Bookmark and Share

Who Wants to Be a Billionaire?

By ANDREA COOPER
Posted: 2008-06-26 13:59:15
Filed Under: Small Business, Starting a Business
What essential characteristics do America's wealthiest entrepreneurs share? More important, how can you, too, develop these qualities? Read on to find out how to think like the entrepreneurial elite."
Entrepreneur.com

The wealthiest entrepreneurs share some common characteristics, according to a 2007 study on affluence in the U.S. from American Express Publishing and The Harrison Group. Researchers looked at the top half of the top 1 percent of America's wealthiest individuals--those who have assets of $5 million and above. (The sampling was representative of the top 600,000 households in the U.S., whose mean value of household assets is $30.6 million.) Within this data set, they compared entrepreneurs with nonentrepreneurs. Among the findings:

Entrepreneur
More Entrepreneur
- Entrepreneurs are less likely to be college graduates than non-entrepreneurs. - They are more likely to attribute their success to determination, while nonentrepreneurs credit intelligence and education. - They say their happiness increases as they accumulate more money. - They are more likely to say money brings them self-confidence, while nonentrepreneurs say it brings them security.

Author Martin Fridson identified some of the same qualities in his research for How to Be a Billionaire. "Extraordinary tenacity is right at the top of the list," he says. "Billionaires are not satisfied with as much money as they're ever likely to spend in their lives, so there's clearly something going on beyond mere material satisfaction." These entrepreneurs are competitive, desiring to surpass not only their rivals, but also their own past achievements. Such people can often find a way to turn defeat into victory, proving themselves right in their business judgments again and again.

The billionaires Fridson profiled in his book, including Richard Branson, Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Kirk Kerkorian and the late Laurence Tisch, all communicated effectively with employees, customers and other constituents. "You don't see recluses quietly making a billion in secret," Fridson points out. And, interestingly, he found that many of his subjects were very skilled poker or bridge players. They took pleasure in a bit of a gamble. That comfort with risk, Fridson says, is key: They like the feeling of playing for high stakes. Perhaps that leads billionaires to see possibilities where others don't.

Billionaires have a different view of what reality could be, says Ken Siegel, a social psychologist and president of The Impact Group Inc., a group of psychotherapists who consult with global companies. Billionaires often have a desire to change the world. Bill Gates, who popularized the idea that you don't need paper to write or calculate, is a good example. "If you think about where we came from, using electric typewriters, [Gates' success] required a whole mind shift about reality," Siegel says. Such leaders want to be the driving force of change and have some control over the way their ideas are implemented.

Though the American Express survey found that top-performing entrepreneurs place a higher value on money, Siegel cautions against using money as your primary motivation. "The more you focus on the financial potential you feel you are owed, the less likely you are to get there," he says. Instead, your focus should be on improving your services or products, with greater profits as the end result.

Along with having success in mind, elite entrepreneurs use distinct business strategies to boost their companies' development, says Rita Gunther McGrath, associate professor at Columbia Business School and co-author of MarketBusters. To begin, they figure out a business model with the capacity for what McGrath calls "mind-blowing growth." Dell, for instance, used off-the-shelf components from a variety of suppliers, so it didn't face growth barriers that might have come from difficulties in making or designing components.

While billionaires have a strong belief in their own abilities, the capacity to move forward aggressively, and a willingness to take risks they have thought through, they also hire very talented people to work alongside them. "Unlike a more typical entrepreneur, they are really good at building extremely capable teams without feeling threatened," says McGrath.

Not all attributes common to billionaires are positive, Siegel observes. Those who achieve such great success can be extraordinarily independent, to the point that it's difficult for them to develop close, intimate relationships. Others can be narcissistic, with illusions of invulnerability--witness the recent spate of CEO excesses and fiscal improprieties. Still others can become so engrossed in their work that their families suffer, or they have no life outside of work.

After all the sophisticated analysis, there's one quality billionaire entrepreneurs have that's impossible to deny, much as we might like to. "As corny as it sounds," says Fridson, "capacity to work hard is important."





More on This Topic

  1. Unleash Your Innovator
  2. Go From Slow to Go
  3. No Excuses
  4. Your Inner Entrepreneur


    2005-12-13 18:44:03
    Bookmark:

    Recent Comments

    Post Your Own  
    1 - 10 of 35
    35 comments

    jeffstorrs 12:17:03 AM Oct 31 2008

    Report This!

    previous entries I meant and if you want to know the Secret to my Wealth and you don't see it yet email me!

    jeffstorrs 12:16:14 AM Oct 31 2008

    Report This!

    READ THE NEXT THREE ENTRIES from the BOTTOM UP!!

    jeffstorrs 12:15:07 AM Oct 31 2008

    Report This!

    THEN his wife came out with a 4way lug wrenchIN the end The owner was apologizing to me up and down got a spray bottle and towle and I washed my hands and dried them and He kept apologizing...one of his employees looked at me and said " There are angels on earth" and this man was black and I am white. There was nothigng but Love after the good deed was done........and the disabled man asked me how much he owed me I cry when I tell this story and I cried when I told him he owed me nothing more than to pay it forward in anyway he could for someone else someday.......This is what I do This is what I live for...Why I am alive still.....and anyone who wants the rest of the story can email me at JEFFSTORRS At A O L

    jeffstorrs 12:14:17 AM Oct 31 2008

    Report This!

    car wash we pulled into.....the man was disabled and I took care of him......the CW owner yelled at me and threatened me with the Sheriff which I welcomed him to call....said I was blocking his customers there were no new customers he said I was costing him money we did not use his electricity nor his water! The disabled man said that he did not have a lug wrench no one would help him two people were rude when he asked to use their cell phone to call a tow truck Some people are so unworthy of being humans... I just told him NOT to worry if my lug wrench was nott he right size I would go BUY one that fit read onAFTER I finally got the car jacked up and four out of five lug nuts removed, his employes came out and offered me a floor jack I was already on the ground turning a scissors jack for twenty minutes because it was so hard to turn. Would ahve been nice to just pump that floor jack five times and be off the ground oh well THEN his wife came

    jeffstorrs 12:12:54 AM Oct 31 2008

    Report This!

    hilemanhouse you are so wrong BY the way I am creating HELPING THEM BECOME MILLIONAIRES right now! BUT you are also RIGHT on the money.There will always be people wealthier than you and me. THAT'S because we are on AOL and not on The Golden Beaches Of Life! BUT I am ONLY here to serve. I come into people's lives daily and some listen. Some never will listen. And SOME DO what they are taught. BY the way I TEACH for FREE. Some people listen learn and ACT upon the knowledge I instill unto them. I am no better or no worse than anyone else. I simply apply a formula that works. NO MATTER who you are or where you are from. I can create a millionaire out of you. AND IT takes 1000 million to be a Billionaire. I could care less about that much money although it would be nice to GIVE back and pay forward millions more than I do. I stopped and helped a man yesterday because I saw he was driving on a flat tire.......I was accosted by the owner fo the car wash we pulle

    mjac777 11:48:22 PM Oct 30 2008

    Report This!

    If Obama gets elected...forget about the American Dream. You'll get cut off at the knees before you get out of the gate.I cannot believe how stupid the American People are.Europe is swinging conservative because they KNOW capitalism is the only way to have freedom.Do you want to be FREEor do you want to be EQUAL?Equality (as per Obama) makes us ALL poor.Trickle up poverty. Just say no!!McCain/Palin 2008Keep the American Dream ALive !!

    hilemanhouse 02:11:30 AM Aug 26 2008

    Report This!

    To a person with no money a person with a dollar is rich, to a person with one dollar a person with five dollars is rich, somebody somewhere is always going to have more than you do it is a fact of life. Stop looking at everyone else to decide where you should be and who you are, you are the ONLY person who can change your life, and yes that includes Obama. He cares about votes not you, he can not lift you up by dragging everyone else down

    homzkool 12:48:39 AM Aug 26 2008

    Report This!

    What I always wonder is why are some poor people so proud of being poor to the point of actually being arrogant about it? And the second thing I wonder is why does that type they think that everyone owes them something for being poor? Further, why do they think that it's someone elses responsibility to take care of them beyond giving them a hand up? Someone should rebuild the homes of people who are too STUPID to buy insurance? I don't think so. Help yes, rebuild their entire town and lives? Please. I don't know anyone with so little self respect that they would even want that scenario. I've known two kinds of poor people -- those who were so lazy they didn't care other thanto whine about it and those who were so stupid they thought they were poor while they were typing about it on a computer that cost more than the annual salary of an entire family would amount to in some countries. I've known lots of rich people too -- some of them had money and some of them didn't have anyt

    homzkool 12:39:26 AM Aug 26 2008

    Report This!

    ghmcartridges 11:21:49 AM May 24 2008 The Bible says, "Money is the root of all Evil."Then I guess I'm not such a bad fellow, seeing as I've been kind of poor most of my life. I can't help wondering though, when a man like Bill Gates hears stories like "Tornado rips through Town of so and so, distroys 50 homes, leaving hundreds homeless, no food, no money, many hurt." _____________________________________________________________That is NOT what the Bible says -- it says that LOVE of money is the root of all evil. So, while you pat yourself on the back for not being such a "bad fellow", you wonder why Bill Gates doesn't fund every tragedy or event that happens while I wonder, what did you do about it? Since it obviously has touched your heart, you surely must have given all that you could because maybe Mr. Gates was busy helping someone else or maybe he didn't see that particular news clip. But, you did. So, it is incumbent upon you to do all that YOU can. Otherwise, you're just on

    oasis1418 04:39:36 PM Aug 25 2008

    Report This!

    Its all in the eyes of the beholder. Im probably worth millions but some of my friends are worth many more miions than I am. My family is very poor comparatively but they dont work nearly as hard or see the future as I do. My brother tells me its luck, I would argue those who take intelligent risks and think outside the box can do anything. I came from a very poor family, I never graduated college, I did the 5 year Army thing and I feel successful. Just not where I want to be quite yet.

    1 - 10 of 35
    35 comments

    Add your own Comments

    Clear
    Add

    The Startup

    The Startup

    The Startup, the web's premiere online reality show for small business owners, is back for its third season! Watch as we follow four entrepreneurs to see how they're making their businesses come to life.

    1. The Startup

      Small Business Checklists

      It can be difficult to keep up with all the details involved in running a small business. Don't lose track of the details -- use a checklist to keep yourself organized.

      1. Checklist: Starting a Business
      2. Checklist: Closing a Business
      3. Index of Small Business Checklists

        Small Business Success Stories

        1. More Than Moonlighting
        2. Reality TV Leads to Small Biz Success
        3. From Couple to Business Partners
        4. Build-A-Bear's Founder Shares Her Story

          Helpful Resources

            AOL Coaches

            Jake Steinfeld

            Business Coaches
            Starting your own business can be a daunting task. With AOL's Small Business Coaches, you can get the best advice to guide you through the process.