They might if you consider that millionaires (and billionaires) have certain habits that make them money smart. They are known to discount shop preferring stores such as Target and Wal-Mart. They are not ashamed of finding a bargain at Goodwill. They clip coupons. They don’t play the lottery.

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Want to be as money smart as the rich?

Keep up with them instead of the Joneses. Act rich.

How do you act rich? Read this story and find out: 12 Habits of Millionaires That You Should Adopt Right Now

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Also check out: The 20 habits of eventual millionaires

Live chat today

It’s just you and me today. I’ll be taking your money questions at noon (ET). To participate in the chat click this link.

The Dow’s ascent to 20,000

Can I confess?

I’m doing what I experts tell investors not to do. I’ve been constantly checking my 401(k). Too much really. But I can’t help myself.

My returns have been climbing and I want to watch the ascent. The market has been real hot.

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And if you’ve been paying extra close attention to your retirement account, you’ve probably been all over the news about the Dow climbing toward 20,000.

But Post’s business columnist Allan Sloan says don’t get too crazy about the Dow’s climb.

“To anybody who’s serious about finance, the prospect of Dow 20K is strictly yawnsville,” he wrote this week. “It’s fun to watch the Dow excitement, but money managers and serious investors regard the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index as their lodestar, despite the Dow’s vastly larger public mindshare.”

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Here’s what you should know about the Dow and the S&P, Sloan says.

Dow Jones Industrial Average = A 30-stock average that’s based on stock prices

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S&P = A 500-stock index based on stock market value, not share price

You’ll get a good basic lesson on the stock market by reading Sloan’s column.

His bottom line on the Dow these days: “I don’t see anyone cheering on the S&P to hit 2,300, but there are sure plenty of people awaiting Dow 20K. Does the Dow breaching this benchmark matter? Absolutely not. But even for a Dow skeptic like me, it sure is fun to watch.”

You deserve a break. And me, too!

I won’t have a newsletter next week. Taking off to enjoy the holiday with my family. But the newsletter will resume on Thursday, Dec. 29th.

Trump tax cut promises: How will you fare?

For last week’s Color of Money Question I asked: Will you be a winner or loser under Trump’s tax cut proposal? Send your comments to colorofmoney@washpost.com and include your name, city and state. In the subject line put “Trump & Taxes” in the subject line.

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Lucy Frank of Louisville was pretty direct, writing “I’m not in favor of higher federal debt in exchange for a tax cut.”

Laurie Brooks of Portland, Ore.: “My family might benefit a little in the short term from a Trump tax cut, but it is not worth it for what it will do to our country economically. I feel that we will lose all of the gains made under President Obama to get our country back on its feet after the great recession, and then some.”

Libby of Harrisburg, Pa., doesn’t want a tax break either. “It’s like borrowing money just to give my kids a raise in their allowance,” she wrote. “In fact I would be willing to pay a one time 10% surcharge if all of it went directly to the debt. It’s long past time to stop digging the hole.

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“I would apparently benefit from the new tax plan, and I don’t have a problem with the national debt,” wrote Laura K. McAfee of Catonsville, Md. “But running up more debt to give me a tax cut makes zero sense to me. Interest rates are near their historic lows. So if the federal government wants to borrow money, this is an excellent time to do it. But if they are going to borrow, they should be doing so to ‘invest’ in something. We are far too focused on what’s in it for me. We — especially our leaders — need to be focusing on what we as a country need 10 or 20 or 50 years from now.”

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Color of Money column

Here’s something to get you thinking differently about being a Grinch: That mean ol’ Grinch gets a bad rap.

Financial news you can use

Retirement columnist Rodney Brooks’ Monday newsletter this week: Year-end financial retirement planning tips