How does someone actually get rich?
Should they make more money at their jobs by working harder?
Should they take on longer hours and more responsibility … all in vain hopes of getting a better raise or bigger bonus?
Is your job even really the only way how to become independently wealthy?
In this post I want to dig a little deeper into what it takes to actually become “rich”.
People who have made it – whether they are in the top 100 of Forbes or even people that you know in real life – more than likely didn’t get there by running the rat race and working themselves to death.
While that might be the case for a small fraction of individuals, I think you can find in just about any good book or biography that the successful and wealthy got to where they are by recognizing one thing …
… that there was a better way than to simply live for your paycheck!
Who Are You Actually Working For?
Don’t get me wrong. Hard work is very honorable. Without persistence and grit, I don’t think that most of us would be where we are today.
Is a job necessarily a bad thing? Does everyone have to be a self-made entrepreneur? Absolutely not! If you’ve got a job, do it and do it well. That’s what’s expected when someone is paying you for a service.
However the thing I want you to remember is that there should be a balance. If you provide a good service, then you should be compensated for it.
For example – how often is your hard work exploited? How many extra hours do you put in at the office or home? Are you making your employer thousands or even millions of dollars each year, but then when it comes time to get your raise or bonus you receive nothing or something short of your fair-share?
Now ask yourself the hard question: If things continue the way they are, how far is this career of yours really going to go? Are you going to work really hard for 10 or 15 years only to be promoted to middle management and have your salary capped at the average market rate?
Do the math. At this rate are you ever going to be financially free by the time you want to? Is this actually the way how to become independently wealthy? If your goal is to become a millionaire, is that EVER really going to happen?
The problem with relying only on trading labor for money is that it completely limits your earning potential. If you earn $60,000 per year at your job, then that’s all you’ll ever have for that year. You might save $5,000, $10,000, or even $15,000 each year. But still … you’re confined to a single number – a number that is unfortunately dictated by someone else.
Face it. The conventional system to create wealth is rigged.
If you ever truly want to become wealthy and still enjoy your time, you’ve got to get more creative.
How to Become Independently Wealthy for Real
Now let’s explore a different scenario:
Everyday people use the Internet to buy stuff. Think about the last 10 websites you visited. Almost all of them had ads on them, right? Some were on the top, some were on the side, and some were even in the body. Heck – you might have even been persuaded by the article to actually buy something through one of these sites.
Guess what? When people do that, someone gets rich. Who is that? The retailer of the product of course, but you know who else? The person who owns the website.
I discovered this fact years ago, and I wanted in! I read about regular people like you and I who were setting up these small niche websites and making thousands of dollars per month from doing so. I studied their methods and went to work on it for myself and my family.
So what happens now? Every day over 1,000 different search phrases within Google brings traffic to my websites. Once they get there some of the readers click my ads and buy products. I get rich! Read through my niche website updates and you’ll see that sometimes I make over $1,000 per month by doing this. It happens while I’m at work. It happens while I’m asleep.
By creating an online business, I went from being the employee to being the owner. I created a situation where virtually all the money I make goes directly to me. Depending on how well I manage the business, there is no limit to how large I can grow things. By being the owner I’ve released the shackles of my earning potential.
Another Method – Putting Companies to Work for You
Building websites may not be your thing. But owning a business doesn’t mean you have to start one from the ground up.
Consider this other classic money making strategy: Stocks.
Lots of people think that stocks are complicated. But few of them realize that you honestly don’t have to know anything about the stock market to do well. The magic when it comes to investing is in knowing just a few key things:
- How powerful compound interest is.
- How your taxes work.
Compound interest. With nothing more than a few thousand dollars and a lot of time your hands, it is completely possible to turn your savings into over a million dollars. By investing in the market average you could take advantage of an annualized 8% growth rate. Check out these examples here to see how quickly your money could grow.
Could you imagine getting your savings all the way up to $1,000,000 and having the stock market grow by another 10% that year? That would be an extra $100,000 for you – all because you’re the owner of that money. Ultimately the goal of anyone who is independently wealthy is get their assets to a point where the money they make from them is enough to live off of them.
Taxes. If you understand how to avoid paying taxes on things that you don’t have to, then you’re in for saving a boat load of money. In fact if you’re really creative, you could end up having a completely tax-free retirement (just like I lay out in the post linked here).
By using these assets to my advantage, again – I’m the owner. I reap the benefits. No employer can ever take this away or decrease the amount of earnings or dividends I will receive from these investments. They are mine to keep, and that gives me all kinds of confidence and security to not let anyone take advantage of who I am and where I want to be.
Opportunities for More Income Are Out There:
What else could you be doing outside of your job to grow your top line?
- Could you start a website? If you already own one could you grow it bigger or start another?
- Could you be a better investor or look for other ways to buy assets tax-free?
- Could you own a rental property?
- Could you own another type of business?
- Could you try one of these other awesome second income ideas?
Don’t back yourself into a corner and hand-cuff yourself to a single paycheck. You don’t have to limit yourself to one source of income. If you’re making excuses, then all you’re doing is being your worst enemy.
Find the opportunities for how to become independently wealthy and seize them. Seek. Focus. Try and try again. Don’t give up until you conquer. Bring money to your household that you never thought you could receive. The better you’re able to automate this, the more your money will finally work for you for a change!
Readers – What are you doing outside your job to build your wealth? How are you automating your income?
Featured image courtesy of Pexels
