The habit that keeps people from getting rich, according to Thomas Corley

Since we’ve been talking about habits this week, what better than to take a look at the study by Thomas C. Corley, author of Rich Habits, a man who spent five years studying the habits of the rich and found many common traits and patterns among millionaires: habits that include reading, building relationships, setting goals and taking calculated risks.

On the other hand, many people who don’t achieve their goals or who fail in life (and by failure we don’t mean people who don’t get rich, but people living a life they don’t want) also share a series of habits, which Corley groups into a single trait:

The habits of not doing

These can include not reading, not making contacts with people who add value to us, surrounding ourselves with people who contribute nothing, not investing money prudently, and so on.

It’s not what you do but what you choose not to do that determines your success in life.

And for that reason, it isn’t so much about the good habits you have, but about the habits you have decided not to have and the bad habits you have built.

After those five years studying the daily habits of hundreds of rich people, he published some of these findings in his books in the form of a full study.

The habits of self-made rich people

This group of rich people acquired what Corley calls wealth-building and progress habits, which helped them achieve their dreams and goals. These include:

1. Experimentation: trying new things to discover an innate talent or passion.
2. Reading: 30 minutes or more every day for self-education and continuous learning.
3. Building good relationships: success, good jobs and the best business opportunities usually come from the relationships you build. You are more likely to become wealthy if you surround yourself with rich people. You are more likely to succeed in business if you surround yourself with entrepreneurs. There’s not much more to say on this point.
4. Setting goals: without a goal, there is no destination we want to reach.
5. Taking calculated risks: the rich know that every decision and every investment carries a risk, but they take that risk, because they know that if you have a goal and don’t walk towards it, it’s only a wish, and wishes aren’t real until you pursue them.

Corley names many more habits, but the idea is to understand that the rich are driven by habits of this kind, which other people often find off-putting.

See also: 10 ways the rich think differently from everyone else

People who aren’t rich have habits too

Corley’s research, at its most ironic, also led to a big discovery. People who weren’t rich also had habits that millionaires didn’t have. These are the habits of not doing, and they include:

1. Not reading to learn, which is a habit. Good or bad, but a habit.
2. Not exercising is another habit.
3. Not eating healthily.
4. Not pursuing their dreams, a very common habit among people whose finances are not in good shape.
5. Not getting up early to work on self-improvement.
6. Not saving money.
7. Not investing money.
8. Not being frugal.
9. Not doing more than your job requires of you.
10. Not avoiding wasted time, a very hard habit to achieve.
11. Not doing what you know you should do. I think this has to do with procrastination.
12. Not taking personal responsibility for the results you get in life.
13. And so on.

Going back to that idea: often it isn’t what you do that determines the circumstances of your life, but what you choose not to do.

The truth is that we can get to know a person’s habits just by observing them and knowing their situation.

In other words, if you see someone with strong arms and a defined stomach, the person most likely has the habit of exercising a lot and watching what they eat. Recognising someone who has the habit of stuffing themselves with junk food and spending too much time on the sofa is even easier.

See also: You can be happier, more successful and healthier with this 21-day programme

The same goes for all other habits. Clearly, if we see someone whose finances are in good shape, that person has acquired very different habits from someone who has financial problems.

There aren’t many more secrets than that. Everything depends on the habits and disciplines we acquire in life.

Further reading: 4 money myths I discovered studying the rich, more from Thomas C. Corley.

Featured image: Frank Scholten, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.