Rich vs Poor

Who are the rich?

Conventionally, rich people are associated with money, assets and a higher quality of life. These assets include and are not limited to real estate, bonds and stocks.

Rich people do not necessarily need to appear rich.

Who are the poor?

Poor people are those who live beyond their means. At best, they do not have money and no assets. Real poverty however is having a negative net worth because of accumulated toxic debt - credit cards, payday loans, etc. Poor people are associated with low levels of money and a lower quality of life. They tend to have significantly fewer or sometimes zero assets and are in debt.

Rich Mindset vs Poor Mindset :

This is not rich people vs. poor people. There are many poor people with a rich mindset, financially poor due to circumstance. And there are many trust fund babies with a poor mindset.

Rich mindset understands that the first goal is to gain a surplus of resources. Then, to use that surplus to accelerate things. Accelerate education. Accelerate a business. Accelerate the next generation.

Poor mindset immediately sees a surplus as an opportunity for consumption.

Rich mindset seeks to spend their time, resources, and energy on work that continues to pay off long after the effort has been invested. Rich mindset is all about getting a flywheel spinning. Building momentum. Creating systems that continue to generate value on their own.

Poor mindset is all about the short-term returns. Hours-for-dollars. Resources invested without an immediate return are resources wasted.

Rich mindset is willing to invest resources with seemingly no reward right away.

Poor mindset’s immediate thought is, “What’s in it for me?”. “Why pay money to fly to that conference, pay for the hotel, and spend all the time when they’re not even paying you?”

Rich mindset seeks to build relationships based on trust, liking, shared values, and mutual respect. People with the rich mindset help others and cultivate relationships with no expectation of anything in return.

Poor mindset thinks “I scratch your back, you scratch mine”.

Rich mindset understands that its reputation is everything, that trust and respect is earned slowly, through hard-fought, bloody effort – and that both can be lost in an instant.

Poor mindset believes it can get away with compromising its reputation to make a quick buck.

Rich mindset knows that the world isn’t fair, and deals with reality swiftly, humbly, and practically. It knows the world owes it nothing, that the universe is indifferent to its existence, that the default for life is suffering and death. All successes are improbable and should be appreciated as such.

Poor mindset is consumed by the unfairness of the world, and wastes time complaining about it. It feels the world owes it something, and waits for it to be handed out.

Rich mindset celebrates the successes of others. It embraces the competition and often befriends it.

Poor mindset feels jealousy and bitterness about the successes of others. It looks at everything as a zero-sum game.

Rich mindset understands that it can never know everything, and that something can be learned from everyone.

Poor mindset deludes itself into believing it knows everything, and that opposing perspectives are wrong before even hearing them.

Rich mindset understands that it cannot do everything, and that even if it could, it would create greater value by focusing on its core strengths. It knows that the right team is greater than the sum of its parts.

Poor mindset deludes itself into thinking that it can do everything if it just works hard enough.

Rich mindset embraces competition, and knows that iron sharpens iron.

Poor mindset is discouraged by competition. It complains that “someone already got there first,” or that, “they’re obviously going to catch up to me, I might as well quit now.”

Rich mindset quits strategically. It plans to quit in advance, when it realizes the potential gains of a pursuit are either unreachable with current resources or aren’t worth the pain of the work involved.

Poor mind quits in reaction to pain and short-term discomfort.

Rich mindset sticks it out when the going gets tough, provided that the pursuit is worthwhile. It understands the idea of “The Dip” – that anything worth doing will be hard. It understands that the rewards are reaped by those who push through the difficulties of a pursuit precisely because the will to push through is scarce.

Poor mindset sticks things out due to stubbornness. It places too much importance on sunk costs.

Rich mindset understands that there is no “I made it”. No “done”. Life is defined by challenges and learning.

Poor mindset believes that one day they’ll be able to “retire” – to kick back and do nothing. That all work is simply “paying dues” on the way to a life of leisure. Ironically this is the kind of mindset that stifles the ambition and drive required to ever get to the point of having that kind of life as an option.

What makes up a Mindset?

A mindset is a person’s collection of preconceived notions that are built based on influences around them i.e. family, personal experience, media, education. In other words, it is a set of beliefs a person has that moulds his or her state of mind.

Mindsets can be used to categorise people. In this case, these common beliefs (spending habits and relationship with money) help segregate the rich and the poor. How?

10 Rich mindset habits to start emulating now

1. Rich people always have a vision

2. Rich people have productive routines

3. A rich mindset is results-driven

4. Rich people admit when they don't know

5. People with a rich mindset don't work for money

6. Rich people have mentors

7. Rich people always look out for opportunities

8. Rich people believe in abundance

9. A person with a rich mindset learns how to manage their finances

10. Rich people are not afraid to fail

Use a rich mindset and become wealthy!

Now you know the difference between rich and poor mentality. Becoming rich is not hard, but it does take time and effort.

You just need to start cultivating habits that will get you there and understand a rich mindset vs poor mindset. Practice habits that will make you wealthy, not habits of the poor mindset.

Like many before you, you too can become a millionaire. It won't happen overnight, but with consistent and diligent effort, you'll be well on your way to achieving wealth.

So I'll leave you with these questions: What is your vision? Where are you going? Who do you want to be? Today is a great time to start developing your rich mindset and working towards your goals.