We've all had that one fantasy where we get rich instantaneously and live a happy and content life as a rich billionaire complete with a mansion with a stunning view, 10 cars in the garage and a plethora of servants waiting at our hand and foot. Sure, the lottery is an option, and you can scratch those cards and buy those lotto tickets as much as you want, but that's not going to change the fact that the lottery isn't going to get you billions (only millions). Billionaires are the cream of cleverness on this planet as they’ve figured out something that peasants have yet to discover. They’ve found all the right places to invest their money in, which is why their thousands multiplied into millions, which multiplied into billions.
So, you’re kidding yourself if you’ve never sat down to learn from a billionaire (or at least read about them on the internet). If you’ve yet to do so, you’ve come to the right place because we’ve listed 5 tips from 5 different billionaires on what it takes to become one. Who knows? Maybe following these tips will make you the next billion dollar man.
Save, save, save!
Mark Cuban, who is a famous entrepreneur and the owner of the Dallas Maverick is worth around $3 billion. In the blog post “How to Get Rich”, he shared one of the many gems of wisdom he has up his sleeve: "Save your money. Save as much money as you possibly can. Every penny you can. Instead of coffee, drink water. Instead of going to McDonald's, eat mac and cheese. Cut up your credit cards. If you use a credit card, you don't want to be rich. The first step to getting rich requires discipline. If you want to be rich, you need to find the discipline, can you?"
Act against the grain
The third richest man on this planet, “The Oracle of Omaha”- Warren Buffett (who has a net worth of around $72.7 billion) has shown a consistent and concise approach to investment. This approach involves going against trends and investing in companies which have been disregarded by others. In the book “Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist”, he states: "I will tell you the secret of getting rich on Wall Street. Close the doors. You try to be greedy when others are fearful, and you try to be very fearful when others are greedy."
Seize opportunities
The former CEO and current executive chairman of Google, Eric Schmidt (who has a net worth of $10 billion) was just smart enough to accept a job offer at the world’s leading search engine in 2001. In a commencement speech at Canegie Mellon University in 2009, he stated: "Don't bother to have a plan at all. All that stuff about the plan, throws that out. It seems that it's all about opportunity and making your luck. You study the most successful people, and they work hard, and they take advantage of opportunities that come that they don't know are going to happen to them. You cannot plan innovation, you cannot plan invention. All you can do is tried very hard to be in the right place and be ready."
Apprehension is not an option!
Eli Broad, the founder of KB Homes and with a net worth of $7.1 billion took a risk-taking approach to his finances and one simple idea to build homes without basements led him to his fortune. In a commencement speech at UCLA, he stated: “No one ever made a million bucks by being cautious or timid or reasonable. I was 22 years old and recently married when I had the crazy idea that I should give up my career as a CPA and become a homebuilder. I didn’t know anything about building houses. Sometimes the craziest ideas are the ones that yield the greatest payoffs.”
Follow your passion
The founder of Boston Beer Co., Jim Koch transformed into a billionaire by following his passion of providing America with high quality brewed beer (which was hard to find at the time). In an interview with the Business Insider, he stated: "The most common thing I remind people of is only to pursue something you love, because small business is going to be very demanding of your time, your energy — it just eats your life. And if you're doing something you love, then you will accept and even enjoy that. If you're just doing it to get rich, you're gonna lose heart. I tell everyone, getting rich is life’s biggest booby trap. It comes down to what would you rather be, happy or rich? I say do what’s gonna make you happy.”
So, stop waiting around for following these 5 points! They will surely guide you down the yellow brick road of success.