The 8 Myths About Creating Wealth
You have probably read or heard about various myths (these are the truths that are valid only for certain cases, but not in general) surrounding wealth and wealthy people, all of which hinder your quest for financial independence.
Here are the most common and most destructive:
Myth No. 1: How much you earn depends on how hard you work
If this were true, then the physical, blue-collar workers, who have been working hard for years, would have been the wealthiest people on earth. Of course, this isn’t true. They form most of the workforce and the vast majority of the middle-class.
If you witnessed your parents coming home tired from a long day’s work in your youth, you probably learned that money wasn’t a sufficient reward for all that effort. People who work “just” for the money often have debts because they comfort themselves with whatever they can buy, beautiful things they lack when working.
Myth No. 2: Being paid for something you enjoy isn’t work and you shouldn’t ask for money for doing something that is enjoyable.
Check this with millionaires. They all have so much money that they don’t need to work anymore. Nevertheless, they work for other reasons, challenge, satisfaction, fullness of life, activity, fun … and all are connected to a love for their work. If there was no joy in doing a certain task, they would do something else that would make them much happier and that enables them to realize their dreams.
In fact, if you don’t enjoy your work, you will never become wealthy doing it! However, just because you enjoy your work doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get paid for it - in fact, that is the ultimate goal, to get paid for what you already enjoy so it never feels like you are at work!
Myth No. 3: You need to be in the right line of business to amass wealth
Do you think so? This must mean that all the people who are involved in the same business are millionaires. Of course, this isn’t true. In each business there are winners and losers; winners abound, even in businesses that consist of distasteful (to most) or “impossible” work like sweeping the streets, collecting the trash, working in a factory, pumping gas, selling newspapers, etc. On the other hand, there are just as many “losers” in businesses like selling real estate, management or being a stockbroker.
Myth No. 4: You need the right education to make a fortune
Are the most educated people really the wealthiest? Not at all! In this case, university professors would be the wealthiest people on earth. Ask them about their salaries, if you get the opportunity. The truth is vastly different- the wealthiest people are those who can convert their knowledge (or education) into money, in the best possible way. They can be highly educated people (like inventors, scientists, etc.) or almost ignorant.
Being formally uneducated does not equate to poor performance on the job or the inability to form a strong enough vision to carry a person to success - they can easily be experts without having a formal education.
Myth No. 5: It used to be easier
Statistics show an increase in the number of millionaires in the world every year. Talking about the “good old times” only offers comfort and a convenient excuse. If you look around, you’ll see there are people who behaved the same way in the “good old times” as they do now, yet their success has been recent. With technology and progress come new ideas, desires and needs and there are more business opportunities appearing daily to serve them.
Myth No. 6: I’m too old (young)
If you research the life stories of some of the most successful people, you’ll see that this isn’t true at all. Some became wealthy early in their lives (perhaps from the stock market), while others found their fortune in their old age. Ray Kroc, was more than fifty years old when he bought and made the first McDonald’s.
Myth No. 7: I don’t have enough money to start. You have to spend money to make money.
This is no different from any other excuse or “myth.” Like the others, it’s obvious this one isn’t true either. Many have made their fortunes starting from scratch, living in an apartment or working out of their garage and yet, they developed business empires that are worth billions of dollars today. The other elements of success are far more important than having seed money to start a business.
But yes, often money helps and it certainly doesn’t hurt. Like everything else discussed in other myths: it probably helps, but it is not always necessary.
Myth No. 8: I’ll begin when I know everything
Do you believe that you will know everything someday? Or even that you’ll know enough to ever be “really prepared now?” The more you learn, the more you see what you still need to learn. Success and obtaining wealth is a dynamic process. Even if you “could” come out of the gate knowing everything there is to know, some of those elements will change immediately and many will change rapidly. If you don’t decide now, nothing will happen. Live and learn.
Some millionaires have even allowed themselves to go bankrupt and then (even faster) recreated their wealth, sometimes even greater than before. Money itself isn’t the obstacle that is keeping you from being wealthy. If you’re really good in your business, don’t worry, because someone that will offer you money (a bank or business partner) will appear who will appreciate your talent knowing you are a very good investment opportunity. But you can’t sit around waiting for this - make it happen.
Exercise “taking action” as much as you can. Make your workplace better or more efficient. After all, even if someone else signs your paycheck, you really work for you. Even if you are an employee in a large corporation - it isn’t your corporation - but it is the only corporation through which you can prove what you are capable of right now.
All of us have what it takes to become a millionaire! Born winners, yet few of us know how to take advantage of and cultivate the possibilities hidden inside our own mind! No one can ever grant you greater potential than your heart already holds…you need only discover its contents to find the one true path to your success in life. Born with the seeds to our success, the greatest decisions must always come from the
inside! You will discover a new, deep well of fortune – yourself!
Copyright 2002, Nikola Grubisa
The Millionaire Mind.Net
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to the bi-weekly email edition of the Apprentice Marketer Gazette with a link to a relevant PDF report in each issue...and/or our RSS feed, Thanks for visiting!
