The 3 habits you must have to become a billionaire, according to Mark Cuban 

Mark Cuban is more honest than most billionaires about what one critical ingredient it takes to rack up a 10-plus-figure net worth.

“The reality is in order to become a billionaire, the one thing you have to have is luck. Any billionaire who tells you they could just do it again…. no,” he says at the start of his edition of Wired‘s “Tech Support” video series, where top experts answer questions from the internet.

So, if you want to become massively wealthy, do everything you can to increase your luck (it’s possible — here’s advice). But also accept that success of that scale is largely beyond any individual’s control. Does that mean there is nothing you can do to increase your odds of making it huge like the Cavs owner and former Shark Tank mogul?

Absolutely not. Later in the video, Cuban reveals the three daily habits that contributed to his success, and which he feels will massively increase the chances of anyone else reaching their improbably big dreams too. Unsurprisingly, they’re backed up by a whole lot of science.

1. Reading

Some billionaires are extroverts, others are introverts. Some are quiet techies, others rebellious adventurers. Some project folksy Midwestern charm, while others have infamously out-there lifestyles. But despite the vast difference between billionaires, one thing seems to be constant between just about all of them (and lacking in the massive frauds like Sam Bankman-Fried). They all read a lot.

Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Richard Branson, and Elon Musk are all avowed bookworms. So is Cuban, and he insists that if you want to be super successful, you should be too.

“Read, read, read, read, read!” he shouts while underlining the word “READ” on a whiteboard in the video, adding, “Gotta learn!”

Science is just as emphatic, showing that regular readers not only do better academically (no shock there), but are also happier, healthier, and more emotionally intelligent. Reading even rewires your brain to help you focus and grasp complex information. So, yeah, you should read more.

2. Being curious

Why do billionaires read so much? Maybe because they’re inherently curious, another mental habit that Cuban insists you need to cultivate if you too want huge success. “Sh*t changes. You gotta always be curious. You gotta know what’s up. You gotta stay on top of it,” he says, adding another all caps line to his little white board.

Again, science supports Cuban’s claim that curiosity and success go together. Research shows that geniuses of many types share an openness to new experiences, while other studies indicate curiosity drives learning, helps us focus and engage, remember more, and just generally enjoy life (and our weird, unpredictable fellow humans) more.

3. Being agile

Your curiosity may drive you to read and learn new information, but if you don’t act on that information, it’s not going to do you much good. “Because the sh*t’s changing, ’cause you’re always learning this new stuff that you’re curious about, you always gotta be agile and be able to adapt,” Cuban concludes.

You probably don’t need research to tell you that you need to stay agile to keep up with today’s fast-changing world, but if you’re looking for expert confirmation, it exists. A recent McKinsey research project, for example, concluded:

Agility results in a step change in performance and makes it possible to overtake born-agile organizations. Highly successful agile transformations typically delivered around 30 percent gains in efficiency, customer satisfaction, employee engagement, and operational performance; made the organization five to ten times faster; and turbocharged innovation.

No doubt agility helps individuals keep up with new technology, changing trends, and new opportunities too. The world most definitely does not stand still. Neither should you.

If the formula says that curiosity drives reading, which drives learning and insight, which then drives agile change, then all you have to do is add a hefty dose of sales savvy and you have the recipe for massive success, according to Cuban. Of course, to actually become a billionaire you’ll need the good fortune to also be in the right place at the right time. But even if Cuban’s three habits don’t land you in the three comma club, they should supercharge your success in whatever endeavors you pursue.

(c) 2024 Mansueto Ventures LLC; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.