Some of the secrets of true wealth - from the truly wealthy

Warren Buffett says happiness comes from within. And yet he has so much “external wealth” that millions of people read books about him to find out how it’s done.

Here’s a clue as to what his secret really is:

Warren Buffet doesn’t own his personal jet like the Hollywood stars do – even though he’s far wealthier. He doesn’t own a massive yacht. Or a mansion. Why not?

Because he doesn’t want those things and he’s not going to get them just to impress people.

I don’t think he’d object to owning these things if he truly wanted them. But he knows that a private jet or a massive yacht will not make him happy – and he doesn’t have either of those for his personal use because he simply does not feel the need. He can’t understand why you would want a huge yacht simply because it’s a bit bigger than anyone else’s. He lives in the same small three bedroom house that he’s lived in for the last 50 years.

Why? Because he’s happy like that.

These facts are well known, and they make a good story. But there is a lesson in there for all of us:

Warren Buffett doesn’t care a bit about what other people think. Some years ago when the stock market was going up and up – he wasn’t buying. He was ridiculed for doing nothing. But he knew one of the main rules of wealth – if there is nothing to be done, do nothing. He had the patience and the discipline to sit it out until conditions were right and then he took action – and hugely increased his wealth.

So it is clear that he takes a different approach to investing – one that ignores crazy crowd behaviour, the gurus, fashionable trends, opinion pieces in the financial pages, everything except what really matters. And it works.

The lesson?

Live in the house you want to, even if it is a mansion.

Have a yacht if you want to – if you really enjoy sailing. If it’s really you.

Do what really works for you.

And, importantly, find a formula for wealth that really works no matter what the crowd says. A formula that usually means you’re going in the opposite direction to the masses. A formula that works in any and all economic cycles. A formula like the Formula for Riches – simple, powerful, effective, tested, timeless.

If you do what you love and love what you do, you’ll be productive and happy. If you have the courage to be yourself, you can be all you could ever be. If you have the guts to stick to the truth no matter what others are doing, you will be wealthy.