I’m a Self-Made Millionaire: 6 Wealth-Building Tips for Gen Z

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Building true wealth can take time and dedication, but it might not be as hard as you think. When you’re younger, you have more time to achieve any financial goals you’ve set for yourself — whether that’s to buy a house or become a self-made millionaire.

That’s all well and good, but how do you get started? GOBankingRates spoke with two self-made millionaires, Russell Brunson and Chris Dukich, to get some wealth-building tips for Gen Z.

Focus On Creating Value

“My first tip is to focus on creating value,” said Russell Brunson, the co-founder of ClickFunnels. “Money is not a byproduct of anything else besides value. If you want to have money, wealth and all these things, it all comes down to producing more than you’re consuming.”

There are many ways to create value. For example, you can take an existing concept and innovate upon it. Or you can develop your own and gear it toward specific audiences or markets. How you go about it depends on your offer, skills and goals.

Master the Art of the Offer

If you plan to pursue the entrepreneurial route, you’ll want to master “the art of the offer.”

“One of the biggest problems people have when they’re trying to master the art of money-getting is they’re going out there and they are creating a product. The problem with the product is that many people can have the same product,” said Brunson.

“If five people are selling the same thing, then the person with the cheapest product is the one who actually wins,” he continued. “My mentor, Dan Kennedy, used to say there’s no strategic advantage to being the second-lowest price leader in town.”

Instead of, say, reducing the price of whatever you might want to sell, find ways to boost its value — like bonuses. Adding on these bonuses can make whatever you’ve got more unique and cut down on the competition.

Get Into Digital Entrepreneurship

Chris Dukich, a self-made millionaire and the owner of Display Now, suggested getting into digital entrepreneurship sooner as opposed to later.

“Unlike older generations, Generation Z has a special opportunity [due] to worldwide trends,” he said. “Seek for newer areas and utilize affordable websites to set up and expand the enterprise. Even if it is a side hustle, with care and time, such a little enterprise can evolve into something chunky.”

Prioritize Skills Over Stocks

Another wealth-building tip for Gen Z is to prioritize investing in skills before getting into stocks or other asset classes.

“While participating in stock markets is very important, the greatest return on investment is achieved by investing into yourself,” said Dukich. “If coding, technology and digital marketing are your field of interest, spend money on acquiring knowledge relevant to the field.”

Investing in yourself in this way “tends to open new doors and amass more wealth in the future,” he said. You can choose whichever skills most interest you, but consider the different ways you can utilize those skills to build wealth.

Take Calculated Risks

Gen Z has the power of time on their side, and with that comes a greater ability to take a few (calculated) risks.

“Never underestimate the ability of compounded growth in the areas of money or experience,” said Dukich. “You can begin to invest and save at an early stage, but this should be accompanied with finding appropriate gaps to exploit. Often, these opportunities lead to remarkable transformations.”

For example, you could add a few higher-risk assets to your portfolio. However, you may also want to make sure you’re invested in more stable options to mitigate that risk. If something does go belly up, you have time to fix it and try again.

Get Innovative

Innovation is also key to financial success.

“I’ve been buying old books in what’s called the public domain, which means the copyright’s expired. I can republish them, make my own derivative works or teach a course from the information in the book,” Brunson said.

“Recently, I bought a book for $1.5 million, which seems like a lot of money, right? But I bought the original pre-war edition copy of Napoleon Hill’s Laws of Success. I turned it into an audiobook, I turned it into a course and during the launch week, we made over $2 million from that launch,” he continued. “Now, imagine I attach a course to this book. It could be an easy $3,500 course.”