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"Outliers" made be of interest to you Melikka. Some interesting points are made. Focus is more on statistical data, like the 10,000 hours rule.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outliers_(book)

melika969 wrote:I don't agree! I think this is just an excuse for people who can not be billionaires.

You’re exactly right Mel, ‘cognitive dissonance’ or ‘adaptive preference formation’ are two labels given by leading psychologists, better known as sour grapes from Aesop’s fable, The Fox and the Grapes.

Flying Dutchman wrote:"Outliers" made be of interest to you Melikka. Some interesting points are made. Focus is more on statistical data, like the 10,000 hours rule.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outliers_(book)

Thanks FD, I read that book before. That's why I agreed with DK about "luck". They certainly had some opportunities, and as you mentioned lots of them have failed many times.

Dillon wrote:

melika969 wrote:I don't agree! I think this is just an excuse for people who can not be billionaires.

You’re exactly right Mel, ‘cognitive dissonance’ or ‘adaptive preference formation’ are two labels given by leading psychologists, better known as sour grapes from Aesop’s fable, The Fox and the Grapes.

melika969 wrote:I don't agree! I think this is just an excuse for people who can not be billionaires.

be that as it may, perhaps you should look into the lives of the billionaires and how they rose to prominence

-- Thu Apr 28, 2011 2:36 pm --

Dillon wrote:

melika969 wrote:I don't agree! I think this is just an excuse for people who can not be billionaires.

You’re exactly right Mel, ‘cognitive dissonance’ or ‘adaptive preference formation’ are two labels given by leading psychologists, better known as sour grapes from Aesop’s fable, The Fox and the Grapes.

"If you can't have it , better not like/want it" , IMHO this isn't the case, since if it were true, then everybody would just give up, but that doesnt happen , people keep trying , Some choose deceitful methods (which is then recorded in history as a "strategic move")

zubber wrote:

melika969 wrote:I don't agree! I think this is just an excuse for people who can not be billionaires.

be that as it may, perhaps you should look into the lives of the billionaires and how they rose to prominence

I did!

zubber wrote:

Dillon wrote:

melika969 wrote:I don't agree! I think this is just an excuse for people who can not be billionaires.

You’re exactly right Mel, ‘cognitive dissonance’ or ‘adaptive preference formation’ are two labels given by leading psychologists, better known as sour grapes from Aesop’s fable, The Fox and the Grapes.

"If you can't have it , better not like/want it" , IMHO this isn't the case, since if it were true, then everybody would just give up, but that doesnt happen , people keep trying , Some choose deceitful methods (which is then recorded in history as a "strategic move")

Not true. Some people try to achieve what they like. They just don't make excuses.

Flying Dutchman wrote:

zubber wrote: sell their souls for accumulating wealth.

Agreed 100%. All Billionaires stepped on people, ruined some lifes and have betrayed many people, without any regret. All for money, all for their personal gain. Their "strenght" is that they can appear compassionate and caring to the outside world when they want. Some are almost schizo.

FD, I think there are alot of people who aren't billionaires or millionaires, or for that matter have very little wealth, that possess those traits, just on a lower scale.

I wouldn't say all billionaires have stepped over people to get where they are. If you want a really incredible rags to riches story, take a look at Chris Gardner - the guy the movie Pursuit of Happyness was based on. Incredible and heart warming story of a guy who lost absolutely everything, but was determined to do right for his son. He's now a multi-millionaire.

I love stories where people get what they want, through nothing but sheer determination. Have a read of the book 'One red paperclip' - basically this guy wants a house, so he decides he's going to start with a paper clip and trade upwards until he gets his house. He used sites like craig list and writing a blog to constantly upgrade whatever the current item was. He went on an epic journey too as he would travel to wherever the next trade was for the item. And yes he did eventually get his house

melika969 wrote:Some people try to achieve what they like. They just don't make excuses.

True, it is just what you want to achieve. Its not about excuses, its about goals and priorities. Financially my goal has always been to be pretty well off and provide for my family the best I can. Not to be a billionaire. At the moment I can do pretty much what I want. A weekend shopping in New York, snowboarding in the Alps and provide the best education for my children. Perhaps I am too pragmatic but thats enough for me. I donot care at all for fancy cars. I like comfort, but do not need a Merc or Beamer to feel good. I could make double the money I make now if I put in the extra hours. But that means missing more quality time with people important to me. Being with friends, seeing my children smile and being with my wife is priceless to me and makes my boat rock. I am not willing to sacrifice that for a billion on my bank account. I am not even a billionaire material. I am not a true businessman. I know myself, and thats not an excuse.

Flying Dutchman wrote:

melika969 wrote:Some people try to achieve what they like. They just don't make excuses.

True, it is just what you want to achieve. Its not about excuses, its about goals and priorities. Financially my goal has always been to be pretty well off and provide for my family the best I can. Not to be a billionaire. At the moment I can do pretty much what I want. A weekend shopping in New York, snowboarding in the Alps and provide the best education for my children. Perhaps I am too pragmatic but thats enough for me. I donot care at all for fancy cars. I like comfort, but do not need a Merc or Beamer to feel good. I could make double the money I make now if I put in the extra hours. But that means missing more quality time with people important to me. Being with friends, seeing my children smile and being with my wife is priceless to me and makes my boat rock. I am not willing to sacrifice that for a billion on my bank account. I am not even a billionaire material. I am not a true businessman. I know myself, and thats not an excuse.

I would say you had a plan FD and stuck to it. You seem to have it all and take care of what is important to you, namely, providing and your family. Nice job. There are some things you can't put a price on. I was having a chat with someone about commitment to work and the dedication to do the job and the price they pay - missing all the little things in the lives of their children, which all add up to memories they will never have because they were too driven with their work. Providing for a family isn't only about money.

I agree and the old saying is so true, 'work to live, don't live to work'. I know so many people that kill themselves in their jobs and for what? They're all miserable as heck. It's a balancing game, but you have to get life's priorities right.

Greed is driving force behind the one who seeks to be fabulously wealthy. And from greed stem other negative traits. Do not confuse perseverance and determination with greed, Because the former can be applied to any action, but the latter causes one to transgress in their pursuit of excesses.

Indeed greed is not always good.

How to become a billionaire
The answer is, its very easy.
You start with just a few ingredients. First of all, you choose your parents wisely, as GBS advised some years ago. That way you end up with just the right genes, that give you your intelligence, your personality, your race, your family etc. After all, if you are born in a family with a sizable inheritance, then your battle is already half won. Look at Prince Charles, for example.
Next, arm yourself with the "appropriate" education. A Ph.D is no good. Look at Warren Buffet who made his billions by investing in the stock market and living simply, or Donald Trump who made it in real estate, or as someone mentioned Richard Branson, or Bill Gates. Take it from me, you are wasting your time if your goal is to become a Billionaire and are studying in University for long years.
You can also NOT become a Billionaire on a salary. Any kind of salary. So all you Dubaiites, take note.
That sleek Merc or Bimmer might feel good, but Buffet, one of the richest men in the world, drives a 10 year old Ford!
Then you determine a time-frame in which you want to make it. That should be your guide to whether its going to be a heist from a bank / the British Museum, or a leisurely 50 to 60 years of steadily accumulating wealth.
Finally, you have to be one who takes calculated risks. You will have to step on many toes, and must be a pusher and a shover with a very thick skin. You have to beleive in your cause, and then strive valiantly for it. You have to have the confidence, and beleive in yourself. Thats where your genes and upbringing will be of help! You will make mistakes, and might fail repeatedly. In the end, a small percentage of you will succeed. The rest will loose the shirts on their backs as punishment for being so ambitious!
I could go on. There are still a few things on the list, but I think you will have got the point.
Alternatively, along the way, you might decide that it is not such a good idea after all to keep as an aim to become a billionaire. You might decide that you just want to be good old "You", and just have some fun, and billionaires be damned!

Bora Bora wrote:

Flying Dutchman wrote:

melika969 wrote:Some people try to achieve what they like. They just don't make excuses.

True, it is just what you want to achieve. Its not about excuses, its about goals and priorities. Financially my goal has always been to be pretty well off and provide for my family the best I can. Not to be a billionaire. At the moment I can do pretty much what I want. A weekend shopping in New York, snowboarding in the Alps and provide the best education for my children. Perhaps I am too pragmatic but thats enough for me. I donot care at all for fancy cars. I like comfort, but do not need a Merc or Beamer to feel good. I could make double the money I make now if I put in the extra hours. But that means missing more quality time with people important to me. Being with friends, seeing my children smile and being with my wife is priceless to me and makes my boat rock. I am not willing to sacrifice that for a billion on my bank account. I am not even a billionaire material. I am not a true businessman. I know myself, and thats not an excuse.

I would say you had a plan FD and stuck to it. You seem to have it all and take care of what is important to you, namely, providing and your family. Nice job. There are some things you can't put a price on. I was having a chat with someone about commitment to work and the dedication to do the job and the price they pay - missing all the little things in the lives of their children, which all add up to memories they will never have because they were too driven with their work. Providing for a family isn't only about money.

I agree!

Graucho Marx summed it up for me:

"I have been rich and I have been poor, all money does is buy a better class of misery!"

I know guys who have sacrificed everything in the urge to make themselves rich and some have achieved it. They are still not happy.

One of my friends was a surveyor who had a really good job in London during the boom and worked himself into the ground steadily climbing the ladder. Then his grandma died and left him most of Cornwall. He left his job, bought a fancy car and a big apartment and lived the life many are seeking. But something was missing for him, so he left it all behind and spent 2 years backpacking around the world. When he came back, he sold all the things he didn't need, went back to college and gained a teaching qualification and now is the deputy headmaster of a school in a very rough part of London. He realized that he didn't need all the money to be happy, just a purpose in life.



Knight