Compared to losing weight, becoming truly wealthy, or at least financially independent, is slightly more complicated. There are three simple things to focus on, versus only two for weight loss. Despite being simple, there appears to be a lot of similarity between the success rates for weight loss and becoming wealthy. For both the chances of long term success are very low.

What are the key factors that differentiate the small percentage of truly wealthy individuals from the vast majority of us? A few cynical readers will probably say the key factor is inheritance. If that were true, then very few of us would have a chance of becoming wealthy unless we were born into the right family, or married into a wealthy family. Other readers might say that luck or knowing the right people are the key factors. This second group is closer to identifying some of the key factors. As Samuel Goldwyn said: “the harder I work, the luckier I get”. If you associate only with negative people who say it is impossible for you to become wealthy, it will indeed become a self-fulfilling prophesy. These are not the people you want to know. The people you want to know, or learn from, are the successful few that are wealthy, financially independent, or at least well on their way.

I have written many articles on investing, and regularly hold seminars to teach others some of the basic investing principles, or specific investment ideas that have good returns at lower than typical risks. For years I was stumped as to why so few people took advantage of the ideas they learned from me. I read many books, talked to a number of people, and attended seminars in non-financial disciplines to broaden my knowledge and help me find the answer.

I recently put together the things I learned, and realized there are three major factors or obstacles that hold most people back from becoming wealthy. I use the acronym DNA to help remember these three key factors to becoming wealthy: Desire, kNowledge, and Action. Additionally, for each of these key factors I developed a “P.S.” to help remind you of what needs to be done to reap the rewards from the seeds you sow.

I am under no illusion that a life changing concept like Wealth DNA cannot be fully explained in one short article. A separate article in this series is dedicated to each of these factors. In a few years, you will be able to read much more detail in a book with the appropriate title: Wealth DNA. To whet your appetite I include a very brief introduction to each of these factors. Think of this introduction analogous to providing the two factors for weight loss. Knowing them is necessary, but far from sufficient to succeed.

Desire: Likely the biggest obstacle for most people, despite all the spoken words that they “really wish they were wealthy”. Like luck, building the true desire to become wealthy requires hard work. Some of that hard work is due to the trade-offs we need to make to postpone purchases or consumption to versus save more for the future. The reality is that spending money will not make you wealthy. More importantly, most of our lives we have been told and convinced that money is the root of all evil. With all those years of sub-conscious programming, a few words being said to the contrary will not help convince us to do the hard work to become wealthy.

P.S. Prepare the Soil: Dry, sandy soil that has not been properly prepared will not grow the crops we want for the future, even if you sow the right seeds.

kNowledge: Probably the biggest factor for most people admitting they know very little about investing, is they rely on what they learned from their parents and in school. I have met very few people in the world who had any courses in school on investing, managing their personal finances, or even on balancing a checkbook. So for those who are looking for an excuse as to why they are not wealthy, feel free to blame your parents and the school system. It may make you feel better, but it will not add even a penny to your net worth.

Gaining kNowledge about investing and wealth building requires life long learning. There have been many articles and books written on virtually every aspect of investing. Additionally, companies specializing in managing money hold informational and educational seminars regularly. The people who want to become truly wealthy need to read and attend seminars regularly. Clearly outsourcing your investments is an option. Although even picking the right asset managers requires kNowledge of how to define your investment objectives and to compare the track records and integrity of various asset managers.

P.S. Pick your Seeds: What you reap is dependent on what you sow. If you want to eat corn, do not plant tulip bulbs.

Action: Developing a true desire to be wealthy and gaining kNowledge are necessary but not sufficient. Eventually you need to get your feet wet and take the plunge. The Third Commandment of Investing is very clear: No risk – No reward. Investment always has some risk associated with it. For those who want to avoid all risk at any expense will never be wealthy. In fact, not investing is far riskier than investing done properly.

For the risk adverse you can chose guaranteed investments like bank CD’s and government issued debt. These instruments come with two guarantees. The first is that you will get the money you invested plus the interest promised. The second guarantee is that when you collect that money it will be worth less than the money was at the time you invested.

Before taking action and committing your hard earned money to any investment, I highly suggest taking a few minutes and reviewing the 10 Commandments of Investing. Following those Commandments reduces risk significantly, and the Tenth Commandment will remind you to review the results, and like smart people learn from your mistakes as well as your successes. By reading and attending financial seminars you will have the opportunity to be a wise person – learning not only from your experience but also from the mistakes and successes of others.