There’s a huge difference between billionaires and millionaires. Just think about it for a minute. One billion dollars… That’s over 999,999,999. Even $100,000,000 is a huge amount of money. It’s almost unfathomable just how much $1,000,000,000 actually is. I don’t think you could possibly spend that amount of money; so why do billionaires continue to work. One reason has to be because they love what they do. 

I feel like I need to make the point that I am not a billionaire. Just in case I needed to clear that up. I don’t want you to feel like I let you down when you realise later on that I don’t actually have a casual billion dollars laying around in my bank account. 

This blog is based on what I’ve read, listened to and watched. The information is based on the stories told and lessons learned from podcasts, interviews, programs and courses with people who are billionaires. 

When I was eighteen, I asked my mother for the Tony Robbins 30-day Personal Power 2 program for my nineteenth birthday. I later learned that she sat up for nights on end, waiting for the late-night infomercial to come on. The ad, which was seemingly always on TV, had taken an apparent hiatus. Eventually it appeared, she ordered them, and the present I received on March 20, 2002, continued to make an impact on my life everyday since. That gift helped to really launch my life into adulthood. 

Fourteen years later and I still love listening to Tony and I continue to learn more and more every time I listen to him. I recently tuned into a podcast I listen to quite regularly - The School of Greatness, by Lewis Howes. (Seriously going to have to stop talking about Lewis. I’ve mentioned him a lot in my blogs lately, but deservedly so. He is very good at helping people and gets some amazing interviews). The stories and wisdom Tony gives in this podcast episode are like none I’ve heard him give before, which is amazing for a man who gives a lot of interviews. 

The main thing I got from Tony, and what he says other billionaires do, to not only reach such lofty financial heights, but to maintain them, is to give. Tony says, “The secret to living is giving”. 

If you’re working flat out and things aren’t going right for you, or you’re not where you want to be, and you’re feeling overwhelmed, run-down and stressed-out, ask yourself, “How can I give more?” This isn’t just financially either; this goes for all areas of your life - career, family, health, spiritual, personal. When you get caught up in a pessimistic frame-of-mind, look for how you can help others. Ponder what you can do to make someone else's life better. Consider what you can do to give more. 

Ask yourself good questions. Rather than asking questions like ‘Why isn’t this working?’, instead, ask questions like, ‘How can I give more?’ Typically, ‘why’ questions lead to feelings of despair and suffering, whereas ‘how’ questions, lead to feelings of optimism and generate more creative outcomes. 

You might be asking, ‘But how can I give more if I don’t have enough to live myself’. Tony says, “If you won’t give a dime out of a dollar, you sure won’t give ten million out of a hundred million”. You have to start from a position of giving. Not make it to a position of giving. Start with giving whatever you can give. It might be leaving $2 on the register at the grocery store or it might be your time to someone crossing the road. 

How to Give Like a Billionaire

• Giving. It could be money, it could be time. The continuous act of giving leads to feelings of abundance. If you want something, give it. If you want more money, give it. If you want more time, give it. If you want more love, give it. If you want more fun, give it - do it, be it. The more of something you give, the more your mind asserts that you have of that. The more you believe you possess, the more you attract. 

• Donating. Similar to giving, donating can be both money and time. Some people believe donating money is thoughtless and that time is more meaningful. Donating time for example, to build a school, would be extremely rewarding. However, sometimes it’s just not possible to always donate your time. When it’s not possible to donate your time, donating money is a great alternative. You can help more people, more of the time. To donate money more mindfully, take time to consider who it is you could be helping and how you could be helping them.

• Sharing. Share other peoples successes as if you have a vested interest. I know you can feel envious when other people achieve things that you’ve been working so hard for. Instead of feeling upset, whole-heartedly congratulate them for what they’ve achieved. Share their successes with others. Try to share what they’ve achieved with as many people as possible. Take comfort in knowing that you are exactly where you need to be in your life right now. You are where you are today based on the decisions you made last week, last month, last year. The actions you make today determine the future you. Make decisions based on who you want to be. 

• Supporting. Achieving success requires support from many people. Billionaires have been supported in many extensive ways by some very knowledgable people. On your journey to success, support others to achieve their goals too. The obvious people to support are those who are on a similar journey as you and just behind where you currently are. However, don’t underestimate how much you can support people you might consider ahead of you in their journey, or at the top of their game.

Not all billionaires manage their fortunes in this way. However, the ones who are well known and highly successful, and the ones you would want to emulate for that matter, do manage their fortunes in this way. 

What are you going to give right now? 

Leave your answer to that question in the comments section below.