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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Millionaire Habits

38 replies

Ihatesw · 24/02/2019 16:45

Sorry to be nosy (hence the AIBU) but can I ask what lifestyle habits or careeer choices made you or someone you know a millionaire?

Asking because I’d like to be one Grin single mum but earn quite well, hoping to be mortgage free in next 5 years. Would love to hear some inspiring real life stories or advice.

OP posts:
VeryLittleOwl · 24/02/2019 17:15

Have a read of The Millionnaire Next Door by William Danko and Thomas Stanley - it's about American millionnaires, but the principles apply anywhere.

ILoveBray · 24/02/2019 17:21

Alas I'm not, but I imagine either inventing something or investing well is the way to go.

If you are planning on being mortgage free in a few years (you lucky thing), it's a great opportunity to start investing in shares or property. You could probably start researching now in anticipation.

QueenOfCatan · 24/02/2019 17:21

The millionaire next door is an eye opener. The biggest thing we took from it was that it pays to spend well (spend more on good quality and long lasting rather than cheap bit easy to break items or buying into brands for the same of it), live within your means and don't try to keep up with the Jones, all of which are normal, sensible things to do regardless. We just want to be comfortable one day rather than going for a set figure!
Marking my place though out of interest!

Whatdoyouknowwhenyouknownowt · 24/02/2019 17:26

I read the Millionaire Next Door years ago. We are of that bent anyway & I think the power of compounding should be taught in schools.

It does work. I think it's a fine line between wasting money/being too tight/careful but effective. Attention to detail too, decent passive diversification of investments & time...

StinkyCandle · 24/02/2019 17:34

Qualify millionaire. A million pound house around here is a nice-ish 4 or 5 bedrooms detached. They are not horrendous, but they are not luxury either - you probably could buy similar for a quarter of the price in another part of the country.

Millionaires I know have mainly been buying dumps, redoing them entirely as cheaply as possibly, selling for a huge profit and buying the next one up.

The property market might not allow people to do that anymore, but it was a sure way to earn a few hundred thousands at a time.

Iamclearlyamug · 24/02/2019 17:37

I have a client whose husband wrote his autobiography last year. He grew up incredibly poor on a council estate and is now a millionaire with several businesses. It's called 'The Reservation' by Martin Montague

Pugwash1 · 24/02/2019 17:40

The couple of millionaires we know are so tight you could shove a lump of coal up their arses and have a diamond in a week. They don't donate to charity, they are very self centred to the point of rudeness, they always put their needs before anyone else's and in work were happy to throw people under the bus to get ahead. I do know they are fairly unique in this way compared to other wealthy people but always makes me wonder just a little bit if this is how they made their money. Think I would rather be me.

tattooq · 24/02/2019 17:51

The millionaires I know have either sold a company they built themselves, bought apple shares early, inheritance/family wealth/trust funds, or just had property that has tripled in value in the last 20 odd years. I'm hoping to win the euromillions...

TheOxymoron · 24/02/2019 17:52

Ok, I may get stoned for this.

I came from a poor background. I was absolutely hell bent that I never wanted to go hungry again etc.
I worked 60hrs plus a week. It was never about being wealthy but to be comfortable. I am fortunate to have got further than I ever intended.
My general attitude has always been to overcome obstacles rather than complain that the obstacles are preventing me.

We walk among others mostly unnoticed. Sometimes our houses, cars etc give people an indication but many of us are not “showy”.

I hate the common theme of millionaires being tight etc. I know many people that are not millionaires that are tight but I don’t bunch them together.

YeahYeahYeahFineWhatever · 24/02/2019 17:55

I’m not sure wanting to be a millionaire is the actual ambition? What’s the point of being a millionaire? Some millionaires had a habit of buying lottery tickets, then one day they won. Some millionaires had a habit of dating rich guys and married one and became millionaires.
Do you want to have so much money that you have a level of security in life? To never have to work again? Or do you want a successful business which you do work at, which earns you a lot of money? Decide that and it will be easier to look at the lessons you can learn from others with the same ambition. But very few people set out to become a millionaire, it just happens

YeahYeahYeahFineWhatever · 24/02/2019 17:58

Posted tooo soon! It happens because of what they are aiming for (successful business etc)

TheOxymoron · 24/02/2019 18:01

Actually it is quite difficult. You are judged more for having money than those that haven’t. Friends and family come to you every time they have financial difficulties like it’s your job to fix everything for them.
I have met people and had a good laugh etc and if/when they see my house they are the ones that can change. All of a sudden they start talking to you about problems they have.
I have good friends from before I was successful that have never asked me for anything. They are the ones I have helped.

Personally, I can say that it brings a new set of challenges.
Tradesmen can sometimes be tricky, they seem to think they can add some noughts to quotes, so finding decent ones was initially a challenge.

I believe it’s a combination of factors, work ethic, timing, choices & luck.

PlainSpeakingStraightTalking · 24/02/2019 18:07

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Original poster
Ihatesw · 24/02/2019 18:11

Ha! I actually got locked out of my original account and set up a new one. Sorry if you think it stinks Hmm

Anyway, for me it’s about not working myself into an early grave so possibly/hopefully early retirement if I can make the right decisions now.

OP posts:
Original poster
Ihatesw · 24/02/2019 18:14

My sister is probably a property millionaire- several homes in London. Lives quite frugally in terms of home furnishings but fridge is always full and her doors always open. She is one of the kindest and most generous people I know but most shopping conversations will be littered with “I don’t think we can afford that” because she lives within her means and prioritises saving.

I usually buy first think later Blush

OP posts:
TrendyNorthLondonTeen · 24/02/2019 18:16

My friend's mother in law won the lottery, though keeps banging on about "how hard" she has worked for her money. Because going to the shop across the road was such an effort...

dublinruth · 24/02/2019 20:56

Dave Ramsey has a step by step "millionaire program" and a slightly cheesy but addictive podcast.

Alvin Hall is also good and worth a read.

lottielady · 24/02/2019 20:59

The couple of millionaires we know are so tight you could shove a lump of coal up their arses and have a diamond in a week

Brilliant!Grin

MsSquiz · 24/02/2019 21:04

DH & his family are millionaires because his granddad started a car garage/sales and it became a huge family business which was sold a few years back and all family were shareholders and so received their percentage.

Sometimes it's the luck of the family you were born into

I still shop/spend money the carefully budgeted way my DM did when I was growing up, while a lot of DH's family wouldn't know a budget if it hit them in the face and still manage to live beyond their (millions) means

Grace212 · 24/02/2019 21:04

OP you say you buy first and think later....

have you ever tried this tool? you need to be aware of your spending habits but it's a great "demotivator".

www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/demotivator/?spenddesc=&x=255&y=25

EssentialHummus · 24/02/2019 21:21

We're fairly wealthy for our age, though only millionaires if you count the properties (not including mortgage). DH isn't, but I'm very cost-conscious - our car is worth £200, weekly shop is £60 (and I shop around), I set a reminder to buy airline (easyJet) tickets as they come out so they're cheap, full use of leftovers, we chose a flat rather than a house because size-wise that's what we need, will take a Thermos of coffee with me rather than buy out, same for meals. I will happily spend to support charities, local causes etc as well as particular things we want or need but I don't fritter money away. I look for quality and value. Friends in the same position have £500 p/m leased cars ("cheaper cars are unreliable") and £1,000 per day holidays ("That's the least you have to pay for a good holiday"). It adds up.

Princessmushroom · 24/02/2019 21:23

Can I say I’m on my way to being a millionaire without sounding big headed? Probably not.

Mine has been from my business. I have been dirt poor where my income didn’t even cover my very minimal outgoings. Life is much better now and I’m still pretty frugal.

Investing money and finding other ways to make a passive income is key to me. Within the next 5 years I will hit a 7-figure year in my business.

I cannot stress the importance of investments and passive income (whether it is property, book royalties, blogging, investing whatever). When you stop directly trading your time for money is where you start winning.

NCforthis2019 · 24/02/2019 21:25

Friends of mine were entrepreneurs. One in oil. One in pharmaceuticals, a few in banking.

LightDrizzle · 24/02/2019 21:28

DH has done it by building up a successful business from scratch. He was 50 before safely hitting millionaire status though, although he’s been well-off for where we live since his 30s.
He grew up on a sink council estate and left his sink school at 16. He worked full time and attended an FE college at night to qualify as an accountant. Set up a business after about 8 years. Has had a few businesses. He worked really hard and he never gets complacent, - he knows other people are working hard and getting better all the time. He loves what he does and does a lot of CPD and networking to ensure he knows what’s going on at the cutting edge of his field.
We now own a few properties but that’s for our own or business use and it’s a symptom not a foundation of his/our wealth. It all comes from the business, no inheritance or seed capital.
He likes nice things but has always lived within his means, so in the early years, lots of nice things had to wait. Although he only had a handful of unexceptional O-levels, he is very bright, which will have helped. As an adult, he sat the Mensa test at a formal test centre and had an IQ of 156.
I’m a middle class Oxford graduate and I’ve earned diddly squat by comparison. My achievements are very modest. I am risk averse and not entrepreneurial, I think what he has achieved is amazing. His colleagues love him to bits too.

lastqueenofscotland · 24/02/2019 21:35

The richest people I know moved to a country with a low income tax rate and worked their fucking arses off.
Coming home at 2am having a couple of hours sleep a shower and 4 espressos sort of thing.
They are now semi retired at 50 and rich beyond my comprehension but they did graft

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