In my last blog, I profiled Joe the extraordinary CPA who had over 800 clients [from Networking with the Affluent].* To understand his success one needs to examine the eight roles that Joe played in addition to being a conventional accountant for his clients. Note that he never charged a fee for these services. 1. The Purchasing Agent. As …
I recently received an e-mail from a physician of the Income Statement Affluent variety (high income/low net worth). In it he laments about the difficulty in transforming himself into a Balance Sheet Affluent millionaire. I have all the basics to live frugally; I just have not done so because I have been caught up with …
People are often vulnerable to “get rich quick” solicitations when they see their economic future dimming or when they have had a financial reversal. In this context consider a letter I received from a woman I refer to as “Fay Naivete.” My husband and I were extreme income statement affluent types. He came from money; I …
Many people have contacted me since I first published the Wealth Equation in Marketing to the Affluent, aka marketing to the millionaire next door. They seek yet another form of special dispensation. Most often these people are in their 20s, 30s and some 40s. They argue that they haven’t been working long enough to accumulate what …
We recently sold our family’s mainstay, a 1997 Toyota 4 Runner 4 X 4. I bought the car new as a reward, a merit badge, in recognition of The Millionaire Next Door hitting No. 1 on The New York Times Bestseller List. The car was like a good friend; it never let our family down. Even though it had 180,000 …
Last week while I was in the middle of crunching numbers from the IRS estate data, my phone rang. Jerry, a friend of a friend, immediately began sharing his concerns about his “real estate situation.” Jerry is a computer programmer, and his wife is a part-time dental technician. The couple’s annual adjusted gross income is …
Last Sunday, a church in our neighborhood sponsored a sandwich drive. Members and their friends who volunteered made 12,000 bologna and cheese sandwiches for homeless people in the downtown area. About half of the people who participated included families with young children. This is a great learning experience for youngsters who are part of middle class America. It teaches them more …
What did I discover from my first national survey of millionaires in 1980? Just over one-half (53%) of these wealthy respondents graduated from college. What about 30 years later? The large majority (90%) of millionaires today are college graduates holding at least a bachelor’s degree. The same proportion applies to those with multimillions including decamillionaires. It …
I received an inquiry regarding marketing/networking advice last week from a Grammy-nominated recording artist. I’ve included the note (with name changed), my response to her question, as well as advice for those in the entertainment industry below. Dr. Stanley, How do I apply your techniques to music marketing – I am a recording artist. All …