“The best things in life are free, but you can give them to the birds and bees.” These lyrics from singer Barrett Strong’s Money echo the simple truth about life – there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch. You’ve all dreamt, strived and toiled hard to become successful, but how many of y’all have really been able to make the cut? A handful! Success stories aren’t always about making giant leaps or path-breaking achievements, sometimes they’re all about taking baby steps (and imbibe the millionaire habits) that truly make all the difference.
Whether it’s Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg to media guru Oprah Winfrey – today’s top leaders share some core characteristics that clearly set them apart. For these millionaires, the secret to success lies in their daily habits and everyday rituals – some of which literally take less than a minute to do! Inculcating these ‘rich habits’ of successful people and millionaires might look easy, but are they really?
Understanding Randall Bell’s ‘rich habits’
A socio-economist named Randall Bell extensively studied more than 5,000 people from all walks of life – professionals, students, pensioners, jobless people, and millionaires. After closely examining success for 25 years and understanding their daily habits, Randall narrowed down seven habits and practices of millionaires in a book titled Me We Do Be: The Four Cornerstones of Success. “We studied dozens of rituals ranging from writing thank-you notes to eating together as a family,” Randall states in the book which emphasises how the little habits you form every day can have an enormous impact on your overall success. These ‘rich habits’ (as Bell calls them) could be your secret handbook to success if consistently implemented. Let’s familiarise you with these seven holy-grail habits of successful people that have been proven to yield results!
Transform your life with these seven habits of successful people
1. Making their beds
Accomplishing the first task of the day will give you a sense of pride and will act as an impetus for you to do another task…and another..and another. Dr Bell shares how “those who make their bed in the morning are up to 206.8 per cent more likely to be millionaires.”
The author says this creates a positive mindset at the get-go, sets the intention to do these little tasks throughout the day and eventually leads to an overall productive day. Even Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Charles Duhigg credits this behaviour in his book The Power of Habit. He mentions that this ‘keystone habit’ is linked to improved productivity, a higher sense of well-being, and better budgeting abilities.
2. Exercising
Once you are exercising regularly, the hardest thing is to stop it! Exercising and being physically active stimulate your mind, body and soul. This makes you more efficient and ready to take on the day! Bell reveals that “those who exercised, even for 15 minutes a day, dominated statistically in every single measure of success.”
Whether it’s Apple CEO Tim Cook who wakes up at 3:45 am every morning to exercise or self-made billionaire Richard Branson who clocks in his workout at 5 in the morning. Successful people are notorious early risers who swear by a good workout before their actual workday begins!
3. Reading
“Today a reader, tomorrow a leader” might just be another inspirational quote for you, but for these millionaires, this has actually turned into reality! Bell reveals that “reading dramatically correlates with higher education and income, as well as overall happiness.” He adds, “Those who read seven or more books per year are more than 122 per cent more likely to be millionaires as opposed to those who never read or only read one to three (books).
Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Oprah Winfrey, Elon Musk and Charlie Munger are just some of the many famous billionaires who are voracious readers.
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4. Rising early
Someone rightly said that early to bed and early to rise makes a person healthy, wealthy, and wise! Successful people are also early risers who start their day way before an average person. Bell’s not the first one to find this common behaviour pattern in millionaires. In a five-year study of 177 self-made millionaires, author Thomas Corley discovered that nearly 50% of these people wake up three hours before starting their day.
Rising early gives you a head start to tackle the inevitable disruptions of every day. So, even if something pops up out of the blue, you still have time to accomplish everything you planned for the day. In his book, Change Your Habits, Change Your Life, Corley clearly states that “getting up at five in the morning to tackle the top three things you want to accomplish in your day allows you to regain control of your life.”
5. Politeness/ good etiquette
Losing yourself to fame is easy, and those who are egocentric won’t likely be able to stay successful. Bell says there’s a link between success and politeness. Remembering little things about someone and reaching out to them, having good table manners as well as wishing your close ones on their birthdays or sending gratitude notes are correlated with success. Corley also echoes the same in his research. “Self-made millionaires have mastered certain rules of etiquette principles you have to master if you want to be a success.”
6. Valuing relationships
The key to being successful is striking a balance between your professional and personal life. While professional highs might make you feel at the top of the world, you need strong interpersonal relationships to be happy and content from within. Bell notes, “Those who are in satisfying romantic relationships are far more likely to be happy overall and make more money.” Citing statistics to back up this behaviour, he added, “Those who had regular dinner together as a family are 41% more likely to be happy and 43% more likely to earn over $100,000 a year.”
7. Planning the day in advance
With a clear daily plan, you remove all the unwanted clutter that hinders your productivity. The goal should be to set clear intentions, track your progress and have the satisfaction of getting it done. “Those who maintain both a calendar and to-do list are 289 per cent more likely to be millionaires, as compared with those who have no real set schedule,” Bell states. He added that successful people also “document insights”. Bill Gates, as well as Richard Branson, are two of the most well-known billionaires who firmly believe in taking notes!
Now that you know the habits of successful people, will you try emulating these millionaire habits??
(Hero image credit: August de Richelieu/ Pexels)
(Feature image credit: Andrea Piacquadio/ Pexels)
Frequently Enquired Questions (FAQs)
- What habits make you a millionaire?
Small changes go a long way in propelling one towards success. These include making your bed, exercising, reading as well as planning your day in advance.
- What is a millionaire mindset?
The millionaire mindset is all about focusing on your life. It is about making the much-required changes to accomplish the things you’ve also dreamed of achieving.
This story first appeared on Lifestyle Asia Hong Kong
