In my role as a CPA and CFP I have the honor of advising many clients in matters of personal finance, taxes, insurance and wealth creation. Some clients are wealthy but most are just getting by. The fact is that only five percent in this country make enough money to be considered financially secure. Ninety-five percent are just getting by and have difficulty meeting their financial obligations in life. This group will be impoverished in retirement. A very unfortuante reality.  I am always asked a similar question by my struggling clients: "What do your wealthy clients do to become wealthy?" or "What am I doing wrong?" These are not easy questions to answer. In fact, it was the last question that took me down a path that led to the discovery of the secret to financial success. I spent five years researching, asking questions, gathering data, analyzing data, just  to answer that question; "What am I doing wrong?"  It's a simple, but powerful question to ask.

It seems most who are struggling have bought into the idea that wealthy people are just lucky. The perception is that wealthy people have good luck in the form of good timing, being in an explosive industry, or receive some random type of good luck. The struggling never stop to consider that wealthy people struggle just like they do. It never crosses their mind. Everyone struggles in life. It's always an uphill battle. Rich people are no different than poor people in that regard. But there is one big difference. The wealthy create their own luck. That's right, you can create good luck. It's not easy but there is a process that anyone can copy from wealthy people to create their own good luck.

Before I get into the process wealthy people use to create good luck, I need to define luck. The reason? There is a very real misconception of exactly what luck is. I have identified four types of luck in my book Rich Habits, which reveals the secret to financial success. The first type of luck is random luck. This is a type of luck that you can never have any control over. There are two types of random luck. Random good luck and random bad luck. Examples of random good luck include winning the lottery, unexpected inheritance, found money and the like. Examples of random bad luck include diseases such as cancer, some unfortunate accident, economic recessions etc. Random luck is something we all receive from time to time. Rich or poor. Some receive more, some less, but we all experience it in our lives. It is random good luck that many poor people associate wealthy people as being blessed with from above. The fact is, nothing could be further from the truth. Rich people receive just as much good luck and bad luck as poor people. What poor people mistake for random good luck is the third type of luck: opportunity luck. Opportunity luck is a type of luck that is created. It is the byproduct of doing certain things every day that create enrichment opportunities. Examples of this include career advancement opportunities that pop up out of no where, unique investment opportunities, landing that big client,  etc. The fourth and last type of luck is detrimental luck. This is the evil twin of opportunity luck. It is bad luck that we create and bring into our lives by doing certain things every day that create detrimental events. Examples include certain types of diabetes, heart disease, strokes, financial ruin etc. When you maximize opportunity luck and minimize detrimental luck in your life, only then will you begin to experience financial success in your life.

How do you maximize opportunity luck and minimize detrimental luck? We all live our lives a certain way and the way we live our lives is embodied in our daily habits. For ninety-five percent, most of these daily habits are bad habits. There many be some good daily habits sprinkled in there, but for the most part, there are more bad daily habits than there are good daily habits. It is the daily habits of wealthy people that set them apart from the rest of the field. This group, either by upbringing or life changing discipline, adopt certain good daily habits. The byproduct of owning these habits is the attraction of opportunity luck. Opportunity luck manifests itself to wealthy people on a regular basis. When you attract opportunity luck into your life you better your life financially.

What are the good daily habits of wealthy people? The daily habits of this group are beyond the scope of this article and it's significance is precisely why I wrote Rich Habits. But I will share with you some of the key daily habits of the wealthy:
1. Career/Trade Self Improvement - Wealthy people devote at least one half an hour per day to technical reading/study in their trade or profession. This may involve self study material, periodicals, developing new skills related to their work etc;
2. Moderation - Wealthy people, as a rule and contrary to popular belief, do not live in expansive homes, own expensive cars, or spend money on frivolous things just to keep up with their friends or neighbor. They do not eat, drink, party or engage in any activity excessively. They are cautious in the use of their money, time and consumption of food and drink;
3. Health - Wealthy people engage in some daily aerobic activity to keep them fit and healthy. Health is an important determinant of wealth because good health means more energy and fewer sick days;
4. Savings - Wealthy people save about 10% of their income. They pay themselves first and everybody else last. As a result, they have emergency savings, retirement savings and education savings for their kids. They are disciplined in saving money; 
5. Networking - Relationships are like gold to wealthy people. They work very hard on developing their relationships. They remember birthdays, names, and important events in the lives of their family, friends, co-workers, clients and business partners.
My five-year study of wealthy people and their daily habits was an eye opening experience to me.
The differences between the daily habits of wealthy people and those who struggle is a rift as wide as the Grand Canyon. Wealthy people just do things differently than poor people, every day, and their good daily habits create opportunity luck and minimize detrimental luck.