Read an Excerpt
People are shocked, at the beginning of my seminars, when one of the
first things I tell them is "Don't believe a word I say." Why would I suggest
that? Because I can only speak from my own experience. None of the concepts and
insights I share are inherently true or false, right or wrong. They simply
reflect my own results, and the amazing results I've seen in the lives of
thousands and thousands of my students. Having said that, however, I believe
that if you use the principles you learn in this book, you will totally
transform your life. Don't just read this book. Study it as if your life
depended on it. Then try the principles out for yourself. Whatever works, keep
doing. Whatever doesn't, you're welcome to throw away.
I know I may be
biased, but when it comes to money, this may be the most important book you have
ever read. I understand that's a bold statement, but the fact is, this book
provides the missing link between your desire for success and your achievement
of success. As you've probably found out by now, those are two different worlds.
No doubt you've read other books, listened to tapes or CDs, gone
to courses, and learned about numerous get-rich systems be they in real estate,
stocks, or business. But what happened? For most people, not much! They get a
short blast of energy, and then it's back to the status quo.
Finally,
there's an answer. It's simple, it's law, and you're not going to circumvent it.
It all comes down to this: if your subconscious "financial blueprint" is not
"set" for success, nothing you learn, nothing you know, and nothing you do will
make much of a difference.
In the pages of this book, we will demystify for
you why some people are destined to be rich and others are destined for a life
of struggle. You will understand the root causes of success, mediocrity, or
financial failure and begin changing your financial future for the better. You
will understand how childhood in?uences shape our financial blueprint and how
these in?uences can lead to self-defeating thoughts and habits. You will
experience powerful declarations that will help you replace your nonsupportive
ways of thinking with mental "wealth files" so that you think-and succeed-just
as rich people do. You will also learn practical, step-by-step strategies for
increasing your income and building wealth.
In Part I of this book, we will explain how each of us is conditioned to
think and act when it comes to money, and outline four key strategies for
revising our mental money blueprint. In Part II, we examine the differences
between how rich, middle-class, and poor people think, and provide seventeen
attitudes and actions to take that will lead to permanent changes in your
financial life. Throughout the book we also share just a few examples of the
thousands of letters and e-mails I've received from students who have attended
the Millionaire Mind Intensive Seminar and achieved powerful results in their
lives.
So what is my experience? Where am I coming from? Was I
always successful? I wish!
Like many of you, I supposedly had a lot of
"potential" but had little to show for it. I read all the books, listened to all
the tapes, and went to all the seminars. I really, really, really wanted to be
successful. I don't know whether it was for the money, the freedom, the sense of
achievement, or just to prove I was good enough in my parents' eyes, but I was
almost obsessed with becoming a "success." During my twenties, I started several
different businesses, each with the dream of making my fortune, but my results
went from dismal to worse.
I worked my butt off but kept coming up short. I
had "Loch Ness monster disease": I had heard of this thing called profit, I just
never saw any of it. I kept thinking, "If I just get into the right business,
get on the right horse, I'll make it." But I was wrong. Nothing was working...at
least for me. And it was the last part of that sentence that finally struck me.
How come others were succeeding in the exact same business I was in and I was
still broke? What happened to "Mr. Potential"?
So I began doing some serious
soul-searching. I examined my true beliefs and saw that even though I said I
really wanted to be rich, I had some deep-rooted worries about it. Mostly I was
afraid. Afraid that I might fail, or worse, succeed and then somehow lose it
all. Then I'd really be a schmuck. Worse, I would blow the one thing I had going
for me: my "story" that I had all this "potential." What if I found out I didn't
have what it took and I was destined to a life of struggle?
Then,
as luck would have it, I got some advice from an extremely rich friend of my
father's. He was at my parents' house playing cards with the "boys" and, in
passing, noticed me. This was the third time I'd moved back home, and I was
living in the "lower-level suite," otherwise known as the basement. I suppose my
dad had complained to him of my woeful existence because when he saw me, he had
the sympathy in his eyes usually reserved for the bereaved at a funeral.
He
said, "Harv, I started in the same way as you, a complete disaster." Great, I
thought, this was making me feel a lot better. I should let him know that I was
busy...watch-ing the paint peel off the wall.
He kept going: "But then I got
some advice that changed my life, and I'd like to pass it on to you." Oh, no,
here comes the father-son lecture, and he's not even my father! Finally he came
out with it: "Harv, if you're not doing as well as you'd like, all that means is
there's something you don't know." Being a brash young man at the time, I
thought I knew pretty well everything, but alas, my bank account said something
different. So I finally began to listen. He continued, "Did you know that most
rich people think in very similar ways?"
I said, "No, I never really
considered that." To which he replied, "It's not an exact science, but for the
most part, rich people think a certain way and poor people think a completely
different way, and those ways of thinking determine their actions and therefore
determine their results." He went on, "If you thought the way rich people do and
did what rich people do, do you believe you could become rich too?" I remember
answering with all the con?dence of a mush ball, "I think so." "Then," he
replied, "all you have to do is copy how rich people think."
Being the skeptic I was at the time, I said, "So what are you thinking right
now?" To which he replied, "I'm thinking that rich people keep their commitments
and mine is to your dad right now. The guys are waiting for me, see ya."
Although he walked out, what he said sank in.
Nothing else was working in my
life, so I figured what the heck and threw myself wholeheartedly into studying
rich people and how they think. I learned everything I could about the inner
workings of the mind, but concentrated primarily on the psychology of money and
success. I discovered that it was true: rich people really do think differently
from poor and even middle-class people. Eventually, I became aware of how my own
thoughts were holding me back from wealth. More important, I learned several
powerful techniques and strategies to actually recondition my mind so that I
would think in the same ways rich people do.
Finally, I said, "Enough
yakking about it, let's put it to the test." I decided to attempt yet another
business. Because I was really into health and exercise, I opened one of the
first retail fitness stores in North America. I didn't have any money, so I had
to borrow $2,000 on my Visa card to get the business started. I began using what
I'd learned by modeling rich people, both in terms of their business strategies
and their thinking strategies. The first thing I did was commit to my success
and playing to win. I swore I would focus and not even consider leaving this
business until I was a millionaire or more. This was radically different from my
previous efforts, where, because I always thought short-term, I would constantly
get sidetracked by either good opportunities or when things got tough.
I also began challenging my mental approach whenever I began
thinking in financially negative or counterproductive ways. In the past, I
believed that what my mind said was truth. I learned that in many ways, my mind
was my biggest obstacle to success. I chose not to entertain thoughts that did
not empower me toward my vision of wealth. I used every one of the principles
you are going to learn in this book. Did it work? Boy, did it work!
The
business was so successful that I opened ten stores in only two and a half
years. I then sold half the company shares to a Fortune 500 company for $1.6
million.
After that, I moved to sunny San Diego. I took a couple of years
off to reflne my strategies and began doing one-on-one business consulting. I
presume it was quite effective for people because they kept bringing friends,
partners, and associates to our sessions. Soon I was coaching ten and sometimes
twenty people at a time.
One of my clients suggested that I might as well
open up a school. I thought that was a great idea, so I did. I founded the
Street Smart Business School and taught thousands of people all across North
America "street-smart" business strategies for "high-speed" success.
As I
traveled across the continent giving my seminars, I noticed something strange:
You could have two people sitting side by side in exactly the same room,
learning exactly the same principles and strategies. One person would take these
tools and skyrocket to success. But what do you think might happen to the person
sitting right next to him or her? The answer is, not much!
That's when it
became obvious that you can have the greatest "tools" in the world, but if
you've got a tiny leak in your "toolbox" (I'm pointing to my head right now),
you've got a problem. So I designed a program called the Millionaire Mind
Intensive based on the inner game of money and success. When I combined the
inner game (the toolbox) with the outer game (the tools), virtually everybody's
results went through the roof! So that's what you're going to learn in this
book: how to master the inner game of money to win the game of money-how to
think rich to get rich!
People often ask me whether my success was
a "one-shot deal" or whether it has continued. Let me put it this way: Using the
exact principles I teach, I have now earned millions and millions of dollars and
am a multimultimillionaire several times over. Virtually all my investments and
business ventures seem to skyrocket! Some people tell me I have the "Midas
touch," where everything I get involved in turns to gold. They're right, but
what they may not realize is that having a Midas touch is simply another way of
saying, having a "financial blueprint" set for success, which is exactly what
you will have once you learn these principles and do this work.
Early on
during our Millionaire Mind Intensive Seminar, I generally ask the audience,
"How many of you came here to learn?" It's a bit of a trick question because as
author Josh Billings said, "It's not what we don't know that prevents us from
succeeding; it's what we know that just ain't so that is our greatest obstacle."
This book is not as much about learning as it is about "unlearning"! It is
essential you recognize how your old ways of thinking and acting have gotten you
exactly where you are right now.
If you're really rich and really happy,
fine. But if you're not, I invite you to consider some possibilities that may
not fit into your "box" of what you currently think is right or even appropriate
for you.
Even though I suggest that you "don't believe a word I
say" and want you to test these concepts out in your own life, I'm going to ask
you to trust the ideas you are reading. Not because you know me personally, but
because thousands and thousands of people have already changed their lives as a
result of the principles in this book.
Speaking of trust, it reminds me of
one of my favorite stories. It's about a man who is walking along a cliff and
all of a sudden loses his balance, slips, and falls off. Fortunately, he has the
presence of mind to grab on to the ledge, and he's hanging there for dear life.
He hangs and hangs and finally yells out, "Is there anybody up there who can
help me?" There's no answer. He keeps calling and calling, "Is there anybody up
there who can help me?" Finally this big bellowing voice calls back, "This is
God. I can help you. Just let go and trust." Next thing you hear: "Is there
anybody else up there who can help me?"
The lesson is simple. If you want to
move to a higher level of life, you have to be willing to let go of some of your
old ways of thinking and being and adopt new ones. The results will eventually
speak for themselves.
Read a Sample Chapter
Secrets of the Millionaire MindMastering the Inner Game of Wealth
Chapter One
Your Money Blueprint
We live in a world of duality: up and down, light and dark, hot and cold, in and out, fast and slow, right and left. These are but a few examples of the thousands of opposite poles. For one pole to exist, the other pole must also exist. Is it possible to have a right side without a left side? Not a chance.
Consequently, just as there are "outer" laws of money, there must be "inner" laws. The outer laws include things like business knowledge, money management, and investment strategies. These are essential. But the inner game is just as important. An analogy would be a carpenter and his tools. Having top-of-the-line tools is imperative, but being the top-notch carpenter who masterfully uses those tools is even more critical.
I have a saying: "It's not enough to be in the right place at the right time. You have to be the right person in the right place at the right time."
So who are you? How do you think? What are your beliefs? What are your habits and traits? How do you really feel about yourself ? How confident are you in yourself ? How well do you relate to others? How much do you trust others? Do you truly feel that you deserve wealth? What is your ability to act in spite of fear, in spite of worry, in spite of inconvenience, in spite of discomfort? Can you act when you're not in the mood?
The fact is that your character, your thinking, and your beliefs are a critical part of what determines the level of your success.
One of my favorite authors, Stuart Wilde, puts it this way: "The key to success is to raise your own energy; when you do, people will naturally be attracted to you. And when they show up, bill 'em!"
WEALTH PRINCIPLE:
Your income can grow only to the extent you do!
Why Is Your Money Blueprint Important?
Have you heard of people who have "blown up" financially? Have you noticed how some people have a lot of money and then lose it, or have excellent opportunities start well but then go sour on them? Now you know the real cause. On the outside it looks like bad luck, a downturn in the economy, a lousy partner, whatever. On the inside, however, it's another matter. That's why, if you come into big money when you're not ready for it on the inside, the chances are your wealth will be short-lived and you will lose it.
The vast majority of people simply do not have the internal capacity to create and hold on to large amounts of money and the increased challenges that go with more money and success. That, my friends, is the primary reason they don't have much money.
A perfect example is lottery winners. Research has shown again and again that regardless of the size of their winnings, most lottery winners eventually return to their original financial state, the amount they can comfortably handle.
On the other hand, the opposite occurs for self-made millionaires. Notice that when self-made millionaires lose their money, they usually have it back within a relatively short time. Donald Trump is a good example. Trump was worth billions, lost everything, and then a couple of years later, got it all back again and more.
Why does this phenomenon occur? Because even though some self-made millionaires may lose their money, they never lose the most important ingredient to their success: their millionaire mind. Of course in "The Donald"'s case, it's his "billionaire" mind. Do you realize Donald Trump could never be just a millionaire? If Donald Trump had a net worth of only 1 million dollars, how do you think he'd feel about his financial success? Most people would agree that he'd probably feel broke, like a financial failure!
That's because Donald Trump's financial "thermostat" is set for billions, not millions. Most people's financial thermostats are set for generating thousands, not millions of dollars; some people's financial thermostats are set for generating hundreds, not even thousands; and some people's financial thermostats are set for below zero. They're frickin' freezing and they don't have a clue as to why!
The reality is that most people do not reach their full potential. Most people are not successful. Research shows that 80 percent of individuals will never be financially free in the way they'd like to be, and 80 percent will never claim to be truly happy.
The reason is simple. Most people are unconscious. They are a little asleep at the wheel. They work and think on a superficial level of life—based only on what they can see. They live strictly in the visible world.
The Roots Create the Fruits
Imagine a tree. Let's suppose this tree represents the tree of life. On this tree there are fruits. In life, our fruits are called our results. So we look at the fruits (our results) and we don't like them; there aren't enough of them, they're too small, or they don't taste good.
So what do we tend to do? Most of us put even more attention and focus on the fruits, our results. But what is it that actually creates those particular fruits? It's the seeds and the roots that create those fruits.
It's what's under the ground that creates what's above the ground. It's what's invisible that creates what's visible. So what does that mean? It means that if you want to change the fruits, you will first have to change the roots. If you want to change the visible, you must first change the invisible.
WEALTH PRINCIPLE:
If you want to change the fruits, you will first
have to change the roots. If you want to change
the visible, you must first change the invisible.
Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth. Copyright © by T. Harv Eker. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.
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