This is another words of wisdom, help others to solve their problem, you will solve your own problem. In a sense, it does make people successful by applying this.

Imagine that you want to help the poor. Say, you want to save a village , to let them have safe drinking water, to help them to have good sanitary system, etc. To solve this problem, you are thinking of making more money and donate to them. They are the motivation for you to keep striving and make more money until you can make them happy. You want to make all of them happy.

So, in the end you keep wanting to donate more money for them, for that to happen, you work hard and think of many ways to earn more money. Once you solve their problem, eventually you are rich already. Not just being rich, your reputation is darn good and many more good fortune and wealth to come to you.

Rich people do charity, the more they give, the more it return back to them and lesser tax to pay to government. By helping others, eventually and indirectly they are helping themselves.