How To Build Wealth In Your 20s (Realistically)

The YouTube Creator Academy:

NUMBER ONE: INVESTING ASAP
Following this is easily the most impactful in terms of how much wealth you can accumulate throughout your lifetime. When you’re young, one of the biggest advantages you have when it comes to investing is really simple - it’s TIME. Not only can you ride out any short-term fluctuations in the market, but you can take full advantage of what’s called "Compound Interest." Every year that goes by without investing is a year you won’t be seeing insane growth 30 or 40 years from now.

NUMBER TWO: DON’T TIME THE MARKET
This is the simplest, most factual piece of advice you’ll ever hear when it comes to investing - but it also happens to be the most difficult for people to actually follow. On top that - studies show that the more trades you make, and the more you try to time the market, the lower your overall return becomes. Research has also shown that since 1926, a 20-year holding period of the stock market has never ONCE produced a negative result.

So, without overloading you with facts and studies, all I’m going to say is this: The buy-and-hold investment strategy tends to not only be the safest, but also the most profitable for the majority of people. In fact, just buying in the market immediately - regardless of where it's priced - has out performed trying to time the market 71% of the time.

NUMBER THREE: DON’T INVEST IN THINGS YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND
I’d much rather just not invest at all, than put your money into something you don’t fully understand. Especially in this market, where literally everything is going up, it’s so simple to get disillusioned that investing is really easy, and get yourself accustomed to always making money. But that doesn’t always happen. You need to understand that investing is going to be cyclical, investments will lose for years in a row, and you need to understand and know that going in.

FOURTH: DON’T INVEST MONEY YOU NEED IN THE SHORT TERM
When you invest money, there’s always a chance that the value of that investment will go down in the near future. Investing should always be seen as a long-term strategy. You generally can’t predict where the markets will be a few months or a few years from now - but you CAN look back historically - and see that over a period of 10 or 20 years, your chances of coming out ahead profitable are pretty good. So, for that reason…investing any money that you’ll need within the short term is not a good idea, and could cost you a LOT if things end up getting bad.

FIFTH: INVEST CONSISTENTLY
Investing is just a way of life. All you need to do this, is to automate your investing as much as you can. Just set up automatic withdrawals into a broad index fund without even thinking about it - out of sight, out of mind. You don’t need to be actively involved with it all the time, but just consciously remember it’s there - and that’s it.

SIXTH: THINK INDEPENDENTLY
This is the hardest thing to do from everything I’ve mentioned, but it’s also the one that will make you the most money if you get good at it. And what I mean by this is that you must trust your own thoughts and research, and not be swayed by someone else who says otherwise, or disagrees with you.

My ENTIRE Camera and Recording Equipment:

*Some of the links and other products that appear on this video are from companies which Graham Stephan will earn an affiliate commission or referral bonus. Graham Stephan is part of an affiliate network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites. The content in this video is accurate as of the posting date. Some of the offers mentioned may no longer be available. This is not investment advice.

[NicholasBall]

I admire your dedication to educating your audience. We all aim for financial stability and a better life. Achieving this is possible through wise investments, frugal living, and careful budgeting. I'm grateful that I learned the importance of working hard for financial freedom at a young age.

[vincandengines]

Started working full time after finishing school at 23. Started to follow your channel and investing from nothing. Im now 25 and puting 20% down on a property. Also getting a roomate to lower my housing cost to approximately a normal appartment in my area. Thanks Graham

[onthebball]

Currently 23 and just bought my first house, been watching since 2016! You have helped me throughout my financial journey! Thank you!

[AxelVelazquez-usgi]

Now we just need to see the Blcktken300 price also move in the same direction as these charts. Up. Very Up.

[lolgeselle]

Thank you for making these videos Graham keep them coming! ❤ Las Vegas local

[pedrooropeza]

I haven't been watching your videos in a while I'm glad I'm back

[gkcuqoi]

I appreciate you for keeping it so real.

[__tebane]

Love your videos Graham! You’re one of the very few financial YouTube channels I’ve subscribed to and I find so much value every time I see a video you post. I’ve been personally trying to get into the investing world as a new goal for 2024. And there’s videos out there but from guys that don’t seem that much trustworthy. Would you consider make a guide on how to invest, what tools to use, etc. I’m sure others would find value out of that video!

[geraldt]

Purchasing a stock may seem straightforward, but selecting the correct stock without a proven strategy can be exceedingly challenging. I've been working on expanding my $210K portfolio for a while, and my primary obstacle is the lack of clear entry and exit strategies. Any advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

[insomniacsupremacy]

Hi Graham, I know you get a lot of comments under your videos, but I simply could not hold back on expressing my gratitude for your work on Youtube because you seriously changed my life. I started watching you at 17 and started setting myself up financially, putting as much money in a market weighted total world index fund ETF utilizing registered accounts, maximizing my credit score and points utilization and adopting a long term mindset on life in general. Im now way older and I’ll be starting soon my career in personal finance to preach those crucial steps while sharing my new found passion for personal finance. I’ll be forever grateful for the spark you gave me and changed my life for the better. I know you received some hate on Youtube but no one can steer from the fact that your tips and mindset are the gold standard to anyone starting in personnel finance. Wishing you a great day man.

[Wrealthreach]

25 now, started investing at 21, biggest regret is not starting at 18 😭

[herbythechef]

I started watching your stuff in 2020 graham. Thats when i started investing. Im canadian but have put 32k in my tax free savings account now and bought my first property in 2021 thanks to you!

[mohamedalassanewane]

Thx guys, we Grahams really appreciate it 😊

[heatah]

Great reminders I needed to hear again 🙌

[IamDevron]

Graham the goat. I remember seeing him at 17-18 (I am 23 now) Ahead of the curve now because of him

[mattjanachek]

I had this bad feeling about buying at an all time high. Your video helped me get passed that with data. Thank you!

[pedrofeliciano]

Gracias 🙏🏽 for always provide good info

[diablobuilder]

thank you graham, really appreciate this insight and knowledge, would apply this one to my life, ill update you in a few years

[Courtney-Alice-Gargani]

Great video I have been building my wealth and retirement fund. This is helpful.

[Patriciabanks]

I don’t know how but you’ve managed to package an unbiased analysis that is more entertaining than the sensationalized segment of economic and financial news. Thank you for your efforts to be the signal and not the noise. I understand that the economy is currently in a downturn and that we must wait for things to get better