Be A Millionaire By 30

You can become a millionaire by 40 if you lay the groundwork in your 20's to do it. You know when you're right out of college, you may have debts, you don't have the highest paying job, you're focusing more on having fun, less on your long-term financial perspective. Not saying you shouldn't take one crazy weekend in Las Vegas or Durban, but you need to be thinking about ways you can position yourself for long term wealth.

Get started in the company 401k plan. Put as much money as you can comfortably do from your income. Look for that first piece of real estate. Buy a condo/flat, maybe go to your parents for help with down payment.
There's a lot of people who have opportunities to do things but don't do that because they are just not focusing on the long term at that age. But you need to start sooner rather than later. And one day, you'll wake up and you will be rich.

You should be conservative at all times with your money. But, when you're younger, you can afford to take a little more risk in terms of what you're investing in. For example, you probably don't want to put all your money in one stock. Bad idea. But you can invest your money in a mutual fund that owns a number of stocks and spreads the risk and is professionally managed. If you're older, for example, you may have money in mutual fund that owns bonds, which are more conservative and pay a steady income.

If you are younger, you can afford to have your money in a mutual fund that owns smaller companies-- companies that are more growth oriented-- and they may fluctuate in price more dramatically than a mutual fund that owns bonds but over the long term should appreciate more. So that's an example of taking a conservative risk. 

Where to invest your money in your 20's


The most important thing is to put some money in the stock market. Okay. Probably if you're starting very small, you don't want to have individual stocks. You want to have money that is diversified in a mutual fund. And you're using your employers 401k plan. And you're taking advantage of the matching and tax deferral that those all provide. And then your next step is thinking about real estate and buying yourself a place to live. Not making a quick buck. And you take care of those two things, you know your savings plan and your place to live and... it's amazing just how many people become millionaires just that way.                                                

What are some common mistakes investors in their 20's make?

The most common mistake young people make is not investing. The easiest way to wealth is to not spend. Because you're getting yourself in debt an you're taking money that could have been invested and be making money for you working for you. Instead you're just spending it on clothes and cars and fancy vacations and a lot of times in bars I'm sure. So take some of that money and put it aside and get that money working for you rather than somebody else.

Courtesy of Chris Palmeri (Senior Correspondent, BusinessWeek)