I have a ton of rich friends who’ve wanted me to write this for a long time.
Yesterday, I was chatting with future billionaire, Josh McAfee (Founder of McAfee Institute), who told me how to build a billion-dollar company. Like many of my wealthy comrades, he couldn’t stop talking about the mindset of being a multi-millionaire.
Kenneth Cole, the famous fashion designer, told me that sticking with your gut is the key to building a sustainable business. Kevin O’Leary (the Shark Tank star) showed me the value of holding only profitable relationships. Burt Jacobs, co-founder of Life is Good apparel, advised me to communicate my expectations to all my key stakeholders.
Kat Cole, the CEO of Cinnabon, told me to try everything–but only stick to what works best. Marcus Lemonis, TV Star of The Profit, showed me how using your gifts can take you anywhere. Kevin Plank, founder and CEO of Under Armour, sold me on why I should only focus on selling my best products.
I can go on with the advice I’ve heard from all my wealthy friends, but as a multi-millionaire myself, I would like to sum up my own version of how to make it big in business:
1. Build Something Bigger Than Yourself
Most people want success for themselves, not other people. They want to win all the awards, be on the magazines, and earn millions of dollars. Having all of this is fine, but you must select a cause that is bigger than yourself. You need to understand that your purpose is greater than you. This will attract more success, instead of repel it.
A selfless leader will focus on growing others, which in turn will grow themselves. As a hobby, I exercise often by jogging and lifting weights. I find that when I help others exercise, I become stronger and faster than I would if I did it all myself. Helping others takes the same amount of time that it does to help yourself. Those who want to be rich must enrich others first.
If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. – Ancient Proverb
2. Align Yourself with Experts
Every multi-millionaire has a team of experts that gives them strategic advice. While everyone has an opinion, you only want to listen to the best. I see so many people listening to the wrong people, which later leads them to devastating results. Find experts in your industry that dominate and befriend them if you can.
Hiring an executive coach is the greatest way to get to the next level. A friend might say, “You should do more push-ups”, but a coach will show how it makes you stronger, which motivates you to action. Find a paragon who can identify with your needs. Most executive coaches charge anywhere from 10 to 20 percent of your yearly income, which is often easy to pay if you follow their advice.
3. Create Systems that Leverage
Multi-millionaires cannot do it all alone. They have systems and processes that allow them to leverage their gifts and abilities. There’s always a better and faster way to get things done. If you create a system of success for yourself, it will eventually serve you. However, it must be your system, not someone else’s.
Every day, I have certain habits, devices, and systems that I use to help me operate more efficiently. I used to think that I had to wake up at a certain time to be successful, but I realized that my peak time of productivity is from 10 pm to 4 am. I go to sleep ridiculously late and have found many benefits in doing so. The 5 a.m. Wake-up club doesn’t work for everyone. You must find a system that works for you.
4. Marketing and Sales
Marketing spreads the message of what you’re about, and sales is getting people to buy that message. Marketing helps you to build your credibility and sales happens when people trust your reputation. Marketing is the spinal cord to your business and sales is the vertebrae. If you want strong “backing,” you must master both of these major skills.
Multi-millionaires are experts at marketing and sales. Their skills deftly lead them to high positions and allow them to enjoy the best of life. In this world, you can either sell or you’ll be sold. You might as well learn what the marketplace wants and then find a way to strategically deliver what it needs. In short, find a product to sell (sales) and have a story to tell (marketing).
People don’t know what they need until you give it to them. – Steve Jobs
5. Make Quick Decisions
Every day, we all make a multitude of decisions. However, the richest people make them fast because they know themselves better. Most people have never been taught how to make decisions. Instead, they look for people who can make it for them. This is why only 10 percent of people in the world are entrepreneurs who control 90 percent of the workforce.
Making quick decisions can help you to becoming wealthy. A man recently told me that he couldn’t partake in a certain event because he didn’t know what to do. Rather than deciding, he gave me a few excuses and was momentarily off the hook. If he was a multi-millionaire, he would have boldly decided and told me whether he could make the event or not. Make decisions, not excuses.
6. Manage Your Priorities
Prioritizing means doing first what matters most. Dozens of tasks may be calling your name each day, but you must only undertake the ones that give you the most reward. You must develop a habit to consistently delegate or eliminate activities that take up your time, energy, and money. Your time is finite.
What are your main priorities in 2016? How are you going to make it happen? Your goals better be as big as you can make them. Most people set goals that are too small. A small increase in income won’t suffice for aspiring multi-millionaires. Instead, raise your goal substantially by seeking to quadruple your rate of business. Whatever your goal is, your mind will find a way to do it.
7. Produce Relentlessly
On weeknights, weekends, and holidays, 98 percent of people take time to rest, which is utterly foolish! Surely, you do need to rest, but you must produce, too. Don’t selfishly squander your precious time when there are so many people that need your help! Do you realize that your true happiness comes from the work you produce?
A famous NBA player confided to me that he cannot go a day without shooting 1,000 shots. Every day, he affirms, “Basketball is my purpose in life.” He cannot stand missing the playoffs; otherwise, he feels like a failure. That’s why he’s a champion. Attaching yourself to your purpose is the secret to becoming a multi-millionaire. Best advice: Mix business with pleasure.
8. Serve People
Surprisingly, most multi-millionaires don’t do it for the money. If they did do it for the money, they would have stopped after their first million or so. Truly, they do it for the people. They understand that people come first. When you serve people, the profit will come. It’s a law that automatically applies itself.
I used to laugh at people who worked without pay (aka, volunteers). Now, that’s all I do. When I wake up, my first question is usually, “How do I add more value to more people in less time?” Not, “How do I make money today?” At the end of the day, I always find a stack of checks at my desk awaiting my signature for processing. These checks come from my service.
9. Continuous Improvement
If you want to change the world, you need to consume a lot of knowledge and make rapid changes. You need to start reading books and implementing the ideas you learn. Most of my wealthy friends routinely read 2 hours per day at a minimum–and they’re not reading the easy stuff either. They’re pounding the textbooks and taking notes.
When you’re beginning work each day, ask yourself, “How can I improve?” If there is a skill that you must learn, learn it. Most people are one skill away from being a massive success. If you want to become a multi-millionaire, you need to get serious about self-improvement and adopt changes in your personal and professional life on a daily basis.
10. Get Feedback
I’ll never forget what Jack Canfield told me at a conference in which we shared the stage. As he pulled me aside, he gave me his serious tone: “Daniel, the major difference between bestselling authors and amateur authors is one thing: Feedback.” This was his secret to selling millions of books over the last two decades.
More from Entrepreneur:
10 Questions Every Aspiring Millionaire Should Ask
7 Networking Tips From a Real Millionaire
10 Financial Mistakes Rich People Never Make
Obtaining feedback is instrumental if you want to grow a successful business. Sometimes, great feedback can come from anywhere. It can come from your spouse, kids, neighbor, or even your mother! Often times, it comes from your worst critics, who give you the deepest version of what you need to change. Wherever you get your feedback, make the necessary changes.
To become a multi-millionaire, you must cultivate these 10 secret mindsets of multi-millionaire. If you do, people will notice your work and supply you with the help you need. There’s no limit to what you can accomplish with a deep purpose and faith in something greater than yourself. This is at the forefront of becoming a multi-millionaire. Remember, serve people and profit will come.
This piece originally appeared on Entrepreneur.
