“We are starting a new blog on personal finance.”
“Oh yeah, can you make me a millionaire?”
A friend of the program asked us that. (Maybe we will have her guest post one day.)
This isn’t a get-rich-quick blog. It’s about the wise use of your money.
Being a millionaire isn’t what it once was. In 2020 it is estimated that over 20 million Americans were millionaires in 2020. (https://spendmenot.com/blog/what-percentage-of-americans-are-millionaires/). So you wouldn’t be that unique. If you’re under 35 we would say you almost assuredly need to set your sights higher if you wish to achieve any level of FIRE. This is due to massive recent inflation and predicted increased costs of healthcare, housing, fuel, and food.
But yes, if you have any sort of decent income, make wise decisions over a number of years (and you have 20-30 years of earning money ahead of you, i.e. you are relatively young), our advice will make you a millionaire. How? Make sure you have maximized your career or self-employed earning potential by performing well at work and getting promotions and bonuses. If you aren’t performing well with accomplishments, why not? Does it take you any extra time to do a better job? Probably not. Maybe some extra effort, but we expect that of you. If you aren’t willing to put extra effort into your success, this isn’t the blog for you.
Once you’re getting more incoming (we’ll say that is like offense), you will reduce spending (defense) while protecting your savings. Once spending is under control, you will see your savings grow, and you can begin investing in stocks or real estate, etc.
Investing will multiple these efforts, and after a while, your money starts working for you, while you are still adding to the nest egg yourself. Find out your next worth. That would be when we add all your cash, stocks, retirement accounts, and real estate, and deduct the mortgage and all debt from it. And one day, when you make your net worth statement (post to follow), maybe you’ll just be close to a million. It’s possible. And you can thank us.
