3 of the 5 Ways to Become a Millionaire

Photo credit: Pictures of Money, CC BY 2.0.

I don’t usually pay attention to these kinds of things, but I happened to catch the following phrase on the television next to the boarding line for my SEA-LAX flight on Sunday:

5 Ways to Become a Millionaire

Unfortunately, I was only able to see three of the five ways before I had to flash my online boarding ticket and get on the plane.

Here’s what I saw:

Save Your Raises

This is pretty good advice, although I was a little curious about the graphic that accompanied this text: a pie chart that indicated 30 percent of your raise should go to savings, and 60 percent to “fun and other expenses.”

(Or something like that. I can’t remember the exact text. I do know the word “fun” was involved.)

So. Let’s say you are currently earning $70,000 and you get a 3 percent raise, or $2,100. You’ll save $700 and spend $1,400. That won’t get you too much closer to millionairehood, but it won’t get you that much fun (and other expenses) either. It’s a win-win!

Don’t Turn Down Free Money

This is where I really regret not being able to hear the audio coming from the television, because I would like to know where all of this free money is, and where I should go if I don’t want to turn it down!

I wonder if they mean “unclaimed property” stuff. Or maybe the employer 401(k) match. Both are good ways to get a little extra income, but if they were good ways to become millionaires, well… there would be a lot more millionaires.

Don’t Job-Hop

This advice puzzled me. Isn’t it kinda accepted that you aren’t going to increase your wealth via annual raises (see that 3 percent raise example, above) and that if you want to increase your salary by any significant factor, you’re going to have to find a new job and negotiate?

The image that went along with this advice featured some older-ish adults sitting around a conference table, so maybe they’re suggesting that job hopping isn’t a good idea after a certain age. (You remember our recent Parents Month story about the dad who wasn’t able to complete his job hop.)

Maybe they’re suggesting to stick with the job you have and earn the type of seniority that will make you less likely to be laid off—which isn’t always good advice either, because seniority only helps so much.

Still, now we know at least three of the five ways to become a millionaire! I assume the other two are “earn enough money that you can save a million dollars over the course of a lifetime” and “have no major expenses that prevent you from saving.”

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