We all know the value of having money, especially as entrepreneurs. But we also know some people started enterprises without money and made fortunes.
So how did they do it? I believe nine things are more valuable than capital—something that can lead straight to your success:
1. Time
Time is a treasure—the time you set aside is not to be wasted or given away. The time you set aside to be invested in something that brings value to the marketplace with the hope of making a profit is called capital time.
How valuable is time? Time properly invested is worth a fortune; time wasted can be devastating. Time invested can perform miracles—so support yours.
2. Desperation
My friend and mentor, Bill Bailey, went to Chicago as a teenager after graduating high school. And the first job he got was as a night janitor. Someone said, “Bill, why would you settle for being a night janitor?” He said, “Malnutrition.”
His first job might have been night janitor, but he received the Horatio Alger award and became rich and powerful—one of the great examples of a lifestyle that I know.
Desperation can be a powerful incentive when you say, I must. You work toward whatever you can get when you get hungry. You go to work somewhere; it doesn’t matter where.
3. Determination
Lydia is another friend of mine. Her first big investment in her new business was out of need.She needed to feed her kids, so she invested $1 in something she believed in. That $1 was used to buy a few flyers so she could make a sale at retail, collect the money, and then buy the product wholesale to deliver back to the customer.
First, Lydia said, “I must find a customer”—desperation Second, she said, “I will find someone before this first day is over”—determination. And sure enough, she found someone. Determination says: I will.
4. Courage
If you’ve only got $1 and a lot of courage, you’ve got a promising future ahead of you. Because humans can do the most incredible things no matter what happens—courage despite, not because of, circumstances.
5. Ambition
With courage, Lydia made three or four more sales. And once she got going, ambition took over. She thought, If I can sell three, I can sell 33. If I can sell 33, I can sell 103. Lydia was dazzled by her dreams of the future.
6. Faith
At this point, Lydia began to believe she had a good product and company. And then she started to believe in herself—Lydia, a single mother with two kids but no job. My gosh, I’m going to pull it off! Her self-esteem started to soar.
Faith is an investment that cannot be matched. Money can’t touch it. What if you had a million dollars and no faith? You’d be poor. You wouldn’t be rich.
7. Ingenuity
Lydia is a millionaire today because of her ingenuity—she put her brains to work. Probably up until now, you’ve put about 1/10 of your brainpower to work. What if you employed the other 9/10? You can’t believe what can happen. Humans can come up with the most intriguing things to do.
What’s ingenuity worth? A fortune. All you need is $1 and plenty of creativity. Figuring out a way to make it work, make it work, make it work.
8. Heart and Soul
Heart and soul are like the unseen magic that moves people—moves people to make decisions, moves people to act, and moves people to respond.
What is a substitute for heart and soul? It’s not money because nature and the soul are more valuable than a million dollars. A million dollars without heart and soul? You have no life. You are ineffective.
9. Personality
mentor Bill Bailey taught me, “You’ve got to learn to be just as comfortable, Mr. Rohn, whether it is in a little shack in Kentucky having a beer and watching the fights with my friend Winfred or in a Georgian mansion in Washington, D.C., as the senator’s guest.”
You’ve got plenty of personalities. You’ve just got to spruce it up and sharpen it, develop it to the point where it is effective every day, at home or anywhere, no matter who you talk to—whether it is a child or a businessperson, a rich person or a poor person. It makes no difference to you who is rich or who is poor.
It’s about the chance to have a unique relationship with whomever. Have the kind of personality that’s comfortable—the kind of personality that’s never bent out of shape. Move with ease, charisma, sophistication, and humility.
With $1 and this list, the world is yours. It belongs to you, whatever piece of it you desire and whatever development you wish for your life. It’s the kind of capital that is more valuable than money and can secure your future and fortune. Remember, you lack no resources.