Your first step towards wealth is not some rocket science. All you need is to develop some good habits. Habits are things that you continually do on a regular basis. Highly successful people have daily success habits. These habits are what made them successful. So, If your goal is to become rich, you must learn to adopt some rich habits. One of these habits is to read life-changing books on wealth and success.
Tom Corley, author of the bestselling book Rich Habits: The Daily Success Habits of Wealthy Individuals stated that out of all the habits of the rich and highly successful people, the most significant difference between the habits of the rich and the poor is their reading habits. According to him, about 88% of the wealthy read at least 30 minutes a day while only 2% of the poor do.
The more you read, the more things you know. The more you learn, the more places you will go.
Dr. Seuss
Highly successful people read a lot. Warren Buffet reads 600-1000 pages a day. Bill Gates reads about 50 books a year. Mark Zuckerberg reads a book once every two weeks. These people do not just read anything. According to Tom Corley, successful people read to learn. They read books on self-improvement, success, business and their industries. They also read biographies and autobiographies of other successful people. The poor on the other hand, read to be entertained.
If you want to become rich and successful; begin by reading. Do not just read anything, read books that will help you grow as a person. Through reading financial books, you will be able to learn so many things about money and how money works. A better understanding of money will give you enough tools that can help you make good financial decisions in your daily lives.
Life Changing Books on Wealth and Success for Beginners
There are millions of success books out there. For beginners, I would like to recommend five life-changing books on financial literacy and success. Read them. Study them and apply them in your life. Hopefully by doing so, these books will serve as catapult and inspiration in your journey towards a wealthier, healthier and happier you.
8 Secrets of the Truly Rich by Bo Sanchez
If reading is not your cup of tea, there is no better better way to start developing your reading habits than through this book. Preacher and best-selling author Bo Sanchez has mastered the art of story telling. No long descriptions. No lengthy paragraphs. It is written humorously so there is never a dull moment. This is the best book to start not only your reading habit but also my journey towards financial freedom.
This book is very inspirational. Bo Sanchez challenged some people’s negative beliefs about money. A lot of Christians grew up with several crazy religious beliefs such as the rich cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven and the come what may attitude in the sense that some people rely on God too much and they fail to do their part. For the longest time, people were made to believe that wealth and spirituality don’t mix just like oil and water.
Bo Sanchez wants the people to stop blaming others and instead be totally responsible for your own success. He placed the context of money and success as part of God’s plan. God wants you to be wealthy because He wants you to have the ability to help others. It is difficult to help others if you are poor.
Money is not dirty. Instead, money with the right purpose will do wonders for the world. it also put emphasis on the importance of doing your part as opposed to waiting for God’s blessings to come your way. The road to financial freedom needs commitment. It also involves raising your financial IQ.
Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
First published in 1938 during the Great Depression, this book is considered to be the most influential book of all time. Its author Napoleon Hill is said to have motivated millions of people into success than any other person in history.
As a journalist, Napoleon Hill was given an assignment to interview one of the richest man in history and said to be the most powerful man in the world during that time, industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Andrew Carnegie refused to directly answer Napoleon Hill’s questions. Instead, he commissioned Napoleon Hill to interview over 500 millionaires to find the common success formula that will help the average person overcome the great economic depression of that time. Napoleon Hill spent 20 years researching and interviewing successful people such as Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, John Rockefeller and Theodore Roosevelt.
If Bo Sanchez was able to convince you to want to become rich, then Napoleon Hill will guide you and give you the initial steps you need to take on how to become successful. According to Hill, success is a product of your mind.
Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.
Napoleon Hill
You need to know what you want to achieve and be committed in achieving it. Life only gives you what you ask for – whether it be riches, happiness, love and success. The book is basically an account of how to develop the correct mindset to gain success and accumulate riches.
The Secret by Rhonda Byrne
The Secret is basically a reinforcement of Napoleon Hill’s teaching on the power of the mind. Rhonda Byrne elaborates on the power of positive thinking. Thoughts are powerful. Just like The Law of Attraction, we attract things that we focus on.We attract positive things when we focus on the positive and in the same way, we attract more negative things if what we only think about is how miserable our life is.
For example, you are going to take an exam. If you are going to focus on how hard the exam will be, you are not helping yourself a bit. Instead of focusing on how hard the exam will be; think of ways to prepare yourself for the exam. Study well so that when the day of the exam comes, you are prepared. By shifting your focus from the negative to the positive, instead of being helpless, you become in control.
Although bombarded by critics because of its metaphysical claims that anything you think about or focus on will come true; in a way, this book actually gives hope to people in hardships and in pain. Instead of dwelling on your pain, Rhonda Byrne encourages optimism and love. Our life is the product of our thoughts. Change your thoughts and you change your life.
All that we are is a result of what we have thought.
Buddha
If your mind is now filled with positive thoughts and you now have a burning desire to change your life as encouraged by Rhonda Byrne, you are now ready for Robert Kiyosaki’s financial management lessons.
Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Rich Dad, Poor Dad has been dubbed numerous times as the number one finance book of all time with millions of copies sold. In the book Robert Kiyosaki talks about his two dads who are both successful in their careers. The main difference between his two fathers is that his real father put importance on academic intelligence while his rich father put importance on financial intelligence.
His biological father has a doctorate degree in two prestigious universities in Hawaii. He earned a considerable amount of income in his lifetime yet he was always struggling financially. He left debts to be paid upon his death.
His second father, the father of his bestfriend, never finished eighth grade. However, he was one of the richest man in Hawaii leaving millions of dollars to his family and to several charities upon his death.
The book attracted a lot of controversies because it critiques and enumerates the flaws of the current educational system. Robert Kiyosaki challenges the conventional teachings of middle class family of studying hard to get grades so that you can have a good job, climb your way up to the corporate ladder and save along the way.
Kiyosaki will open your eyes to a world from a different perspective. He stressed the importance of financial literacy by explaining key concepts in finance such as assets and liabilities and passive income versus earned income. For him, it is important that you do not become a slave of money but instead learn how to make money work for you.
The Secrets of a Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker
If your are ready for the next level which is to take action, then the Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker is the book for you. This book is meant to be applied in your life. T. Harv Eker provides a step-by-step guide in identifying your old thinking and changing it into a millionaire’s mind.
To master the inner game of wealth, T. Harv Eker, suggested several exercises or challenges for you to do in the wealth files. He also emphasized the importance of declarations in changing your mindset. One particular challenge is if you are a complainer, you are not supposed to utter a word of complaint in 7 days. By following the activities, you will slowly adopt the millionaire mind.
One of the most effective ways to change your financial life that the author recommends that you apply in your life is under the wealth file on how the rich handles their money. According to the author, poor people have a tendency to mismanage their money. He recommends using the money jar budgeting system as a a budgeting technique. A lot of testimonies were written on how their net worth improved drastically by simply following T. Harv Eker’s advices.
Other Books on Wealth and Success
Other titles that are worth reading include:
- Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins
- Chicken Soup for the Soul Series by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
- How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
- My Maid Invests in the Stock Market … and Why You Should, Too! by Bo Sanchez
- Rich Habits: The Daily Success Habits of Wealthy Individuals by Thomas Corley
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
- The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
- The Automatic Millionaire: A Powerful One-Step Plan to Live and Finish Rich by David Bach
- The Greatest Salesman in the World by Og Mandino
- The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing by Benjamin Graham, Jayson Zweig and Warren Buffet
- The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko
- The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason
- The Slight Edge: Turning Simple Disciplines into Massive Success and Happiness by Jeff Olson
Your learning journey will open up a whole new world of ideas for you. However, reading is not enough. Remember that you also need to be able to apply these new insights in your life.
Happy reading!
Updated version. First published in Pinoy Smart Living 08.15.2016
Feature Image: Free-Photos from Pixabay
