Do I have the Ten Traits that Make You Filthy Rich?

Today on yahoo personal finance I read an article entiled "Ten Traits that Make You Filthy Rich." You can access that article here. After reading through the article I thought it was something worthy of sharing on my blog and I'd like to comment on whether or not I feel I have some or all of these traits. I'm not necesarily convinced that having these traits will make you rich, but I think they would help you on your journy.

The first trait is PATIENCE. Patience is waiting for the right time and opportunity. It is waiting for the sale special deal to save some money. It is putting off a new car purchase a couple extra years so you can save the money. Having patience can mean the difference between buying things with cash and buying things on credit. Another part of patience is with investments. This year the market has seemed to go nowhere but down. Have patience with your retirement investments. For me, with retirement being 40 years away, it would be unwise to react to the down markets moving all of my retirement money into bonds or cash. I will be patient and reap the rewards with the market turns itself around eats up the current losses and gives me even more gains. I'm not sure that I have always held this trait but as I become more and more aware of my personal finances, I am becoming more and more patient with both investments and purchases.

The second trait is SATISFACTION. This involves being satisfied or happy with what you have. For example, I am satisfied with my current tv. It's not a large flat screen but it is big enough and works well for me at this point in my life. Will I never get that new tv? I will, just not right now. I am satisfied with my current car. It's not the Mercedes I would like to have but it does it's job. It's a nice car and I will keep it for a very long time. If you are not satisfied with what you have then you will always be spending money trying to find that satisfaction. It may give you joy buying that new product, however, it will be a joy that is short lived. Once that joy runs out you will be looking for something else to satisfy you. Be satisfied with what you have. This is a trait that I feel I have. There are things I want but I realize I would be no better off then I am now by getting those things.

The third trait is ORGANIZATION. I admit I could use a little help with this trait. I know where my stuff is but I sometimes lose things. I am working on this skill of organization. I have bought a filing cabinent and try to keep my financial records organized. Being organized helps you from losing things and paying late fees. I try to stay as organized as possible with my finances especially so I don't pay the unnecessary late fees. Organization can help you be more productive by being decluttered. Stay organized.

The fourth trait is DISCIPLINE. It is discipline that helps you stay on the road to your goals. You will not become a millionaire over night. Save for your goals. Stay on track paying off debts. Work hard and you will achieve. I am trying to be as disciplined as possible but sometimes I falter. I try to stick to a budget, save what was planned, pay off debt that was planned, and do everything I can to achieve my goals. It will not help me to make a purchase that is not in the budget. This will only force me to save less or pay off less debt that month. Stay disciplined.

The fifth trait is REFLECTIVENESS. Look at your financial decisions and reflect on thier results. I do this every month by looking at our net worth progress. So far my decisions have paid off and my fiance and I are increasing our net worth every month since keeping track. Another area for me to reflect is my stock brokerage account. Currently it is a small percentage of my capital I use to speculate in stocks. I often reflect on purchases and sales and what went right and wrong. I want to improve on each stock transaction I make.

The sixth trait is CREATIVITY. There are many aspects to creativity. For me, creativity is finding things to entertain my fiance and I without spending as much money. This includes walks in the park, picnics, nights staying in to watch a movie, and game nights with our friends. We try not to go out and blow too much of our hard earned cash on drinks and food or other more expensive forms of entertainment. Another way creativity comes into play is our budget. We must be flexible and creative with our budget to make it work each month so that we may accomplish our goals.

The seventh trait is CURIOSITY. Being curious helps you learn and improve. I am constantly reading personal finance books and investing books because I am searching for new and better ways to reach my goals. I read personal finance blogs every day looking for new ideas. If you are curious about something you will learn more about it.

The eighth trait is RISK TAKING. You must be willing to take risk. If you don't take risk then all your money is sitting in a savings account earning you very little interest. To make the kind of money you need to be filthy rich, you must take risks in investing and business. If you always do the safest thing then you will be paid to do the safest thing. The stock market may be risky with it's up and down volatility. However, that is a risk I am willing to take if I have a chance at earning over 10% return on my savings. This does not mean be stupid. I don't have all my assets in the stock market. You must diversify and have an emergency fund in a liquid savings account. I have mine in an online money market account. But by taking thought out calculated risk, you give yourself a better chance for becoming wealthy in the future.

The ninth trait is GOAL ORIENTED. Goals are like road maps. If you don't know where you want to go then how are you going to get there. I know I want to be independently wealthy. I want to be comfortable with money so I don't have as many worries in life. I have set goals towards reaching this goal. I have goals of paying off debt and saving certain amounts. With these goals in mind, I have put together a plan to reach them. I have a plan to pay off a certain amount of debt this year, save a certain amount this year, and reach a certain net worth this year. These goals keep me focused, disciplined, and knowing where I am and need to be.

The last trait is HARD AND SMART WORKING. Your chances of becoming wealthy by winning the lottery are slim. You must work hard and smart. Be as efficient as possible. Do your best at everything you do and your hard work will pay off. It is the people who put in the time who are rewarded. If you have a business, and you don't work hard to make your business successful, then chances are it won't be. People like hard workers. Hard work pays off.

I feel like I possess quite a few of these traits. I am concious of the ones I don't and can make an effort to do what it takes to develop them. What do you think? Which of these traits are most important and do you have what it takes to become filthy rich?