There Are Only 2 Ways To Get Rich

Nicolas Cole Instagram

There are only 2 ways to become rich:

• Make more.
• Spend less.

I am 30 years old, and one habit in particular I notice the vast majority of society (but specifically starting with 20-somethings) nurtures is the habit of making more to spend more.

As my father would say, “Expenses rise to meet income.”

Here’s a typical 20-something scenario, fresh out of college:

• Graduate and immediately try to land the highest paying job possible, or the one with the most immediate upward mobility (forget any sort of investing in a lower paying position in order to learn things for a longer term payoff).
• Receive first promotion within a year, immediately upgrade apartment.
• Receive second promotion year 2, buy a sports car.
• Receive third (big) promotion year 3, buy a ring you can’t really afford for that “special someone,” maybe even throw down a mortgage on a house.
• No more promotions for a while. Salary ceiling becomes fixed. Meanwhile, habit for spending has already been established.
• Etc. for the rest of life.