Which Comes First - Wealth Or Success?

Think about this example for a minute. A small business owner creates a business that grows substantially every year and becomes very profitable. The business is generating six figure profits each year and the owner is earning a great personal income. She has invested a large sum of money for her future and created substantial value through her business. She lives in the house of her dreams, drives a luxury car, takes 6 weeks vacation a year and gets to spend plenty of time with her family doing the things she loves doing. The business runs efficiently so she is not required to be there for it to work the way it should. All her friends and associates consider her a big success and she is living the American dream. Sounds great, doesn’t it?

So, the question is … which came first, wealth or success? Some people would argue that she became successful because she achieved the wealth. The wealth came from her hard work and business savvy. By creating significant profits in her business, she was able to get the things she wanted and live the life she desires, so the wealth is what created the success.

My perspective is just the opposite. In order for her to create wealth she first had to become successful. It may seem like an insignificant thing to worry about, but I assure you it isn’t. It is a mindset that is critical to creating the life of your dreams. Most people get it backward thinking they will be successful once they achieve great wealth. However, in order to achieve wealth, you must first focus on achieving success. Wealth will follow if you focus on the process of achieving your goals and creating a successful life.

Once you create your definition of success and develop your plan about how to achieve it, then you can start working on the specifics of what you need to focus on. By increasing your knowledge, your skills and your business expertise, you will begin to see things starting to work the way you want them to. This will lead to new levels of success that will start to build wealth.

Too many times we simply hope that what we are doing will lead to great wealth and then we can begin to live our dreams. I talk to many business owners that are doing the same things every day in their business and waiting for the money to start coming in. It rarely does and then they become frustrated and disappointed. They expect that wealth will come to them and then they can pronounce themselves successful.

What they don’t understand is they must first learn to become a success if they want the wealth to follow. This means living a life of continual learning, seeking out advice and support from others, remaining flexible and trying new things continually. You must work on improving your skills in sales, marketing, financial management, leadership, and team building. Unless you happen to be one of the very few lucky people to win the lottery, the only way to create true wealth in your life is to first become a success.

There is a lot of truth that success attracts more success. Those who understand the mindset that is required to become successful and are willing to take steps to achieve it are the ones who create wealth and live the way they want to. Once success becomes a habit for you, then you simply don’t know any other way. Success will start to compound as long as you keep a success mindset. If you want wealth … become successful first!