Singapore is currently home to approximately 154,000 high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) or millionaires whose collective net worth is US$806.3 billion. The number of HNWIs increased from 130,000 millionaires living in Singapore in 2010, which reflects a 17 percent growth. A recent study found that by 2020, one in 35 Singapore residents will be rich in five years’ time.
The study’s key highlights also include that Singapore’s millionaires will grow faster at 18.3 percent compared to their counterparts in the rival city-state, Hong Kong at 15.6 percent. Moreover, Singapore’s millionaires are worth an average US$5.2 million each, which is lowest in Asia.
“Singapore’s burgeoning financial markets, renowned private banking and superior quality of life are continuing to attract HNWIs from neighboring countries. We’re currently seeing a large influx of Indian and Chinese millionaires into the country,” said Oliver Williams, Head of WealthInsight.
There are many factors affecting the steep and steady rise of millionaires in the country. One of which is the number of people opening businesses in Singapore. The question is, will you be one of Singapore’s 188,000 millionaires by 2020? To inspire you to gear up for the upcoming wealth rise, here are five habits of Singapore’s self-made millionaires.
They are dream-setters.
Millionaires are not just dreamers. They are dream-setters. Dreams are visions of the future you want for yourself. Dream-setting is the process of defining a dream clearly. When your dreams are finally set, it is only when you can set definite goals on how to achieve them.
Sixty-four percent of millionaires focus on a single dream and fifty-five percent of them create goals around their particular dreams. It is important to know the difference between dreams and goals and which one to do first. Millionaires know that dream-setting comes first before goal-setting and they are relentless in reaching their goals.
For some, it has always been their dream to open a business and start something they can pass on to the next generation? Are you one of Singapore’s budding millionaire dreamers? If you are, clearly define your dream first and then set goals around them.
Self-made millionaires create and maintain multiple sources of income.
Millionaires do not rely on just one source of income. The constant search and development of other sources of income separate them in the race. When it comes to numbers of income-generating pursuits, sixty-five percent of millionaires usually have three or more streams of income sources created over time.
When it comes to building wealth, the majority of self-made millionaires do not rely on the linear approach: one portfolio, one investment or one job. When you analyze today’s self-made millionaires, you will see that they grew their net worth by leveraging on the three main vehicles of money-making ventures: real estate, the stock market, and entrepreneurship.
If you’re planning to open a business a Singapore, leverage on the influx of venture capitalists and various government grant aimed at helping startup and serial entrepreneurs create business roots in the country.
They don’t waste time and they avoid time-wasters.
When people think of investments, they often relate it to money, big sums of money. Self-made millionaires understand that there is a more valuable asset to risk than money: time.
We live in a world where there seems to be not enough time to do everything we want. We argue that some people seem to have all the time in the world but the truth is, we are all given 24 hours in one day. What people do with the amount of time given to them separates the rainmakers from the contenders in the race.
Self-made millionaires understand that time is more valuable than money. Money lost in a bad investment can be regained but time wasted can never be relived. Time invested in the things you specified during goal-setting should translate to the realization of your dreams.
Studies have shown that sixty-seven percent of self-made millionaires watch TV for just under an hour each day. Sixty-three percent also spend less than one hour daily browsing the Internet for leisure. The less time they spend on time-wasters such as television, digital media, and aimless pursuits give them more time to pursue their goals.
They have a sense of urgency.
Self-made millionaires have a keen sense of urgency. Sometimes, people think of this trait as an obsession but this is actually what helps drive people towards the realization of their dreams.
‘Someday’ is a word that they’ve kicked out of their vocabularies. Many of today’s young millionaires became rich because their top priority is making money. This doesn’t mean that they push family, friends, and health on the sidelines. This simply means that they place becoming a millionaire on the top of their list and not something that ‘maybe’ they can achieve someday when given the opportunity. They do not wait for the opportunity to arrive.
They make it happen.
“Now matters more than any other time, and the ‘someday isle’ mentality is killing so many dreams,” said Game Changers Academy founder Peter Voogd who became a millionaire at the age of 26.
They never quit on a dream.
Self-made millionaires are relentless in the realization of their dreams but it doesn’t mean they are not prone to failures. They learn how to pick themselves up after a fall, pivot and try again. They may change their tactics but never the goal. Self-made millionaires are millionaires because they did not give up.
Neo Group founder and CEO Neo Kah Kiat came from a very humble background. He was a top student but dropped out of Secondary 2 to help his family earn a living. He helped in the family’s chap chye peng stall during his teenage years but for as long as he could recall, he had one dream.
“I wanted to be a businessman although I didn’t know what a businessman was. I just wanted to earn a lot of money,” said Neo whose entrepreneurial streak picked up when he was nine and started looking for opportunities to sell items such as reshaped cable tires which he sold to friends. At 12, he started making and selling fish cakes.
In the early 1990s, Neo borrowed S$15,000 from relatives and friends and leased a small kitchen to start his own catering business. Business was slow at first but Neo had always been consistent with quality. His perseverance and relentless desire to succeed paid off.
Today, Neo Group has three catering businesses under its wing, a Japanese stall chain, a yacht catering service, a wine cellar and a restaurant.
They have success mentors.
In one study, 93 percent of self-made millionaires in Singapore found a mentor to whom they attribute their wealth to. Sixty-eight percent consider the mentoring they received as a key factor in their success.
For some, it could take a lifetime to find the right mentor. Some actively pursue the search for they value not just the inspiring aura mentors exude, but more so the continuous, valuable inputs mentors give their protégés.
Ready to join Singapore’s next batch of millionaires?
The road to entrepreneurship awaits and it leads to Singapore. If you’re thinking of setting up a new business in Singapore or opening a new branch, call us today so we can help you get that dream started.
