“Money is a result, wealth is a result, health is a result, illness is a result, your weight is a result. We live in a world of cause and effect.” ~ T Harv Eker from Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
This is a review of the book, Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker. I originally bought this book in 2006 just before attending Harv’s 3-Day Millionaire Mind Intensive in Toronto.
Secrets of the Millionaire Mind Book Review
Name: Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
Creator: T. Harv Eker
URL: www.secretsofthemillionairemind.com
Purpose: Learn how to master the inner game of wealth.
Price: $20.00
Wealth Creation
I’ve read quite a few books on the topic of wealth creation. I’ve read books from Christine Comaford-Lynch, Joe Vitale, Stephen Pierce, Robert Allen, Michael Gerber and many others. Many of these books focus their attention on the “how-to” of creating external wealth. They include ideas and tips on the physical processes and systems required to run a successful business. And since I believe that building a business is the only way to create true wealth, this is where I focus a lot of my attention.
The only problem with these books is that they only tell you half the story. In my own experience true wealth is two-fold. You have to work with the physical world; the systems and processes for creating a business but you also have to work with the inside world. You’ve got to work with the mind. I like the way John Assaraf said it,
“Having the right mindset and following and applying the right process is the answer.” ~ John Assaraf
Having the right mindset is critical to creating wealth. If you’re not magnetized for money, then all the systems and processes won’t help you very much. And since we’re talking about the game of inner wealth, then it only makes sense to focus on creating a millionaire mind.
Inner Wealth Exercises
This is what Harv recommends in his book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: recognize old programming and patterns and implement new wealth files. In the Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, Harv gives you 17 wealth files: 17 ways rich people think and act that are different from poor and middle class people. To embed these new wealth files Harv gives you exercises throughout the book.
Here is one that I am tremendously fond of:
"Here’s some homework that I promise will change your life. For the next seven days, I challenge you to not complain at all. Not just out loud, but in your head as well. But you have to do it for the full seven days. Why? Because for the first few days, you may still have some “residual crap” coming to you from before. Unfortunately, crap doesn’t travel at the speed of light, you know, it travels at the speed of crap, so it might take a while to clear out."
I know that one works. Reading that again made me think of all the crap I keep dumping on my poor wife Trisha. She thinks I’m terribly miserable with my business and my writing because I consistently complain to her. Yes, it’s true - I’m not an angel, I have some rough spots too. Fortunately, I only complain to her, or used to - and well, as of yesterday I’ve given that up as well because that crap just slows me down.
In Harv’s own words,
“When you are complaining, you become a living, breathing, crap magnet.”
Four Elements for Change
In addition to over 20 exercises to embed new wealth files, Harv has his own unique system for change. He uses a unique process for embedding these new wealth files with his four key elements of change:
1. The first element of change is awareness. You can’t change something unless you know it exists, just like in the exercise above.
2. The second element of change is understanding. By understanding where your “way of thinking” originates, you can recognize that it has to come from outside of you.
3. The third element of change is disassociation. Once you realize this way of thinking isn’t you, you can separate yourself from it and choose in the present whether to keep it or let it go - based on who you are today, and where you want to be tomorrow.
4. The fourth element of change is reconditioning. This is where you introduce mental files that generate wealth.
I think Harv’s approach to creating awareness is sound. He does a really great job of explaining what he calls your ‘financial blueprint’ and where it came from. He says that most people were taught about money from their parents and teachers. And that this is where the poor and middle class mindset comes from. There is some great background in the first half of this book.
He also shows how obvious it is to pick out the financial blueprint of others when you just observe the way others speak and act. That’s why Harv is famous for saying, “Give me five minutes, and I can predict your financial future for the rest of your life!” The real nice thing with all of this is you’ll also start to recognize the differences between the people in your life who are rich and the people who are poor and middle class.
I wrote this review after my second reading of the book. And the second time through I still had some really great insights of my own - I guess there’s always some more “crap” to get rid of :)
What I didn’t like about Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
This book is a great read and it has great value. The one thing that I didn’t like about the book was the emphasis on declarations. In Harv’s four elements of change he talks about reconditioning your mind with new wealth files. And one of the ways he encourages this reconditioning is by repeating the declarations throughout the book. A declaration is similar to an affirmation but it’s said out loud.
I have to admit that the declarations didn’t do it for me. I didn’t realize any noticeable change with this process. How do I know? After completing Harv’s 3-Day Millionaire Mind Intensive I practiced the declarations from his book daily, once in the morning and once at night. I did this for about 4 months and didn’t really create any noticeable change with this one technique on it’s own. This was the only downside.
Besides that I couldn’t really find any other issues with the book. I think if you use all of the other great tools and suggestions he has for implementing new wealth files, you will notice some massive changes with the way you think about money. And since all creation starts with a thought, this turns out to be the best approach to creating wealth.
Thoughts > Feelings > Actions > Result
You see, a great number of people will always go to their results first. The focus on what they got in the bank and hope to change that. I hate to tell you, but this is creating in reverse.
You have to start with what you want in your bank account. If you want $15,000 in your bank account then place your attention on that. Those thoughts will generate feelings and those feelings will generate actions. And from those actions will come your results. It’s law.
Can Harv’s book save you money?
Trisha and I used some of the ideas in Harv’s book to save us money. How did we do that?
You can save money by learning how to use and apply Harv’s money management system. Trisha and I took the money management principles we learned from Harv’s book and implemented them. We did this by using the system consistently over one year. The system is very simple and effective. It’s a great way to save money. It helps you create new habits for managing your money.
Now you might be thinking, “How does this create inner wealth?” Well, you’ve got to remember that thinking alone will not create inner wealth. You also have to take action with your new way of thinking and apply what you learn.
Trisha and I began using Harv’s money management system in June of 2006. Harv’s money management system is called the JARS System. During our first year of using the JARS, here are the results we created:
* Increased our net worth by 43% in 12 a month period.
* Created $800/month in passive income.
* Traveled and vacationed more that year than any other time in the past.
* Arranged a simple system to automate our wealth creation.
* Created more peace in our relationship by resolving money issues.
If you want to learn more about the JARS System, you can read my previous post: Managing Money - The JARS System.
What I really liked about Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
There were a few things I liked about this book. The first and foremost is that it was an easy read. Harv is a straight shooter and he gets straight to the point. You don’t have to read a whole chapter to figure out what he is trying to say. He just says it the way it is.
I also enjoyed Harv’s humor. He does a really good job of getting his point across but also adding some humor to his writing. With such a sensitive topic there aren’t many people who can do this and also get their point across effectively
The one area of the book that I really enjoyed were the testimonials. After each wealth file Harv includes a testimonial from people who have applied his teaching. Harv takes real living people that have attended his 3-Day Millionaire Mind Intensive and shares their testimonials on how this information has changed their life. This was nice to see.
Should you buy Harv’s book?
The Secrets of the Millionaire Mind is for someone who:
* is taking all the correct ‘physical’ actions but still not seeing the financial rewards
* is unclear on how to change their ‘financial blueprint’ or ‘financial thermostat’ to create wealth
* wants to learn and apply powerful tools to think the way the rich do
* wants to start behaving and acting like the rich do
Secrets of the Millionaire Mind only costs you $20.00. I think the exercises in this book are practical and useful. There is no doubt that what Harv teaches is a streetwise approach to Universal Laws. He understands how to create wealth because he’s done it.
I also believe the strategies in his book will definitely help you create wealth because they’ve helped me.
To learn more about the book and how to get your own copy, see: Secrets of the Millionaire Mind