Thomas J. Stanley Quotes

“A millionaire has told me that true diversity has much to do with controlling one’s investments.

No one can control the stock market. But you can, for example, control your own business, private investments, and money you lend to private parties.”

“About one-half of the millionaires in America don’t live in upscale neighborhoods.”

“According to our most recent survey, the typical American millionaire reported that he or she never spent more than $399 for a suit of clothing for himself or for anyone else.”

“Affluent people typically follow a lifestyle conducive to accumulating money. In the course of our investigations, we discovered seven common denominators among those who successfully build wealth.

1. They live well below their means.
2. They allocate their time, energy, and money efficiently, in ways conducive to building wealth.
3. They believe that financial independence is more important than displaying high social status.
4. Their parents did not provide economic outpatient care.
5. Their adult children are economically self-sufficient.
6. They are proficient in targeting market opportunities.
7. They chose the right occupation.”

“After twenty years of studying millionaires across a wide spectrum of industries, we have concluded that the character of the business owner is more important in predicting his level of wealth than the classification of his business.”

“All too often high-income-producing UAWs (Under Accumulators of Wealth) spend countless hours studying the market — but not the stock market. They can tell you the names of the top auto dealers, but not the top investment advisors.

They can tell you how to shop and spend. But they can’t tell you how to invest. They know the styles, prices, and availability at various car dealers. But they know little or nothing about the various values of equity market offerings.”

“Allocating time and money in the pursuit of looking superior often has a predictable outcome: inferior economic achievement.

What are three words that profile the affluent? Frugal, frugal, frugal.”

“Always strive to be the best in your field.”

“America is still the land of opportunity. Over the past thirty years I have consistently found that 80 to 85 percent of millionaires are self-made.”

“Be tough… life is. In other words, there is no promise of a rose garden.”

“Before you can become a millionaire, you must learn to think like one. You must learn how to motivate yourself to counter fear with courage.

Making critical decisions about your career, business, investments and other resources conjures up fear, fear that is part of the process of becoming a financial success.”

“Courage can be developed. But it cannot be nurtured in an environment that eliminates all risks, all difficulty, all dangers.”

“Financially independent people are happier than those in their same income/age cohort who are not financially secure.”

“First-generation Americans tend to be self-employed. Self-employment is a major positive correlate of wealth.”

“Good health, longevity, happiness, a loving family, self-reliance, fine friends… If you have five, you’re a rich man.”

“Great offense and poor defense translate into under accumulation of wealth.”

“Have you ever noticed those people whom you see jogging day after day? They are the ones who seem not to need to jog. But that’s why they are fit.

Those who are wealthy work at staying financially fit. But those who are not financially fit do little to change their status.”

“Having a set of stated goals does not necessarily mean that one is committed to achieving them.

Most of us want to be wealthy, but most of us do not spend the time, energy, and money required to enhance our chances of realizing this goal.”

“How can well-educated, high-income people be so naive about money? Because being a well-educated, high-income earner does not automatically translate into financial independence. It takes planning and sacrificing.”

“If you make a good income each year and spend it all, you are not getting wealthier. You are just living high. Wealth is what you accumulate, not what you spend.”

“If you’re not financially independent, you will spend an increasing amount of your time and energy worrying about your socioeconomic future.”

“If you’re not yet wealthy but want to be someday, never purchase a home that requires a mortgage that is more than twice your household’s total annual realized income.”

“If your goal is to become financially secure, you’ll likely attain it. But if your motive is to make money to spend money on the good life, you’re never gonna make it.”

“In general, the longer the average member of an ancestry group has been in America, the more likely he or she will become fully socialized to our high-consumption lifestyle.”

“It is easier to purchase products that denote superiority than to actually be superior in economic achievement.”

“It is unfortunate that some people judge others by their choice in foods, beverages, suits, watches, motor vehicles, and such. To them, superior people have excellent tastes in consumer goods.

But it is easier to purchase products that denote superiority than to be actually superior in economic achievement. Allocating time and money in the pursuit of looking superior often has a predictable outcome: inferior economic achievement.”

“It is very difficult for a married couple to accumulate wealth if one is a spendthrift. A household divided in its financial orientation is unlikely to accumulate significant wealth.”

“It matters less how much more you make than what you do with what you already have.”

“It’s amazing what you can do when you set your mind to it. You’ll be surprised how many sales calls you can make when you have no alternative except to succeed.”

“It’s easier to accumulate wealth if you don’t live in a high-status neighborhood.”