How the habits of rich and poor people differ

Aside from the size of bank accounts, how are rich people different from poor people? Lifestyle, daily routine and habits. There is a chance that money is primary here, but what if it was habits that helped today's billionaires to put together their capital? Author Thomas Corley studied the daily habits of 233 rich and 128 poor people and made some conclusions.

The rich have a daily routine

81% of the wealthy surveyed have a schedule and try to follow it. Among those who earn little, only 9% write down their plans for the day.

44% of wealthy people wake up 3 hours before work and devote this time to sports, self-education and other personal matters. Of those who cannot boast of an impressive fortune, only 3% get up early.

In addition, 67% of the wealthy surveyed have a habit of writing down their goals. And those who earn little do this only in 17% of cases.

The rich care about health

76% of wealthy participants in the experiment exercise four times a week and try not to eat junk food. And this is quite logical, because regular exercise not only helps to keep yourself in shape, but also improves memory and cognitive functions.

Among low-income people, only 23% find time for sports.

The rich spend time educating themselves

88% of the wealthy read at least half an hour every day. Of those who earn little money, only 2% of people do this. But the poor survey participants prefer to spend time in front of the TV screen and in 75% of cases devote more than an hour a day to this activity.

Entrepreneur and journalist Michael Simmons also studied the habits of millionaires and found that Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Jack Ma and many others read and study for at least an hour a day on weekdays. This means that at least five hours are recruited in a week. This is exactly what Simmons called the formula he derived - the five-hour rule. If you carve them out for education, he believes, success is assured.

True, this idea is often criticized. Firstly, it is easier for rich people engaged in intellectual work to find the time and energy to study. And secondly, exercising from under the stick kill curiosity, which appears only where there are pleasant emotions. Bill Gates himself also believes that you can only succeed in what brings pleasure.

The rich try to pass on their values to their children

For example, encouraging them to volunteer and read. In 70% of the billionaires surveyed, children devote at least 10 hours a week to volunteering, while in 63% they read at least two popular science books a month. Children of low-income people do this only 3% of the time.

The rich believe in the power of habits

Good habits help where willpower alone is not enough. Experts even believe that about 40% of decisions we make on autopilot, influenced by habits - good or bad.

According to a survey conducted by Thomas Corley, rich people share this view: 84% of them believe that habits are very important. But among the poor, only 4% of the respondents agree with this.

When trying to come up with a universal formula for success, it's worth remembering this. Actions and habits alone do not guarantee anything. Success is made up of many ingredients. And some of them, such as luck or the ability to be in the right place at the right time, are generally difficult to analyze.

Even if you look at the statistics collected, you can see that a small percentage of the poor still read books, go in for sports and self-education, but do not earn billions. Therefore, the experience of successful people is definitely worth considering, but relying on it completely is a bad idea.

UPD. Text updated on October 6, 2019.