8 Secrets to Become Successful

8 Secrets to Become Successful

There's no straightforward way to guarantee yourself a rich future, but these 8 strategies can help you do it while you're still young.

I spent several years working hard, thinking, researching, developing ideas and planning for the future. We all wish we could be wealthy. For most of us, it's a far-off dream that someday, eventually, we might be able to turn ourselves into self-made millionaires. Building wealth isn't about putting all your hopes into "someday." You're never too old to start building wealth, but if you start when you're young, you have far greater potential to amass a fortune and more time to let that fortune compound itself as you grow older. That being said, life in your 20's and 30's is not without its challenges; you might have student debt, a tenuous career, and dozens of unknown dept that keeps you from doing everything you'd like to help build your wealth faster. There's no straightforward way to guarantee yourself a rich future, but these seven strategies can help you do it while you're still young.

1. Know That There Is No Magic.

If you’re hopeful, expectant and desiring any magical solution to make you wealthy; take note: There isn't one. The fundamental objectives are simple: Make more than you spend, and use the excess to invest wisely. How you invest is up to you, but the obvious goal is to make investments that have a high likelihood of making you more money in the future. That's it. The ways to achieve this is by making more money, spending less, and investing more wisely. Don’t seat around day dreaming or creating imaginations in your head. Get up, get on and get to work. When you start making more money, stop procrastinating.

2. Stop Procrastinating.

When you start making more money, you have to stop pushing things ahead and start doing what needs to be done. The folly of youth believes that there's always enough time for everything. Youngsters often believe that retirement, or wealth building, is something that comes later in life, and are more preoccupied with the concerns of the now. Unfortunately, this often leads to a cycle of "Oh, I should do that next month," month after month, finally you're 10 years older and you've missed out on a decade's worth of compounding interest. The first step is to stop procrastinating; because procrastination is leads to saving and investing is scary, but the longer you wait to do it, the fewer advantages you have.

3. Be Open to Adjustment

Keep an open mind. Life in a flash can turn from bad to worse. Your current situation may not be what you’ve intended or planed for; but that’s what life offered you anyway. Successful men became successful because they were able to adjust their lives to suit their income as at when they had nothing. If you have a habit of taking snacks worth $20 daily, that’s an approximate N6,200 Nigerian conversion when your income is less than $300 a month; you can never be wealthy. You will agree with me that even your habits needs adjustments. Unless you’re able to make these adjustments, you’ll remain fixed right where you are.  

4. Invest In Yourself.

Your next goal should be to invest in yourself; you are the best resource you have to accumulate wealth. Investing in yourself means spending more time on your education, refining your own skill sets, and branching out to meet new people who might help you achieve your goals. The more educated, skilled, experienced, and connected you are, the more valuable opportunities you're going to get, which means higher ideas, salaries and more options for you down the road, both of which will help you build a stronger financial foundation.

5. Create A Budget.

Remember the steps from point 2: Make more money, spend less, and invest wisely. Point 4 covered making more money, and this one covers spending less. Make a detailed budget for yourself based on your projected income and your current expenses. Set firm limits for your expenses, and keep a close eye on where most of your money goes. You might be surprised at some of the areas where you waste the most money. Once identified, you can start refining your budget to spend as little as possible, and funnel the rest into a savings or investment program.

6. Pay Down Your Debt.

A debtor has no savings. Before you start regularly saving and investing money, it's usually a good idea to pay down any debts you may have accumulated. Credit card debt, student debt, and even car loans can carry heavy interest rates that drag you down, demanding monthly installments that chip away at your revenue while racking up additional interest and penalties that take away even more money from your future self. Don't let this eat away at your potential; make it a first-line priority to get rid of your debt as soon as possible.

7. Take Risks.

You're young. You have a lot of years ahead of you. Now is the time to take risks. Invest in higher-risk, higher-payoff stock opportunities, get really uncomfortable with where you are and make things happen. If need be, consider quitting your job to start your own business. No one has ever become wealthy being an employee. Jump on new ventures and new opportunities. If things go south, you'll have plenty of time to make up for it. Most wealthy individuals will tell you one of their greatest keys to success has been taking calculated risks. The majority of the population sticks with the safe route, so if you want to break away from the pack, you have to try something new, possibly something uncomfortable.

8. Diversify.

Even though risk-taking is a generally rewarding strategy, it's also a good idea to diversify your efforts. Don't build up just one skill set, or one set of professional connections. Don't rely on one type of investment, and don't gamble all your savings on one venture. Instead, try to set up multiple income streams, generate several backup plans for your goals and businesses, and hedge your bets by looking for new opportunities everywhere. This will protect you from catastrophic losses, and increase your chances of striking it big in one of your ventures.

By applying these eight secrets in full swing, you'll be able to start accumulating wealth no matter where you are in life. Yes, the first steps are hard paying down your debt, establishing your credentials, building an investment portfolio, etc. but if you do it early and do it right, you'll set yourself up for massive financial success later on.

by Collins Okolie.