3575: 7 Ways to Become Awesome With Your Money by Andrew of Dollar After Dollar on Better Money Habits

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[00:00:52] This is Optimal Finance Daily. 7 Ways to Become Awesome With Your Money by Andrew of DollarAfterDollar.com Let's get real. Money is something that we must have in order to thrive. A tool that can unlock a world of time and freedom. Yet many of us spend so little time actually thinking about it. Maybe you've been taught to fear money. It was a taboo topic to discuss in your household, so you resent the thought of it.

[00:01:20] Well, today I want to shift that mindset. I want to make money easy for you to think and talk about. It's not a taboo topic. It's something to be discussed, taught, and truly thought about. How can you become awesome with your money? Here's how. Number one. Focus on the how can I.

[00:01:41] One of the biggest hurdles we have in this life is people telling us we can't. You can't save enough, or you'll never be able to build wealth. Heck, even your brain is going to tell you that you can't do something. You need to change this mindset from I can't to how can I. This is a powerful shift. How can I gets things done.

[00:02:03] How can I takes action, even when it's uncomfortable. How can I is how every single person breaks down barriers. Do you think Elon Musk would be able to create Tesla, SpaceX, and SolarCity without how can I? Would Michael Jordan be able to become one of the greatest basketball players in history without how can I? Do you think that you can magically become a millionaire without asking how can I?

[00:02:31] If you're debating in your head, the answer is no. How can I is how you unlock your full potential. You create your own reality. It doesn't just happen. Number two. Know your why. Why do you want to become financially free? You need to find your why. Maybe you want to help mentor youth at your church. Maybe it's to raise your kids full-time. Or maybe you want to teach others.

[00:02:57] Become laser-focused on your why and it will drive you like nothing else. Your why will take you from average to great if you let it fuel you every day. Focus on your why and review it constantly in your mind. Number three. Understand the wealth formula. There are two things you must do to create wealth in your life. The first is live below your means. If you can't do this, then it doesn't matter how much money you make.

[00:03:27] You could be making a million dollars a month. But if you can't save a portion of that money, then you will still be broke. There are plenty of doctors, lawyers, and athletes who are broke. The second is to increase your income. This eliminates what is known as the scarcity mindset. No one wants to go through life clipping coupons and picking up pennies. You can have your cake and eat it too. Don't get caught in the trap that one of the two is the path to wealth.

[00:03:57] Focus on both and you'll have enough money for generations to come. Live below your means plus increased income equals wealth accumulation. Number four. Be patient. There are plenty of stories on the interwebs today of people exploding their wealth in less than two years. Silicon Valley tycoons, real estate moguls, and professional athletes flood your feeds on a daily basis.

[00:04:24] People swarm to see these articles hoping there's a secret sauce to building their fortune in record time. Taking the opposite approach will guide you on a path that will surely lead to wealth. Patience is the trait that the majority of wealthy people use to accumulate their fortune. If you lack this simple skill, you'll develop shiny object syndrome. Always running to the next big business opportunity without a focus, goal, or a plan in place.

[00:04:53] Take a deep breath, evaluate your options, and choose to build wealth the surefire way via time. Usually when you do this, you amass your projected nest egg faster than you initially planned. Number five. Decide you will become wealthy rather than want to get wealthy. Draw a line in the sand right now. You will do what it takes to become rich. It's not an easy road. It's not a popular road.

[00:05:22] The road to wealth is the path less traveled. Many times, you'll have to go against the current. If you set yourself up with this mindset, it'll change your life. Commit to working through the hardship and pain it takes to reach your goals. A recent study done at the University of West Point showed that the predictors of success went beyond intelligence. Want to know what the key trait was? Grit and perseverance at working towards a long-term goal.

[00:05:51] Despite failure, adversity, and plateaus, those who succeed always push through. Number six. Switch from a know-it-all to a learner. If you become a sponge to new information, you can explode your growth. Too many people think they know it all and miss out on learning new things. You know what that does? Slams the door shut on new opportunities.

[00:06:17] Listen to other angles, keep your mind open, and spark your curiosity. Once you find something that interests you, test it out in small doses before making any large time or monetary investment. As we all know, not all information is created equal, especially when it comes to money. So the key here is to verify, verify, verify. Find mentors you can trust, and make sure the information you're soaking in is accurate.

[00:06:47] And number seven. Play to win. You're not here to just get by. You want to thrive. Unless you have a plan to make a large purchase with the cash in your bank account in the near future, you better be investing your money. Hoarding your hard-earned dollars and cents in your Bank of America checking account with a 1% return, if you're lucky, will get you nowhere. You must put that money to work.

[00:07:13] I'm not saying throw all your money into the next Chinese Amazon. Put it into a place that hedges your risk and is proven to give you a steady return. Ahem. Index funds. Life is too short to miss out on the magic of compound interest. Conclusion Anyone can be awesome with their money. With some hustle, heart, and consistency, amazing things can happen. Don't let anything stand in your way.

[00:07:42] Your choices dictate your future. Make sure that yours align with your goals. You just listened to the post titled, Seven Ways to Become Awesome with Your Money, by Andrew of DollarAfterDollar.com. Dell PCs with Intel inside are built for the moments that matter. For the moments you plan and the ones you don't. Built for the busy days that turn into all-night study sessions.

[00:08:11] The moment you're working from a cafe and realize every outlet's taken. The times you're deep in your flow and the absolute last thing you need is an auto-update throwing off your momentum. That's why Dell builds tech that adapts to the way you actually work. Built with long-lasting batteries so you're not scrambling for the closest outlet. And built-in intelligence that makes updates around your schedule, not in the middle of it. They don't build tech for tech's sake. They build it for you.

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[00:10:05] I think understanding the wealth formula and being patient are the points from this post that stand out to me most. While only 8% of Americans are millionaires, according to the largest survey of millionaires ever conducted by Ramsey Solutions, 3 out of 4 millionaires said that regular, consistent investing over a long period of time is the key to their financial success. 8 out of 10 millionaires invest in tax-advantaged retirement accounts,

[00:10:33] and for 95% of them, it took 28 years to reach millionaire status. When you have a long time horizon, it makes it much more likely that you'll become a millionaire, even if you don't have a high income. If you invest $500 per month, assuming a 10% average return with market-matching index funds over 30 years, you'll be a millionaire. Only 31% of millionaires averaged more than $100,000 in salary earnings,

[00:11:03] and one-third didn't make six figures in any working year at all. I can understand why people want a quick fix, and they want to believe there's a better way than simply spending less than they earn and investing the difference. But there really are no tried-and-true shortcuts when it comes to building wealth. I think it's similar to improving our physical health. If we aren't willing to be mindful of what we eat and exercise,

[00:11:30] there really isn't another solution or magic pill that's going to get us to where we want to be. And that'll do it for today in another installment of Optimal Finance Daily. Have a happy Thursday. Thank you for being here every day and listening. And I'll see you on the Friday show tomorrow, where your optimal life awaits.