I recently came across a post where people shared their stories about what they thought being rich looked like when they were still kids. Some thought that having a house made you rich, others having more than one branded box of cereal.
The answers were as different as the people themselves, but one thing was clear – being rich means different things to different people. This also means that there are very different ways to become rich.
Either way, financial stability, wealth, and having more time on your hands to do the things you love is what it means to be rich to me. How much money that translates to will differ from one person to the next – some want more money, others want more freedom.
Before you start your journey to getting rich, you need to take the time to understand what being rich means to you. This vision will act as the basis on which you can grow your wealth.
In this article, we will be looking at how you can start growing rich today. We will also look at how you can make the most out of what you already have, and then we will look at how you can grow your wealth to ensure your financial freedom.
Steps To Take To Get Rich
- Teach Yourself Money
- Spend Your Money Wisely
- Negotiate What You Are Paying For
- Eliminate Debt
- Save and Invest
- Make More Money
- Track Your Finances
Teach Yourself Money
Money can be quite a complex subject. Because of this, we tend to avoid it. By spending some time learning about money, we can become more familiar with it, and the more familiar we are with something, the more we are willing to deal with it.
Teaching yourself money doesn’t have to involve formal education. Actually, it can be quite a lot of fun. From reading a money blog (like this one) to following the news, getting familiar with money can have a lot of benefits. From tips on how to save money to understanding investment opportunities and available offers, staying informed on what is going on in the world of finance is the first step to getting rich.
If you don’t have a lot of time, you can also find podcasts that deal with this very subject – perfect for listening while commuting or during your relaxing time.
Spend Your Money Wisely
To be rich, you have to make more money than you spend. If you’re spending money without any control and acting on impulse, you can never be rich, no matter how much money you make.
This does not mean you should be frugal and thrifty for the rest of your life. On the contrary, you should definitely spend money on the things that make you happy, but you should do so with a sense of purpose. Money is a resource that can help us get what we want, and just like any other resource, it needs to be managed.
Managing money is easier than it looks like, and it starts with setting up a budget.
A sample budget should look something like:
- Fixed Costs: 50% Fixed costs include anything from rent and utilities to loan payments and insurance
- Investments: 10% Investments can include IRA (Individual Retirement Account) and 401k
- Savings: 10% Save money for a rainy day or a planned expense including your emergency fund, a downpayment on a mortgage, or an upcoming vacation in Europe
- Spending: 30% Use this money to enjoy life and have fun
Once you have the budget set, see if you are coming over or under. If you’re short of the mark, continue reading to find out how to boost those numbers up.
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Negotiate What You’re Paying For
If you want to be rich, you should never pay for something more than it’s worth. To find out the best price, you need to start brushing up your negotiation skills and start seeing some serious savings from your monthly bills.
In fact, you can easily save money on;
- Insurance
- Cable
- Phone bills
- Credit card bills
Before you start calling to negotiate your service providers, you can increase your chances of success by doing a bit of homework. This includes;
- Make sure your bills are being paid on time
- See how long you have been a customer for
- Check out what the competition is offering
Next, you’ll need to call the company, explain that you have been a customer for a long time, you always pay bills on time, but a competitor is offering a far better deal, and you would hate to have to switch over. Sometimes, the representative will be able to offer you a deal or a promotion some companies have for situations just like this one. There is nothing to lose except for a few minutes of your time, and the savings can be huge.
You can also find apps that automatically scan your email for bills and attempt to negotiate a better price for you. They do retain a percentage of the savings, but it’s something else you can try to push your fixed costs down even further.
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Eliminate The Debts Weighing You Down
When it comes to getting rich, debt (such as credit card debt and student loans) is one of the biggest things that can really slow you down. It’s not the debt itself as much as it’s the interest that can really kill your efforts to accumulate wealth. Because of this, getting rid of debt should be one of your top priorities.
Always make sure that you pay more than the minimum amount and have a plan for how soon you can pay it all off. To eliminate debt sooner, try the snowball method.
The snowball method is a simple but highly effective method to pay off your debts in the shortest time possible. By following this method, you can start living debt-free that much sooner and start to enjoy the freedom of a life free of financial debt.
Debt Snowball Method
List all of your debts in a spreadsheet or on a piece of paper going from the smallest to the biggest.
Make sure you make the minimum payments on all of them except the smallest.
For the smallest debt on your list, throw whatever extra cash you have at it until it is all paid off.
When done, allocate the minimum payment of the smallest debt (which is now paid off) to the second smallest debt and throw in whatever extra cash you can find until it is all paid off as well.
Repeat the process until all debts are paid off and, of course, avoid taking on any new debts unless this is absolutely necessary.
Save and Invest For a Brighter Future
We saw earlier how saving and investing should make up at least 20% of your budget. The difference between the two is that saving is short-term while investing is more for the long-term. Both are equally important and should be given attention.
Investing
If you have done your homework right and understand how to invest for maximum returns, you can choose which stocks and indices to invest in with many apps offering commission-free trading to help you maximize your returns.
If you’re new to investing in the stock market, on the other hand, you can make use of robo advisors that can invest on your behalf. Many robo advisors also allow you to choose your risk level. This helps them choose the right investments for you in a way that makes you confident and comfortable with how your money is being invested.
There are other types of investments, such as real estate, that can help you grow your wealth. In fact, a lot of people have made their money from real estate investments. The important thing is to do your financial planning right and invest the time to understand where your money is going.
Saving
When it comes to saving money, make sure you take the time to understand the terms being offered to you by the bank or financial institution, including the APY (Annual Percentage Yield) and any other terms.
This can help you make sure your savings grow as much as possible in the planned term.
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Make More Than What You Have
If your current income is not enough to meet what your ideal lifestyle demands, its time to start looking at ways to increase, supplement, or change the source of your income.
The good news here is that there are many different ways to do so. We will now look at low-hanging fruit you can start working on right now as well as what you can start planning for long term freedom and wealth.
Find a Side Hustle
One of the easiest and most satisfying ways to boost your income is by starting a side hustle. Today, there are many different opportunities to make money on the side, from delivering pizzas to freelancing and consulting. The amount of money you’ll make will largely depend on what you choose to do. You can use the extra cash to prop up your budget or invest it for even bigger returns down the line.
With so many different side hustles to choose from, you can choose something that is as flexible or as passive as you need it to be. Still not sure where to start? Let’s have a quick look at some of the options available
Need Something Flexible?
Choosing something flexible such as freelance writing or graphic design, means you can make considerable money while choosing the hours you work. Driving for ride-sharing apps or delivering food also has quite a bit of flexibility in that you can choose the hours you work.
Need Something Passive?
If time is not on your side, renting out your apartment (or a room) is a passive income that can still make you quite a bit of money. You can also rent out your car, RV, or a closet in your home for neighbors to store stuff.
Full-Time Gig
If you’re serious about getting rich, you might also want to consider a side hustle that can become your full-time gig down the line. One of the ways to do this is to look for something that allows you to ask for more money, the better you get at it.
By doing so, you’re not only earning money for the time you spend working, but you’re also using the time to invest in future earnings. This means that for every hour spent working on your side gig, you’re not only earning money now but also increasing how much you can earn in a year or two.
Take a Course
Furthering your career as you climb the corporate ladder is another way of boosting your income. What you learn can also prove to be of help further down the line should you want to open your own business or start a side hustle such as consulting or coaching. Taking a course online or in a class can help you expand your knowledge and set you up for the next promotion or career move.
You can take a course online and study at your own pace, all the while learning new skills to help you further your career or even start a new side hustle. Many independent providers offer courses at low prices so that you don’t have to invest a lot of money in acquiring new skills or improving your existing ones.
Open Your Own Business
Opening your own business is a big move that requires a lot of hard work. Even so, it can bring with it financial freedom as well as the freedom to manage your own time and creativity. With the world’s billionaires either owning or inheriting their own business, this is one of the surest ways to riches.
A successful entrepreneur is more often than not the one who is able to get the business off the ground with the resources they have. This requires a diverse skill set but a lot of things you will learn as you go along.
It’s very important to start by transforming your business idea into a business plan and make sure that the necessary financial planning is in place to overcome the challenges that will inevitably come your way and see your project through to success.
Keep Tabs on Your Finances
Keeping tabs on your cash flow, investments, and savings is one of the most important things you need to do if you want to get rich. What gets measured can be improved, and this applies to wealth building in many different ways.
It’s not always easy to spend time analyzing your finances, especially if you’re in the red. But ignoring them is not going to make it any better. In fact, ignoring them has every chance in the world of making it even worse. This is precisely why you should be keeping tabs on your finances at all times.
From knowing what’s going in and coming out of your bank account to keeping tabs on your credit card, investment analyzers can help you big time. There are many versions that can be used for free, helping you save even more money. Take the time to configure them properly and learn how to use them to really secure your financial future success.
Getting rich is not always easy. If it was everybody would be rich. But getting rich is something all of us are capable of as long as we plan diligently and never give up.
How To Get Rich FAQs
Can I get rich with no money?
The simple and quick answer is yes, you can get rich even if you don’t have money. Start building your wealth by looking at areas where you can save money and work hard at removing any debts you might have. Invest the money you save and look for a side hustle that can supplement your income, and you’ll be on your way to getting rich before you know it.
How can I become a millionaire in a year?
It is certainly possible to become a millionaire in a year, but you need to be sure that you play your cards right. If you have enough capital to start with, investing in the right financial instruments is one way to go about it. If you don’t have the required capital, opening your own business can be another route to the financial success you’re looking for.
How can I get rich quick?
To get rich quick, there are a few different things that you need to do. By following these rules and guidelines, you can give yourself every chance of success at getting rich as quickly as possible.
Ultimately, you need to be disciplined and focus on the financial freedom you so desire.
Here’s what you can do to get rich as quickly as possible:
- Eliminate any debts holding you back
- Negotiate your fixed costs
- Invest any additional money
- Look for additional revenue streams
How do people get rich?
People can become rich by managing their money properly. Debt should be eliminated, and costs negotiated down to increase the amount of money that can be put in high-yield investments. Additional revenue streams are always helpful as they can protect you from any instability, especially if they are diversified enough to withstand any shockwaves the market might feel.
Avoid Money Scams
I recently attended a wealth expo recently where about 3,000 of the 6,000 attendees couldn’t jump from their chairs fast enough when presented the opportunity to invest in risky investments like tax liens.
Sure some people make money on tax liens, but it’s the small minority and not an investment suited for someone who doesn’t first have tens of thousands of dollars invested. Here’s the exact investing strategy I use that anyone can.
For someone who has only $2,000 – $10,000 to invest it’s an insanely stupid investment. It’s like one of the dumbest things you can do with your money.
I watch as literally thousands of people throwing their money into the trash. Here’s another perspective on the event and my views on money scams.
The attendees at the seminar are susceptible to being conned because they don’t know anything else. If we taught personal finance in high schools and colleges, and we talked about it with our friends, the popular narrative would change.
It’s actually not that hard to get rich slowly – seriously it isn’t. But people go for the quick rich, or the gamble, instead of holding out and playing the long game.
Make The Most of What You Have
When all is said and done, money is a resource, just like any other resource, it needs to be managed as efficiently as possible. This is especially true if you want to get rich.
By developing your understanding of money and learning the tips and tricks on how to manage it efficiently, you can start your journey to getting rich faster and get there quicker.
Commit To Your Financial Goals To Get Rich
Getting rich is not as hard as most people make it to be. Having said that, you do need to maintain a high level of discipline and commitment to your financial goals.
The important thing is to take control of what is going on around you and start thinking like a rich person so that you can grow rich.
As Warren Buffett once said, “Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.” So if you want to be sitting in the shade of your financial success, plant your tree today.
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