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Break Free!
Everything you need to know to be debt free
Live Online Workshop – Hands-on Experiential Learning:
- Take Control: Create your own spending plan – that really works!
- Get Out of Debt: Make a personalized, accelerated plan to pay off your debt.
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Stess To Significance Meetup Group
This free meetup group is organized by John and Rena Bonesio. Our passion is to help people be proactive-instead of reactive-in life and follow their passion so they can make a difference in the world.
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We think it’s kind of weird that companies ask you to “like” them before you even know them. Check out our blog entries below. Get to know us. If you like us, we’d like you to “like” us.
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Remote Coaching
- Talk to a real person.
- Create real solutions specific to your situation
- Sessions are private and confidential. (We will never ask you for bank account information.)
- Move from financial stress to personal significance.
May 17 2012
Top 10: Characteristics of Millionaires
- They buy pre-owned cars and drive them for ten years
- They buy inexpensive suits
- They have an emergency fund
- They live in neighborhoods with non-millionaires
- They attended public schools like everybody else
- They invest about 20% of their income each year
- They work between 45 and 55 hours/week
- They spend about 20 hours a month managing their fiances and investments
- They have stayed in the same house for 20 years
- They are frugal
May 16 2012
Unexpected Benefits of Being a Millionaire
When you think of the benefits of being a millionaire, you probably think of the lifestyle that you can have. You might think of the cars you could buy, the houses you could own, and the beaches you could lay on.
You certainly could have all those things. The trouble is, though, that once you spend your money on all those things, you will quickly cease being a millionaire, and you’ll be back in non-millionaire status, just like you are today. Millionaires are very careful about those things that they buy. That’s how they stay millionaires.
In reality, having all that stuff and that big of a lifestyle doesn’t ultimately satisfy anyway. Sure, it’d be fun for a while, but the newness and the excitement will wear off. Then you’ll be off looking for the next big thing – just like you may be doing right now.
The unexpected benefit of being a millionaire is that you have more opportunities to make a significant impact in the world. Instead of contributing to a cause, you can be the cause. Instead of contributing to someone’s college fund, you can just send them to college. Instead of helping Habitat for Humanity, you can buy someone the house.
When you are a millionaire, you don’t have to work, so you can spend as much time as you want mentoring inner city kids, or tutoring students, or visit cancer patients.
You can use your time and your money to pursue whatever makes your heart sing.
Of course, having more stuff and a bigger lifestyle won’t cut it – not really. So, what really will make your heart sing? Only you can answer that for yourself. How will you answer?
May 15 2012
Reader Poll: What is the Most Common Way People Become Millionaires?
What do you think? Do people become millionaires mostly by working hard or mostly by being lucky, or do you think is there some other method used?
If you can, give some examples.
May 14 2012
Millionaires – Not What You Think
Most people think millionaires are characterized by expensive houses, expensive cars and lots of material luxury. It’s more or less the James Bond image. The reality, though is quite different.
Dr Thomas J. Stanley and Dr William D. Danko discovered this when they researched millionaires. They have shared their findings in The Millionaire Next Door. Here is an excerpt:
“These people cannot be millionaires! They don’t look like millionaires, they don’t dress like millionaires, they don’t eat like millionaires, they don’t act like millionaires – they don’t even have millionaire names. Where are the millionaires who look like millionaires?”
The person who said this was a vice president of a trust department. He made these comments following a focus group interview and dinner that we hosted for ten first-generation millionaires. His view of millionaires is shared by most people who are not wealthy. They think millionaires own expensive clothes, watches, and other status artifacts. We have found this is not the case.
As a matter of fact, our trust officer friend spends significantly more for this suites than the typical American millionaire. He also wears a $5,000 watch. We know from our surveys that the majority of millionaires never spent even one-tenth of $5,000 for a watch. Our friend also drives a current-model imported luxury car. Most millionaires are not driving this year’s model. Only a minority drive foreign luxury cars. Our trust officer leases, while only a minority of millionaires ever lease their motor vehicles.
But ask the typical American adult this question: Who looks more like a millionaire? Would it be our friend, the trust officer, or one of the people who participated in our interview? We would wager that most people by a wide margin would pick the trust officer. But looks can be deceiving.
The truths are this:
1. 80% of millionaires are first generation rich.
2. Wealth is not the same as income. If you make 7 figures and spend all of it each year, you are not wealthy.
3. Millionaires become wealthy by living well below their means.
4. Millionaires don’t look like millionaires because they are frugal and watch their outgo very carefully.
Like with many things in life if we try go make it *look* good before it *is* good, we miss out on it actually being good. The bottom line is that to acquire wealth, you must sacrifice the *looks*, live below your means, and save the rest.
The good news is that anyone can become a millionaire. When you follow our plan, you are just about guaranteed to be come a millionaire.
If you are interested in learning more, check out our coming workshop, “Break Free!” in June http://www.steamenginefinancialcoaching.com/events.
