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I always get asked the question of how I became successful. If you ever hang out with me for a day or two, you’ll notice that most of my friends are 30 to 50 years old. When you start hanging around with people in this age group, you will soon realize that they have tons of experience under their belt and they usually don’t mind sharing it with you.
Here is what I have learned in the last year from 10 successful entrepreneurs:
There’s no such thing as a safe bet - just because a friend or a family member tells you about an investment, it doesn’t mean it is a good opportunity. If it was that good, they wouldn’t tell you about it and instead they would put in all their money. The only reason people tell you about investment opportunities is because they want to diversify due to the risk. (David Niu – sold a company to aQuantive and is the co-founder of BuddyTV)
You don’t have to start a business to be successful – if you find a good business you can always buy it, grow it, and sell it for a good return. In many cases it is less risky to buy a business than to start it from scratch. (Ben Huh – bought I Can Has Cheezburger)
Just because you have money, it doesn’t mean you should blow it – there is no need for small companies or startups to waste money. You have to be scrappy at all times, such as subletting a 660 square foot office space at a good deal and squeezing 12 employees in there as well as a conference room. (Andy Liu – sold a company to aQuantive and is the other co-founder of BuddyTV)
If you want to keep making money you have to spend some on yourself – if you end up spending money on yourself, it will create a drive in you that will cause you to want to make more money. If you just keep on saving money, there isn’t much to motivate you to keep making more of it. (John Reese – the godfather of email marketing and a Lamborghini owner)
Have some balls – stand up for yourself and don’t be afraid to confront others. If you let people push you around, when will it ever end? Letting others push you around may not seem like a big deal at first, but it can impact your life and business in a negative way. (Jeremy Schoemaker – sold a company to MediaWhiz and made $132,994.97 from Google in one month)
Raising venture capital is harder than being stricken by lightning – a venture capitalist usually has no clue about most of the investments brought to him or her. But if you make the investor feel that they can contribute to your company and if you can show growth, the investor must be on crack if they don’t fund you. (Guy Kawasaki – writer, entrepreneur, and venture capitalist)
There is nothing wrong with being last in line – if you miss out on an opportunity, who cares, there are plenty more out there. See who else is involved and think things through carefully before you jump in and make a commitment. (Alex Algard – investor and founder of Whitepages.com)
Staying under the radar isn’t always a bad thing – getting press and buzz maybe nice, but it can also cause your company to be getting too much attention. This can lead to things like increased competition. It may just be better to stay under the radar and make millions while you can. (Edward Yim – sold a company to Marchex and founded a company that has been stealth for years)
Don’t judge a book by its cover – whether a Harvard MBA or a bum hits you up, take the time to listen and respond to everyone. Don’t judge anyone too quickly because you don’t know who is going to be the next Bill Gates (Geoff Entress – made millions by investing in companies that either went public or were bought out)
Ride other peoples’ coattail – being successful isn’t always easy, so why not increase your odds by following other successful people. You may not be as successful as them, but you’ll do well enough. (Mr. C – invested early into a company that went public with a 30 billion dollar market cap)
Yep. Pretty sure I’ve seen you do all of the above. Glad I fit in the age group of the friends you hang out with.
Not sure if you fit in. You are a bit too young, but maybe in another 10 years you’ll get to 30.
Well, maybe I’ll be a millionaire by the time I hit 30. I’m almost there, and if I try and follow more of these tips I might just get there. Thanks for posting this article!
No problem! Let me know if there is anything I can do to help you get to the million mark.
Well, I meant I’m almost 30, not a millionaire or close. Being a millionaire would really help though. I’m in a wheelchair and everything is so friggin expensive! My wheelchair alone cost $25,000, but luckily I have a good wheelchair guy who dipped the price down to $17,000 and insurance paid for it. Unfortunately, insurance doesn’t pay for anything, but I watched your video from Izeafest (on Shoemoney’s blog) and I am a hard worker so I know I’ll get there…Hopefully in 2 1/2 years by the time I hit 30!
Keep on aiming for it and it may happen. I’m glad to see that you aren’t letting anything hold you back. Whether you are in a wheel chair or your arms are broken, don’t let anything stand in your way.
And for some sad reason if you don’t earn 1 million in 2.5 years, don’t stop. Learn from your mistakes and adjust your strategy.
Some really great tips Neil. I love reading about real life people I can relate to. I think the last tip is the easiest to accomplish. Find people who are successful and hang around until the glue sticks.
I totally agree. The cool part about riding coattails is many people don’t mind it. For example Mr. C, who gave me that tip, told me that I should keep riding his coattail as well as a few other people that are on this list.
Well, it helps that many of the top bloggers are so willing to share tips and help people out (yourself included). You don’t see that in many industries. I was successful as a tech writer, but I didn’t like it much (like website copy type things and editing e-books). I’m more creative so blogging lets me write on the kind of things I want to write on! Luckily, my brain isn’t affected by my muscle disease, so there is no shortage on topics to write about.
I like John Reese’s tip! I also like his car. Spending money on oneself is always a strong motivator!
Oh btw, in reference to you at Izeafest, I’m a new fan of yours and I’m about as white as rice (so, I don’t fit your normal demographic)! First the whiteys will be hopping on the Neil bandwagon (like me) and next it will be everybody and their brother coming to see your site!
darn it - I know I hit reply to my old post
No problem… we all make that mistake.
Glad you are a fan of quicksprout.com! My bandwagon isn’t that large, but none-the-less it is getting bigger.
“You don’t have to start a business to be successful – if you find a good business you can always buy it, grow it, and sell it for good return. In many cases it is less risky to buy a business than to start it from scratch.”
–Very True, but there is never a guarantee that you will run the business as successfully or better than the previous owner. In fact, some businesses may take a fall after new ownership.
Check out my post on a business takeover:
http://venturelevel.blogspot.com/2008/09/new-business-takeover.html
Nonetheless, Great post Neil!
You just have to be a smart with your decisions. Ben Huh made a wise decision when he purchased I Can Has Cheezburger. Look at it now… it is much larger and is making more money. 3 million pageviews a day is no joke.
neil great 10 tips to follow all the way to make your million.
Good luck on making your first million. That’s if you already didn’t achieve it.
Very inspiring post Neil! I’m impressed and last one is what most people can try to focus and achieve a ‘faster’ result. My personal favorite is “There is nothing wrong with being last in line” !!
Cheers!
I love the last in line one as well. Based on how I have seen Alex use, it has worked well for him. From an investment standpoint he already had acquisitions from Starbucks and Amazon.
Another tip you clearly embrace:
“Accurate typing, proper english and grammatically correct sentences are overrated for the new age millionaire. Focus on the gist people!”
(I live this tip everyday much to the chagrin of my business partners)
Not a bad point of view, but most of the millionaires I know have exceptional grammatically and English skills. More than half the people on the list came from some sort of ivy league: Stanford, Wharton, Harvard…
Great post, and sage advice. I’ve read in more than one place that your income is usually the average of the 5 people you hang out with most.
Check that out in your own life and see if that’s true. If you think about it, it does mostly make sense…
So use that as some back of the mind motivation to build those networks and develop those relationships!
Keep it up Neil, always a good read.
Sadly my income isn’t the average. I am currently well below average.
Well are they the ones you actually hang around the most?
If so, I’m sure it will average out over time.. if by nothing else opportunities open up as a result of those relationships and their positioning (of course it’s up to all of us to capitalize on those opportunities… open the door when opportunity is knocking, and tell it to pull up a chair).
Yea, it is the ones that I hang around with most. They are local people and are worth a good amount more.
But the thing with me is I don’t hang around with any one person the most. I rotate in with different groups every few days.
And to clarify a bit more on why it doesn’t average out, is because at least 1 out of every 5 sold a company. So that one person could be considered an outlier because they mess up the average.
the bright side… hanging out with people of higher net worth helps you stay motivated! .. But after a certain amount of money it doesn’t really make a difference… $100 million or $200 million, either person can still buy just about anything they want.
I would even say 10 million provides a similar lifestyle. You can’t get a private jet, but you could live off the interest.
It is hard to believe. You absolutely deserve more than average. Any reasons why?
It kind of makes sense. You are who you hang around with. If the people you hang around with are successful you will probably be just like them. If they all are poor, you will probably be poor.
Now this doesn’t mean you can’t be an outlier. There are always exceptions, but you should try and hang around with people you want to be like.
This is a good post…
“Raising venture capital is harder than being stricken by lightning”
he he…
Yea, it is a good quote from Guy. He either told me that in person or it was in his “art of the start” book. You probably should consider buying his book.
Neil, great post! Thanks for compiling all of this together. My fav is Don’t judge a book by its cover
You may like this blog post then: http://www.quicksprout.com/2008/03/09/dont-judge-a-book-by-its-cover/
The two that really stuck out for me were Reese’s “spend money on yourself” and Shoemoney’s “grow some balls”
I realized recently that my income is proporinate to one I curretnly desire… as soon as I increase my wants and desires.. my income rises to match it.
and “grow some balls” is just classic advice that is good to be reminded of.
JFK once said your success in life is directly proportional to the amount of uncomfortable conversations you are willing to have!
Yea, it is the “classic” or obvious stuff that we need to be reminded of. For some reason, those are the things we tend forget and take for granted.
I agree with most of those points except for the one about spending money. I think making money is much easier when you have more of it. Spending it on yourself is fine occasionally, but at some point you’ll need to amass it to succeed.
Yea, John’s advice to me was to spend money on myself “occasionally” because I tend to be cheap and never spend it on myself.
Making money is easier when you have more of it, but you also get lazy. After a while, how much do you really need? That is why if you spend a little on yourself you will try harder to make more.
By no means did he say go out there and blow a 100k.
I like to spend money, but definitely don’t like to waste it. I spend it by rewarding myself after I have accomplished something. So I guess there is always a goal for me and a reward after.
Wasting money isn’t bad as long as it isn’t large amounts. Blowing a few dollars here and there is worth it if it makes you happier.
[...] - 10 Timeless Business Tips From 10 Millionaires There is nothing wrong with being last in [...]
Some great motivation to keep getting back up from unsuccessful projects.
When I have unsuccessful projects I like to analyze all the things I did wrong. This way, when I bounce back, I won’t make the same mistakes.
The post made me think. Remembering that not all projects are successful, made me remember “Get up dust yourself off and go to the next”
And if you keep on failing keep dusting yourself off until you succeed.
I say :
Success :
When people smile because of you, you are successfull
Charity :
When someone smile because of you, Charity is done
Best-Wishes !
Not sure if that cuts it for me. I get the charity part and agree with it, but I don’t agree with the success part. Just because people smile due to something you did, it doesn’t mean you are successful.
Cool article. I will think about some points. Thanks!
Great post. I don’t think the key is hanging out with the older crowd who dispense tips - you’re not in that demographic and here you are providing great insights
Hang with people that don’t define success based on other people’s criteria.
Good point. I started hanging out with these people because they were fun to hang around with and with many of them I didn’t know they had money at first.
that’s pretty ironic, but very very true. my uncle told me the same thing…hanging out with people older than you will sometimes help you avoid road bumps that they have had.
And if you can’t find older people to hang out with, go to your local Books on Tape store and buy a membership. It is always worth listening to the stories of retired CEO’s.
[...] 10 Timeless Business Tips From 10 Millionaires [...]
[...] 10 Timeless Business Tips From 10 Millionaires [...]
Very good insight Neil…I def enjoyed reading it. I also think the pictures you choose for your post are freaking awesome! Keep it up
Thanks! It is always hard to come up with good pictures…in many cases it takes longer to find a good picture than it does to write the blog post.
It is a very interesting list of examples. They seem to be newly made millionaires, so close to the ordinary people, which provide most motivations to the mass.
It depends what you mean by newly made millionaires. Most of them didn’t inherit the money, but they have made millions years ago. Such as some have been millionaires for 10 or 20 years.
Great post. I have recently started business, and this things will be a part of my thinking in new business. Thanks a lot.
Hopefully it helps you become a millionaire.
[...] Quick Sprout put out a nice companion piece to our Success Principles series is this list of 10 Timeless Business Tips from 10 Millionaires, [...]
Some great tips there Neil.
Standing up for yourself is a very important factor in being motivated and motivating the people around you. Staying under the radar has its benefits exactly as you pointed out.
Thanks for sharing.
No problem. I learned some of these things the hard way such as staying under the radar. If I did that with some of the things I know, I would have been richer.
Neil,
Do you think living in NYC makes it harder to get funding for a tech company than it would say…living in”Southern California”.
I think it is the same. I don’t have much experience when it comes to funding, but it seems that there are good VCs in NYC such as http://www.unionsquareventures.com
the age 30 or higher is the age or mature. On this age we have ability to control something and our selve.
Even if you are younger you can still be mature and control yourself. It maybe more difficult, but it is still possible.
Excellent tips. There is one more thing I would like to suggest. Do not declare your premature success aloud until you get there. Getting too much attention is definitely not good.
Totally agree. I hate when people talk about their successes before they happen. If you have a goal from it, by all means do it, but if you don’t keep your mouth shut.
Hi Neil;
I stumbled upon your blog by mistake and this is the frst article I read from your site, I’m impressed on how simple you make it sound, obviously hundreds of people have become rich in the Internet era more or less following those guidelines, but for evey one of them there are thousands that didn’t make it, what do you think are the most common mistakes for not achieving success?
I think a lot of people 1) don’t research their market before they jump into it, 2) don’t plan properly for the up and down times, and 3) quit before they make it.
Perseverance is crucial, and many people expect quick success and bail before they have a chance to really gain traction. Others do the opposite, explode from the start and burn out because they fail to plan and can’t handle the load.
So in essence it comes down to planning and execution. That’s oversimplified for sure, but that’s it in a nutshell.
On top of that you shouldn’t be the only one evaluating the market before you jump in. I would always get advice from other people, even if I know I may not use it.
I don’t think there is one common mistake that causes most people to fail. The mistake I see most frequently is that people don’t learn from their mistakes.
[...] Valuable is 10 Timeless Business Tips From 10 Millionaires by Quick Sprout. From venture capital to savings, from starting a business to investing in [...]
These are some great tips. I see people who have a start up and it starts taking off and of course they have to go buy the ferrari or bentley to make sure people know they have some money. Fast forward a few months and they have had to give the car back to be able to hold on during the regular roller coast ride that is starting a new business.
This is one of the reasons why the housing market is crashing. People bought big homes that they couldn’t really afford.
fantastic tips! you have hit the nail on the head with this post!
Thanks! Hopefully it will help you become a millionaire.
Inspiring article…. Nice tips for encouraging people…
I just hope someone becomes successful by using some of the tips.
nice article and very inspiring me
I honestly can say that this post just changed my life. I clicked here from SmashingMagazine - for the second time - and reread this post. Please keep putting awesome stuff like this up.
Thanks! I didn’t realize that other unrelated blogs would help increase readership. I was hoping that it would, but I wasn’t 100% sure that it would work.
I am glad you like the blog!
Also, I wanted to ask, is this site owned by the same people as Smashing
No, I personally own the blog. My name is Neil Patel and you can learn more about me by reading: http://www.quicksprout.com/about/
The note: “”If you want to keep making money you have to spend some on yourself”" is best and 100 True, actually if you are making money from your blog, then yes you must spend few $$s on your blog to make it best, same thing applicable to your self.
What I mean by the statement is that you have to spend money on yourself. (ex: buy a car, new watch, clothes…)
I think a huge thing is the taking risks thing. The difference between a few billionaires and those working small time jobs now was the billionaires had the balls to make the gamble.
I totally agree. If you don’t take risks, there isn’t much of a possibility to become wealthy.
[...] 10 Timeless Business Tips from 10 Millionaires - Neil Patel (Quicksprout) I haven’t featured Neil before, but this rather self-explanatory post features some great advice from some very respected entrepreneurs such as Guy Kawasaki, John Reese, Jeremy Shoemaker and others. [...]
You do bring up a valid point that one can just purchase another’s business to start up in a quicker fashion. There is not always a need to start up a new concept with all new parts.
Ideally I would always purchase a business and grow it compared to starting it from scratch. This may be more costly, but it removes a lot of risk.
Those are some great comments and helpful tips. Thanks Neil. I’d love to have lunch sometime in SoCal. I am part of a group of internet marketers and we have events every now and then. I bet you could teach us all a thing or two.
Feel free to email me at neil@acsseo.com the next time you through have a meetup. I would love to come.
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