Not all of us are fortunate enough to come from wealthy families. However, you don’t have to be a celebrity or trust fund baby to get rich. In fact, we'll discuss how to get rich from nothing.
Opinions vary when it comes down to what it really means to be considered rich. However, the thing to remember is that being wealthy isn’t just about the amount of money you accumulate but also includes your net worth.
Net worth is the value of all of your assets minus the liabilities that you owe. Once you figure out your current net worth, you can figure out what you need to do to become wealthy.
No matter what your current net worth is, don’t be discouraged because you can start working towards getting rich from nothing by following specific steps. Let's get into them!
1. Get your money mindset right
The mind is a powerful thing, especially when it comes to your money mindset. If you have a poor mindset you will continue making poor financial decisions keeping you poor and living paycheck to paycheck.
Nobody benefits by having a negative outlook. But you can change from a poor mindset to a rich mindset by developing the right habits.
A popular way to get motivated and create an abundance mindset is to create a financial vision board. You will put up pictures, motivational quotes, and also financial goals on your board and hang them where you see them every day. This helps you to see your financial goals daily and can keep you motivated.
Another way to improve your money mindset is to read about how to become rich from other financial success stories.
When you see others succeed, it can help motivate you to achieve financial prosperity. Plus, it allows you to keep learning, which is really important for money management and how to get rich with nothing.
Last, as you work towards how to become rich with no money, remember to always lead with kindness and integrity.
Don't let envy or judgment get the better of you, but instead always seek to treat others with respect and build wealth by keeping a positive mindset.
2. Create a financial plan
The biggest step in how to get rich from nothing is to create a financial plan. The quote from Steve Prefontaine, “If you fail to prepare, prepare to fail” proves true, especially when it comes to finances.
If you ask someone who has done it how to become rich, they will advise you to create a financial plan by doing the following:
Set financial goals
To get started on creating your financial plan, you will want to set up your financial goals. It’s best to set short-term and long-term goals. In addition, breaking down your long-term goals into smaller steps makes them easier to attain.
Also, writing down your goals makes you more likely to achieve them. It makes it easier to figure out how to become wealthy when your goals are definite and organized.
Calculate the numbers
Remember, you need to figure out what your net worth is to know how to become rich. So by knowing your starting point and how much or how little you have, you can figure out how much money and assets you will need to acquire to achieve your goal.
Any of these calculator options can help you to find your net worth:
- Bankrate's save a million dollars calculator
- Kiplinger's detailed net worth calculator
- Personal Capital's super simple calculator for net worth
Even if you don't have a high net worth, don't worry because, like anything else, you can achieve it by taking the right steps with your personal finances. Here are a couple of ways to start:
Pay off debt
Debt is expensive. Personal loans, credit card debt, and also student loans can rack up thousands of dollars in interest payments. A secret on how to get rich from nothing is first becoming debt-free.
By implementing a debt pay-off strategy, you can quickly pay off your high-interest debt and start working on becoming wealthy.
You could try the debt snowball method and pay off your smaller balances first, or give the debt avalanche method a try and pay off the debt with the highest interest rate first! Whichever you choose, just be sure it's something you are able to stick with.
Start saving money
Ask a financially successful person how to become wealthy, and they are sure to answer with save your money. So saving money is a crucial step on how to get rich from nothing.
You don’t need to make tons of money to save. You can even save money on a tight budget. Once you get into the habit of saving, you can start building your bank account faster than you think.
One of your very first goals should be to save up an emergency fund and have enough cash to keep yourself from living paycheck to paycheck. Then you can save for other things.
3. Get on a budget
Getting on a budget is essential when it comes to building wealth. Budgeting holds you accountable for all of the money you spend.
When making a budget, you want to find a budgeting method that works best for you in order for you to stick to it. You may be surprised that there are examples of millionaires who stick with a budget to stay financially successful!
So you see, even wealthy people see the advantages of budgeting!
4. Live below your means
A key secret of how to get rich from nothing is to live below your means. By living below your means, you will spend less money and also build your savings account.
Just like with budgeting, living below your means will be a financial lifestyle you will apply to build and attain wealth. To live below your means, keep the following things in mind:
Curb your spending
Learning how to curb your spending will help you to live below your means. Cutting expenses on items such as eating out, expensive coffee, designer clothing, and impulse purchases can help you save money.
Doing things like making a grocery list to keep you from wasting food can be a big step in curbing your spending and helping you keep more money in your pockets!
Live frugally
By living frugally, you can reach financial freedom fast. Being frugal means being intentional with your spending. You prioritize your spending and find ways to reduce your expenses.
Canceling cable, purchasing pre-owned instead of new, and selling items you don’t need are examples of being frugal. Being frugal can help you build your wealth and is an excellent tip for how to become rich with no money.
Become a savvy shopper
You can save money shopping if you do it right. And it's an essential step in how to get rich from nothing. You can use coupons and discount cards to save money on groceries.
Shopping secondhand for clothes, cars, and other items can save thousands of dollars per year. You can save that extra money and use it to invest and start building your wealth!
5. Create multiple streams of income
Do you remember the saying, don’t put all of your eggs in one basket? The same goes when it comes to your income.
The average millionaire has multiple sources of income! By diversifying your income, you grow wealth faster and create financial security.
For instance, if you have a side hustle in addition to your day job, you have two income sources rather than depending on one or the other.
Which is a smart money move because if you were to lose your job for some reason, you would still have some income coming in from your side hustle. You can even grow your side hustle into a small business if you want to.
Income streams consist of your main job, side hustle, passive income, investment accounts, interest from savings accounts, rental properties, and more. There are many ways to create multiple streams of income and it will help you with how to become wealthy.
Keep in mind that while get-rich-quick schemes might sound attractive many of them are exactly that. Schemes.
So instead of trying a get-rich-quick scheme, work on creating multiple sources of income! Remember wealthy people find multiple ways to bring in money, especially billionaires!
6. Boost your current income
You can boost your current income to help in your new financial journey of how to get rich with nothing. One way to do this is by asking for a raise at your current job.
Be sure you have been performing well and have worked for the company for a while if you go this route. If you are a good employee, they may be willing to increase your income to keep you from looking for another job.
If you have been with your current employer for a significant time period and perform your job well, and they refuse to give you the pay increase you desire, it may be time to seek out other opportunities.
Spruce up your resume and seek out an opportunity that will give you the pay bump you need in order to start getting rich.
You may also consider furthering your education in order to get a higher-paying career. Rather than going into deep debt with student loans for college, you can consider a high-paying trade career instead. Examples of trade careers are:
- Carpenter
- HVAC Technician
- Electrician
- Plumber
- Hairdresser
- Dental Assistant
- Photographer
These are just a few examples of great career options with good pay. Trade career programs typically don't take as long to complete and cost less than college tuition, which can be helpful when learning how to become rich with no money.
7. Invest your money
A huge factor in how to get rich from nothing is investing your money. Even if you don’t have much money, you can still get started investing to start building wealth.
Similar to creating multiple income streams, you will want to eventually diversify your investments too. And this way, you are bringing in income from a variety of sources. Some investment types for a diversified portfolio include:
- Stocks
- Bonds
- IRAs (Roth IRAs or Traditional)
- 401k
- Real Estate
- Businesses
- Mutual funds and ETFs (these include stocks and bonds but are more diversified)
The sooner you invest, the quicker you will build your wealth, due to compound interest. Some people avoid investing because of their fear of the stock market.
Don’t be too intimidated by investing; you can learn everything you need to start investing with Clever Girl Finance’s Book “Learn How Investing Works, Grow Your Money”!
How to get rich from nothing! The recap
So the bottom line is just because you may have lived paycheck to paycheck most of your life doesn’t mean it has to stay that way.
You can achieve any financial goal you have by taking charge of your finances and starting now. Learning more about wealth can help you conquer your dream of being wealthy.
Remember the steps on how to get rich with nothing are:
- Get your money mindset right.
- Create a financial plan.
- Get on a budget.
- Live below your means.
- Create multiple streams of income.
- Boost your current income.
- Invest your money.
By implementing these key steps, you can set yourself up to have a prosperous, financially successful future. So get out there and achieve millionaire status!