If you’ve ever dreamed of being a millionaire, this might be the instruction manual you’ve been looking for. “The Millionaire Next Door” by Tom Stanley and William Danko provides insights into the beliefs, habits and behaviors of wealthy people. It offers tips on how to become wealthy and reminds us that wealth isn’t about what we spend but what we accumulate.

Here are some characteristics of wealthy people. They:

• Live well below their means. For instance, they would never purchase a house that requires a mortgage of more than twice their household income.
• Believe financial independence is more important than social status. Only 23.5% of wealthy people own new or recent model vehicle
• Didn’t receive economic gifts or support from their parents or grandparents.
• Teach their children discipline and frugality. They never tell young children that their parents are wealthy, and they demonstrate how to live WITHOUT ostentatious spending.
• Have adult children who are economically self-sufficient.
• Examine the market and choose promising opportunities. For instance, it’s possible to become wealthy today by providing services for the affluent and their children. Affluent people may shy away from purchasing expensive products, but they’re happy to pay top dollar for services and advice from accountants, lawyers, financial planners, psychologists, dentists, etc. Those are the kinds of careers today’s wealthy people would recommend for their children.