Comments on: How to Become A Millionaire

By: Adam

Adam — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 07:05:00 +0000

Yes, but the question no one is answering is: what’s the point of a frugal life just so you can be an 80 year old millionaire?

By: jenny stillwater

jenny stillwater — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:38:49 +0000

You made tons of really good points, and yeah I guess for myself its just a overall view with all my expenditures and not just in a few areas but all of them…yikes I got a lotta work to do! Helpful story thank so much

By: Nick

Nick — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 19:11:29 +0000

Great story. At the end of the day it’s relatively simple to become a millionaire, right? Simple, consistent saving and smart spending. No derivatives or credit default swaps needed!

By: Bernz

Bernz — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 14:10:34 +0000

Hi Brad… that’s another inspiring story and I agree with you on the credit card debt. I remember 5 years ago, I paid off my wife’s 10k credit card debt and that was really the last time we carry a balance of over $500 on our credit cards.

By: Brad

Brad — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 13:21:14 +0000

all your advice works. i know because i have followed those steps since my early to mid-20s when, as a self-employed freelance journalist, i opened what was then called a keough account. those were pre-cursors of today’s ira’s. i always socked the limit into those, and soon opened an ira, as well as a 401k and a roth when they became available. i also opened fidelity and later, vanguard, mutual fund accounts. i always saved more than i spent, probably at least half my pay, which was never higher than about $65k during all the years i worked in journalism. true, my friends always liked to joke that i was “cheap,” but who’s laughing now? i crossed the $1m line in late 04, quit full-time work at age 51 and do exactly as i please with myself today, which is mainly being a semi-pro musician, the career the i almost established when i was in college. mercifully, i don’t have to live off it today. my main advice is to avoid credit-card debt. i am always astonished by how much people carry. ive never carried any. my debts are always limited to mortgage and, at times, car loans. i could own fancier cars and houses, but i have never felt the need, unlike my cash rich, but investment-poor friends. i live off corporate junk bonds today, plus music and random freelancing. my goal is to get to about $1.5m, get 80 percennt out of today’s way too unstable stock market, and live off mostly fixed income investments. way down the road, ill add social security, and a pension from the 25-years-plus i worked in newspapers. it can be done. the millionaire-next-door exists all around us.

By: Jeffrey Trull

Jeffrey Trull — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:09:22 +0000

It really is that easy, and I think a lot of people don’t realize that. It’s just a psychological barrier nowadays since many can’t imagine what having $1 million feels like. In reality, $1 million isn’t that much money anymore. That might sound ridiculous, but I know I’m going to need much more than $1 million to retire someday. I’m not sure what my millionaire story will be yet, but I’m certain it’s going to involve self-employment since and not a job.

Great meeting you at FINCON, Ryan!

By: Virginia

Virginia — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 18:17:27 +0000

I fear your wonderful advice comes too late for me. I am 58 years old and have no job skills. The world is a wonderful place for you young people who have jobs and a meaningful life, but for someone like me it is difficult to want to keep going. I feel antiquated and out-of-date. I will never be a millionaire–not even close! What is even worse is that my two grown sons can only find part-time, minimum wage jobs and both of them went to college.

By: Steve

Steve — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 07:04:13 +0000

I’d say an interesting thought to add would be an idea suggested by Mark Cuban a while back on his blog. It was basically the idea that you’re not necessarily saving money so that you can invest slowly and retire comfortably, but that you were saving every possible penny, at every moment, so that when an actual fantastic opportunity came around you’d have money to invest.

Think of the 25 year old that’s saved up $40k to invest in a friend’s restaurant or to take advantage of the housing crises.