I went from making $7.50 an hour as a vegetable cutter in my university's dining services to a six-figure salary in three years, and a millionaire a few years after that — all in my 20s.
I believe it was these five habits (plus one bonus) that got me there. And I'm convinced that anyone, regardless of background, education, or current bank balance, can do the same. I started broke. The system was rigged against me before I was even born. None of that mattered once I changed how I thought about money.
Let's start with the most important habit — and the one almost everyone overlooks.
Habit 1: Know Your Currency and Lean Into It
Most people delay starting because they think they need a lot of money to begin. They don't.
I bought my first stock while earning minimum wage cutting vegetables. Because here's the truth nobody told me growing up:
You are not poor. You are rich. You have currency. Your currency just looks different.
In your 20s, your currency is time and neuroplasticity — your biological ability to learn and adapt faster than anyone older than you. This isn't a motivational speech. It's ground reality. You can absolutely make up for a lack of funds by starting early and learning fast. My portfolio grew slowly on minimum wage, but the knowledge growth in my brain was boundless. That knowledge compounded into everything that came later.
Whether you have $10, $10,000, or $10 million — if you're alive and willing to learn, you're in the game.
In your 30s and 40s, your currency shifts to earning power, maturity, and experience. In your 50s and 60s, it's accumulated capital, perspective, and the life responsibilities you've already discharged.
And remember — the other half of your currency, at every age, is time.
Warren Buffett is worth $150 billion at age 95. Ninety-nine percent of that came after his 56th birthday. At age 55, he wasn't even a billionaire. He was only a millionaire. Poor guy.
So whatever phase of life you're in: re-evaluate your currency. Find your advantage. Lean into it early. Because the money game was rigged against you before you were even born — which brings me to the next habit.
Habit 2: Take Control of a System That Wasn't Built for You
The schooling system was designed to keep you working from 20 to 60. Why? Because the working population funds the entire country through taxes. So the system encourages you to work hard for decades, pay heavy taxes, and save what's left in bank accounts that don't even beat inflation.
That's a system designed to keep you busy, not wealthy. A treadmill with your boss saying run.
If you've ever felt confused about money, or scared someone might take advantage of you — you're not alone. School never taught us about taxes, mortgages, budgeting, car payments, or investments. When it comes to money, you didn't fail. School failed you.
I hear people say "I'm passionate about financial literacy" or "It's my hobby." I disagree. Financial literacy is not a hobby. It's an immediate necessity. You won't unlock your financial potential without it.
Acknowledge the gap. Take full personal responsibility for closing it — no matter what your bank balance looks like today. Educate yourself about money as a non-negotiable, not as a side interest. And don't fall prey to today's marketing — which I consider my personal superpower, thanks to a decade in big tech building the very products that pull money out of your pocket. More on that in Habit 4.
Habit 3: Net Worth Is Built Through Habits, Not Salary
This is the biggest misunderstanding in society today. I fell into this trap myself. Fixing it made the single biggest difference in my financial life.
We'll get to the salary side shortly, but the truth is your habits will make or break your financial story. Not everyone can earn a million-dollar salary — there are only so many seats at that table. But anyone can have clean financial habits, regardless of education or background.
Need proof? Compare two real-life stories.
Ronald Read worked as a gas station mechanic and later a janitor in Vermont. When he passed away, he was holding $8 million. He donated $4.8 million of it to the local hospital and library.
Richard Fuscone was a Harvard Business School graduate and a former executive at Merrill Lynch, with an 18,000-square-foot mansion in New York. He made a series of risky decisions driven by greed and the desire for quick returns. When the financial crisis hit, he declared bankruptcy.
Janitor to philanthropist. Banker to bankruptcy. Both true. If that's not proof that habits beat salary, I don't know what is.
So fix the habits first. Live below your means. Invest in things you understand. Don't take crazy risks. Have patience. Don't let greed win — because if it does, you'll pay the price too. Salary helps. But habits decide.
A great future isn't enough for me. I want a great present, too. And keeping greed in check isn't as straightforward as it sounds — which is exactly what Habit 4 is about.
Habit 4: Practice Balanced Restraint Against Modern Marketing
This is my favorite habit, and the personal superpower I mentioned earlier.
Modern marketing is engineered to pull money out of your pocket. Stronger psychological triggers to make you want something. Smoother systems that let you buy it instantly.
Why should you believe me? Because I used to build this. I spent over a decade in big tech at Microsoft and XAI, working on the very consumer products that make spending effortless.
Inside billion-dollar tech companies, we have a term: friction. Friction is anything that slows the user down. And our job? Remove friction. If you want to buy something, we make that path as smooth as glass. Apple Pay, Google Pay — one tap and the money leaves your account. That's frictionless design at work.
So understand the landscape: the world is getting better and better at convincing you to buy, and at making spending effortless.
Your job is not to fall for the automatic pull of marketing. But your job is also not to forget that life is meant to be enjoyed. The key is balance.
Reward yourself. Celebrate your wins. But learn to distinguish between needs, wants, and investments in your future self. Once you understand how marketing works and you practice measured restraint, you start living with intention instead of impulse.
The next time you feel an impulsive pull toward something shiny, ask yourself: What FOMO is this triggering in me? Do I actually need this, or do I just want it? If the answer holds up after the pause, go ahead. But take the pause. The system has engineered everything around you to tempt you. The pause is your only edge.
And as your habits sharpen, your salary needs to grow with them — which brings me to Habit 5.
Habit 5: Focus on the Top Line, Not the Bottom Line
This is the one skill I wish someone had taught me earlier.
I grew up in middle-class India, so I understand the save-every-dollar mentality. But obsessing over savings is self-limiting. You cannot save your way to millions while living a good life.
We talk a lot about spending addiction. But today I think many people have a savings addiction — the other side of the same coin. So afraid of spending that money ends up controlling them anyway. Money is supposed to be a tool for freedom. The savings addiction turns it into a controller of freedom.
So instead of nickel-and-diming small decisions like coffee, focus on the high-impact ones: mortgages, debt, investments, and upskilling.
Savings addiction is a trap that makes upskilling look "too expensive" because the immediate payoff isn't visible — even though the long-term return is enormous. Imagine if your parents had refused to pay your school fees because they wanted to save money. Ridiculous. Yet plenty of adults are doing exactly that to themselves.
A salary is just a reflection of your contribution to the economy. Create more value. Upskill. Grow your top line. The bottom line strengthens naturally. And in the age of AI, this is more in reach than you think.
Said to you by an ex-professional vegetable cutter who became a millionaire.
Bonus Habit: Actionability Over Analysis Paralysis
Everything I've covered so far is pointless if you don't follow this last one.
Actionability isn't a quote on a wall. It's a mindset. And specifically, it's about taking action in the absence of complete information.
Jeff Bezos has two principles that fit perfectly here:
- Stress doesn't come from action. It comes from inaction — from avoiding the things you know you can influence.
- Make the call when you have about 70% of the information you wish you had. If you wait for 100%, you waited too long. There's no such thing as 100%.
You will always feel like you don't know enough. That's why you need a take-action mindset. Start small. Take one step. Then the next.
So here's the question I want you to sit with today:
What one habit, if I started it today, would move the needle most for my future?
With money, time is your best friend. The earlier you start compounding — your knowledge, your portfolio, your habits — the more the math works in your favor.
If this way of thinking resonates, I'd love to keep showing up for you. There's a lot more where this came from.