Myth: You Need Money to Invest and Build Wealth

Most people believe they have to invest in the stock market to become wealthy.

Sure, if you save consistently over a long period of time, your financial net worth will most likely increase.

But building wealth involves more than just buying stock.

“How do I start investing? I want to build wealth.”

I hear this from new clients often and I ask them to explain what they mean by “wealth.” Most are unclear and the dollar amounts vary widely. However they define it, almost all believe they’re falling short.

Building wealth comprises having an abundance mindset, vision-driven goals, and effective mechanisms to amplify both.

= (abundance mindset + vision-driven goals) x mechanisms

This wealth-building equation requires we adopt a more expansive definition of “investing.”

You can start investing and building wealth today. Even if you don’t have money to invest in stocks, bonds, or real estate, you can start investing today to build inner wealth.

My signature program, Wealth Begins Within, emphasizes building inner wealth first because it creates a foundation upon which outer wealth can be more easily obtained.

Here are three tips for investing the assets you currently have:

#1: Minimize “spending” and maximize “investing.” Every time you open your wallet, reflect on whether you are using your money to invest in a product, service, or experience that will give you lasting value or joy. Not all of your purchases will fall into those categories, but the aim is to spend mindfully most of the time.

#2: Allocate your time to activities that produce a return. Time is your most valuable asset because the present moment is all we ever truly have. Assess whether you’re making smart time investments. Are you spending most of your precious moments on learning, growing, building, or replenishing?

#3: Invest in strengthening your most valuable relationships. Is your time and mental energy spent with people who have an abundant mindset or with those fixated on lack and limitation? Your inner worth can be diminished by the people around you, making it harder to build wealth externally. But the opposite is true as well.

Don’t wait until you can “afford” to start investing to build wealth. You have plenty of assets today that can be put to work.