A report released earlier this year from the Chicago-based Spectrem Group estimated there were 8.99 million households in the United States with a net worth of at least $1 million at the end of 2012.
A contrasting report issued late last year from the American Payroll Association showed 68 percent of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. More than two-thirds of the 30,600 people surveyed said it would be somewhat difficult or very difficult if their paychecks were delayed for a week.
Is it possible for that average American to become a millionaire?
American millionaires are not all greedy corporate executives. Dr. Thomas Stanley has studied the habits of wealthy people for the past 30 years. His groundbreaking research has uncovered the truth about the lifestyles of the wealthiest Americans.
• Four out of five millionaires are self-made.
• Many millionaires own their own business and consider themselves to be entrepreneurs.
• Their companies are rarely glamorous and are more likely to be very ordinary jobs, like paving contractors and pest control businesses.
