The 7 Millionaire Skills I Wish I Knew At 18
As a self-made millionaire, I’ve learned that the path to wealth is not always clear or easy.
I’ve also learned that there are specific skills you need to succeed in life and business. Without these skills, it can be hard to make money or even get by in today’s world.
So if you’re an aspiring entrepreneur or are just looking for ways to improve your finances —…
1. Learn the art of negotiation
Negotiation is a skill you can learn and apply to every area of your life.
It doesn’t matter if you’re negotiating with family, friends, colleagues or even strangers on the street — the techniques are the same.
The only difference is that you might get more pushback from strangers than those close to you.
The basics are simple: be clear about what you want and why it’s important to you; listen carefully to what other people say; understand their needs as well as yours; create options (positives) for everyone involved in the transaction; try not to take things personally; keep calm at all times!
But what if there’s no room for negotiation? What if someone just won’t budge?
This shouldn’t stop anyone from trying different tactics until they find one that works best for them — and their style of negotiation will change depending on who they’re dealing with too!
For example: If someone has been calling me up nonstop since last week demanding payment because he thinks I owe him something he doesn’t deserve (which isn’t true), I would probably start by being very firm about my position before getting emotional when speaking over the phone instead of emailing him back first.
2. Take control of your financial future
The first step in taking control of your financial future is to learn how much you earn and how much you spend each month.
To do this, open up a bank account that allows you to track all of your spending (I use Capital One 360).
Once you have a solid understanding of where all of your money goes each month, start cutting back on unnecessary expenses like eating out at restaurants and expensive cable plans.
You should also be starting an emergency fund right now that can cover three to six months worth of expenses if something were ever to happen unexpectedly — like being laid off from work or getting into an accident.
The easiest way for most people is by automating part of their paycheck into an account every week or two weeks until they reach their goal.
3. Live below your means
This is a concept that many people have trouble with, but it’s the most important one in this list.
The concepts of living below your means and saving money are two sides of the same coin. Living below your means is simply spending less than you make so that you can save more.
For example, if you make $30K per year and live in an apartment that costs $2K/month, then each month you can put aside $1K into savings (the difference between what you need to live and what it actually costs).
Living below your means will help ensure financial stability over time.
People who live above their means are often more stressed out because they need to find ways to pay for all those fancy dinners out and trips to Europe every few months rather than having money set aside for emergencies or retirement planning.
By living below your means, there’s always something left over at the end of each month — $300 here, $500 there — that goes into savings accounts instead of being spent on things we don’t need right now like new clothes or electronics accessories like headphone jacks for our iPhones (I know I have enough headphones already).
4. Stop focusing on what you are owed
You will have your fair share of ups and downs in life, which means you need to focus on what you deserve, not what you are owed.
Focus on what you can do for others. Focus on your skills and talents.
Focus on the things that are within your control, like how hard you work or how much time you spend learning new things in order to improve yourself as a person.
5. Stop buying things to impress other people
In the world of consumerism, it’s easy to fall into the trap of spending money on things that impress other people.
The mindset goes like this: if you buy a nice car, you’ll be perceived as successful. If you wear expensive clothes, others will think highly of your financial status.
If only everyone else knew how much money I spend on wine each month!
This type of thinking is dangerous because it causes us to spend our hard-earned cash on things that don’t matter in the long run (and definitely don’t help them get rich).
It’s also a waste of time and energy that could be spent making more money or doing something productive with our lives — such as building skills or investing in ourselves.
6. Get out of debt — fast
Once you get out of debt, you will be in a very powerful financial position.
You’ll be able to make money because it will be easier for you to secure loans and credit cards. You can also invest more aggressively because your income is not being eaten up by interest payments.
The quicker you pay off high-interest debt, the more money you’ll save — and the less stress your life will have in general.
This means paying off credit cards with balances that are under $5,000 first and then focusing on higher-interest loans (like car loans) next.
When I was only 18, I had no idea how important it was for me to get rid of my student loan debt as soon as possible.
But now I know better and am sharing this knowledge with other young people so they don’t have to learn the hard way like I did!
7. Create new income streams
Here’s the thing: If you have a skill, there’s no reason why you can’t make money from it.
You may be thinking, “Well yeah, I could teach piano or act in commercials,” but your mind is probably already wandering to the usual daily grind of your job. It’s time to get creative!
A side hustle is any kind of work that earns extra income on top of your regular job. You might consider getting a second job — or even starting an entirely new business!
Here are some ideas for how you can use your skills:
Create an online course on teaching yourself something new
Take on part-time freelance work as a graphic designer or writer
Start selling stuff online — like furniture and clothes — and ship it out
Become an Uber driver (there are many other ride-sharing options too!)
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