Do you know the key difference between those that are wealthy and those that are not?  If you answered they have money you got it right – partially right, that is.  Jean Chatzky, the financial editor for NBC’s Today show and host of a daily radio show on the Oprah and Friends channel on Sirius XM Radio has published a book that attempts to point out with clear examples how the wealthy have leveraged the power within to achieve the same goals you have: financial security that lasts a lifetime.

The book is appropriately titled “The Difference: How Anyone Can Prosper in Even The Toughest Times ”.   According to Chatzky, as reported in the USA Today, the wealthy do have something that many people don’t.  “They are different in their attitudes, behaviors (financial and non-financial), personalities and goals”, she says.  They also seem to have more of the key ingredients to success.  They are: 

• More passionate
• More visionary
• More connected to others
• More confident in their relationships and life
• Grateful for their good fortune

Chatzky likes to point out that you can learn from the wealthy and obtain the same results that they have achieved for themselves. The difference is about believing in oneself, or as she puts it:

 

“It’s about making your own luck, not taking no for an answer, and paying attention to the things you are doing – both right and wrong – so you can accomplish more with fewer sidesteps in the future.”

 

Chatzky’s book does not unveil any new ideas or strikes of genius.  What it does is remind us that the principles of wealth and success are quite simple and well known – they just need to be followed diligently.  The time proven principles of being positive, working hard and saving are part of the core belief system taught by Chatzky.  And here is one more principle that seems quite relevant in today’s environment: 

 

“…when life kicks you to the curb, find a way to get back up again.  Practice, practice, practice.”

 

A study conducted in 2008 by Harris Interactive in cooperation with Merrill Lynch shows that only 3% of Americans are truly wealthy, which in this case is defined as having investible assets, excluding main home equity, averaging around $2 million.  The study also shows that more than half of all Americans live from paycheck to paycheck, a financial situation not congruent with wealth-building principles.

 

If you want to get past the paycheck-to-paycheck state of affairs and wish to join the small percentage of Americans that are privileged enough to call themselves wealthy, here are some basic steps taught in the book:

 

• Learn to save – put 10% away automatically
• Control your spending – track where your money is going so you can manage it
• Visualize your goals – place a picture of what you want where you can see it often
• Keep learning – make it a lifelong commitment
• Uncover your passion – do what you love and the money will follow
• Find the silver lining in every situation – there is always a silver lining

These ideas may seem very simple and well known.  But who said being wealthy needs to be complicated and mysterious?