5 Things I Have Learned From Real Life Millionaires

**Enke** · 08-01-2008 04:43 PM

As a new member here, I have been able to absorb some great information, as well as share some of my knowledge. I don't know why I never posted on these forums before (I have been a reader for quite a while). Nonetheless I wanted to share an article I wrote a while back as I think there are some good lessons in it, especially for new entrepreneurs or those with million dollar dreams.

This is in my own words and these are some real life observations I have made from knowing and working with wealthy entrepreneurs.

Throughout my career in the internet marketing industry, I have been fortunate enough to surround myself with other successful people. Many of these people are truly bonafide millionaires. I would not be where I am at today had I not learned from mentors and made sure that the people I associate with were also extremely successful.

Although I have learned a ton from people much more successful than me, below are 5 things I have learned from being friends with people who are literally worth millions of dollars (aka certified ballers).

1. It’s better to have small equity in several things than big equity in one thing - This really comes down to diversification. You should never put all your eggs in one basket. The key to building wealth is being able to absorb the losses or failures with the big successes. If you’re diversified, one failure should never hurt your overall business.

2. Never spend your own money when there is venture capital or investors waiting in the wings - All the true millionaires I know have at one point leveraged other peoples money or utilized venture capital at some point to build their wealth. Think about it for a second, it makes sense. And it makes even more sense as an investor or VC when you can simply leverage your money on a great idea to give you a nice return for doing no work.

3. Surround yourself with, or hire other brilliant people who can make money for you - Very few of the multi-millionaires I know have done it as a one man show. Most have hired other successful people and simply pay them a salary or a % to make more money for themselves. If you’re “working for the man”, and generating a ton of revenue, then you may understand what I am talking about unfortunately. Most millionaires also are literally making money while they sleep courtesy of someone else’s work.

4. Leverage your existing money to make you more money - There is a truth to the saying that your first million is the hardest. Once you have millions of dollars you can diversify and spread it out to make you even more money. Hence you become one of the people in #2 making money while doing nothing, and growing your wealth just because you have the money to invest.

5. More Money, More Problems - Having multiple streams of income and businesses really creates a lot of chaos in your life. Although it may sound like fun to have your hands in multiple things, every day is a new day of dealing with “issues”. Although the money is great, living this type of lifestyle will never be a 9-5 job. If you want to be a millionaire you have to be willing to put in the hours and deal with all the daily annoyances that comes along with running multiple businesses.

**Silverion** · 08-01-2008 05:29 PM

About point #1, exacty how are you diversifying today?

**chrispalko** · 08-01-2008 08:23 PM

+1 for number 5. The stress is unbelievable (well, I could imagine the stress of a millionaire, but I'm saying the stress of doing your own thing instead of a 9-5).

#4 definitely, they say it takes money to make money...

**Enke** · 08-01-2008 10:23 PM

@Silver -Personally I am involved in several online ventures and operate websites in multiple verticals. Most of which are currently affiliate based sites of some sort. I also am in the process of finishing a business plan for an offline business that I may or may not move forward with.

Another piece of advice I would give is if you are seeing some success in a certain niche, you should attack it and launch other ventures within that niche, and essentially try to own the entire niche though.... (if that makes sense). It's not hard to diversify within one niche.....

@chris - yea I quickly learned the importance of outsourcing and delegating once I started to grow. Sometimes all the stress makes you wish you had a simple 9-5.

**Aletheides** · 08-02-2008 01:28 AM

I really like this post. All those points are solid fundamentals that I think everyone here should be living by. Leverage is the strongest thing that makes millionaires, and I noticed 3 of the points all had to do with leverage (2,3,4).

Originally Posted by Enke

@Silver -Personally I am involved in several online ventures and operate websites in multiple verticals. Most of which are currently affiliate based sites of some sort.

I'm doing this too, however with the downturn of the US economy I've also come to realize that it's important to target niches in other global markets as well. As of right now all of my sites are oriented towards US traffic, but I'm launching 4-5 new sites that are targeting the UK. You might want to consider this if you haven't already.

I think all entrepreneurs should be using their first successful business as springboard to other businesses. I've noticed some people like to develop one business, and then once its successful they hold on to it like a baby holds on to its favorite blanket. Personally I think this is very dangerous, since all your revenue is only coming from one place.

I think there's a reason for this. They don't want to delegate their own tasks to other people... which is entirely necessary if you're going to have multiple successful ventures.

I've noticed people on here talking about how they are a control freak and would rather do things themselves. This kind of mentality in the long run is really going to hurt time wise as well as financially - you can only be in one place at one time.

**Silverion** · 08-02-2008 01:49 AM

Originally posted by Aletheides
I'm doing this too, however with the downturn of the US economy I've also come to realize that it's important to target niches in other global markets as well. As of right now all of my sites are oriented towards US traffic, but I'm launching 4-5 new sites that are targeting the UK. You might want to consider this if you haven't already.

You better make a good research on what niches are you diversifying too. Right now the U.K. is not doing any better thn the U.S. when it comes to economical matters.

**Enke** · 08-02-2008 07:54 AM

I agree the U.S. and U.K. economies are not as good as they were a few years ago, however there are still companies that are making huge amounts of money in a down economy. In respect to the U.K. though, their currency is still way stronger than the USD.

**Lambo** · 08-02-2008 11:41 AM

nice post...number 5 is definitley true and is why a majority of people don't ever think about starting their own business....

**RLorenzen** · 08-02-2008 12:00 PM

Very good article.

I want to add one thing to the discussion of diversification and thriving in the U.S. economy. I agree with entering global markets to try to make up for money you may not be making in the U.S., however, the U.S. economy really isn't that bad right now and it's nowhere near as bad as the media is trying to portray it to be. The U.S. is still growing and companies are still making profits. Inflation is a concern and the housing market and oil prices sure are delivering a hit to our economic system, but this is just another stage in the economic cycle. If your business is diversified well enough, you can still thrive in the U.S. economy.

**Aletheides** · 08-02-2008 03:42 PM

Getting commissions in GBP and then converting them to USD is really nice. Also if something really bad were to happen to the USD I would have a small buffer until the tide is over. I'm getting an offline business in Mexico pretty soon also, dealing strictly in pesos.

We're in a global economy and it's pretty easy to diversify currencies, so why not? It's nice to have a buffer and keep youself protected. Always prepare for the worst - always.

Inflation on the USD is hitting some ridiculous levels - our government keeps printing and spending. If it ceases to become the world's reserve currency, it will tank badly. Countries around the world are starting to cut back on their dollars, slowly but surely.

Right now things aren't bad, they're OK. But, it's impossible to tell the future.

**matt_15** · 08-02-2008 04:53 PM

Great article, only I have read in alan sugars book that you should never borrow money. Because I read this I have never really liked the idea of going to a VC. Would it be a good idea to borrow money? What if the business failed, and you ended up in hundreds of thousands of dollars debt?

**andrewrichardgale** · 08-02-2008 05:12 PM

uk has a stronger dollar, but arent we the richest in the world?

**Silverion** · 08-02-2008 11:25 PM

Originally Posted by andrewrichardgale

uk has a stronger dollar, but arent we the richest in the world?

Well, technically the US is the country with the largest GDP in the world (with around $14.5 trillion dollars) but it is also the country with the largest internal and external debt in the world ($12 trillion for external debt using stats of last year and between $5.5 to $6 trillion for national debt). So if you consider someone who spends $5 million per year from his credit card to buy a brand new car, a mansion and watch over his health, a wealthy person despite he only makes $2 million per year, then yes, the US is the richest country in the world.

P.S. Just an analogy. The calculation is not exact.