There’s an interesting maxim about how long wealth actually stays with a person and their descendants. The saying is three generations, tops: one to make it, one to spend it, and the third to blow it. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, but have you ever sat down and seriously thought about wealth and what it means to you? Or do you figure, “What the heck, I’ve always been broke, my forefathers were broke; it’s generational” – it’s just a rite of passage of sorts. If you feel that wealth is out of your reach, you aren’t alone. According to some experts, there are millions of ‘clueless potential millionaires’ who could be at the top of the wealth ladder if they only reined in a few bad habits. However, you may be a skeptic, and rightly so. Being wealthy means different things to different people. But according to the experts, there are financial mistakes many people make that keep them away from their possible wealth。
What is Wealth Anyway?
Most people do not equate wealth with a mansion or a big yacht. In fact, a scanty 7% of people surveyed associate wealth with material possessions like cars, houses and boats. Rather, to many, being rich means having just enough to not worry about the next payday – that’s according to 33% of those questioned. An additional 26% define being wealthy, or rich, as having more than enough money to quit their jobs. Still, few people place an actual dollar amount on what it means to be wealthy. Only 17% felt that being rich means having at least $1 million or more, and 11% stated a six-figure yearly income would make them feel rich. Yet most people who are rich don’t even consider themselves rich. Maybe it’s because being ‘rich’ or ‘wealthy’ has very little to do with material possessions, and more to do with how people feel about themselves. Nonetheless, according to financial experts you will never be rich if you are bogged down by anything on the following list:
1. Overspending
If you have a ferocious appetite for spending beyond your means, you’re not alone. According to a survey, of the 52% of people who habitually overspend, many balance the shortfall by taking from their savings, and 22% rely on credit cards. Blowing all your money each month is not a realistic pathway to wealth. Start tracking where your money goes each month, check where you can cut back, and create a ‘realistic’ budget that allows you to pay your bills and invest in a retirement account or an emergency fund。
2. Not Saving Enough
Welcome to the club! The personal savings percentage in the US is a measly 4.9% of disposable income. Saving should become a priority if you want to accumulate wealth. Start with an emergency fund. Once your emergency fund is substantial, you can redirect small amounts toward other goals like purchasing a home or paying for college。
3. You Have Too Much Debt
Certain debts are a precursor to financial success, like purchasing real estate or starting a business; however, a high-interest credit card balance is not. Pay off credit cards with the highest rates first。
4. You Don’t Have a Plan
Without a definite, clearly defined plan, becoming rich will seem like an unbelievable dream. This alone will solidify your excuses for overspending and not saving. As the saying goes, “Those who fail to plan, plan to fail。” Putting together a financial plan may seem tedious, but it doesn’t have to be, and you can get used to it。
5. You Don’t Have an Emergency Fund
Experts say you need at least six months of income saved in case of an emergency. Life is tricky, and not having some type of safety net can turn a comfortable situation into a disaster。
6. You Started Late
Time is slipping by. Just like starting an exercise routine, the most difficult part about saving is getting started. Even if you have debt, a small income, or many expenses, you can save something, even if it’s only a small amount。
7. You Complain Rather Than Commit
“I don’t earn enough money”; “Life is too expensive”; “It’s hopeless, I’ll never get out of debt。” Have you uttered any of these statements before, or perhaps all of them? Old habits die hard; however, as long as you do nothing to change, nothing will change. Stop complaining and making excuses. Instead, take responsibility for your non-productive habits and concentrate on how to change them – and then do it!
8. You Live for Today, and Forget About Tomorrow
It’s no fun getting serious and thinking about retirement and all that stuff. Nonetheless, eventually it has to be done. The problem is that impulsive and unregulated spending leads to debt… period! Do yourself a big favor: Get rid of the ‘buy now, worry later’ attitude, and switch to a ‘save now, get rich later’ way of thinking。
9. Putting All Your Eggs in One Basket
You might get lucky by wagering all your money on one type of investment. Just like you might get lucky winning the lottery. But that’s not a strategy to live by, or for getting rich. Putting all your money in one place is not advised because it puts you at too much risk. Your investment portfolio should include multiple investments with varied levels of risk and ROI potential and liquidity。
10. You Just Don’t Get It!
You may be one of those people who believe that somehow something will come along and save you, so why bother with saving or trying to get out of debt? Maybe you will get lucky and land a fantastic job, receive a big pay raise, inherit money, hit the lottery, or whatever! But ‘whatever’ won’t cut it if you really want to become rich. Yes, life is uncertain. No one knows what will, or will not, actually happen; therefore, why not focus on what you can control today? Get it together now and save yourself, in case someone or something else won’t。
One thing you can be sure of: You are already rich. Think about it. If someone came to you and offered you a million dollars for your arm, would you give it up? Why not, you have two; you can surely spare one of them! Of course the answer would be no! Being rich is more than physical ownership; it’s a state of happiness and well-being, while wishing the same for others. So while you are working on getting rich materially, remember to be happy along the way!
據(jù)lifespan網(wǎng)站報(bào)道，有句關(guān)于財(cái)富在人們及其后代中保留時(shí)間的格言，非常有趣。格言中的答案是富不過(guò)三代：一代賺，二代花，三代敗。當(dāng)然，凡事總有例外，但你曾經(jīng)是否，冷靜下來(lái)，認(rèn)真思考過(guò)財(cái)富及其對(duì)你的意義?或者你是否想過(guò)：到底是哪門(mén)子的事，我祖上曾破產(chǎn)，我也總是破產(chǎn)?世世代代都這樣。”或者只是思考財(cái)富的方式各有不同。如果覺(jué)得自己跟財(cái)富無(wú)緣，要知道有這樣想法的人不止你一個(gè)。一些專(zhuān)家認(rèn)為，還有著千百萬(wàn)毫無(wú)頭緒“潛在的百萬(wàn)富翁”，只要他們控制好自己的一些壞習(xí)慣，他們的名字就會(huì)出現(xiàn)在富豪榜單前列。然而，你也許是個(gè)懷疑論者，或者恰恰如此。不同的人對(duì)富裕有著不同的概念。但有些專(zhuān)家表示，錯(cuò)誤的財(cái)務(wù)決定導(dǎo)致人們與財(cái)富無(wú)緣。
那么，財(cái)富究竟是什么呢?
多數(shù)人并不會(huì)把財(cái)富等同于豪華大宅或游艇。事實(shí)上，在受訪(fǎng)人群中，僅7%的人認(rèn)為財(cái)富與車(chē)子、房子及游艇這樣的物質(zhì)財(cái)產(chǎn)密不可分。但是對(duì)于多數(shù)人，有33%的受訪(fǎng)人群表示，富裕意味著有足夠的經(jīng)濟(jì)實(shí)力，且不用擔(dān)心工資不夠用的問(wèn)題。另外的有26%認(rèn)為富�；蛘哂绣X(qián)就是家里的錢(qián)足夠多，可以不用工作。但是，很少人會(huì)用具體多少錢(qián)來(lái)衡量富裕與否。只有17%的人表示有錢(qián)意味著你至少得有一百萬(wàn)美元以上，11%的人表示六位數(shù)的年收入才會(huì)讓他們覺(jué)得自己富有。但是大多數(shù)富人并不認(rèn)為自己有錢(qián)。也許因?yàn)樗麄冋J(rèn)為“有錢(qián)”或“富裕”與物質(zhì)財(cái)產(chǎn)沒(méi)多大關(guān)系，更多的是人們自己怎么看待自己。然而，理財(cái)專(zhuān)家表示如果你有下列壞習(xí)慣，那么你就富不起來(lái)：
1. 過(guò)度消費(fèi)
很多人消費(fèi)欲望強(qiáng)烈，常常入不敷出。據(jù)一項(xiàng)調(diào)查顯示，52%的人已養(yǎng)成過(guò)度消費(fèi)的習(xí)慣，其中許多人動(dòng)用存款平衡收支，還有22%的人對(duì)信用卡產(chǎn)生依賴(lài)。每個(gè)月浪費(fèi)掉你所有的錢(qián)，你怎么能富裕的起來(lái)呢。現(xiàn)在開(kāi)始記錄每月用錢(qián)情況，看看哪里是否可以節(jié)省，制定一個(gè)“切實(shí)”的預(yù)算方案，該花的花，辦個(gè)退休賬戶(hù)或是留些應(yīng)急基金。
2. 儲(chǔ)蓄不足
歡迎加入這個(gè)行列!在美國(guó)，個(gè)人存款占可支配收入的比重僅有4.9%。如果你想要積累財(cái)富，那么首先，你就應(yīng)該存錢(qián)。先設(shè)立應(yīng)急基金。當(dāng)應(yīng)急基金存夠了以后，你可以花一小部分錢(qián)用作他途，比如買(mǎi)房子或者付大學(xué)學(xué)費(fèi)。
3. 負(fù)債累累
某些負(fù)債會(huì)帶來(lái)成功，比如說(shuō)買(mǎi)地產(chǎn)或創(chuàng)業(yè);但高利率的信用卡債務(wù)絕對(duì)是個(gè)災(zāi)難。先還清利率最高的信用卡吧。
4. 缺乏計(jì)劃
缺乏一個(gè)明確清晰的計(jì)劃，想要富起來(lái)就像白日做夢(mèng)。僅僅這一點(diǎn)，就會(huì)為你美化過(guò)度花費(fèi)，存款不足的種種借口。常言道，“不制定計(jì)劃的人注定失敗。”制定理財(cái)計(jì)劃也許單調(diào)乏味，但也不一定無(wú)聊，習(xí)慣就好。
5. 無(wú)應(yīng)急基金
專(zhuān)家表示每個(gè)人至少需要半年工資收入作為應(yīng)急基金。畢竟，生活沒(méi)有一帆風(fēng)順，缺乏相關(guān)安全保障有時(shí)也會(huì)將安逸順境轉(zhuǎn)為苦難逆境。
6. 起步較晚
時(shí)光消逝，歲月如梭。就像要開(kāi)始日常鍛煉，最困難的一步就在起步階段�？v然你欠有債務(wù)、收入甚微、或是花錢(qián)如流，你也可以存點(diǎn)錢(qián)，哪怕只是一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)。
7. 光說(shuō)不練
“賺的不多”;“物價(jià)太高”;“債務(wù)纏身，毫無(wú)希望。”你有過(guò)其中的想法嗎?還是全都有?江山易改，本性難移;不付諸努力，什么也不會(huì)改變。那么，不再抱怨，不再尋求借口。而應(yīng)該為自己無(wú)用的習(xí)慣買(mǎi)單，專(zhuān)注于如何改變他們，且說(shuō)到做到!
8. 不話(huà)當(dāng)下，只論明天
認(rèn)真思考退休生活等類(lèi)似事情，毫無(wú)樂(lè)趣。但是，你還是會(huì)這么想。原因在于沖動(dòng)無(wú)節(jié)制的開(kāi)銷(xiāo)導(dǎo)致了負(fù)債生活沒(méi)有終日!幫自己個(gè)大忙：轉(zhuǎn)變“現(xiàn)在買(mǎi)入，日后擔(dān)憂(yōu)”的態(tài)度，開(kāi)啟“現(xiàn)在存錢(qián)，日后富有”的思維方式。
9. 把雞蛋放在一個(gè)籃子里
將所有的錢(qián)投在一處，你或許會(huì)有好運(yùn)氣。但，機(jī)率就像是中彩票一樣。所以，這不是一種適合的生活準(zhǔn)則，更不會(huì)使你富裕起來(lái)。在一棵樹(shù)上吊死存在巨大的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。投資組合應(yīng)該搭配不同風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，回報(bào)率、流動(dòng)性均不一的多種形式投資。
10. 就是不明白
你也許屬于這樣的人，想著無(wú)論怎樣，總會(huì)有好事出現(xiàn)，拯救你，所以，為什么去費(fèi)腦子，非要存款，或是還清債務(wù)呢?可能，你會(huì)交好運(yùn)，找到份好工作，再來(lái)個(gè)大幅度加薪，或是繼承錢(qián)財(cái)，中彩票等等!但是，如果你真想富起來(lái)，這些還不管用。是的，生活無(wú)常，沒(méi)有人知道將來(lái)會(huì)發(fā)生，不會(huì)發(fā)生什么;因此，為什么不集中精力做你今天能做到的呢?如果沒(méi)有人或事幫你的話(huà)，那就打起精神，幫幫自己吧。
有件事你可以確信無(wú)疑：你已經(jīng)是百萬(wàn)富翁了。想一想，如果有人打算出一百萬(wàn)美元買(mǎi)你的手臂，你愿意嗎?為什么不呢，你有左右兩支手臂;你完全可以出賣(mài)一支!當(dāng)然，大家的回答都是不可能。富裕不僅僅是身體要健康，還是一種快樂(lè)幸福的狀態(tài)，當(dāng)然，同時(shí)也不忘祝福他人。所以，努力奮斗在致富之路上，請(qǐng)記住，要一路幸福。
