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Finance influencer (and former financial advisor) Humphrey Yang explained in a recent YouTube video that the wealthy are not always flashy and obvious about their wealth, and that it’s often the quietest ones with the most wealth.
Yang outlined seven signs that someone is secretly wealthy — you just need to know how to decode them — and these signs can serve as lessons to anyone hoping to grow their wealth.
They Avoid the ‘Three E’s’
In Yang’s view, the quietly wealthy avoid talking about the three “e’s” — earn, expensive and excess. In other words, they don’t brag about how much they make, flaunt any of their fancy purchases or show off a flashy lifestyle.
“The truly wealthy have nothing to prove anymore because secretly they already know they have the money and there’s no need to tell anyone about it,” Yang said.
They don’t talk about their latest expensive purchase, such as designer bags or luxury watches or even their tropical vacations — because typically only people without confidence in their wealth need to brag about it, Yang pointed out.
Best yet, they avoid living to excess, “at least in their outward image,” Yang said. That’s because wealthy people understand that “the true luxuries in life are about having options, convenience and freedom, and not about having the most flashy stuff.”
Yang suggested that embodying this attitude even before you’re wealthy could help you build more wealth “because you’re redirecting your energy toward wealth building, not appearances.”
They Drive Older, Reliable Cars
Another secret sign of the wealthy is not a fleet of luxury vehicles, but cars that are anywhere from five to 10 years old, to avoid depreciation and free up money for investments.
“Throwing away $500 to $800 bucks a month with car payment for something that’s losing value every single day is such negative ROI (return on investment),” Yang said.
He pointed out that if you invested that $6,000 to $9,000 per year instead, over 10 years, with compounding returns “that could be well worth over a hundred thousand dollars.”
They Buy ‘Uncommon Things,’ Like Time
Yang said secretly wealthy people don’t buy status symbols, but they do buy “uncommon things” — one of which is time. Wealthy people understand “that the only finite resource in the entire world and in life is the resource of time,” Yang said. So, they often spend “a disproportionate amount of money” on things that allow them to free up their time. From chauffeurs to chefs, private planes to personal shoppers, the wealthy don’t have to toil manually like the rest of us.
They might also enjoy expensive hobbies, like collecting rare art or fine wine, sports memorabilia or even Pokemon cards, Yang said. “Instead of displaying their wealth like a normal person would, they would rather do it with an appreciation for luxury and rare items.”
They Carefully Manage Their Image
The secretly wealthy are aware of their image and prefer not to rub others the wrong way. They also need to take greater lengths to protect what they’ve amassed. Thus, they downplay success, deflect questions about wealth and avoid drawing attention to themselves for security and privacy reasons.
He said the least likely question you’ll get a wealthy person to answer is “what’s your net worth.” The secretly wealthy won’t admit to the scope of their wealth.
They Scrutinize Small Purchases
You might not realize someone is wealthy because they ask “detailed questions about a purchase under $100 dollars, but don’t blink at necessary big expenses,” Yang pointed out. He explained that they’re more likely to have the leisure time to look for “wants” while they’ll just spend the money on something that’s a necessity, like a roof repair.
Yang thinks this originated in how many of these people became wealthy to begin with. “I think this is more of an ingrained habit of someone … that was self-made. This small habit of not overspending on smaller purchases throughout the year can add up to a lot of savings over the course of 365 days.”
They’ve Mastered Delayed Gratification
Wealthy people want for almost nothing, so they’ve “mastered the ability to wait while everyone else is buying,” Yang said. The secretly wealthy will often research a purchase for months or wait for “the perfect sale.” Better yet, in the process of waiting, they often discover they don’t even need the item they were considering buying.
“A secretly wealthy person might be extremely frugal and value oriented and won’t mind waiting, especially if it means that they’re going to get something that they really love instead of something they’re just OK with,” Yang said.
He pointed out that it’s a good takeaway for the average person, too, to wait between seven and 30 days before making a purchase you don’t absolutely need. Delayed gratification “is the key concept that makes you very, very rich later on in life,” he said.
They Live Beneath Their Means
The secretly wealthy don’t live in Malibu mansions or gaudy villas. They keep a modest house, where they often own the home outright. Those who didn’t know that billionaire Warren Buffett was among the world’s richest men certainly wouldn’t know by his lifestyle, as an example. He’s renown for living a humble lifestyle despite the money to live lavishly.
Lifestyle creep is a problem for anyone who starts to make more money, even if you’re not quite wealthy yet.
As far as Yang is concerned, the secretly wealthy are the happier of those with money. “There are so many levels to wealth, but if the goal of becoming wealthy is to live your most fulfilling life, then you’ll be happier, in my opinion, if you just remain quiet about it.”