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How to Get Wealthier?
I am currently turning 20 as of the end of 2021 and I have a goal to reach $100,000 before my enrolment into university. (100k in 2 years!)
This means 743 days to make myself financially wealthier but I’m not close to this goal as of now.
What I write and share in this article is not financial advice, but my own personal takeaways from various sources.
I am simply shedding some light on how I plan to achieve this “100k in 2 years “goal and hopefully give you some insights that might help you too.
Learning From “Think and Grow Rich”
My first key action when embarking on this journey is to restructure the way I think.
Your thoughts influence and dictate your actions. I know that it sounds materialistic to solely fixate your goals on becoming richer.
However, for me personally, it feels like an experiment where discipline, resilience and consistency are put to the test.
A book that I am currently reading, “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill contains 6 key steps.
To summarise it for you,
- Fixate your mind with the exact amount you desire
- Determine the exact date you intend to attain your money
- What you intend to sacrifice for that money
- A definite plan regardless of how ready you might be
- Most importantly, read it every night and morning, envision it, feel it, and believe that you already possess the exact figure you desire.
A famous criminologist once said, “When men first come into contact with crime, they abhor it.
If they remain in contact with crime for a time, they become accustomed to it and endure it.
If they remain in contact with it long enough, they finally embrace it, and become influenced by it.”
I’m sure many of us have pondered why those with the wrong company often make the same mistakes repeatedly. Why is it so hard to get out of bad influences? Why is it so hard to quit an addiction?
This is because their thoughts are colluded, thus affecting their actions. Just as easy as it is to influence us negatively, it is just as easy to influence us to become wealthier.
Hence, I believe that by thinking, feeling, and envisioning our goals on a daily basis, we will start to take actions towards them even without us being consciously aware.
Write It Down – My 100k in 2 Years Goal
Write down/print the goal you want to achieve and how to reach that goal. It could look something like this:
| I will have in my possession $100,000 by 1st of May 2023, before my enlistment into University. In return for this money, I will work efficiently and effectively through various sources of income. 1. Hustle tirelessly for my side hustles to provide customers with nothing but the best. 2. Be extremely analytical when evaluating and picking stocks to invest through the studies of those with greater knowledge (etc. book & YouTube). 3. Be open minded and careful about other sources of income. Most importantly to me, BE CONSISTENT in whatever that I do and do it on a REGULAR basis. I believe that I will have this money in my possession. I can already see this money before my very eyes. I will eventually be able to touch 1000 $100 bills and 6 digits in my bank account. It is now awaiting transfer to me at the time, and in the proportion that I Deliver the service I intend to render in return for it. For whatever plan which I will construct later, I will follow that plan, until I have accumulated the wealth I desire. |
You may follow my template or come up with your own way of visualising your goal.
Remember to place it somewhere visible to you all the time, and try to review your goal every day.
You’ll be more likely to work towards achieving your goals!
Streams of Income
Work
Image: Alex Kotliarskyi
As of right now, I would assume that most of us reading the article are trading in our time for money.
Although it is not an efficient path to become wealthy, it is crucial in a sense that it helps to accumulate sufficient money to venture into our side hustles or investments that can increase our wealth exponentially.
Investments
Image: M.B.M
When investing in stocks, always invest in companies that you have a great understanding of.
Is it a product/service that you use on a daily basis? Do you purchase their products often? Based on your observation, are their products/company doing well? If you have a strong grasp on the company, dive in deeper and review their financial reports before making an investment.
This does not only apply to stocks but any other assets or investments that you make in life.
It is ridiculous how people spend so much time researching when buying a house (location of the house, the condition of the house, the environment, etc.), but take a few seconds to invest their savings into a stock they just heard about.
When you truly understand the intrinsic value of what you are investing in, you will not be influenced emotionally by the fluctuation of their prices.
“The stock market is filled with individuals who know the price of everything, but the value of nothing.”
— Philip Fisher
Secondly, always diversify your risk.
I am sure that many retail investors are unaware that their entire portfolio has a high beta (β). The beta (β) of an investment security (i.e. a stock) is a measurement of its volatility of returns relative to the entire market.
Should a market correction happen, your entire portfolio will be affected. Therefore, you may want to consider investing in low beta assets like gold, silver or cryptocurrencies but understand what you are investing in!
In all honesty, YouTube provides so much information about investment. The wealth that I have accumulated thus far has to be credited to all these YouTubers that I would be recommending. They are “Andrei Jikh“, “The Popular Investor“, “The Investor Channel” and “Cameron Stewart, CFA“.
Lastly, for those who are striving to become a long term investor, you must have patience!
If you had invested $100 or $1000 in the S&P 500 in 1965, you would have $21,973 and $219,732 in 2021 respectively.
This is the power of long term investing.
You must be prepared for declines in the stock market because everything that goes up will eventually come down.
If you truly believe in the fundamentals of the company, the management, their future and their products, you will not be swayed.
Many have tried, and many have and will fail. Emotions will get the better of us in the short term and we will lose faith in companies we are invested in.
Therefore, ignore your emotions, block out the news and focus on what is of importance to you.
Example of Holding What You Invest – Apple Case Study
The financial crisis in 2008, the death of Steve Jobs, the rise of competitors like Samsung, and the lack of innovation in Apple over the decade.
All these are strong reasons to lose faith in a company like Apple and many have chosen to abandon or worse short the stock.
Despite all the declines that the stock has faced, since the company’s IPO in 1980 the stock has risen 670 times.
Even in the past 4 years from 2016-2020, one can argue that Donald Trump’s presidential election or the trade war between the United States (US) and China significantly affected Apple’s stock price.
However, the stock has grown 416% since 5 years ago!
Does this not justify just how much one can earn should they have patience and understanding of the true value of Apple?
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Conclusion
Obviously, there is more than one way to generate wealth other than investing.
As of now, working and investing is how I generate wealth.
To reach my goal of 100k in 2 years, I would have to explore other methods and would love to write an article after 2 years to update you guys on my progress and achievements.
Hopefully, this article has provided you with some insights as to how you can work towards financial freedom!
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About the Author
