Rich Couples

The old saying is true: The rich are different.

But not only do their values and habits set them apart from the hoi polloi, they’re different from their wealthy predecessors of a generation ago. For those interested in joining their ranks, it helps to understand why.

To enter the nation’s top 1%, you need more than $5 million. And if you get there, you’ll have plenty of newly arrived company: The number of U.S. “pentamillionaires” has quadrupled in the past 10 years, to more than 930,000.

Indeed, 70% of the nation’s big family fortunes are less than 13 years old, according to The Harrison Group, a research and marketing firm. And the people who amassed those fortunes are primarily entrepreneurs — risk takers for whom wealth is a byproduct of pursuing their passion.

What got them to the highest level? It isn’t necessarily stock market savvy: On average, folks who recently hit the $5 million mark report that only 10% of their money came through passive investments. And only 10% of pentamillionaires inherited their wealth.

More than luck involved

One might think that good fortune would play a role, but even luck is largely a matter of one’s own making. Psychologist Richard Wiseman has found that people who describe themselves as lucky share common habits that account for their success: They’re friendly and fond of new experiences, traits that put them on a collision course with new opportunities. In addition, “lucky” folks simply have higher expectations of success — they’re too pigheadedly optimistic to heed the long odds and call it quits.Not to say that getting rich is simply a matter of having a swell attitude. The path to riches usually involves the kind of risk that would make most people feel a little queasy.

Chances are you feel similarly. When people dream of getting rich, it’s about more than nice clothes and fancy vacations. Being rich means freedom: to spend your time as you please, to pursue your real interests and to take chances without courting utter ruin. Paradoxically, the road to riches often means acting as if you already have that freedom.

source Money