I’m working on a little book that’s tentatively titled New Ideas About BuildingWealth. My thesis is original in the sense that it came from thinking about my own experience and the experience of friends and colleagues that beat the odds and became wealthy. But my conclusion – that what matters most is a set of values and beliefs – is not surprising.

I’ve been doing a lot of research for the book, and have been finding some interesting facts. Here are 10 of them – the majority from The Millionaire Next Door  by Thomas Stanley, Rich Habits by Thomas Corley, and a survey by The Spectrem Group: 

1. How many millionaires are there? There are 42.2 million millionaires worldwide. 8% are in China, 7% are in Japan, 6% are in the UK, 5% are in Germany, and 5% are in France. The vast majority – 40% (17.3 millionaires) live in the US. (Source: Credit Suisse)
2. How hard is it to become a millionaire in the US? Not too hard. Recent surveys indicate that more than 1,700 US citizens become millionaires every single day.
3. How long does it take to become a millionaire? A long time. On average, it takes 32 years to acquire a net worth of at least $1 million. 
4. What role does inheritance play? Very little. More than 80% of millionaires are “first-generation” wealthy and received no inheritances at all. Further, 78% grew up poor or working class. Only 22% came from upper-income families. 
5. Did they intend to become rich? About half did. 53% of self-made millionaires say they were “obsessed” with becoming rich. 
6. Do they drive fancy cars? No. The most common cars driven by millionaires are mid-priced sedans.
7. Do they pay their “fair share” of taxes? Although constituting less than 5% of the population, millionaires pay 40% of the income tax in the US.
8. How important is education? 76% said their parents valued academic achievement. 86% have college degrees.
9. How hard do millionaires work? Three out of four millionaires work. One out of four is retired. 86% of those that work full-time put in 50 hours or more each week.
10. How important is financial discipline? 83% believe in “smart investing.” 82% believe strongly in saving, and one study found that they save an average of 23% of their income. Most of them – 74% – do not gamble at all.

6 additional interesting commonalities:

* 85% to 88% read at least 30 minutes daily, including 2+ books a month.

* 67 % watch less than one hour of television daily.

* 63 % spend less than one hour surfing the internet.

* 75% exercise for at least 30 minutes 4+ days a week.

* 86% are married, including 65% that are in their first marriage.

* 66% own at least one business.

On July 1, I wrote about an idea I’m developing that I hope to make into a small book called something like Building Wealth in 7 Lessons. I suggested that, at base, there are only three ways to make money: by working for someone else, by being a merchant, and by acting as a banker.

I’ve thought about it since then. I was wrong. There are really four ways:

* You can make money by working – either as an employee or by working for yourself.

* You can make money by selling things – i.e., as a commissioned salesperson.

* You can make money by owning things – income-producing assets or a business.

* And you can make money by lending money – i.e., as a banker.

As a worker, you are trading your time and expertise for dollars. This is as true for a solo-practicing doctor or a lawyer as it is for an assembly-line worker. And as a worker, there are only two ways to increase the amount of money you can make: by working more hours or by developing more financially valued skills.

As a commissioned salesperson, the money you make does not depend so much on the time you put into it, What counts are three things: how good you are at selling, the size of your commission, and the price of the things you sell.

As an owner, you can make money in several ways. If you own an income-producing asset like rental real estate, you can make money from your profits (net rents) plus any increase in the value of the property over time. If you own and run an active business, you can make money through its profits and any increase in its value. Plus, you can pay yourself a salary as a worker for the business you own.

As a banker, you make money not by working harder or acquiring financially valued skills or even with profits or a salary. You make money on the money you lend – on the interest you charge for that money.

There are innumerable variations of the above, but these are the basic four. And if you look at wealth building from this perspective, the path will be pretty easy to follow.

So that’s the first part of my revised thesis.

The second part is this: The most efficient and effective way to build wealth – and this is especially true if you are starting from zero (with no net worth and no income) – is to move from worker to salesperson to owner to banker.

Okay, that’s enough for now. More to come…