The principles that build wealth haven’t really changed much for centuries. With so many people looking for secrets, the real secret to building wealth is that there are no secrets. It’s really about using common knowledge that has stood the test of time. Below are 47 timeless wealth building maxims, containing much of the wisdom needed to amass a fortune.
1. Focus on widening the gap between what you earn and what you spend, to guide you to wealth.
2. Pay yourself first. Have a “Me Tax” that carves out a portion of your earnings before it is spent on anything else.
3. If you get a raise, raise the amount of what your saving immediately. Don’t wait, otherwise you probably won’t do it.
4. Turn savings into investment capital. Make your money work for you.
5. Understand that compound interest is one of your best allies in reaching wealth.
6. Never misuse any amount of money carelessly for entertainment purposes like lotteries and gambling.
7. There are many ways you can invest your money such as stock markets, real estate, businesses, and so on. Choose one and become an expert in it.
8. Don’t look at your home as an investment. It’s your biggest expense. Play defense not offense when buying a home.
9. Invest little or big amounts, it doesn’t matter as long as you have a long term investing strategy.
10. Invest in yourself. It’s always the best investment.
11. Have a plan for how you are going to exit the workforce and maintain your lifestyle comfortably. Don’t be a paycheck hostage.
12. Forgo living a consumer driven lifestyle. Spend your money on assets instead of things.
13. Wealth slips away from the individual who invests in things for which they are not familiar and don’t have the skills to maintain.
14. Avoid get rich quick schemes, they lead nowhere.
15. Track your wealth. Know where you are and where you are going. You can’t manage what you don’t measure.
16. Wealthy people know their net worth, poor people couldn’t be bothered.
17. Trust your gut. It won’t lie to you. No matter how good something looks on paper, stick to what you know.
18. Find a mentor who is financially intelligent and listen to the advice, not a mentor who tries to sell you something.
19. Guard your reputation. People will choose to do business with — or without you — based on your reputation.
20. Life is a greater school than any university.
21. Borrowed money is one of the most common ways otherwise smart people go broke.
22. Don’t be too conservative. Take advantage of opportunities.
23. Don’t swing for the fences either. In investing, emotions are your greatest asset…and liability.
24. To build your wealth you need to be more proactive, more aggressive and more of a self-starter than anyone you know personally.
25. Work up a budget and then work that budget.
26. Take responsibility for your financial situation. You may not have caused it, but you are responsible for it.
27. Don’t drive away your wealth. The majority of millionaires own their cars rather than lease them. Most are more likely to buy used vehicles instead of new.
28. Look where you want to go. Professional athletes imagine themselves making the winning shot over and over again. See yourself winning the financial game.
29. Income does not equal wealth. There are a lot of income rich people that are broke.
30. Pay attention to little things. Over time they add up.
31. Keep going with things get tough. It makes all the difference in the world.
32. Don’t associate with toxic or aimless people. Soar with the eagles, not the buzzards.
33. Wealth is much more than your net worth. It’s about meaning and purpose. It’s about living life on your terms.
34. Having a set of daily, weekly, monthly, and annual net worth goals will put you far ahead of most people.
35. Time is money. Spend a lot of yours planning your financial future.
36. Wealth accumulation is largely a function of your financial intelligence. You must learn before you can earn.
37. Live like a “secret” rich person and you’ll become one. Most millionaires don’t live in sprawling mansions. They live well below their means.
38. Love the home you are with. Your choice of home and how often you choose a new one, will determine your ability to accumulate wealth.
39. Make your money hard to reach.
40. Reverse your thinking. Instead of saving what’s left after spending, save for your financial goals first and then spend what you have left over.
41. Start saving for retirement right now. Not after you’ve saved for a house. Not after you’ve saved for the kids’ college education. Start putting something away today.
42. Credit card debt is the tie that binds losers together. There’s no way to get ahead financially when you’re paying 21% interest.
43. Make your lifestyle lag your income, not the other way around.
44. Put wealth building on auto pilot. Setup as many automated deduction/saving systems as possible to eliminate having to make a choice when it comes to saving. Make it automatic.
45. Protect your principle. Don’t put yourself in a position where you have to re-earn your nest egg.
46. Amateurs listen to stories on television. Professionals do the math.
47. You’re no more likely to build wealth because someone sold you a get rich trick than you are to build a house because someone sold you a shiny new hammer.
Be free. Nothing else is worth it.