Simple Tips For Building Wealth Go Viral, But Is The Advice Good?

What are the best ways to make money and build wealth?

It won't be a secret to OutKick readers that I'm a big fan of capitalism and making money. The different financial opportunities in America are what separates us from the Godless socialists and communists around the world.

If you hate money, then you probably hate me, and I'm more than okay with those terms.

Wealth building tips go viral on Reddit.

A viral Reddit thread popped up asking, "What are the biggest missed opportunities for building wealth that most people don’t know about?"

Naturally, I had to click. Check out some of the answers below, and let me know your thoughts at David.Hookstead@outkick.com:

  • Not saving for retirement young. A little early is worth much more than a lot later. Make sure you invest it in growth assets like stocks so that it has room to expand.
  • From my teens to my early 20's I spent all my money on BS because I wasn't rich yet and one day I would be so I wanted to enjoy my non-rich life and relax from working so much in school and at work. I also threw so much money away on dumb stocks and crypto trying to get rich quick. Had I just set an auto buy to at the very least S&P500, similar to how I do now, I would have been GOLDEN
  • Health. Prioritize your physical health to lower healthcare expenses now and later in life… and also so you’re not busted AF when you’re retired and actually have time to enjoy your life
  • Time. Invest as young as you can, and time takes care of the rest
  • Not starting to invest earlier. Compounding is basically free money, but only if you give it time.
  • As a young person don’t put extra money in a brokerage account until you max out tax advantaged accounts.
  • Start early. Learn to live on less early. Max out your incentives from your employer.
  • Buy low, don't sell, keep buying
  • Never, never, never carry over a credit card balance. It does not build credit. It is a predatory loan. Pay all cards in full on the payment period due date and not before. Every day of early payment you lose 1/365th of earned interest.
  • Don't drive new cars. Buy only older gently-used cars and then drive it until it's no longer economically repairable. Use the money you save by not having car payments to build up a large emergency fund so you can pay for the occasional repairs, and to buy your next older gently-used car when this one finally dies.
  • Max out your 401k and take advantage of any employer match. Compounding interest is huge.
  • It's not about investing. The key is actually nonconsumption. You have to radically lower your expense. It's actually amazing with how little you can live. How much stuff that other people have that you don't need.
  • Don’t buy sh*t on credit. If you can’t pay cash for it, don’t buy it.
  • Learning and development. From personal experience, I can say that young people often neglect this due to parties, relaxation, and having fun, which is typical for their age
  • Marry rich. Doesn’t matter if you’re male or female. Just marry rich.
  • Investing, it’s not just for people who already have money. Put what you can in there regardless of how small it is and you’ll benefit

Lots of interesting advice in that thread. Allow me to share two things that have worked for me. Keep in mind, I'm not encouraging anyone to do what I do, and this is absolutely not financial advice. It's simply how I see things.

First, live far below your means. This is the first step, in my opinion, towards saving money. Can you afford a $6,000 a month rent payment? Great, find a place for $4,000 and invest the $2,000 a month you saved.

You don't need fancy new clothes, new cars, new tech gadgets and you don't need multiple fancy vacations. Live far below your means, and you'll quickly realize you've saved so much money that your bills aren't really a concern. I've watched so many people piss away money for the simple reason they had to have the latest and greatest items. I knew one person who spent around 70% of their *NET* income on rent because they wanted to live in a fancy building.

Second, I've invested for a long time. I still regret not investing at a younger age. Compound interest is an incredible thing, and if I could go back in time, I would have started dumping money into different accounts as a teenager. 

Do you have any tips and tricks you follow? Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com.

Written by
David Hookstead is a reporter for OutKick covering a variety of topics with a focus on football and culture. He also hosts of the podcast American Joyride that is accessible on Outkick where he interviews American heroes and outlines their unique stories. Before joining OutKick, Hookstead worked for the Daily Caller for seven years covering similar topics. Hookstead is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin.