25 Habits to Pick Up Right Away If You Want to Be a Millionaire Before Age 35 - Part 2
by CosmicScale
Self-Development
Published: 3 years ago
|Updated: 3 years ago
Here is the Part 2
Drastically increase your income
11
Tasks
1. Study Game Theory before looking for a job. After the Wikipedia page on Game Theory, I recommend you to start from The Joy of Game Theory (I have no affiliation with the author and I do not profit from linking this book in any way): you will understand how in a market of naturally conflicting interests, game theory and strategic moves will allow you to think rationally and achieve oftentimes optimal results with much reduced effort. This will be a critical advantage for you down the road.
Once
2. Study and understand the business niches where -- based on your skills -- you can get a better paying job that does not send you to mental hospital. Acquire new, useful skills (you do not need a degree for many highly important and well paid skills relevant in today's job market). Relocate abroad if necessary or if your country prevents competition or innovation. Do not be scared. Be available to do risky jobs that your peers are not willing to do.
Once
3. Learn how to solve problems at work. While everybody at work just does barely "enough" (and limit themselves to complain when things don't work), you will quickly become essential as one of the very few who solves problems. This works even if you are fat, ugly, inexperienced, old, young, whatever. Problem-solvers are golden nuggets in any business environment and rewarded accordingly.
Once
4. Once you become one of the few "essential" employees, you will employ Game Theory to force your employer to give you a better salary. Do it nicely but effectively. With a smile, you will be able to submit your employer into a so called "dominated game" where the only possible outcome is for you to get a better salary, etc.
Once
5. Once your salary starts flowing in, immediately set up an emergency fund in cash of approximately 6 months of salary (3-months if you are particularly good at avoiding emergencies). This is cash that must be readily available for emergencies: not to buy you a BMW. Do not stupidly inflate your lifestyle and continue to be cautious with the way you manage and spend your money.
Once
6. Open a Stock Account with your bank and every month save 20%/30%/40%/50% of your net income and invest it in a low commission S&P500 ETF by Vanguard (like "VOO" or "VIG": google them). Never touch this investment for at least the next decade. Save mercilessly and invest every month "no matter what".
Once
7. Once you have 200k/300k USD invested in a Vanguard ETF like VOO or VIG and they are pumping approximately 30k USD a year as compound interest and dividends (which you are NOT touching at any cost), you are able to focus your attention in order to start a side business to corroborate your income.
Once
8. Work at night, on weekends and holiday to kickstart your side business.
Once
9. Focus on getting the first 3 customers for your new side business (friends and family do not count). Once you make 3 customers, focus on how to make 30. If in 3 months you are not able to reach the 1.000 USD / month threshold, you must focus on finding better cash-flow generating business ideas: don't fight on price, the margin is essential. Learn from your mistakes (you will do many)
Once
10. Once your side business starts making 10k USD / month you can start evaluating if your current salaried job is worth the effort / time / hassle. If not, make the jump to the self-employed world and focus on increasing the income from your side business to 30k USD / month.
Once
11. Sooner rather than later you will be a millionaire. The first million is by far the absolute hardest.