More than 20 years ago, affluence researchers Dr. Thomas Stanley and Dr. William Danko surveyed a vast number of millionaire households in the United States.
What they discovered was groundbreaking at the time.
The average U.S. millionaire, they found, lives a frugal lifestyle. They are disproportionately clustered in modest, middle-class neighborhoods. They drive used cars. They don’t spend money on jewelry, watches, boats or other high-ticket items. They’re self-made, meaning they did not inherit their wealth; they’re first-generation millionaires.
In 1996, the researchers published their findings in a book called The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy. The book became a mega-bestseller and, to this day, remains a top personal finance classic.
Fast-forward to 2012.
Dr. Thomas Stanley’s daughter, Sarah, followed in her father’s footsteps. She’s grown up to become a researcher, earning a Ph.D. in applied psychology and exploring the world of behavioral finance. She became the Director of Research for the Affluent Market Institute, the research company her father founded, and she launched her own research firm, DataPoints.
In 2012, Dr. Sarah Stanley Fallaw and Dr. Thomas Stanley decided to update their research on millionaire households in anticipation of the 20th anniversary of the publication of The Millionaire Next Door. They wanted to see what attributes are different, 20 years later, and what qualities remain the same.
They crafted another large-scale survey of millionaires. Yet before they could complete the project, tragedy intervened.
In 2015, Dr. Thomas Stanley was killed in a car accident. He was hit by a drunk driver.
His daughter resolved to finish the research that the two of them started together. She sent out the survey they created, gathered and analyzed the results, and published a sequel, The Next Millionaire Next Door, co-authored with her late father.
The book is Dr. Thomas Stanley’s final, posthumously-published book. The book was released in October 2018, twenty-two years after the original.
On today’s podcast episode, Dr. Sarah Stanley Fallaw joins us to describe what’s different about millionaires, more than two decades later …
… and what’s remained the same.
Resources Mentioned:
- The Millionaire Next Door, by Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko
- The Next Millionaire Next Door, by Thomas J. Stanley & Sarah Stanley Fallaw
- DataPoints
Thanks to our sponsors!
Radius Bank
Do you want your money to make more money? Then check out Radius Bank’s free high-interest checking account. You earn 1.00% APY on balances of $2,500 and up. There are free ATM’s worldwide, no monthly fees, and they’ll rebate ATM fees charged by other banks! To get started, head over to radiusbank.com/paula.
ShipStation
ShipStation is a centralized platform where you can process shipping orders. They have shipping labels for all the top carriers, and they offer deep discounts on shipping. Try ShipStation for free for 30 days and get an additional month free if you use my promo code Paula. Click this link, then click on “heard our ad?” on the top right of the screen, and type Paula.
Freshbooks
Save time by using Freshbooks, an easy-to-use, cloud-based accounting system that takes the stress and hassle out of bookkeeping and, especially, invoicing. You can create an invoice in a few seconds, and Freshbooks’ automated system will handle the rest. Visit Freshbooks.com/paula for a free 30-day trial. Please mention this show when they ask how you heard about them.
Skillshare
Skillshare is an online learning community with more than 20,000 classes in things like business, design, and technology. And you know what’s awesome? You can go through many of these classes in the time it takes to watch a movie. Want to take your learning to the next level? Grab 2 months of Skillshare for free at skillshare.com/paula.
