Invest in a 401(k) and Then Stocks
Chris Hill, a financial analyst for Motley Fool and host of the brand’s radio show, “Motley Fool Money,” focuses his advice on investing wisely: “First, you should max out your 401(k) plan, especially if your employer has a matching program,” Hill says.
Once retirement investments are taken care of, savers can expand their money strategy to include stocks. “Remember that history has proven that investing in stocks is the best way to make money in the long run,” Hill says. “The longer you can buy and hold onto shares of great companies, the better your returns will be.”
Find Your Competitive Edge
Laura Adams, host of the “Money Girl” podcast, gave savings advice that echoes Torabi’s:
“The easiest way to save money is to automate the process, preferably through an automatic payroll deduction.” When it comes to making money, however, Adams says that finding your competitive edge is key. “The easiest way to make money is to figure out what you do better than most people,” Adams says. “Then provide that value to an employer or to your own customers.”
Create a Stream of Money
Matt Theriault, a real estate investor and host of podcast “Epic Real Estate Investing,” says that frugality is the wrong approach to take. “‘Saving’ money is a losing proposition,” Theriault says. “Don’t bother. And ‘making money’ is the wrong mindset. ‘Creating streams of money’ is where one’s attention should be focused.”
Theriault also provided a starting point for those looking to create a stream of money: “I would say an Internet business has the lowest barrier to entry while offering the highest rewards. Supply a demand and charge a monthly fee for it. It isn’t easy, though. Simple. Not easy. No such thing as sustainable ‘easy money’—of which ‘sustainable’ is the only type of money anyone should be interested in making.”
Provide Value at a Pain Point
John Lee Dumas is an entrepreneur and host of the podcast “Entrepreneur On Fire.” His advice for saving is simple: “Spend less then you make and save the difference.” Dumas’ business philosophy is also simple. “The easiest way to make money?” Dumas says. “Provide incredible value to a starving audience’s verified pain point.”
Practice Financial Discipline and Balance
Andrew Horowitz, a CFP, author and host of “The Disciplined Investor,” says it takes grit to really save money and build wealth. “There is no easy way,” Horowitz says. “It takes discipline and a realization that a balance between spending today and saving for the future has to be part of a lifestyle.”
Find What Works for You
When it comes to saving or making money, “there is always some ‘low hanging fruit’ in both categories, but I think it depends on the person,” says Brandon Turner, real estate investor and co-host of the “BiggerPockets Podcast.”
Turner admitted this was a bit of a cop-out answer, but the truth remains that there are very few one-size-fits-all rules to financial success. Knowing your strengths and weaknesses can help you decide where to spend your efforts. For instance, “if you are business-minded, making money is significantly easier,” Turner says. “But not everyone is this way.”
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