“Rich people have small TVs and big libraries, and poor people have small libraries and big TVs.” 

Zig Ziglar

Most people will wait and wish for the magical moment to happen where their circumstances change and they become millionaires or ask “how to make a million dollars” but never do the work to find out.

Fortunately, there are enough millionaires and billionaires out there now for us to know that they didn’t come by their money thanks to luck.

There are drug addicts who are now rich beyond belief.

There are famous authors who couldn’t afford food that have become billionaires.

There are people who have been fired that are C.E.O’s of some of the worlds largest companies.

These people all started with deficits and they focused on the one thing that created the biggest change in their lives, themselves.

Unlike most people, who wait and pray for change, you can seek to become the kind of person that is equipped to make the most of what the world offers.

The quality of who you are as an individual, and the work you do, is all within your control and it all starts with these habits.

1. Dedicate Your Spare Time To Learning Not Leisure

The average person will spend 145 minutes a day on social media.

They absorb information about the latest breaking news, the next celebrity break-up or another pop-culture meme.

Just like your diet if you consume too much of a bad thing your body begins to produce poor results it starts to shut down, gets sick and ultimately fails you due to the excess consumption of poor food.

The same can be said for the way we spend our spare time outside of work as we spend hours a day scrolling through social media feeds or bitching about how our lives should be.

If you’re not actively spending at least 50% of your free time learning you’re going to produce what you put in.

If you read one tweet you’ll probably read ten more.

If you scroll through Instagram you’ll probably tag a friend in another picture on Instagram an hour later.

If you watch T.V you’re probably going to consume an advert someone else made for you.

Start by consuming the information that will make you better, not worse.

They say you are what you eat and the same applies to the information you choose to consume every day.

2. Spend 20% Of Your Income On Investing In a Better You

We know when we’ve put money, time and energy into a successful project we’re almost always proud of the results.

The same cannot be said for things that are given to us for free.

Anything that is worth fighting for usually results in some form of cost to benefit ratio.

If you’re not investing in yourself you’re not going to care about the results and you are the biggest vehicle for your success.

I’ve spent over $50,000 in the last two years on my own self-development and I can safely say that some of that money might have been best spent elsewhere, but I’ve also made all of that money back and more.

I hired a consultant for $12,000 for two days and our agency operates on the entire framework he laid out for us. Our profitability has increased by 8% three months after this hire.

I paid for a course on how to scale my agency from 5 to 6 figures for $3000 in 2017 and now my agency has broken the multi seven-figure mark.

I’ve spent over five thousand dollars on at least 100+ different books all with unique insights that have improved my relationships, my income and my personal happiness.

Your level of success can generally be measured by your level of investment whether that is time, energy or money.

In this case, I’ve found that the information I’ve paid for to be far more valuable than the free information around me because I know it has come with a cost.

Start investing in yourself and you will produce better results.

3. Collaborate Don’t Compete

Most people believe life is here to serve them.

Life is not about serving you it is about serving each other with the tools you need to succeed.

Most people will undercut, double-cross, compete and bicker with each other until they both have nothing left.

All of us though are highly dependent on other people to do what we do.

Only people who want to be truly wealthy in both finances and relationships recognise this and act on this with humility.

By knowing you will need other people to help you get ahead in life you will ultimately set yourself up for long term success.

In a healthy relationship, one plus one equals far more than two. When two people are continually giving and receiving, the relationship continues to grow and expand, providing several intended and unintended benefits.

I had a client who needed extra work done on the CRM project that was outside of the current scope and I knew it would create three hours of extra work.

Instead of going back to the client and complaining about another $300 I told them about the issue and extra time and did the work for free.

That same week he introduced me to his friend who also became one of my clients.

People who work together succeed together.

People who doubt, swear and compete with one another will continue to lose together.

By knowing that you need others to find success is the beginning of wisdom and financial freedom.

People often speak about being lucky but when these three rules are applied consistently you have a tendency to create more opportunities that will be unique to you and your skillset.

You won’t then have to ask “how to make a million dollars” but simply watch the money accumulate as a byproduct of your actions.