9 things to do in your 20s to become a millionaire by 30

Becoming a millionaire by age 30 is possible — and
you don't have to found the next Facebook or
Snapchat, or win a Powerball jackpot, to do so.
Plenty of regular people have done it.
To help you reach the seven-figure mark, we rounded
up nine pieces of advice from those who became
millionaires at a very young age. We can't guarantee
millionaire status, but doing these things won't hurt
your odds:
1. Focus on earning.
"In today's economic environment you cannot save
your way to millionaire status," writes Grant
Cardone, who went from broke and in debt at age 21
to self-made millionaire by age 30. "The first step is
to focus on increasing your income in increments
and repeating that.
"My income was $3,000 a month and nine years later
it was $20,000 a month. Start following the money,
and it will force you to control revenue and see
opportunities."
Earning more money is often easier said than done,
but most people have options. Read about 50 ways to
bring in additional income, some high-paying jobs
you can do on the side, how you can earn passive
income, and how to start a side-hustle from a woman
who earned up to $4,000 a month on the side.
2. Save to invest, don't save to save.
"The only reason to save money is to invest it," writes
Cardone. "Put your saved money into secured,
sacred (untouchable) accounts. Never use these
accounts for anything, not even an emergency. This
will force you to continue to follow step one (increase
income). To this day, at least twice a year, I am broke
because I always invest my surpluses into ventures I
cannot access."
Investing is not as complicated or daunting as we
make it out to be. The simplest starting point is to
contribute to your 401(k) if your employer offers one,
and take full advantage of your company's 401(k)
match program — which is essentially free money —
if it has one.
Next, consider contributing money towards a Roth
IRA or traditional IRA, individual retirement accounts
with different contribution limits and tax structures
(which one you can use depends on your income). If
you still have money left over, you can research low-
cost index funds, which Warren Buffett recommends,
and look into the online investment platforms known
as "robo-advisers."
The key to consistently setting aside money is to
make it automatic. That way, you'll never even see the
money you're contributing and you'll learn to live
without it.
3. Ask for help.
"At a certain point in my business, I couldn't grow
any further until I hired a few key people," writes
Daniel Ally, who became a millionaire in less than
five years, at the age of 24. "Asking for help wasn't
my forte, but I had to make it happen. Within months
I had a lawyer, editor, personal trainer, part-time
chef, and other personnel. It cost me a fortune at
first, but eventually helped push me into the million-
dollar mark. Most people won't ask for help because
their ego is in the way."
Asking for help extends beyond hiring key people. As
self-made millionaire Steve Siebold explains in his
book "How Rich People Think," rich people aren't
afraid to fund their future from other people's
pockets. "World class believes in using other people's
money," he writes. "Rich people know not being
solvent enough to personally afford something is not
relevant. The real question is, 'Is this worth buying,
investing in, or pursuing?'"
4. Be decisive.
"Avoid decision fatigue," writes Tucker Hughes, who
became a millionaire by age 22. "Attention is a finite
daily resource and can be a bottleneck on
productivity. No matter the mental stamina
developed over time, there is always going to be a
threshold where you break down and your remaining
efforts for the day become suboptimal.
"Conserve your mental power by making easily
reversible decisions as quickly as possible and
aggressively planning recurring actions so you can
execute simple tasks on autopilot. I know what I am
wearing to work and eating for breakfast each day
next week. Do you?"
Hughes isn't the only one who believes in developing
decisiveness. After studying over 500 millionaires,
journalist and author Napoleon Hill found that they
all shared this single quality. "Analysis of several
hundred people who had accumulated fortunes well
beyond the million dollar mark disclosed the fact that
every one of them had the habit of reaching
decisions promptly," Hill wrote in his 1937 personal
finance classic, "Think and Grow Rich."
5. Don't show off — show up!
"I didn't buy my first luxury watch or car until my
businesses and investments were producing multiple
secure flows of income," writes Cardone. "I was still
driving a Toyota Camry when I had become a
millionaire. Be known for your work ethic, not the
trinkets that you buy."
Need inspiration to save more and spend less? Read
up on tips and strategies from regular people who
saved enough of their incomes to retire before age
40.
6. Know when to take the right risks — and act on
them.
"Before reaching the seven-figure mark, you must
take many risks," writes Ally. "Taking risks requires
much faith in yourself and others, but it must be
done. Faith is knowing that what you want will
eventually happen as long as you believe it. You'll
have to take major leaps in your life, sometimes not
even knowing where it will lead. However, it will pay
off once you get to the other side, even if you burn a
bridge or two in the process."
You can't get rich with low expectations — the
wealthiest, most successful people think big and play
to win.
While playing to win in any aspect of life requires an
element of risk taking and a level of comfort with
uncertainty, it could be the difference between living
an average life and living a rich life, says self-made
millionaire T. Harv Eker, who also studied incredibly
wealthy people before releasing his book "Secrets of
the Millionaire Mind."
7. Invest in yourself.
"The safest investment I’ve ever made is in my
future," writes Hughes. "Read at least 30 minutes a
day, listen to relevant podcasts while driving and
seek out mentors vigorously. You don't just need to
be a master in your field, you need to be a well-
rounded genius capable of talking about any subject
whether it is financial, political or sports related.
Consume knowledge like air and put your pursuit of
learning above all else."
Many modern-day successful and wealthy people are
voracious readers. Take Warren Buffett, for example,
who estimates that 80% of his working day is
dedicated to reading.
8. Master soft skills and cooperate with others.
Building a fortune takes people skills and charm just
as much as it does strategy. As Hill warned, "Most
people lose their positions and their big
opportunities in life because of this fault than for all
other reasons combined." And billionaire Mark
Cuban put it bluntly in an Entrepreneur article about
the keys to being successful in business: "People hate
dealing with people who are jerks. It's always easier
to be nice than to be a jerk. Don't be a jerk."
That being said, there is a fine line between
cooperating with others and being a pushover. "In
the process of reaching the seven-figure mark, I've
learned dealing with people is the most important
attribute," writes Ally. "No one can become a
millionaire without knowing how to deal with people
assertively. You must be prepared when your best
friends turn on you or your family betrays you.
Sometimes, it will happen at the most unpredictable
times."
9. Shoot for $10 million, not $1 million.
"The single biggest financial mistake I've made was
not thinking big enough," writes Cardone. "I
encourage you to go for more than a million. There is
no shortage of money on this planet, only a shortage
of people thinking big enough."
Fb