Quotes from Thomas J. Stanley

Measure your own value in terms of the security and happiness of those who depend on you.

Good health, longevity, happiness, a loving family, self-reliance, fine friends … if you [have] five, you're a rich man….

There are about 300,000 neighborhoods in the United States, and more than half of them have at least one millionaire living there. Most millionaires drive American cars. Out of the top 30 or 40 makes and models, Ford is number one, with about 10 percent of the market share.

Whatever your income, always live below your means.

I am not impressed with what people own. But I'm impressed with what they achieve. I'm proud to be a physician. Always strive to be the best in your field…. Don't chase money. If you are the best in your field, money will find you.

Good health, longevity, happiness, a loving family, self-reliance, fine friends … if you [have] five, you're a rich man….

Wealth is more often the result of a lifestyle of hard work, perseverance, planning, and, most of all, self-discipline.

Many people who live in expensive homes and drive luxury cars do not actually have much wealth. Then, we discovered something even odder: Many people who have a great deal of wealth do not even live in upscale neighborhoods.

It's easier to accumulate wealth if you don't live in a high-status neighborhood.

One of the reasons that millionaires are economically successful is that they think differently.

If your goal is to become financially secure, you'll likely attain it…. But if your motive is to make money to spend money on the good life,… you're never gonna make it.

The foundation stone of wealth accumulation is defense, and this defense should be anchored by budgeting and planning.

If you're not yet wealthy but want to be someday, never purchase a home that requires a mortgage that is more than twice your household's total annual realized income.

Money should never change one's values…. Making money is only a report card. It's a way to tell how you're doing.

Have you ever noticed those people whom you see jogging day after day? They are the ones who seem not to need to jog. But that's why they are fit. Those who are wealthy work at staying financially fit. But those who are not financially fit do little to change their status.

Be tough … life is. In other words, there is no promise of a rose garden.

it matters less how much more you make than what you do with what you already have.

Multiply your age times your realized pretax annual household income from all sources except inheritances. Divide by ten. This, less any inherited wealth, is what your net worth should be.

Most people will never become wealthy in one generation if they are married to people who are wasteful. A couple cannot accumulate wealth if one of its members is a hyperconsumer.

it is very difficult for a married couple to accumulate wealth if one is a spendthrift. A household divided in its financial orientation is unlikely to accumulate significant wealth.

How can well-educated, high-income people be so naive about money? Because being a well-educated, high-income earner does not automatically translate into financial independence. It takes planning and sacrificing.

Great offense and poor defense translate into under accumulation of wealth.

To build wealth, minimize your realized (taxable) income and maximize your unrealized income (wealth/capital appreciation without a cash flow).

His view of millionaires is shared by most people who are not wealthy. They think millionaires own expensive clothes, watches, and other status artifacts. We have found this is not the case.