21 Ways Rich People Think Differently

[arebelspy]

Interesting article on how rich people's thinking differs.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/21-ways-rich-people-think-differently.html?page=1

Some I disagree with, some I'm neutral on, but some I think are really good mindsets.

My favorite: 12. Average people live beyond their means. Rich people live below theirs.

[Jamesqf]

Got to say that some of them seem like utter crocks.  Take for instance

7. Average people earn money doing things they don't love. Rich people follow their passion.

Now maybe this is possible if you have a passion that allows you to make lots of money, but I would bet that there are a lot of barely-scraping-by types out there who followed their passion for e.g. street theater, abstract art, professional sports... 


I'd likewise bet that there are no few millionaires who just happened to luck into a job with a successful tech startup. 

[arebelspy]

Oh yeah, there's a bunch I immediately reacted against and could criticize.

That's what gave it value, for me.

12 was my favorite because it reaffirms my beliefs.  But it didn't make me think.

[Jamesqf]

Even #12 is a bit of a crock.  Of course you can think of it in the Micawberian sense - that is, I am rich (even though my income isn't all that much above median) BECAUSE I live (comfortably) below my means.

[menorman]

I find #15 rather true. The area I live in has relatively high poverty and the truthfulness of this statement can be seen in the schools. When kids find out that I don't own a TV or video game console, most of them cannot fathom that reading non-fiction can be fun.

[twinge]

I think I lean more to Jamesq on the "crock" front.  The reason why I usually feel suspicious of these approaches 1) they use the wrong end of the filter--plenty of people may approach these problems and not succeed but they aren't part of the picture (e.g., the example of  'following passions')  2) People tell narratives that fit some cultural stereotype, beliefs or wishes but often don't in any meaningful way reflect actual history (or even how they thought when they were making the wealth--just the story they currently believe--or wish others to believe-- about how they got there).  So, yes, this tells us something about how rich people think, but--in my view--not much meaningful about what others should do to create wealth.

[arebelspy]

So, yes, this tells us something about how rich people think, but--in my view--not much meaningful about what others should do to create wealth.

Yes, likely true.  But I don't think there was a cause-effect relationship purported to exist.

I think you are right though, these mindsets will not cause someone to be rich.

I do think there are several that may help.

[carolinakaren]

That was a good article to read.  We just went through it, and the one about surrounding oneself with like-minded individuals definitely rings true....

[SpendyMcSpend]

I don't like this article at all.  I think it's written in a condescending and biased way.

[arebelspy]

I don't like this article at all.  I think it's written in a condescending and biased way.

That's not a good reason to discard potentially useful information.  Imagine someone not liking MMM because of the swearing and face punching (possible, perhaps even likely), and then deciding that due to that, they would ignore the whole message.

Ignore the presentation part you don't like, and see what you can get out of it.

IMO.

[Gerard]

As with most "secrets of the successful" bumph, there's a stunning survivor bias there. It's like interviewing NBA athletes and finding out that they all followed their passion and spent a lot of time playing basketball. Yeah, and so did all the guys standing outside the liquor store on Slauson. I especially liked the "acquire specific knowledge" one. A little 20-20 hindsight there, maybe?
But, but, thanks for the link, arebelspy, even pissing me off makes me think...