Sefl Made Millionaire

5 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires

By Kristyn Kusek Lewis

They’re just like you. But with lots of money.

When you think “millionaire,” what image comes to mind? For many of us, it’s a flashy Wall Street banker type who flies a private jet, collects cars and lives the kind of decadent lifestyle that would make Donald Trump proud.

yusBut many modern millionaires live in middle-class neighborhoods, work full-time and shop in discount stores like the rest of us. What motivates them isn’t material possessions but the choices that money can bring: “For the rich, it’s not about getting more stuff. It’s about having the freedom to make almost any decision you want,” says T. Harv Eker, author of Secrets of the Millionaire Mind. Wealth means you can send your child to any school or quit a job you don’t like.

According to the Spectrem Wealth Study, an annual survey of America’s wealthy, there are more people living the good life than ever before—the number of millionaires nearly doubled in the last decade. And the rich are getting richer. To make it onto the Forbes 400 list of the richest Americans, a mere billionaire no longer makes the cut. This year you needed a net worth of at least $1.3 billion.

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If more people are getting richer than ever, why shouldn’t you be one of them? Here, five people who have at least a million dollars in liquid assets share the secrets that helped them get there.

PLUS: 13 Things Your Financial Adviser Won't Tell You

1. Set your sights on where you’re goingTwenty years ago, Jeff Harris hardly seemed on the road to wealth. He was a college dropout who struggled to support his wife, DeAnn, and three kids, working as a grocery store clerk and at a junkyard where he melted scrap metal alongside

convicts. “At times we were so broke that we washed our clothes in the bathtub because we couldn’t afford the Laundromat.” Now he’s a 49-year-old investment advisor and multimillionaire in York, South Carolina.

There was one big reason Jeff pulled ahead of the pack: He always knew he’d be rich. The reality is that 80 percent of Americans worth at least $5 million grew up in middle-class or lesser households, just like Jeff.

Wanting to be wealthy is a crucial first step. Says Eker, “The biggest obstacle to wealth is fear. People are afraid to think big, but if you think small, you’ll only achieve small things.”

PLUS: 17 Things Your Mother Wants You to Know

It all started for Jeff when he met a stockbroker at a Christmas party. “Talking to him, it felt like discovering fire,” he says. “I started reading books about investing during my breaks at the grocery store, and I began putting $25 a month in a mutual fund.” Next he taught a class at a local community college on investing. His students became his first clients, which led to his investment practice. “There were lots of struggles,” says Jeff, “but what got me through it was believing with all my heart that I would succeed.”

2. Educate yourselfWhen Steve Maxwell graduated from college, he had an engineering degree and a high-tech job—but he couldn’t balance his checkbook. “I took one finance class in college but dropped it to go on a ski trip,” says the 45-year-old father of three, who lives in Windsor, Colorado. “I actually had to go to my bank and ask them to teach me how to read my statement.”

One of the biggest obstacles to making money is not understanding it: Thousands of us avoid investing because we just don’t get it. But to make money, you must be financially literate. “It bothered me that I didn’t understand this stuff,” says Steve, “so I read books and magazines about money management and investing, and I asked every financial whiz I knew to explain things to me.”

PLUS: 6 Moneymaking Tips

He and his wife started applying the lessons: They made a point to live below their means. They never bought on impulse, always negotiated better deals (on their cars, cable bills, furniture) and stayed in their home long after they could afford a more expensive one. They also put 20 percent of their annual salary into investments.

Within ten years, they were millionaires, and people were coming to Steve for advice. “Someone would say, ‘I need to refinance my house—what should I do?’ A lot

of times, I wouldn’t know the answer, but I’d go find it and learn something in the process,” he says.

In 2003, Steve quit his job to become part owner of a company that holds personal finance seminars for employees of corporations like Wal-Mart. He also started going to real estate investment seminars, and it’s paid off: He now owns $30 million worth of investment properties, including apartment complexes, a shopping mall and a quarry.

“I was an engineer who never thought this life was possible, but all it truly takes is a little self-education,” says Steve. “You can do anything once you understand the basics.”

PLUS: 17 French Restaurant Words You Need to Know

3. Passion pays offIn 1995, Jill Blashack Strahan and her husband were barely making ends meet. Like so many of us, Jill was eager to discover her purpose, so she splurged on a session with a life coach. “When I told her my goal was to make $30,000 a year, she said I was setting the bar too low. I needed to focus on my passion, not on the paycheck.”

Jill, who lives with her son in Alexandria, Minnesota, owned a gift basket company and earned just $15,000 a year. She noticed when she let potential buyers taste the food items, the baskets sold like crazy. Jill thought, Why not sell the food directly to customers in a fun setting?

PLUS: 15 Foods You Should Never Buy Again

With $6,000 in savings, a bank loan and a friend’s investment, Jill started packaging gourmet foods in a backyard shed and selling them at taste-testing parties. It wasn’t easy. “I remember sitting outside one day, thinking we were three months behind on our house payment, I had two employees I couldn’t pay, and I ought to get a real job. But then I thought, No, this is your dream. Recommit and get to work.”

She stuck with it, even after her husband died three years later. “I live by the law of abundance, meaning that even when there are challenges in life, I look for the win-win,” she says.

PLUS: 20 Secrets Your Waiter Won't Tell You

The positive attitude worked: Jill’s backyard company, Tastefully Simple, is now a direct-sales business, with $120 million in sales last year. And Jill was named one of the top 25 female business owners in North America by Fast Company magazine.

According to research by Thomas J. Stanley, author of The Millionaire Mind, over 80 percent of millionaires say they never would have been successful if their vocation wasn’t something they cared about.

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4. Grow your moneyMost of us know the never-ending cycle of living paycheck to paycheck. “The fastest way to get out of that pattern is to make extra money for the specific purpose of reinvesting in yourself,” says Loral Langemeier, author of The Millionaire Maker. In other words, earmark some money for the sole purpose of investing it in a place where it will grow dramatically—like a business or real estate.

There are endless ways to make extra money for investing—you just have to be willing to do the work. “Everyone has a marketable skill,” says Langemeier. “When I started out, I had a tutoring business, seeing clients in the morning before work and on my lunch break.”

A little moonlighting cash really can grow into a million. Twenty-five years ago, Rick Sikorski dreamed of owning a personal training business. “I rented a tiny studio where I charged $15 an hour,” he says. When money started trickling in, he squirreled it away instead of spending it, putting it all back into the business. Rick’s 400-square-foot studio is now Fitness Together, a franchise based in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, with more than 360 locations worldwide. And he’s worth over $40 million.

PLUS: 10 Smart Money Moves to Make Now

When extra money rolls in, it’s easy to think, Now I can buy that new TV. But if you want to get rich, you need to pay yourself first, by putting money where it will work hard for you—whether that’s in your retirement fund, a side business or investments like real estate.

5. No guts, no gloryLast summer, Dave Lindahl footed the bill for 18 relatives at a fancy mansion in the Adirondacks. One night, his dad looked out at the scenery and joked, “I can’t believe we used to call you the black sheep!”

At 29, Dave was broke, living in a small apartment near Boston and wondering what to do after ten years in a local rock band. “I looked around and thought, If I don’t do something, I’ll be stuck here forever.”

He started a landscape company, buying his equipment on credit. When business literally froze over that winter, a banker friend asked if he’d like to renovate a

foreclosed home. “I’m a terrible carpenter, but I needed the money, so I went to some free seminars at Home Depot and figured it out as I went,” he says.

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After a few more renovations, it occurred to him: Why not buy the homes and sell them for profit? He took a risk and bought his first property. Using the proceeds, he bought another, and another. Twelve years later, he owns apartment buildings, worth $143 million, in eight states.

The Biggest Secret? Stop spending.Every millionaire we spoke to has one thing in common: Not a single one spends needlessly. Real estate investor Dave Lindahl drives a Ford Explorer and says his middle-class neighbors would be shocked to learn how much he’s worth. Fitness mogul Rick Sikorski can’t fathom why anyone would buy bottled water. Steve Maxwell, the finance teacher, looked at a $1.5 million home but decided to buy one for half the price because “a house with double the cost wouldn’t give me double the enjoyment.”

Secrets Of The Self-Made 2009Melanie Lindner, 10.01.09, 02:40 PM EDT

America's wealthiest entrepreneurs let us pick their brains on everything from the stock market to health care policy.

Secrets Of The Self-Made: Greatest Hits 2009

Business tips are a penny a dozen. A billionaire's playbook for success: priceless.

We asked eight of the wealthiest self-made members of the Forbes list of the 400 richest Americans to weigh in on 22 topics, from universal health care to the right amount of vacation. These guys have horrendous schedules and a lot on their minds, but for the most part, they were willing to share.

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One lesson is clear: If you want to make serious cake, start a business. Of the 400 titans on our list, 274 are self-made--up from 270 last year. Six of the top 10 spots on the Forbes 400 belong to entrepreneurs (as opposed to those born into wealth). Their combined net worth: $166.5 billion.

In Pictures: Learn The Secrets Of Eight Self-made Members Of The 2009 Forbes List of the 400 Richest Americans

In Pictures: Secrets of the Self Made: Greatest Hits 2008

To be sure, some of their wallets lost weight in the Great Recession: Five of our eight moguls shed a combined $2.65 billion in the last 12 months, while only two increased their net worth. In 2008, you needed a cool $1.3 billion to crack the Forbes 400. This year, $950 million sufficed.

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Reader CommentsR.J., it's socialistic when government owns or runs the enterprise, communistic is political. Guess we ought to do away with the military and post office huh?

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Our tycoons told us who helped them most in getting where there are today (fathers played big roles), the biggest business blunders they ever made (such as buying a yacht and "investing with the wrong people") and one valuable piece of advice for first-time entrepreneurs (hint: be prepared for rejection).

John Paul DeJoria was one of the few who came out rosier in the recession. The Austin, Texas, entrepreneur saw his net worth jump 12%, to $4 billion, helped in part by a 10% surge in sales at his Patrón tequila unit. (DeJoria also owns the Paul Mitchell line of hair care products.) When asked if money still motivates him, DeJoria says: "Yes, I can do more things with it to create more jobs and lend a helping hand. It goes back to the saying of give a man a fish, and you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish, and you have fed him for a lifetime."

Click here for Complete Coverage: Secrets of the Self-Made

Views were mixed on health care reform, specifically as to whether the government should implement a public option to cover all Americans. Pharmaceutical magnate R.J. Kirk predicts the public option will prevail, though he believes the government should support universal health care "no more than it should offer universal food, universal housing, universal transportation or any other communistic provisioning," he says. "The history of private enterprise and state enterprise convincingly demonstrates the folly of such state run initiatives."

While the eight entrepreneurs made their fortunes in a variety of industries, five worry that government regulations are the greatest threat to their industries. The ever-animated Donald Trump pointed to a more pernicious bogeyman: fear. "People sometimes don't realize that real estate runs in cycles," he says. "That's normal." Leon Charney, another real estate titan, fears "a shut down of lending by banks" may continue to hobble the economy.

Steven Schonfeld, newcomer to the Forbes 400, amassed his $1 billion fortune investing his own money in the capital markets. Schonfeld, along with leveraged buyout king Wilbur Ross and DeJoria, believes the stock market is in a sucker's rally. Trump and Kirk think there's a reasonable chance that's true, while grocery-chain giant John Catsimatidis and Charney think the market is fairly valued.

Dow 10,000 may still have to wait awhile.

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Suzy Nam Forbes Staff

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I'm a Bostonian at heart and a former corporate lawyer who now follows the richest of the rich in Southeast Asia. I'm based in Bangkok and cover tycoons in Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. I produce rich lists for each of those countries and, as part of the Global Wealth team at Forbes, I also work on our World Billionaires List. You can email me at [email protected].

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Click for full photo gallery: Singapore's 40 Richest

Singapore’s trade-led economy, after accelerating last year, is slowing down. In the second quarter GDP inched ahead by 0.5% after a 9.6% growth in the first quarter, hit by a decline in manufacturing. After an impressive 14.5% rise in 2010 GDP is forecast to rise between 5% to 7% in 2011. Singapore’s stock market performed poorly, gaining only 4% in the past year. The fortunes of the country’s 40 richest, though, have yet to feel the impact. Their total net worth was up by nearly one-fifth to $54.4 billion from last year’s $45.7 billion.

The Ng family, whose patriarch, Ng Teng Fong, died last year, retains the No. 1 spot with a combined net worth of $8.9 billion. New Zealander Richard Chandler, a Singapore resident since 2008, moved up one rank to No. 4. Overall, 31 on the list were richer this year, including Malaysian citizen Ong Beng Seng and his wife,

Christina, whose wealth almost doubled to $1.9 billion as shares of their U.K. fashion house, Mulberry, soared. Singapore’s ongoing tourist influx boosted the fortune of hotelier Koh Wee Meng, who moved up ten ranks to No. 14.

The newest billionaire is food tycoon Sam Goi, known as Singapore’s “Popiah King.” Another newcomer is oil trader Lim Oon Kuin, who founded Hin Leong at the age of 20. Returning after a two-year absence is Mustaq Ahmad, owner of popular 24-hour retailer Mustafa Center. Only five on the list are less well-off than they were in 2010, including real estate tycoon Zhong Sheng Jian, whose Yanlord Land has property interests in China.

A minimum net worth of $210 million was required to make the cut, up from $190 million last year. Three from last year’s top 40 dropped off, including Chew Hua Seng, founder of Raffles Education; cranes unit Tat Hong’s Ng Chwee Cheng; and Falcon Energy’s Tan Pong Tyea.

Five Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires

Wednesday, 16th January 2008 (by J.D. Roth) 38Comments

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Several people forwarded a recent Reader’s Digest article about the secrets of self-made millionaires. It’s a quick and inspiring read.

“Many modern millionaires live in middle-class neighborhoods, work full-time and shop in discount stores like the rest of us,” writes author Kristyn Kusek Lewis. “What motivates them isn’t material possessions but the choices that money can bring.” She goes on to describe five millionaires and the lessons that can be learned from them:

1. Set your sights on where you’re going. Have a vision. Think big. And remember that everyone has to start at the beginning. Even Warren Buffet had to invest $25 before he could make $25 billion. Set lofty goals, and then begin taking small steps to reach them.

2. Educate yourself. Read books and magazines. If you don’t know how to do something, research the answer. I’m amazed how much of my financial

success is attributable to simply reading personal finance books. Many of them say the same things. Once you’ve read enough of them, the advice begins to be burned on your brain. Remember: knowledge is power.

3. Passion pays off. Love what you do. When you’re passionate about your work, you care about the consequences. “According to research by Thomas J. Stanley, author of The Millionaire Mind, over 80 percent of millionaires say they never would have been successful if their vocation wasn’t something they cared about.”

4. Grow your money. Pay yourself first. When you’re living paycheck-to-paycheck, it can be difficult to look beyond your immediate needs. But it’s precisely by doing this that you’ll have the best chance for escaping your circumstances. Squirrel away money for your retirement, or for other investments in cd rates, savings accounts or even money market accounts.

5. No guts, no glory. Take risks. I’ve often heard that successful people are the biggest failures of all. They’ve failed many times. But they pick themselves back up and try again. Most people never try because they’re afraid of the possible downsides. Successful people don’t worry about the downside — they’re focused on the possible payoff.

But the biggest secret of all, writes Lewis, is to stop spending. “Every millionaire we spoke to has one thing in common: Not a single one spends needlessly.” She cites a survey that indicates many wealthy people spend money “with a middle-class mindset”, clipping coupons and shopping at sales.

The more I learn, the more I believe this to be the case. Millionaires may have earned their money through a combination of discipline and dedication, but it’s their frugal habits that keep them rich.

Những 'lò luyện' tỷ phú nổi tiếng nhất thế giới

Với 62 tỷ phú từng có thời gian học tập tại trường, Harvard xứng đáng giữ vị trí quán quân trong việc đào tạo những bộ óc kiếm tiền xuất sắc nhất thế giới.

Một điều khá thú vị là có rất nhiều tỷ phú tốt nghiệp tại Harvard trước đây từng là bạn học của nhau. Thị trưởng New York Michael Bloomberg và tỷ phú dầu lửa - ngân hàng George Kaiserb cùng tốt nghiệp Trường kinh doanh Harvard năm 1966.

Cũng năm đó Bruce Kovner lấy được bằng kinh tế và David Bonderman tốt nghiệp khoa Luật. Meg Whiteman của eBay và Jeffrey Greene cùng tốt nghiệp trường kinh doanh năm 1979. Trong khi đó, Chủ tịch của Apollo Management Leon Black và Hamilton James của Blackstone đều nhận bằng MBA năm 1975.

Đại học Harvard giữ ưu thế tuyệt đối trong việc đào tạo ra các tỷ phú. Ảnh: Forbes

Những sự trùng hợp lý thú này được các biên tập viên tờ Forbes phát hiện khi thống kê danh sách những ngôi trường đào tạo ra nhiều tỷ phú nhất thế giới, tính đến năm 2010.

Theo danh sách này, giữ vị trí thứ 2 trong danh những ngôi trường thành công nhất về thành tích đào tạo tỷ phú là Đai học Stanford với 28 người từng theo học tại đây. Có rất nhiều sinh viên tốt nghiệp trường này đã thành danh trong lĩnh vực công nghệ cao, tiêu biểu là Jerry Yang – đồng sáng lập Yahoo, Sergey Brin và Larry Page – đồng sáng lập Google. Vinod Khosla – đồng sáng lập Sun Microsystem và chủ tịch của Gap – Robert Fisher cũng từng là bạn học của nhau và nhận bằng MBA năm 1980. Nhà sáng lập Nike Philip Knight cũng tốt nghiệp Đại học kinh doanh Stanford năm 1962 và đã từng quay trở lại đây vài năm trước để tham gia các khóa học về tiếng Anh và viết luận.

Đại học Columbia về thứ ba với 20 tỷ phú từng tốt nghiệp, tăng 4 người so với năm ngoái. Tiêu biểu là người tiên phong trong lĩnh vực góp vốn tư nhân Henry Kravis, tỷ phú quỹ phòng hộ Louis Bacon và Leon Cooperman. Cooperman đã từng học cùng lớp kinh tế với Mario Gabelli – hiện cũng là một tỷ phú.

Cùng với 53 giải Nobel, Đại học Chicago cũng có thể tự hào với việc đào tạo ra 13 tỷ phú cho thế giới mà tiêu biểu là Thomas Pritzker, William Conway và David Rubenstein.

Những cái tên lần đầu xuất hiện trong danh sách này là Đại học New York và Đại học Princeton.

Ảnh: Những trường đại học sản sinh ra nhiều tỷ phú nhất thế giới

Các đại học đào tạo ra tỷ phú thường được hưởng lợi lớn từ các học viên của mình. Nhà đồng sáng lập Home Depot - Kenneth Langone đã lấy được bằng MBA của Đại học New York. Giờ đây, ông trở thành nhà tài trợ lớn cho ngôi trường này và trong trường, thậm chí, có hẳn một trung tâm y tế mang tên ông.

Phil Knight cũng dành ra 105 triệu USD cho Trung tâm quản lý Knight tại Đại học kinh doanh Stanford. Stephen Mandel cũng giúp đỡ trường Cao đẳng Dartmouth và gần đây còn được bầu làm Chủ tịch Hội đồng quản trị của trường.

Tuy vậy, một tấm bằng của Harvard hay Stanford không phải là điều kiện kiên quyết để trở thành tỷ phú. Trong danh sách 400 người giàu nhất của Forbes năm ngoái, có ít nhất 41 người không tốt nghiệp đại học.

Những tỷ phú kiếm tiền nhanh nhất thế giới Bản in ấn Email Cỡ chữ(Tamnhin.net) - Tiền bạc, danh vọng và giàu có là những từ mà người ta hay dùng để nhắc tới những tỷ phú nổi danh của thế giới. Không chỉ dừng lại ở việc sở hữu hàng tỷ đô la Mỹ, những tỷ phú nổi danh dưới đây còn được mệnh danh là “Những tỷ phú kiếm tiền nhanh nhất thế giới”. 1. Bill Gates

Bill Gates là một doanh nhân người Mỹ, người đi tiên phong trong lĩnh vực phần mềm máy vi tính. Cùng Paul Allen, ông đã sáng lập nên tập đoàn Microsoft, một công ty phần mềm được coi là lớn nhất thế giới. Năm 2010, trong danh sách tỷ phú giàu nhất thế giới do tạp chí Forbes công bố, Bill Gates đứng thứ hai với tài sản: 53 tỷ USD. Thu nhập của Bill trong một phút có thể mua được hàng chục chiếc máy tính và gấp 6.659 lần số tiền một gia đình nghèo ở các nước đang phát triển kiếm được

trong một ngày. Hiện nay, thu nhập của ông trong một phút đạt 6.687 USD.

2. Warren Buffett

Warren Edward Buffett sinh ngày 30 tháng 8 năm 1930 tại Omaha, bang Nebraska, là một nhà đầu tư, doanh nhân và nhà từ thiện người Mỹ. Ông là nhà đầu tư thành công nhất thế giới, cổ đông lớn nhất kiêm giám đốc hãng Berkshire Hathaway và được tạp chí Forbes xếp ở vị trí người giàu thứ hai thế giới với tài sản chừng 62 tỉ USD. Theo tính toán với 8 phút làm việc, Buffett kiếm được số tiền cao hơn thu nhập cả năm của một gia đình trung lưu ở Mỹ. Hiện nay thu nhập trong một phút của ông trùm chứng khoán này là khoảng 5.530 USD.

3. Carlos Slim Helu

Carlos Slim Helu là nhà thương nhân Mexico. Theo Forbes, ông hiện là người giàu nhất thế giới, cũng là người duy nhất thuộc châu Mỹ Latinh trong danh sách 20 người giàu nhất thế giới được công bố tháng 3 năm 2008. Carlos Slim Helu chi phối toàn bộ hệ thống viễn thông của Mexico. Năm 2006, Helu đã thu về 19 tỷ USD, mức thu nhập hàng năm lớn nhất mà một tỷ phú kiếm được trong 10 năm qua. Thu nhập trong một phút làm việc của Carlos Slim Helu được tính là 3.987 USD.

4. Iagvar Kamprad

Ingvar Kamprad là nhà tư bản công nghiệp Thụy Điển. Ông sáng lập ra dãy cửa hàng cung cấp trang thiết bị đồ đạc trong nhà bán lẻ IKEA vào năm 1943. Hiện nay IKEA là một trong những công ty tư nhân lớn nhất và thành công nhất thế giới, với hơn 200 cửa hàng ở 31 quốc gia, hơn 75 ngàn nhân viên và tạo ra lợi nhuận hơn 12 tỷ Euro hàng năm từ việc bán hàng. Người ta tính với mỗi phút làm việc, ông chủ của đế chế IKEA này cũng đút túi được 3729 USD.

5. Lakshmi Mittal

Lakshmi Narayan Mittal là một nhà công nghiệp, tỷ phú người Ấn Độ. Ông là người giàu thứ 6 thế giới với số tài sản lên đến 32 tỷ USD theo công bố của tạp chí Forbes. Tờ Thời báo Tài chính (The Financial Times) chọn Mittal là nhân vật của năm 2006. Tháng 5 năm 2007, ông được tạp chí Time chọn vào danh sách 100 người có tầm ảnh hưởng nhất thế giới. Mỗi phút nhà tỷ phú Ấn Độ này cũng thu về được 3386 USD.

6. Steven Spielberg

Steven Allan Spielberg là một đạo diễn và nhà sản xuất phim của điện ảnh Mỹ. Spielberg đã giành được ba giải Oscar và là nhà làm phim đạt doanh thu cao nhất mọi

thời đại, với tổng doanh thu đạt được ước tính khoảng 3 tỷ USD. Tính đến năm 2006, tạp chí Premiere đã xếp Spielberg là nhân vật quyền lực và có ảnh hưởng nhất của ngành công nghiệp điện ảnh. Tạp chí Time cũng bầu chọn ông là một trong 100 nhân vật vĩ đại nhất thế kỉ 20. Ước tính với mỗi phút làm việc, vị đạo diễn lừng danh này cũng thu về được 630 USD.

7. Howard Stern

Howard Stern sinh năm 1954, đã có một thời gian dài hoạt động trong lĩnh vực phát thanh. Anh nổi tiếng với chương trình Sirius XM Radio trên radio. Stern còn tự phong cho mình danh hiệu King of All Media (Vua của tất cả các phương tiện truyền thông) sau khi có được những thành công nhất định bên ngoài lĩnh vực phát thanh. Với thành công trong lĩnh vực truyền thông, 578 USD là số tiền mà Howard Stern nhận được trong mỗi phút làm việc.

8. George Lucas

George Walton Lucas, Jr. là một nhà sản xuất phim, đạo diễn, diễn viên, tác giả kịch bản người Mỹ và là chủ tịch của hãng Lucasfilm. Ông được biết đến nhiều nhất với vai trò tác giả của loạt phim khoa học viễn tưởng Chiến tranh giữa các vì sao và bộ phim phiêu lưu Indiana Jones. George Lucas cũng là một tỷ phú với tài sản 3,9 tỷ đô la. Mỗi phút làm việc của vị đạo diễn lừng danh này được tính bằng 450 USD.

9. Jerry Seinfeld

Trong danh sách những diễn viên hài có thu nhập cao nhất thế giới thì cái tên Jerry Seinfeld luôn đứng ở vị trí số 1. Cùng với 85 triệu USD thu được mỗi năm, Jerry Seinfeld cũng đứng thứ 4 trong làng nghệ Hollywood. Tính ra mỗi phút làm việc, chàng diễn viên nổi tiếng này thu về được 193 USD.

The 10 Habits of Self-Made MillionairesBy David Weliver 38 Comments

What does it take to become a millionaire? Lottery winners aside, becoming wealthy has nothing to do with luck. Let’s look at 10 ten habits of self-made millionaires. Some ideas featured here are from the book The Millionaire in You by Michael LeBoeuf. Others come from millionaires I know, and they are living proof that these habits will make you millions.

1. Millionaires Are Frugal: The wealthiest people I know are also the cheapest. They buy used cars for reliability, not image. (According to the book The Millionaire Next Door, the number one car brand among millionaires is Toyota—not Mercedes or BMW!) Millionaires pack their lunches. It takes money to make money, and you can’t get the money you need to invest if you spend it.

2. Millionaires Think Big: Few people are surprised when they make their first million. After all, it doesn’t come easily. But long before reaching their goal, millionaires know they want to get there. Rather than looking forward to an annual 3% raise, millionaires dream of working for themselves. Rather than serving 100 customers, millionaires see tens of thousands of accounts.

3. Millionaires Take Calculated Risks: Whether it’s investing in a stock or cashing in a 401(k) to start a business, millionaires take calculated risks. In these risks, the rewards of success are far greater than the costs of failure, and the chances of success are good.

4. Millionaires Network: Few people reach their potential alone. Millionaires build powerful networks of contacts in all areas of life. Millionaires know that their next employer, customer, or partner may be anywhere.

5. Millionaires Don’t Pay Interest, They Earn It: Millionaires learn the crippling costs of debt and avoid it at all costs. On the contrary, millionaires save, invest, and even lend money to others to earn interest themselves. Want to take the first step to building your own fortune? It’s simple: Open an online savings account now and start stashing away extra money—automatically—every month.

6. Millionaires Are Focused: Millionaires work feverishly towards their goals at all costs. The difference between dreamers and performers is not the number of ideas one has, but how one focuses on executing the best ideas.

7. Millionaires Do Whatever It Takes: The most inspiring success stories among all the people I know involve incredible sacrifice. From sleeping in cars between two jobs to forgoing personal relationships to get an education or build a business, millionaires don’t simply delay gratification; millionaires endure pain.

8. Millionaires Educate Themselves: It doesn’t take an Ivy League education to become a millionaire, but it does take a desire to learn. It doesn’t matter how you learn – from a mentor, night classes, or books and the web – but ongoing learning is critical to lifelong success.

9. Millionaires Lead: No surprise here, the same qualities enabling people to earn millions make them natural leaders. It goes back to the decision to become a millionaire in the first place: The resolution to carve a new path rather than follow the flock.

10. Millionaires Are Generous: Don’t expect your high-rolling neighbor to shower you with gifts. Chances are she’s donating to far worthier causes. It’s just another perk of having a million in the bank: you get to make a substantial difference in charities of your choice.

Secrets of Self-Made MillionairesBy Kristyn Kusek Lewis from Reader's Digest December 2007

PHOTOGRAPHED BY CHIP SIMONSRick Sikorski made his big bucks in personal fitness.

When you think “millionaire,” what image comes to mind? For many of us, it’s a flashy Wall Street banker type who flies a private jet, collects cars and lives the kind of decadent lifestyle that would make Donald Trump proud.

But many modern millionaires live in middle-class neighborhoods, work full-time and shop in discount stores like the rest of us. What motivates them isn’t material possessions but the choices that money can bring: “For the rich, it’s not about getting more stuff. It’s about having the freedom to make almost any decision you want,” says T. Harv Eker, author of Secrets of the Millionaire Mind. Wealth means you can send your child to any school or quit a job you don’t like.According to the Spectrem Wealth Study, an annual survey of America’s wealthy, there are more people living the good life than ever before—the number of millionaires nearly doubled in the last decade. And the rich are getting richer. To make it onto the Forbes 400 list of the richest Americans, a mere billionaire no longer makes the cut. This year you needed a net worth of at least $1.3 billion.

If more people are getting richer than ever, why shouldn’t you be one of them? Here, five people who have at least a million dollars in liquid assets share the secrets that helped them get there.

1. Set your sights on where you’re goingTwenty years ago, Jeff Harris hardly seemed on the road to wealth. He was a college dropout who struggled to support his wife, DeAnn, and three kids, working as a grocery store clerk and at a junkyard where he melted scrap metal alongside convicts. “At times we were so broke that we washed our clothes in the bathtub because we couldn’t afford the Laundromat.” Now he’s a 49-year-old investment advisor and multimillionaire in York, South Carolina.

There was one big reason Jeff pulled ahead of the pack: He always knew he’d be rich. The reality is that 80 percent of Americans worth at least $5 million grew up in middle-class or lesser households, just like Jeff.

Wanting to be wealthy is a crucial first step. Says Eker, “The biggest obstacle to wealth is fear. People are afraid to think big, but if you think small, you’ll only achieve small things.”

It all started for Jeff when he met a stockbroker at a Christmas party. “Talking to him, it felt like discovering fire,” he says. “I started reading books about investing during my breaks at the grocery store, and I began putting $25 a month in a mutual fund.” Next he taught a class at a local community college on investing. His students became his first clients, which led to his investment practice. “There were lots of struggles,” says Jeff, “but what got me through it was believing with all my heart that I would succeed.”

2. Educate yourselfWhen Steve Maxwell graduated from college, he had an engineering degree and a high-tech job—but he couldn’t balance his checkbook. “I took one finance class in college but dropped it to go on a ski trip,” says the 45-year-old father of three, who lives in Windsor, Colorado. “I actually had to go to my bank and ask them to teach me how to read my statement.”

One of the biggest obstacles to making money is not understanding it: Thousands of us avoid investing because we just don’t get it. But to make money, you must be financially literate. “It bothered me that I didn’t understand this stuff,” says Steve, “so I read books and magazines about money management and investing, and I asked every financial whiz I knew to explain things to me.”

He and his wife started applying the lessons: They made a point to live below their means. They never bought on impulse, always negotiated better deals (on their cars, cable bills, furniture) and stayed in their home long after they could afford a more expensive one. They also put 20 percent of their annual salary into investments.

Within ten years, they were millionaires, and people were coming to Steve for advice. “Someone would say, ‘I need to refinance my house—what should I do?’ A lot of times, I wouldn’t know the answer, but I’d go find it and learn something in the process,” he says.

In 2003, Steve quit his job to become part owner of a company that holds personal finance seminars for employees of corporations like Wal-Mart. He also started going to real estate investment seminars, and it’s paid off: He now owns $30 million worth of investment properties, including apartment complexes, a shopping mall and a quarry.

“I was an engineer who never thought this life was possible, but all it truly takes is a little self-education,” says Steve. “You can do anything once you understand the basics.”

3. Passion pays offIn 1995, Jill Blashack Strahan and her husband were barely making ends meet. Like so many of us, Jill was eager to discover her purpose, so she splurged on a session with a life coach. “When I told her my goal was to make $30,000 a year, she said I was setting the bar too low. I needed to focus on my passion, not on the paycheck.”

Jill, who lives with her son in Alexandria, Minnesota, owned a gift basket company and earned just $15,000 a year. She noticed when she let potential buyers taste the food items, the baskets sold like crazy. Jill thought, Why not sell the food directly to customers in a fun setting?With $6,000 in savings, a bank loan and a friend’s investment, Jill started packaging gourmet foods in a backyard shed and selling them at taste-testing parties. It wasn’t easy. “I remember sitting outside one day, thinking we were three months behind on our house payment, I had two employees I couldn’t pay, and I ought to get a real job. But then I thought, No, this is your dream. Recommit and get to work.”

She stuck with it, even after her husband died three years later. “I live by the law of abundance, meaning that even when there are challenges in life, I look for the win-win,” she says.

The positive attitude worked: Jill’s backyard company, Tastefully Simple, is now a direct-sales business, with $120 million in sales last year. And Jill was named one of the top 25 female business owners in North America by Fast Company magazine.

According to research by Thomas J. Stanley, author of The Millionaire Mind, over 80 percent of millionaires say they never would have been successful if their vocation wasn’t something they cared about.

4. Grow your moneyMost of us know the never-ending cycle of living paycheck to paycheck. “The fastest way to get out of that pattern is to make extra money for the specific purpose of reinvesting in yourself,” says Loral Langemeier, author of The Millionaire Maker. In other words, earmark some money for the sole purpose

of investing it in a place where it will grow dramatically—like a business or real estate.

There are endless ways to make extra money for investing—you just have to be willing to do the work. “Everyone has a marketable skill,” says Langemeier. “When I started out, I had a tutoring business, seeing clients in the morning before work and on my lunch break.”

A little moonlighting cash really can grow into a million. Twenty-five years ago, Rick Sikorski dreamed of owning a personal training business. “I rented a tiny studio where I charged $15 an hour,” he says. When money started trickling in, he squirreled it away instead of spending it, putting it all back into the business. Rick’s 400-square-foot studio is now Fitness Together, a franchise based in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, with more than 360 locations worldwide. And he’s worth over $40 million.

When extra money rolls in, it’s easy to think, Now I can buy that new TV. But if you want to get rich, you need to pay yourself first, by putting money where it will work hard for you—whether that’s in your retirement fund, a side business or investments like real estate.

5. No guts, no gloryLast summer, Dave Lindahl footed the bill for 18 relatives at a fancy mansion in the Adirondacks. One night, his dad looked out at the scenery and joked, “I can’t believe we used to call you the black sheep!”

At 29, Dave was broke, living in a small apartment near Boston and wondering what to do after ten years in a local rock band. “I looked around and thought, If I don’t do something, I’ll be stuck here forever.”

He started a landscape company, buying his equipment on credit. When business literally froze over that winter, a banker friend asked if he’d like to renovate a foreclosed home. “I’m a terrible carpenter, but I needed the money, so I went to some free seminars at Home Depot and figured it out as I went,” he says.

After a few more renovations, it occurred to him: Why not buy the homes and sell them for profit? He took a risk and bought his first property. Using the proceeds, he bought another, and another. Twelve years later, he owns apartment buildings, worth $143 million, in eight states.

The Biggest Secret? Stop spending.Every millionaire we spoke to has one thing in common: Not a single one spends needlessly. Real estate investor Dave Lindahl drives a Ford Explorer and says his middle-class neighbors would be shocked to learn how much he’s worth. Fitness mogul Rick Sikorski can’t fathom why anyone would buy bottled water. Steve Maxwell, the finance teacher, looked at a $1.5 million home but decided to buy one for half the price because “a house with double the cost wouldn’t give me double the enjoyment.”

It’s not a fluke: According to the 2007 Annual Survey of Affluence & Wealth in America, some of the richest people “spend their money with a

middle-class mind-set.” They clip coupons, wait for sales and buy luxury items at a discount.

No kidding! Talk show host Tyra Banks calls herself the Queen of Cheap and keeps perfume samples from magazine ads in her purse for quick touch-ups.

Sara Blakely, founder of the $100 million shapewear company Spanx, gets her hair trimmed at Supercuts.

And Warren Buffett, the third richest person in the world, according to Forbes, lives in the same Omaha, Nebraska, home he bought four decades ago for $31,500.

6 Self Made Millionaire Case StudiesBy Maren Kate On April 20, 2011 · 26 Comments · In Self Made

The other day I was on HARO… actually, let me rephrase that: The other day my

virtual assistant was on HARO… looking for case studies of people who had become

self made (my all encompassing obsession as of late). Lots of people responded to

our query, but 6 stood out as legitimate and inspiring self made millionaires and I

thought I’d share their stories with you.

Now do note that these stories aren’t written or really edited by me, they were

either written by the person’s publicist or by the millionaire themselves (you can

guess which one is which). I decided to leave them this way so my thoughts or

personality wouldn’t taint the information a savvy reader can gather from these 6

self made case studies.

Enjoy and let me know your thoughts afterwards… I’m impartial to their stories but

I think each has interesting and inspirational lesson to be learned from.

JESSIE CONNERS

Company: PeppermintPark.com

If there is a strong go-getter, self-made, female entrepreneur who has followed her

passions to launch not just one, but four successful small businesses; it would be

Jessie Conners.

Her life is a true rags-to-riches story – she went from a trailer with no running

water – to an orphanage – to opening a marketing company at 17 –  to buying her

first piece of real estate at 19. At 20, Jessie was a published author, then a reality

star at 21 (Donald Trump’s The Apprentice).

Jessie became a national speaker (speaking at over 1500 real estate conventions)

and by 27 started her e-tail company PeppermintPark.com. Now, at 28, Jessie is

finally a multi-millionaire – and she achieved all of it by chasing the dream of

becoming self made.

This year, real estate magnate, author and owner of newly minted

PeppermintPark.com expects to shatter glass ceilings with sales reaching close to a

million from her latest endeavor.

By having a unique member model coupled with featuring over 300 designers that

appeal to women from all walks of life, she’s looking for her Minneapolis-based one

stop, online shop to almost 10 thousand members.

Jessie’s fearlessness and tenacity has wowed the likes of notables from Donald

Trump when she appeared on the first season of The Apprentice as the youngest

contestant to date.

BERT MARTINEZ

Company: www.bertmartinez.com

The keys to becoming self made and a self made millionaire are:

The saying, “As a man thinketh in his heart so is he“, not only embraces the whole

of a man’s being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and

circumstance of his life.  A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the

complete sum of all his thoughts.

So all people are self made, the real difference between a millionaire or a billionaire

or a zillionaire is knowledge and fear. Most people know what to do but are afraid

to take action. They are afraid of money, success, criticism, work, failure, success

and the list goes on.  Their self-esteem or unconscious belief controls their results.

Through marketing I became a self-made “millionaire” by the time I was 30 and

filed bankruptcy at 32. My self esteem surrounding money reared its ugly head,

then marketing and sales allowed me to hit millionaire status again at age 35.

My company Bert Martinez Communications is dedicated to teaching small

business owners strategies to grow their business and their self image so they avoid

the mistakes I made.

TODD TRESIDDER

Company: Money Coach

I’ve been coaching clients to wealth for the last 12 years after achieving financial

independence at age 35. I’ve written extensively on the keys to self-made wealth. It

is my passion.

From a sound bite perspective the key to building wealth is to make more than you

spend and invest the difference wisely. Rinse and repeat until wealth is achieved.

No secret there. The key is not in knowing what to do, the key is in getting it done

* You must have a plan.

* The plan must be based on proven principles that lead to wealth including

leverage, risk management, and much more.

* You must set up support structures to pull you through when you run into the

inevitable obstacles and setbacks.

* You must understand the concept of “enough-ness” and the tradeoffs involved

because the goal is happiness and fulfillment – not wealth. Wealth is a tool or

vehicle but never the end goal.

I retired at age 35 by saving roughly 60-70% of my earned income and investing it

wisely. I published an article explaining exactly how the process works here.

DEBRA COHEN

Company: Home Referral Network

Becoming a self made millionaire, doesn’t only require hard work, it requires

discipline. Earning millions of dollars is irrelevant if you spend more than you earn.

Living lean and saving for the future have always been my mantra in addition to

maintaining an affordable and conservative lifestyle.

As soon as my Homeowner Referral Network business started to generate a good

income, my first priority was to save at least 1/2 of what I made. The millionaire

next door doesn’t necessarily drive a Bentley–it may be a 10 year old Honda.

Several years ago after the purchase of our first home, not only were my husband

and I struggling to make ends meet but we faced the all too familiar challenge of

finding reliable home improvement contractors. Based on our experience, I decided

to create a business to address this need in our community.

HOME REMEDIES OF NY, INC. is a Homeowner Referral Network (HRN) for

homeowners seeking reliable home improvement contractors. I pre-screen and

represent a network of more than 50 home improvement contractors ranging from

painters, plumbers and carpenters to general contractors, architects and decorative

painters. Contractors in my network pay a pre-negotiated commission on any work

secured and my service is free to homeowners.

I started my business with just a $5000 loan from my husband’s retirement savings

plan and Home Remedies has grossed more than $4 million to date.

AJ KHUBANI

Company: TeleBrands

TeleBrands markets “As Seen on TV” products to the consumer audience.  From the

PedEgg and Windshield Wonder to today’s new Chef Basket and One-Second

Needle, TeleBrands helps consumers find a common solution to everyday problems.

AJ Khubani founded TeleBrands at the age of 27 with his life savings of $20,000. 

While in college, Khubani began marketing an AM/FM type radio in the back of the

Nation Inquirer for $10.

He broke even.  But, that lead him to creaing many new products and moving into

television infomercial advertising.  In the late 1980s, he began marketing the

AmberVision Glasses for $10 at retail establishments — the first time an “As Seen

on TV” infomercial product was available in a bricks and mortar environment.  The

product became a household name and a new approach to the direct response

television (DRTV) industry was born.

Khubani offers the following advice:

When you have a new product idea, start by “Googling” the idea — see if

someone else invented or marketed it before you did.  Take the time to do

your research.

Apply for a provision patent for just over $100 at www.USPTO.gov.  There is

no need to begin with expensive lawyers and spending your entire savings on

your product/idea.

Learn the marketplace.  If you are creating a consumer product for a specific

audience, is that potential audience large enough to result increased

revenues?  Be realistic in your goals.

And most importantly — enjoy what you do!

TONY HARTL

Company: Planet Tan & Selling Sunshine (book)

There are several keys to becoming a wildly successful, self-made millionaire.

Creatively solving problems is important, great stewardship of money is a must over

the long-term, and a large tolerance for risk is key as you start out.

But what really separates the successful from the unsuccessful, in my experience, is

an unrelenting desire to accomplish your goals.

This is NOT an unrelenting desire to make money; it’s the passion for making your

ideas into reality. Money hasn’t been the main drive behind any of the successful

people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing. There are more interesting things in the

world than currency, after all.

People with passion who solve problems in new, relevant ways will make money,

and those who deal with adversity, take logical risks, and put their money where it

matters the most will grow their businesses quickly.” – Tony

Tony Hartl founded Planet Tan in 1995 and built the company into one of the most

recognizable brands in the Dallas area. He currently sits on the National

Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship Board and has been a guest lecturer at

the Caruth Institute of Entrepreneurship at SMU’s Cox Business School. He has

been featured in numerous media outlets, including Inc. magazine, Fortune Small

Business, and the Dallas Morning News.

Tagged with: self made men • self made millionaire • self made millionaire case

studies • self made millionaires 

10 Differences Between Self-Made Billionaires And You

Alyson Shontell | Jan. 7, 2011, 2:09 PM | 169,857 | 27

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Alyson Shontell

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Why do some people become extremely successful, while the rest of us work really hard and do fine but not great?

Robert Jordan interviewed 45 founders for his book, "How They Did It." 

Each entrepreneur started a company from nothing and either sold for $100 million+ or went public for $300 million+.  In total, those interviewed created roughly $41 billion from scratch.

We asked Jordan what separates extremely successful business people from everyone else.

Here are the 10 traits they share >>

*Note: not all people interviewed in Jordan's book are billionaires. They all have self-made fortunes and did not inherit their money or family businesses.  Click here to buy a copy of How They Did It.

They recognize the value of simple ideas: Dane Miller of Biomet started out selling arm slings

Image: CameronParkins via Flickr

Almost every entrepreneur Jordan interviewed made their fortune from a simple idea.

"They tended to be things that the rest of us would overlook. Very few made you think, Oh my god, it's

the cure for cancer. That is not the formula for how you get to a billion-dollar level," Jordan says. 

Founder of Biomet Dane Miller is a prime example. "In the end, Miller was producing highly

engineered products -- artificial hips and knees. But in the beginning, he was selling slings, as in arm

slings.  Slings are what he left the security of his previous company for."

They have incredible curiosity: James Dolan bought a newspaper everyone else thought was worthless

Where most people would see a crack in the wall, Jordan says billionaires find gaping holes.

"They are incredibly curious; what the rest of the world thinks is a problem and complains about --

that's what these people go and work on," he says. 

James Dolan of The Dolan Company is an example of this.  "At one point, Dolan bought a hundred-

year-old legal newspaper.  The first thing he did was have the staff survey every single subscriber. 

They found the reason people were reading the paper wasn't for the news.  It was for the legal notices

of foreclosure they ran," says Jordan.

"So, Dolan turned the company on its head and created the largest national court reporting service on

foreclosures.  This process used to take three months and caused credit card companies and banks

billions of dollars; Dolan turned it into real-time reporting all because he bought a hundred-year-old

newspaper. Dolan saw something that everyone else overlooked; they figured it wasn't worth

anything."

They crash through obstacles: Joe Piscopo had an angry employee who destroyed every byte of computer data

Image: John Haslam

When a company like Groupon gets offered a billion-dollar buyout, it seems to most people like they

won the lottery.  Jordan explains that no billionaire has it easy.  In fact, most had to overcome

impossible problems.

"It just happens as a matter of fact that everybody who hits the billion-dollar level hits massive

challenges, without exception." says Jordan. "Some of this stuff is so massive it makes you think, I

don't know how they got passed it."

A great example is Joe Piscopo of Pansophic.  "An employee got pissed off, took an electromagnet,

and walked through their data center.  He destroyed every last byte of data sitting on their

computers," says Jordan. "If that isn't a company destroyer, I don't know what is! And they actually

survived."

They are excellent problem solvers: Rock Mackie laid off all his employees and still went public at a billion-dollar valuation

Like Piscopo, many billionaires find ways to fix impossible problems.

Take Rock Mackie, founder of TomoTherapy (TOMO) for example. "He had to lay off all of his

employees right at the launch of his company. The whole thing failed right as he was launching!" says

Jordan. "He had a major company as a partner [and they bailed]."

Most people at that point would think, game over.  But Mackie still managed to go public at a billion

dollar valuation.

"That's not explained by saying, 'Well he's a professor at the University of Wisconsin,'" says Jordan. 

"Those are not credentials to figure out what to do when your partner backs out and you have to fire

all your employees."

They take risks: Vince Pettinelli had a great job and family when he quit to start PeopleServe

Most people try to avoid failing.  This is not a concern for many billionaires.  Some seem to actively

seek failure by taking big risks.

"Many people go about business in a very cautious way, through networking and things like that. 

That's not what these people did.  They actually had a moment where they had to take a risk, and

they did it," says Jordan.

Vince Pettinelli, founder of PeopleServe, did just that. "When he started his company, he was 35 and

the head of mental health programs for the state of Ohio. He just didn't want to do it anymore. He

wanted to be in business for himself," says Jordan.

"When Pettinelli told his wife he was quitting his job, she practically gnashed her teeth," says Jordan.

"She said, You're going to do WHAT?! There was a point with all of these folks where they realized

they just had to go do this."

Still, Pettinelli opened up a first home for severely retarded people.  That doesn't sound like a recipe

for getting rich, but he ended up with 7,800 residents and sold to ResCare for $200 million.

They have a great attitude: Dane Miller put titanium steel in his arm just to prove it was safe

"This is a group that is far less cynical than the rest of the world," says Jordan of the billionaires. 

"That's just not the way they look at the world.  They have a passionate desire."

Jordan is a firm believer that attitude trumps skill set and uses Dane Miller of BioMed as an example.

"At the time, people thought the only material you could use in the human body was stainless steel. 

He wanted to prove to the world that titanium was really a better product," says Jordan. 

"Miller called an orthopedic surgeon friend and had him plant a piece of titanium in his arm. He walked

around with it in for ten years. None of his other cofounders did that.  To me, that's dedication.  There

really was passion behind that."

They monetize mistakes: Bill Merchantz's software was created out of critical error

Image: Photos by GI via Flickr

The major difference between regular individuals and successful billionaires is what they do with their

strikeouts, says Jordan.

Bill Merchantz created Lakeview Technology.  The ultimate product that made him his fortune was

derived from an utter disaster. Jordan says, "Their initial software failed and everything basically blew

up. On an emergency basis, they had to come up with new software for critical failures." 

"That software proved to be so valuable that they spun it into a new company. That was what ended

up making his fortune -- the software from the failure."

They make use of boredom: David Becker started a company in a hospital bed

Image: Samael Kreutz via Flickr

Billionaire Jim Dolan has one piece of advice for all aspiring entrepreneurs: "The problem is

boredom.  If I'm bored, I may break something just for the fun of fixing it.  That's kind of rough on the

people who actually work in the company, you know?"

David Becker, founder of First Internet Bank, understands that sentiment exactly.   "Becker was in a

skiing accident and he said he couldn't deal with the boredom, so he bought a company while he was

in the hospital," says Jordan.

They realize nothing happens overnight: Even Groupon was a failing company's final attempt

Image: Bjoreman via Flickr

Most billionaires and their companies take years to become successful.  It never happens overnight. 

Even companies that seem like overnight successes to the public really don't happen that way.

Groupon found relatively quick success, but that was still a long and painful process.  "Co-founder

Eric Lefkofsky explained to me that Groupon was an experiment from a failed company called The

Point," says Jordan. 

"They were literally returning money to investors with they tried this side project and it worked. So that

success was years in the making for the company and its investors."

Most importantly, they don't try to do it alone: Not even Bill Gates

Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg.  The world tends to think of these people as solo founders. A lot of them

are.  But they would not have succeeded without key employees and other, lesser known, co-

founders.

"None of these people did it alone," says Jordan. "Even solo guys have examples of key employees,

management teams that came in -- a core group of people that they had.

"Bill Gates is the known quantity as the founder of Microsoft, but he wouldn't have gotten anywhere

without Steve Ballmer and everyone else around him.  I think they just figured, 'He's rich, let him just

be the lightning rod of the company.'  But none of it was a solo act."

Think you have what it takes to make billions? Test yourself:

QUIZ: Are You The Next Mark Zuckerberg Or Sergey Brin? Tags: Founders' Corner, Features, Millionaires, Entrepreneurship, Strategy & Tactics, Money, Billionaires | Get Alerts for these topics »

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/10-differences-between-most-self-made-billionaires-and-you-2011-1?op=1#ixzz1gZy9bakn

Millionaire Mommy Next Door

A self-made millionaire shares her recipe for success, happiness and financial freedom

The Investment Risk-Return Correlation

by Millionaire Mommy Next Door on August 18, 2010

in Investing,Mailbag

Q: Pam asks, “After my portfolio value dropped by 40%, I panicked and pulled out of the stock market. I have $150,000 sitting in my savings account, earning squat. I know I should put it back to work, but with the state of our economy, I don’t know what to do with it. Any thoughts?”

A: If you’re terrified of the volatile economic climate today and would be an insomniac if you were invested in the market, perhaps it’s best to keep it parked until you are emotionally and behaviorally ready to stomach the ride and stick to a strategy. Preserve your capital while you take some time to reassess your goals and risk tolerance, determine an appropriate (perhaps more conservative) asset allocation, and explore various investment strategies to find a good fit for your goals and personality.

First, let’s address the risk-return correlation. In subsequent posts, I’ll tackle the other pieces.

Generally speaking, the goal of an investor is to be compensated for the amount of risk they take. Better yet, the investor seeks out the best risk-adjusted return — I’ll discuss this piece later.

If you are willing to accept high volatility (investment risk) for a high potential return, consider investing in a diversified portfolio of:

aggressive growth funds small cap stocks and funds micro-cap stocks and funds foreign company stocks international funds sector funds precious metal funds emerging market funds

If you are willing to accept moderate volatility (investment risk) for a moderate potential return, consider investing in a diversified portfolio of:

large cap stocks and funds S&P 500 and Wilshire 5000 index funds convertible bonds high-yield (junk) bond funds

If you are willing to accept low volatility (investment risk) for a low potential return, consider investing in a diversified portfolio of:

high quality short and intermediate term municipal and corporate bonds and bond funds US savings bonds Treasury bills and notes fixed annuities money market mutual funds

If you are willing to accept very low volatility (investment risk) for a very low potential return, consider investing in a diversified portfolio of:

CD’s (Certificates of Deposit) money market deposit accounts interest-earning checking accounts

7 Youngest Self-Made Billionaires Published on 7/19/2011 under Strange People - by Beverly Jenkins - 99,453

views

TAGS: self-made millionaires, young self-made

Here are 50 hot and superb business advices from some

billionaires. I find these advices motivating and inspiring and am

very sure you will find them inspiring & motivating too. If you are

willing to be successful and want to learn how those great billionaires

made it, relax and read through these 50 superb advices from

billionaires.

1. “Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have.

When Apple came up with the Mac, IBM was spending at least 100

times more on R&D. It's not about money. It's about the people you

have, how you're led, and how much you get it.” – Steve Jobs of

Apple 

2. "To turn really interesting ideas and fledging ideas into a company

that can continue to innovate for years, it requires a lot of disciplines." –

Steve Jobs of Apple

3. "The most meaningful way to differentiate your company from your

competitors, the best way to put distance between you and the crowd is

to do an outstanding job with information. How you gather, manage and

use information will determine whether you win or lose." – Bill Gates of

microsoft

4. You’ve got to give great tools to small teams. Pick good people, use

small teams and give them great tools so that they are very productive

in terms of what they are doing.” – Bill Gates of Microsoft

5. “If your cash is about to run out, you have to cut your cash flow.

CEOs have to make those decisions and live with them however painful

they may be. You have to act and act now; and act in the best interest

of the company as a whole, even if it means that some people in the

company who are your best friends have to work somewhere else.” –

Larry Ellison of Oracle

6. "To succeed in business, you must build a brand and never destroy it.

One competitive advantage I had when I ventured into manufacturing

was my brand "Dangote," which I diligently built in the course of my

trading commodities." – Aliko Dangote of Dangote Group

7."Manufacture, don't just trade. There is money in manufacturing even

though it is capital intensive. To achieve a big breakthrough, I had to

start manufacturing the same product I was trading on; which is

commodities.” – Aliko Dangote of Dangote Group

8.“To be successful, you have to be out there, you have to hit the

ground running, and if you have a good team around you and more than

a fair share of luck, you might make something happen. But you

certainly can't guarantee it just by following someone else's formula.” –

Richard Branson of Virgin Group

9."Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another

stepping stone to greatness." – Oprah Winfrey of Harpo Studios

Production

10.“A good businessman sees where others don’t see. What I see, you

may not see. You cannot see because that is the secret of the

business… the entire world is a big market waiting for anybody who

knows the rules of the game.” – Orji Uzor Kalu of Slok Group

11. “When there is a crisis, that’s when some are interested in getting

out and that’s when we are interested in getting in.” – Carlos Slim Helu

of Telmex Corporation

12. “There’s no mystery in business success. If you do each day’s task

successfully and stay faithfully within these natural operations of

commercial laws which I talk so much about and keep your head clear,

you will come out all right.” – John D. Rockefeller of standard oil

13."The ability to deal with people is as purchasable as a commodity as

sugar or coffee and I will pay more for that ability than for any other

thing under the sun." – John D. Rockefeller of standard oil

14. "In times of rapid change, experience could be your worst enemy." –

J. Paul Getty of Getty O

15.“Somebody once said that in looking to hire people, look for three

qualities; Integrity, intelligence and energy. If they don’t have the first,

the other two will kill you. You think about it; it’s true. If you hire

somebody without the first, you really want them to be dumb and lazy.”

– Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway

16."The competitor to be feared is one who never bothers about you at

all but goes on making his own business better all the time." – Henry

Ford of Ford Motor Company

17 "A business absolutely devoted to service will have one worry about

profits. They will be embarrassingly large." – Henry Ford of Ford

Motor Company

18."If you see a snake, just kill it. Don't appoint a committee on snakes."

– Henry Ross Perot of EDS

19. “Good campaigns define who you are. We have to get consumers’

attention. We don’t have six months to check with focus groups.” –

Philip Knight of Nike

20. “Our job is to wake up the consumers. If we become predictable,

that’s not waking them up.” – Philip Knight of Nike

21. “Don’t spend so much time trying to choose the perfect opportunity,

that you miss the right opportunity.” – Michael Dell of Dell Inc.

22. “Recognize that there will be failures, and acknowledge that there

will be obstacles. But you will learn from your mistakes and the

mistakes of others, for there is very little learning in success.” – Michael

Dell of Dell Inc.

23. “The secret of successful retailing is to give your customers what

they want. And really, if you think about it from the point of view of the

customer, you want everything: a wide assortment of good quality

merchandise; the lowest possible prices; guaranteed satisfaction with

what you buy; friendly, knowledgeable service; convenient hours; free

parking; a pleasant shopping experience.” – Sam Walton of Wal-Mart

24. “Changes occur because there’s a gap between what is and what

should be.” – Craig McCaw of McCaw Cellular

25. “But you don't need a huge company, just a computer and a part-

time person. So you don't need to have a 100-person company to

develop that idea. You can do it in your spare time, you can really work

on ideas and see if they take off — rather than trying to raise tons of

money, millions of dollars for an idea that may or may not work. And

once you have the product and people are using it, it's very easy to

raise investment.” – Larry Page of Google

26. “Be an enzyme – a catalyst for change. As a slogan, I don't know if

that's ever going to be right up there with Ich Bin Ein Berliner, or "I Have

A Dream," but there's a lot of truth to it.” – Pierre Omidyar of E-Bay

27. “Your vision is very important. You should know whom you’re selling

to, what your marketing and advertising says about you, and whom it’s

speaking to. Me personally, I don’t try to please everyone. I understand

who I am selling to and I work towards that vision all the time.” – Ralph

Lauren of Polo

28. “It’s about broadening your scope through history and living your

life. Tune in and pay attention.” – Ralph Lauren of Polo

29. “Do something. Either lead, follow or get out of the way.” – Ted

Turner of CNN

30. “Managing isn't that difficult, you just have to score more runs than

the other guy.” – Ted Turner of CNN

31. "Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut no

matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you

are generally better off sticking with what you know and the third is that

sometimes, your best investments are the ones you don't make." –

Donald Trump of Trump Organization

32. “It pays to trust your instinct.” – Donald Trump of trump

Organization

33. “Make your product easier to buy than your competition, or you will

find your customers buying from them, not you.” – Mark Cuban of

Broadcast.com

34. “We are poised for accelerated future growth and we need the depth

and breadth of leadership to achieve it.” – Leslie Wexner of Limited

Brands

35. “Express is well into the process of substantial transformation and is

providing itself as a significant dual gender, high quality apparel brand.

While much work needs to be done, we believe the opportunities for

growth across our brand are significant.” – Leslie Wexner of Limited

Brands

36. “Sometimes you gotta be fast so you don't waste the time of others.”

– Craig Newmark of Craiglist

37. “Follow through with basic values, and remember to provide good

customer service.” – Craig Newmark of Craiglist “I think that our

fundamental belief is that for us, growth is a way of life and we have to

grow at all times.” – Mukesh Ambani of Reliance Group

38. “The organizational architecture is really that a centipede walks on a

hundred legs and one or two don’t count. So if I lose one or two legs,

the process will go on and the growth will go on.” – Mukesh Ambani of

Reliance Group

39.“In life and business, there are two cardinal sins. The first is to act

without thought and the second is not to act at all.” – Carl Icahn a

Billionaire Investor

40. “You learn in this business; if you want a friend, get a dog.” – Carl

Icahn a Billionaire Investor

41. “You are dead if you aim only for kids. Adults are only kids grown

up, anyway.” – Walt Disney of Disney 42. “Tomorrow can be a

wonderful age.” – Walt Disney of Disney

43. “Remember that, in the end, the customer doesn't know, or care, if

you are small or large as an organization – she or he only focuses on

the garment hanging on the rail in the store.” – Giorgio Armani of

Armani

44. “In this business you can’t have a destination, an arrival point.

Otherwise your competitors will overtake you, or you become

complacent.” – Giorgio Armani of armani

45. “We’ve got customers. We’ve got suppliers. We’ve got employees.

We’ve got unions. We’ve got communities. We’ve got all of these things

that go into making up whether a business succeeds or fails.” – Gerry

Schwartz of Onex Corporation

46. “Investments are like trains, and if you miss one, don’t worry

because another one will come down the line.” – Gerry Schwartz of

Onex Corporation

47. “What do you need to start a business? Three simple things: know

your product better than anyone. Know your customer, and have a

burning desire to succeed.” – Dave Thomas of Wendy's

48. “Take care of your business and your business will take care of

you.” – Dave Thomas of Wendy's

49."Never be ashamed! There's some who will hold it against you, but

they are not worth bothering with." – J. K. Rowling of Harry Potter

Series

50. "Anything is possible if you've got enough nerve." – J. K. Rowling

of Harry Potter Series 

Hope you find these business quotes inspiring and motivating? If

you have more business quotes you want to share, use the comment

box below to share them.

From rags to world's richestPeople from backgrounds of hardship -- with little to lose -- may be less afraid to take big risks. Here are

10 moguls who rose from adversity.

[Related content: family, getting started, boomers, Apple, Oracle]

By Forbes.com

Before captivating Las Vegas crowds with famed music-inspired acrobatic shows, billionaire Guy

Laliberté, the founder of Cirque du Soleil, was playing the harmonica and eating fire on the streets of

Europe and Canada.

How billionaires invest

The accordion-playing stilt walker bet big on his gang of acrobats when he brought them from Quebec to

the Los Angeles Arts Festival in 1987 in hopes of wooing the crowd. If the mission had failed, his team

wouldn't have had enough gas money to make it home.

But the gamble paid off for Laliberté, and in 1991 casino mogul Steve Wynn brought Cirque du Soleil to

Las Vegas, paving the way for Laliberté to eventually become a billionaire.

See what a better broker can do for you

"There's a huge component of betting big and having luck that pays off," said Jim Ellis, who teaches

entrepreneurship at Stanford University, of self-starters who make it into the ranks of the ultrarich. "But

most entrepreneurs I know are better than just gamblers."

Retirement broken? Fixed income fixes

Go to CNBC

Laliberté, who also happens to be a professional poker player, is one of 680 self-made billionaires in the

world, most of whom likely took risks on their way to riches.

Many also overcame extreme adversity and hardship to make their fortunes. In this slide show we

highlight 10 of the most inspirational rags-to-riches stories, including that of John Paul DeJoria, a co-

founder of hair care company John Paul Mitchell Systems and Patron tequila, who was once homeless and

lived in his car. Another tear-jerker: the story of eyewear company Luxottica's Leonardo Del Vecchio,

who was sent to an orphanage at age 7 because his mother couldn't afford to raise him.

Overcoming obstacles

When asked how certain people can overcome such odds and become so successful, Ellis said: "You're

going to see some people who . . . really don't have anything to lose. Your tolerance for risk when you're

in that environment is much higher."

Hong Kong's Li Ka-shing, who quit school at age 15 to take care of his family after his father died,

explained it this way: "The most terrible experience during my childhood was witnessing my father's

suffering and ultimately dying of TB. I, too, was infected."

Added Li: "The burden of poverty and this bitter taste of helplessness and isolation sort of branded on my

heart forever the questions that still drive me. Is it possible to reshape one's destiny? Is it possible to

minimize challenges through lessening complexities? And is it possible to enhance chances for success

through meticulous planning?"

Perhaps that is a way to overcome early adversities.

Self-made billionaires

Billionaire Position Net worth

Roman

Abramovich Oil and aluminum tycoon

$11.2

billion

John Paul DeJoria Co-founder, John Paul Mitchell Systems $4 billion

Leonardo Del

VecchioFounder, Luxottica eyeglasses

$10.5

billion

Larry Ellison Co-founder, Oracle software company $28 billion

Micky Jagtiani Creator of Landmark retail empire$2.8

billion

Steve Jobs Co-founder, Apple$5.5

billion

Li Ka-shingHead of conglomerates Cheung Kong and Hutchison

Whampoa$21 billion

Guy Laliberté Founder, Cirque du Soleil$2.5

billion

J.K. Rowling Author, Harry Potter series $1 billion

Oprah Winfrey Queen of daytime talk shows$2.4

billion

Continued: Success without a college degree

More from MSN Money and Forbes.com

Why you'll need less for retirement Slide show: Self-made billionaires 3 big retirement-savings myths Were you born to be a billionaire? Run the numbers on your retirement Billionaire convicts and inmates

Five of these 10 inspirational billionaires dropped out of college; three never attended. Six were

orphaned or given up and raised in foster homes or by adoptive parents or relatives. Oracle's Larry

Ellison, Apple's Steve Jobs and Oprah Winfrey were all born to teenage mothers. Winfrey moved to live

with relatives in Wisconsin, where she says she was sexually abused as an adolescent.

(Winfrey's rags-to-riches story is under scrutiny after the April release of an unauthorized biography by

Kitty Kelley that suggests Winfrey may have lied about her troubled past. Winfrey's office would not

comment, but the billionaire dismissed the book at a recent awards ceremony, calling it a "so-called

biography" and adding that "this, too, shall pass.")

5 billionaires living below their means

Ellison was adopted and raised by his aunt and uncle and later dropped out of college, reportedly after

his adoptive mother died. Jobs, who had been adopted by a working-class couple in California, quit Reed

College in Oregon when he was unable to afford the tuition.

Not finishing school may have positioned these entrepreneurs for later success. William Baumol, the

academic director for the Berkley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at New York University's

Stern School, believes that's no accident. "The standard educational approaches tend to destroy

creativity and imagination," he said.

One of the greatest creative minds in entertainment, Laliberté, too, dropped out of college to take up

street performing.

But don't quit school just yet. These extreme success stories represent a small percentage of aspiring

entrepreneurs.

Financial titans: Where are they now?

"Most of the billionaires are from among that group," Baumol said. "They've taken big risks but happen

to be the ones that through intelligence, foresight and luck have been that small subset of the group that

breaks through."

Also, notes JetBlue Chairman Joel Peterson, who also teaches entrepreneurship at Stanford University,

successful entrepreneurs "make lots of sacrifices to make it to the end zone."

This article was reported by Katie Evans for Forbes.com.

Published June 8, 2010

More from MSN Money and Forbes.com

Why you'll need less for retirement Slide show: Self-made billionaires 3 big retirement-savings myths Were you born to be a billionaire? Run the numbers on your retirement Billionaire convicts and inmates

What do 84% of all self-made millionaires have in common?

leave a comment »

Self Made Millionaires are everywhere

What do 84% of all self-made millionaires have in common?Douglas Vermeeren, CEO of The Monthly Millionaire Mentor

Many people in the world would like to become millionaires. Becoming a millionaire comes with privileges and financial freedom that people who live paycheck to paycheck will never realize. A millionaire lifestyle comes with greater opportunities and increased freedoms. Millionaires experience less stress and increased opportunities to creatively explore their full potential. Most millionaires today are self-made and according to current research are made quick quickly. The average self-made millionaire today accomplishes this task in less than five years. Each year there are more than 200,000 thousand added to the ranks of the millionaires. Which translates into 547 per day and 22.8 per hour.

There has never been a better time or an easier time to become a millionaire than now!

Most self-made millionaires today live in North America. 84% of them have one thing in common. That one thing is that they are entrepreneurs. (The other 16% of self-made millionaires typically come through investing, including real estate.) These entrepreneurs can be divided into several sub categories. For this article I will focus on three.

Inventor – Inventors recognize a need for a solution to a specific need in the marketplace. They then devise a way to provide that solution. Often inventors partner with manufacturers and distributors to take the new invention to market. Inventions don’t always to be unique and incredible to be successful. In fact, generally inventions that are not highly simple don’t make it. Inventions aren’t limited to products, inventions can also include services or systems. Generally speaking, the bigger the problem the invention solves for the most amount of people, the more successful it will be. What could you invent that would solve a problem in todays marketplace?

Innovator – Innovators take an existing idea, service, product or business model and innovate it into something more effective. Typically the best innovations make something easier to use, save time or take up less space. Innovators are always on the prowl to determine how they can take something and make it better.The majority of Thomas Edison’s patents (and

things which we was credited for inventing) were actually innovations on existing ideas that were either already in the marketplace or that had been presented in a more clumsy form by other inventors. Innovation is generally most successful when the subject being innovated is something that large groups of people need or would use. What existing idea, service or opportunity in the marketplace today could you innovate to become highly success?

Goods and service provider – Goods and service providers generally do not invent or innovate at all. they simply out perform their competitors. A great example would be Walmart founder Sam Walton. He simply found a better way of delivering products at a better price. The products weren’t essentially different from other department stores. The difference was in his ability to deliver them at a discounted rate by acquiring them in greater bulk. You’ve probably caught a little bit of a theme by now that you need to have a significant audience to support your entrepreneurial idea. In order for your goods or services venture to be successful you need to have something where a large enough support audience exists. What goods or service could you bring to market that a significantly sized audience would support? How could you bring it to them in a way which is better or more convenient?

84% of all self-made millionaires are entrepreneurs. Once they understand what they will deliver to their target audience they then develop systems to make marketing, sale and delivery possible and easy.

Our organization The Monthly Millionaire Mentor shares expertise from many self-made millionaires who have done this before. Mentors like ours can help you analyze and strengthen your ideas, and then help you take them to market in the best ways possible.

Monthly Millionaire Mentor

The Monthly Millionaire Mentor program is the only millionaire training that conducts ongoing research into the construction of millionaires in todays marketplace. We also provide exclusive support from real millionaires and billionaires to help you with implementation of winning strategies that get real results. If you would like to learn more about how you can gain this advantage for your entrepreneurial adventures please feel free to contact us at 1-877-393-9496 or online at www.TheMonthlyMillionaireMentor.com

GO TO OUR SITE FOR FREE GIFT TO GROW YOUR FINANCIAL ABUNDANCE.

The Self Made MillionairePosted on September 10, 2011 by Will Edwards

According to Brian Tracy, the richest people in America (Bill Gates, Warren Buffet,

Michael Dell and so on) not just millionaires but multi-billionaires, without exception, all

began with nothing. I had not realised that before and indeed, that is quite an assertion

isn’t it?

As I may have mentioned, I quite enjoy the UK television program Dragon’s Den and I

have actually read the autobiographies of Peter Jones, James Caan, Theo Paphitis and

Duncan Banatyne; all multi-millionaires, and guess what? Yes. They all began with

nothing.

In this video, Brian says that, if you meet someone who is enjoying more success than

you, they are not necessarily and smarter or more knowledgeable than you. He makes

exactly the same point that Wallace D Wattles also makes in his book, The Science of

Getting Rich i.e. that sometimes, even idiots get rich. Why? Because they learned the

formula.

He then suggests we remember that:

Failure in not an option

I’m unstoppable

Nobody’s any smarter

Nobody’s any better

Brian also says, elsewhere, that there are no real secrets with regard to becoming a

millionaire. We know who they are, we know what they do, we know how they think and,

he goes on to say that if we can learn to do those same things, then eventually, by the

law of cause and effect, we will also reap the same rewards.

It is important for anyone who is trying to achieve success to realise that all of these

people began where we begin. They all had the same thoughts about how to achieve

success. They all read the same books and they all have remarkably similar ideas about

what it takes to achieve success. After years of reading and digesting the same material

whilst working on my own success, I thought it might be beneficial to make a list of what

I believe it takes to be successful:

21 Secrets of Self Made Millionaires

1. Have a vision

2. Get your thinking right: think big; think positively

3. Set the right goals for yourself

4. Commit to reading, learning and improving yourself

5. Invest your money wisely

6. Don’t spend money on what you can’t afford

7. Become the very best at what you do

8. Commit yourself to serving others

9. Discipline yourself to do whatever it takes

10. Ensure you eat properly

11. Exercise regularly

12. Learn from every failure

13. Be determined to succeed

14. Trust your instinct

15. Make your decisions quickly

16. Have a strong work ethic

17. Develop your natural talent

18. Get out of your comfort zone

19. Take calculated risks

20. Associate with successful people

21. Be persistent – never give up

If you liked this article, please share it:

25 Self-Made Teenage Millionaires Have These 7 Things In Common

Alyson Shontell | Nov. 4, 2010, 9:25 AM | 276,050 | 8

A A A   in Share 1

Nick Tart and his business partner are only 22, but they've already become experts in Generation-Y entrepreneurship.

After interviewing 25 self-made 6-figure+ teenage entrepreneurs, the pair authored the book: 50 Interviews: Young Entrepreneurs, What It Takes To Make More Than Your Parents.  What they found is that all the entrepreneurs shared a lot of similar traits. 

These kids were lemonade stand sellers on steroids, hustling classmates in elementary school and staying in on weekends to work on their businesses.

Here is what separated these successful teens from their other, ordinary classmates.

1. Family support and encouragement

All 25 teenagers came from families that didn't doubt their ambitions.  This doesn't mean that the

entrepreneurs received financial support. We're talking about emotional support. 

With the exception of Catherine Cook, the founder of MyYearbook.com who received seed money

from her brother, most young millionaires Tart interviewed funded their own projects. 

Some were given loans that they later paid back. One received $10 from his parents to buy a domain

name. Emil Motycka, a 21-year-old who made his money with a commercial lawn mowing business,

co-signed an $8K loan to buy his first lawn mower. Both paid off their debt within a year.

Like the rest of their generation, these entrepreneurs were told they were special.  This time, they

actually were.

2. Start with something manageable

Whether it was blogging or pushing a lawn mower, each young millionaire started with an idea they

could actually execute.  Tackling something manageable built their confidence, and it helped them

build reputations as entrepreneurs.  "I think all of them are getting into more substantial businesses

now," says Tart, "but they had to start small to build their names in the business world."

One example is Juliette Brindak, 21-year-old founder of MissOAndFriends.com.  After eight years of

working on her startup, she received an investment from Proctor & Gamble that led her company to a

$15 million valuation.  With time, her idea grew from manageable to masterful.

3. Hard work and being relentless

Most entrepreneurs go through a lot of trial and error before they strike gold.  The 25 teenagers are no

exception.

Adam Horowitz, an 18-year-old entrepreneur, started 30 websites in 3 years before he became

successful.  Finally, he sold his first six-figure product.  After that, he sold another successful product,

and then another. 

"About three months ago, Horowitz came out with another product that produced $1.5 million in

revenue in 3 days," says Tart.  "None of that would have happened without his 30 initial failures."

4. A sacrifice that adults don't have to make: childhood

Image: ts31camdenton on flickr

What do teenagers have to lose? Not a whole lot.  Most don't have to pay rent, feed families, or go to

work.  Fortunate teenagers have no real expenses; they have the freedom to do what they want,

when they want, and that includes entrepreneurship.

One thing these 25 kids did have to sacrifice? Their childhood.

Founder Emil Motycka recalls being invited to the pool with friends. He'd turn them down to mow

lawns instead. Motycka was made fun of for his business priorities; friends who lacked his

responsibilities didn't understand his logic.

Now Motycka's work has paid off and he owns a house his friends frequently take advantage of.

5. They were told they wouldn't be successful

There's no motivation like being told you can't do something.  Most of the 25 entrepreneurs Tart

interviewed encountered a lot of negativity from teachers and friends.  Michael Dunlop is one

exceptional example. 

School was challenging for Dunlop as a dyslexic student.  Teachers told him he wouldn't be

successful, and the young entrepreneur dropped out of high school.  Despite his disability, Dunlop

took up blogging and started Incomediary.com.  The site now rakes in 6-figures and has a 12,000

Alexa rating. 

"His writing isn't great, but he has millions of readers," says Tart. "Dunlop has an amazing intuition for

business, and his opinions are always right."

Catherine Cook, founder of MyYearbook.com, also faced negativity.  One year after launching her

site, Cook received her first offer to sell.  When she refused, the prospective buyer told her, 'You'll

never reach the necessary threshold of 3 million users. You're making a big mistake."  She quickly

proved them wrong. MyYearbook.com now has 22 million users.

6. They kept personal and business lives separate

Gen-Y is supposed to be narcissistic.  But a lot of these youngsters didn't want the glory associated

with being a young founder.  Four of the 25 interviewed entrepreneurs did not go by their real names. 

Part of the reason they're cautious about identities is because of their young age. Another reason is

because they want to keep business and social lives separate. 

"It's like they wanted to start businesses as fake people," Tart says. "Catherine Cook [founder of

MyYearbook.com] would work on her website only after her college roommate went to bed.  She

wanted to keep her business to herself and separate it from her personal life."

Young entrepreneurs also don't want their friends to know they are rolling in money because people

take advantage of them. Andrew Fashion, an entrepreneur who earned $2.5 million and blew it all by

his 22nd birthday, learned this the hard way.  His friends lived in his house but wouldn't pay him rent,

and when he bought a friend a car, they totaled it.  These teens have learned the hard way that

everyone is not trust-worthy.

7. They were born sellers

According to Tart, most of his interviewees started selling trinkets when they were in grade school. 

"Michael Dunlop started selling Pokemon cards.  He realized the pieces of cardboard were high in

demand and they were way undervalued." 

Keith J. Davis sold bubble gum to classmates, a desirable treat that was forbidden by teachers. 

Andrew Fashion turned mechanical pencils into rocket launchers.

The young millionaires got practice selling early and never stopped. 

So is entrepreneurship nature or nurture? These kids were certainly born with the bug, but they

wouldn't have been successful without relentless business attempts and their unmatched drive.

For the full story on one of these teenage self-made millionaires, check out:

This Entrepreneur Made $2.5MM By Age 21, Then Blew It All By 22 On Gambling And Girls >>

To purchase a copy of Tart's book, 50 Interviews: Young Entrepreneurs, What It Takes To Make More

Than Your Parents, click here.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/25-kid-millionaires-all-share-these-7-atrributes-2010-11?op=1#ixzz1gZzcSrb8