The 90-Day Financial Experiment That Will Put You on the Path to Wealth

Two and a half years ago, I did an experiment at the advice of Dan Kennedy that completely changed my life …

After signing up for the Business of Copywriting Academy for AWAI, I received several suggested reading materials, including a galley copy of Dan Kennedy’s forthcoming book, No B.S. Wealth Attraction in the New Economy.

One of the chapters, “Act Wealthy to Attract Wealth,” suggests a 90-day experiment that Kennedy describes like this:

“You need not have any confidence in it working for it to work. You only need to do it for 90 days. You’ll see results. You’ll be amazed. Then you’ll stick with it even though you may never be able to logically explain it to anyone else, just as I can’t logically explain it to you.”

So just as Kennedy can’t explain why it works, neither can I. But I can tell you that everything changed for me when I adopted this financial strategy for my business.

In fact, my income became consistent, has grown exponentially, and is no longer a source of worry.

This strategy has two parts: one that seems logical and one that doesn’t. The premise is that there are two things all really wealthy people do that you can copy and that will positively affect your wealth.

The logical part has to do with saving. In your 90-day experiment, the first thing you’ll want to do is set up a separate bank account and call it your “Wealth Account.”

Determine a fixed percentage of every dollar that you earn that will go into that account. Kennedy suggests something between 1 and 10 percent. Once you pick the percentage, deposit the money and do NOT touch it no matter what.

Kennedy says if you do take money out of your Wealth Account, especially during the 90-day experiment, you MUST limit it to “true investment,” such as extra principal on your home or auto loan. (Note that later on, you can start moving your Wealth Account money into various investments.)

At first, I was hesitant to do this—afraid that I would need that money to pay bills. But I did it anyway. I never touch the money, and I do it with EVERY dollar I make from copywriting. And that’s what you’ll need to do too.

The illogical part has to do with giving. It’s important to understand that this plan has to do with acting wealthy. And wealthy people give.

So the second thing to do is open a bank account and call it your “Giving Account.” Like your Wealth Account, you will also predetermine a fixed percentage of every dollar that you receive and deposit it into your Giving Account.

Kennedy says, “It’s hard to imagine how SUBTRACTING 10 percent from your income and giving it away can increase your income or wealth.” He also talks about how the math works differently than you’d imagine, saying, “100 percent minus 10 percent = 90 percent … but somehow, this math works more like this: 100 percent – 10 percent = 100 percent x 4 = 400 percent.”

By that, Kennedy means that for all the money you give away, the more you get back. For instance, it’s not uncommon for me to make a $100 to $300 charitable contribution and within a day or two receive an email about a new project worth four or more times what I gave away.

It seems crazy, I know. But it happens over and over.

Even Kennedy says the first time he heard this from Foster Hibbard, president of Motivation Dynamics, Inc. and former associate of the late Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, he thought Hibbard was "nutty as his grandmother’s fruitcake."

But somehow, the act of giving affects your subconscious mind so you start to feel and act wealthy … and even start attracting wealth. So the more often you are able to deposit money into these accounts, the better it seems to work.

For those of you who are nervous about the Giving Account, one tip that helped me was to deposit the money into the Giving Account and leave it there until the end of the year.

If you have a REAL emergency that comes up, you can consider yourself the “charity” and use the money for your emergency. You want to avoid that scenario if possible, however, this may help relieve some of your anxiety.

Have you tried this 90-day experiment, or do you currently set aside equal amounts of savings and charitable donations already? How did it affect you? If not, will you try this experiment? Share your answer in our comments below.

The AWAI Method™

The AWAI Method™ for Becoming a Skilled, In-Demand Copywriter

The AWAI Method™ combines the most up-to-date strategies, insights, and teaching methods with the tried-and-true copywriting fundamentals so you can take on ANY project — not just sales letters. Learn More »


Click to Rate:
Average: 5.0
Published: August 1, 2012

10 Responses to “The 90-Day Financial Experiment That Will Put You on the Path to Wealth”

  1. I have been telling this to my wife now for 10 years, she doesn't get it, and she struggles with money all the time.
    I also advise a lot of my family members as well.
    I told them that "every money that comes into their hands, they should save 10% and also give away 10% of what you make. Not for religious purposes, but because of the fact that it will create a neuro associations where the mind will think that you actually have more than you need, and will create that in reality."

    Guest (Ellsworth)

  2. I love this article. I haven't tried it yet but I plan to as soon as the income starts. I believe in this concept. You can get the things you want by concentrating on them. You will draw them to you in no time at all!

    Emily King

  3. Dear Cindy, The 90 day experiment actually somehow makes a lot of sense to me. I haven't done this before, but I'm going to try this and do it for 90 days. I think it will work. Nancy Kaye

    Nancy Kaye

  4. Yes, i use the "pay myself first rule." This works very well for me. The giving account i haven't tried, though i give regularly. I'm of the belief that, It is Better to be able to give... the laws of attraction and reciprocity are enriched and my actions become more precise and efficient. Then behaving "as if" is for me, a natural feeling.

    Guest (derek)

  5. For anyone who has attended one of T. Harv Ecker's Millionaire Mind Intensive weekend seminars, he has a Prosperity Jar system for dividing all income -- 10% for Financial Freedom Account, 10% for Long Term Savings for Spending, 10% for Education, 50% for Necessities, 10% for Play & 10% for Giving. This works well, but Dan's plan definitely gives you more freedom.

    MMorris

  6. This sounds crazy, but it really works. I've learned about this "giving" clause from another source a couple years ago, and it had a different explanations as to why it works (Not acting wealthy, etc., but something mire sophisticated). Regardless of why, its my real life experience: IT WORKS!

    Guest (Helena Green)

  7. Having spent the last 18 months healing myself from breast cancer without using conventional therapies, my financial status is a bit scary. This sounds like the perfect time to try this strategy and see if I can't pay off my medical debt. I think I'll try it.

    Susie H

  8. I have been doing this for a while and other than the good feeling I get from giving (it really does feel good to do good in the world) I honestly have not noticed any tangible benefits coming back to me because of it. That doesn't dissuade me. I still donate 10% or more (I round up to even dollar amounts) of every dollar I make through entrepreneurial ventures. Just know that you have to have a stronger motivation than the expectation of it all coming back to you because it might not.

    Jeff Kontur

  9. I took Ecker's MM Intensive several years ago and adapted the jar system into envelopes. And further broke them down into specific household/monthly envelopes, gheat, food, etc. And when the envelope for ceach exp. was empty, that was it for the month. But the funny thing was - I hardly ever used all the money. It worked so well I stopped using it. BIG mistake! Dead broke now...gee, I wonder why? I'm "on it again" as of Aug. 1, thanks to MMorris & Cindy for the reminder!

    Guest (Cfitzgerald)

  10. I heard Dan talk about this as I was driving and listening to it on YouTube. (Not watching and driving)

    Anyway, I could not remember the Giving only the Wealthy so I googled what I recalled and your site came up.

    Great post and I now have my accounts started as sub-accounts in my credit union bank and the first deposit made today. Great help, thanks for writing on it.

    Guest (AlleyKat)


Guest, Add a Comment
Please Note: Your comments will be seen by all visitors.

You are commenting as a guest. If you’re an AWAI Member, Login to myAWAI for easier commenting, email alerts, and more!

(If you don’t yet have an AWAI Member account, you can create one for free.)


This name will appear next to your comment.


Your email is required but will not be displayed.


Text only. Your comment may be trimmed if it exceeds 500 characters.

Type the Shadowed Word
Too hard to read? See a new image | Listen to the letters


Hint: The letters above appear as shadows and spell a real word. If you have trouble reading it, you can use the links to view a new image or listen to the letters being spoken.

(*all fields required)