in saving money. Your financial goals give you the much needed direction that you need to work towards by adopting a frugal lifestyle. So if you haven’t yet made a list of financial goals you want to fulfill in the future, now is the time to make one.
9. They Don’t Have Debt – One of the biggest barriers that stop most people from getting rich is the pile of debt that needs to be repaid. Debt repayment obligations don’t really allow people to build savings to fund their financial goals. And the ones who are able to repay their debt by adopting a frugal lifestyle and following a proper debt repayment plan can easily focus on building their wealth for the future.
So these were few of the many money habits of rich people that help them live a financially secure life. Apart from being better at managing money, what also helps rich people in building wealth is their tendency to focus more on saving money than spending it. This clearly explains that a slight shift in mindset can help set you off for success no matter how much money you are making. So adopt thee habits today, and you’ll be rich real soon!
