Have you ever heard stories of people getting rich quickly? Have you noticed people who once had great wealth but ended up penniless, or people who seemed to have wonderful opportunities but let them slip through their fingers? Viewed from the outside, these failures may seem like simple bad luck due to an economic downturn, an unreliable partner, or something similar. But analyzing the issue from within reveals something entirely different. The underlying cause is that if a large sum suddenly comes into your hands before you are inwardly ready to receive it, your wealth may last only briefly. Most of us lack the “inner capacity” to create and preserve enormous wealth amid the challenges that accompany success and riches. That is the main reason many people cannot sustain their wealth. Lottery winners are perhaps the clearest example. Many studies show that most eventually return to their original financial position, with an amount they can comfortably manage. Self-made millionaires, by contrast, tend to quickly recover money after financial setbacks. Donald Trump is a typical example: he once had billions of dollars, then went bankrupt and lost everything. Yet within a few years, he earned it back and even more.
Why is there such a difference? Because these self-made millionaires can accept losing money, but they never lose the most important ingredient of success: the Millionaire Mindset. In Donald Trump’s case, of course, we must call it the ‘Billionaire Mindset.’ Donald Trump would never accept being merely a millionaire. If Trump had assets worth USD 1 million, can you imagine how he would feel? Most people believe he would feel impoverished and consider it a financial failure!
That is because Donald Trump's financial ‘thermometer’ is set to billions rather than millions. Most people's financial thermometers are set to thousands rather than millions; some are set to hundreds rather than thousands; and others are below zero. They endure the cold without understanding the true cause of their hardship.
The reality is that most people do not use their full potential, so it is understandable why most of us have not succeeded. Many studies show that 80 percent of adults do not have the financial freedom they desire, and that 80 percent will never feel truly happy. The reason is simple: most are not clearly conscious of their actions. They are like sleepwalkers at the wheel, unsure where they are going. They base their work and thinking only on what they can see. They live entirely in the tangible world.
Excerpt: SECRETS OF THE MILLIONAIRE MIND – T. HARV EKER
