Author Topic: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?  (Read 28242 times)

wjon16

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How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« on: July 23, 2014, 04:43:50 PM »
Okay this is a very common question and majority of people would love to achieve this goal..

But I want to realistically know how I can become a millionaire or multimillionaire at a younger age perhaps 30 or 35. I want to make all the right decisions. I would appreciate not to hear comments telling me "money doesn't make you happy" or "you can't do it". I'm not doing attempting this to try to make me happy, I'm not that insecure. I simply want to be able to live financially free and not be in debt all my life. I want to be able to pay cash with things without having to to worry if it's going to hurt my finances. I want to live in a nice car and have a nice car and be able to use my wealth to travel the world. I also want to be able to give back to my family. My main reason to wanting to become wealthy is wanting to have the ability to travel whenever I want and experience many things with my friends and family I would not be able to do without money. I don't want to have to work all my life in a corporate job until I'm 60 or 65 to be able to retire and enjoy my money. I want to enjoy life earlier and live an exciting life. I'm ambitious and I listen to people like Dave Ramsey who talk about management of wealth.

I am currently 18 years old and starting my first year of college at a large public university. I am getting a bachelors' in accounting or finance, but most likely accounting, and from a pretty decent accounting school. I plan to also pursue a masters in accounting/finance, or an MBA/CPA if it will help me out in my life. I have a friend that works for a big 4 firm, and he has kinda guided me into going into that career path. So I was planning to work for a big 4 and save my salary and maybe invest in a business or a franchise like McDonalds after 10-12 of work. Maybe even get a high paying job in industry after a few years in a big 4. Any advice? REALISTIC please.

Also I am very entrepreneurial and I'm trying to learn more about business and also ways of making money through the internet. I love the show "Shark Tank", and it inspires me. But my true goal would be to be a millionaire as fast as possible maybe with an investment, real estate venture, a business or product, or franchises, or even online businesses. But I really need to good advice and HELP so I can achieve my goals. I rather be my OWN boss and not have to be working off a salary every year. I want capital and ability to invest in other things. Honestly I would like to retire as early as possible so I can spend more time with my family and experiencing the world I haven't been able to see.

Can someone give me some good advice? I'm young and have time to prevent future mistakes by learning from other people. And I don't know where to precisely begin...Would greatly appreciate some help.

griffin

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #1 on: July 23, 2014, 04:57:11 PM »
Save 50,000 a year for 13 years, get a 6% return from the market. Now you have $1,000,000. If you land a decent paying job and watch your spending closely for the first couple years, this shouldn't be a problem at all! 

Freedom2016

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #2 on: July 23, 2014, 04:58:02 PM »
Have you read any of the MMM articles? Would be a good place to start...

Also, you'd have to get a 7% return net of inflation to hit $1mm in 14 years. At a 4% withdrawal rate, that would generate (only) $40,000/yr in income to live on. Unclear if that amount would finance your "nice car, nice house, travel the world, give to my family" dreams...
« Last Edit: July 23, 2014, 05:04:30 PM by course11 »

trailrated

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #3 on: July 23, 2014, 05:02:21 PM »
First off, I want to say welcome to the forum. That is a huge first step, and seeing that you are researching this at such a young age puts you well ahead of where most of us were at that age.

That being said, I think you will have a very hard time finding people on this forum telling you how to "get rich quick". When it comes to investing I have found the majority recommend the Boglehead forums as a place to take a look on how to invest in the market. The main thing advocated is index funds with low expense ratios. Start early and contribute often. While this will not get you rich quick, compound interest will make you very wealthy if you start young and stay the course.

If you are looking to be a millionaire at such a young age, I think one of the only ways to do that would be to start your own business. It is important to recognize there is a lot of risk with that, but the payoff might be worth it to you. Best of luck!

boarder42

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #4 on: July 23, 2014, 05:03:45 PM »
read the blog man.. search the forum ... you asked a question that this entire blog and forum can help you acheive.  if youre gonna be an accountant you should be able to do the math to figure out how to save to reach that number.... but i hate to burst you bubble 1MM in 17 years wont buy near what it does today... and to just "spend" money without thinking is not what this forum and blog are about ... its about "saving" money without thinking.  good luck ... do some work ... you obviously will have a ton of free time to soak it all in.. stop looking fro a handout from people here

gimp

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #5 on: July 23, 2014, 05:05:16 PM »
Earn a lot of money, or get very lucky. Pretty simple.

If you are too desperate for the earning part, you're going to end up investing in really stupid shit and lose it all.

Freedom2016

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #6 on: July 23, 2014, 05:07:57 PM »
Edit: "Earn a lot of money and spend very little of it, or get very lucky. Pretty simple.

:)

wjon16

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #7 on: July 23, 2014, 05:10:35 PM »
I would need enough to start a company and or buy a franchise like McDonalds because that's a very secure investment. Or something online.

boarder42

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #8 on: July 23, 2014, 05:10:56 PM »
my wife and i will hit 1MM by 34 in today's dollars just due to how we have saved.  meaning add 12 years inflation to that at 3% compounded and we would have 1.4MM at 34 in 12 years so 1MM in 12 years will have 40% less buying power than it does today.  so to be a millionaire by 30 your money would be worth 650k in todays dollars give or take.  very easy to achieve this by 30 if you have a high income no kids and SAVE alot

boarder42

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #9 on: July 23, 2014, 05:14:21 PM »
dude you're in the wrong place for the kind of thinking you're applying to this. 

THERE IS NO GET RICH QUICK scheme that works. 

work HARD ... save ALOT ... spend LITTLE ... its pretty simple read the forum and blog posts and buy in or go looking else where to build a McDonalds empire.  you wont find love for this kind of thinking here. 

I mean do you think you're smarter than the guy selling you the McDonalds that you're buying ... he's selling for a reason ... Still dont understand your attachment to McDonalds... learn ....

PS you better learn alot in accounting school you dont have a very good grasp of money now

trailrated

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #10 on: July 23, 2014, 05:14:36 PM »
I would need enough to start a company and or buy a franchise like McDonalds because that's a very secure investment. Or something online.

I would be careful thinking something like buying a McDonald's is a sure thing. While working at the lower rungs of employment there does not require any difficult tasks, if you own a location you have A LOT to deal with. Including payroll, tax filing, scheduling, management, utilities, insurance, maintenance, etc. If you have never managed a group of people before...IT IS A LOT OF WORK, however it can be very rewarding.

MikeBear

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #11 on: July 23, 2014, 05:15:11 PM »
Easiest thing in the world. Simply sell 1 million things for $1.00 each.

Scale it for different prices, but SELLING something basically is the only way to get $1 million short of inheriting, or the lottery.

Of course selling your time to an employer and investing the money can also get you there, albeit slower.


clifp

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #13 on: July 23, 2014, 06:29:26 PM »
I would need enough to start a company and or buy a franchise like McDonalds because that's a very secure investment. Or something online.

Last time I looked you need to be a be multimillionaire to purchase a McDonald franchises, they are one of the hardest franchise to get.  I would say that you have the right idea, owning your own business is certainly one viable path to becoming a millionaire at young age. I was fortunate to have a well paying job, generous stock options, made good investment choices to make a million in my early 30s.  That said I also needed to do everything one said, spend a lot less than I earned.

gimp

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #14 on: July 23, 2014, 06:34:06 PM »
Real talk. You're 18. You're going to be a completely different person at 22. And a completely different person at 28. And at 35. Relax. Don't make any goals like internet business or mcdonald's franchise. These choices are based on your lack of knowledge and opportunity. Learn more before you make such a precise decision. No, you're not one of the few 18-year-olds who can see so clearly what they love and what they're good at that you can make the right decision today. Moreover, at 35 you're going to think 18-year-old you was an idiot. Hell, I'm only five years removed and I think so about myself. You don't want to be trapped by the choices an idiot made, do you?

waltworks

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #15 on: July 23, 2014, 06:38:19 PM »
Dude, you will get there in no time with the housing cost savings. I'd suggest living in a crappy car instead, though.

-W

I want to live in a nice car and have a nice car

ShortInSeattle

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #16 on: July 23, 2014, 06:46:08 PM »
Work hard. Pursue a career that pays reasonably well. Minimize debt. Save a healthy percentage of what you earn. If you marry, marry wisely.

For most people, a steady job will beat out pie-in-the-sky entrepreneurship.

Enjoy your life and be patient. :)

SIS





Texan

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #17 on: July 23, 2014, 06:53:18 PM »
Become an engineer. They get paid great and are always in demand. Save/Invest 50-70% of your income or more. ALWAYS max out your company's 401k, which should be 17,500 plus their contribution and max out an IRA.

I would stick to index investing. By picking and choosing individual company stocks you are literally playing a losers game. Over 80% of the professionally active money managers fail to beat the average of the US stock market. By indexing you put yourself in that average and can sit back and collect.

Wealth is challenging to obtain, it does not come easy or quick. Why do you think so many people are poor/Financially weak?

Counting Down

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #18 on: July 23, 2014, 07:33:45 PM »
You need to read Joshua Kennon he writes on his own website and about.com. I really enjoy his writings as they are both inspirational and practical.

http://www.joshuakennon.com/how-to-be-set-for-life-by-30/

http://beginnersinvest.about.com/od/wealthmanagement1/tp/how-to-get-rich.htm

You also need to read every financial book you can get your hands on. Good luck!



GrayGhost

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #19 on: July 23, 2014, 07:56:14 PM »
It's exciting to have dreams about owning franchises or starting internet companies, but here are the problems. Just now, you don't have the skills, let alone the finances, to do either of those things. I mean it's great to have a dream to have an awesome idea, get some guy to write an app that implements it, then sit back and watch the dough roll in, but just how do you think you're going to do that?

Right now, I'd focus on learning as much as you can (about pretty much everything), finding out what you're passionate about, and saving and working hard. There are opportunities everywhere, but the only way to take advantage of them is to have the skills, experience, and wisdom to do it.

Personally, I'd focus on the ends that you want to spend your money on, not the idea of being a millionaire as an end to itself. Sure, it'll be a great achievement to see that extra comma in your financial summary, but if you're stressed to pieces in order to get there, what good is that?

In other words, focus on life, knowledge, and growth, and money will come. :)

dmd149

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #20 on: July 23, 2014, 08:18:19 PM »
I like your ambition, however, one thing I noticed is that you're depending entirely on external circumstances to determine your level of autonomy (which is what it sounds like you really want).

I've been studying ancient religion and philosophy recently, and all of them, in some form or another, teaches that that truth "freedom" really comes from within. The Stoics taught that if you can control your mind, you will be free. Buddhists taught that the "self" is not real, that you exist only in relation to other things, and for that reason, all is well. The Abrahamic religions taught that salvation lies in God, which, if interpreted as an allegory, is a colorful way of saying that truth meaning is discovered outside of worldly things.

Certainly pursue the financial independence, but if at the same time you can cultivate an autonomous mind, I think you'll be able to handle whatever circumstances life throws your way.

Cpa Cat

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #21 on: July 23, 2014, 08:32:52 PM »
Save 50,000 a year for 13 years, get a 6% return from the market. Now you have $1,000,000. If you land a decent paying job and watch your spending closely for the first couple years, this shouldn't be a problem at all!

Just as a reality check - this is the Big 4 accountant route to a million.


You can speed it up a little by getting a Finance degree instead. Pick up accounting classes as your back-up, because you can easily get into a MAcc program with a Finance degree. If you do well in Finance and enjoy it, ambitious young men can do exceedingly well in Finance careers. Usually in New York City.
« Last Edit: July 23, 2014, 08:39:20 PM by Cpa Cat »

Edeceo

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #22 on: July 23, 2014, 08:48:54 PM »
I'm only a few years older than you, so I know what you are thinking.

Having an ambition is great!

You also know that the most important things in life are the ones that are free --- family, friends, and your health.

So I applaud you for your reason of becoming a millionaire.

But, as we all know, getting there is hard.

There are two ways to accomplish your goal.

You can own an ownership investment like stocks, real estate, or a small business.

Also, you can do it the Mustachian way --- spend little, save a lot, and invest in index funds since compounding is your friend.

The second way is the surest way to become a millionaire.

It will take a lot of time and focus to achieve your goal but remember your motivation.

Goodluck!

Goldielocks

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #23 on: July 23, 2014, 09:58:22 PM »
Save 50,000 a year for 13 years, get a 6% return from the market. Now you have $1,000,000. If you land a decent paying job and watch your spending closely for the first couple years, this shouldn't be a problem at all!

Won't OP be over 35 after a MBA or CPA route?

IMO, if you want to have 1 million so early, and FI is why, you should look at getting another job that pays over $60k does not require a delayed start due to school, and save, save, save.

  Eg. Fireman, garbage hauler, oil and gas worker, jobs that pay your accommodation part of the time like some military or tree planting, underwater welding, or ???

Other options.. Get someone to loan you money for your own business.. This could include real estate landlording.. Most 35 yr old with 1 million are entrepreneurs.

Marry a woman with high income and low spending.

Famous reality TV star


EricL

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #24 on: July 23, 2014, 10:47:44 PM »
I know you don't want to hear it, but money won't make you happy.  It's a great place to start and I respect your ambition.  I'm sure there are good reasons behind it.  But you have to make yourself happy or you'll be at hazard for the cycle of making money and spending it to make yourself happy.  I don't know what's worse: making millions and blowing most of it on BS or making only a little bit of dough and blowing it all on BS before it amounts to something.

I suspect the Finance degree is a bad outgrowth of your drive to make a million and you may regret it.  But you may also be one of those guys who genuinely love the mechanism of making money.  Either that or there's absolutely no income in what you genuinely do love.  Not everyone can get rich following their passion for making handwoven wicker beanie baby replicas.  But sometimes people do make millions doing something they love that looks financially stupid.  Then it turns out they could do it better than anyone else and demand tipped them into the 1%.  Whether you change your degree or stick with finance, don't saddle yourself with absurd student debt.  It's bad enough it will drag you down if you're doing something different.  It's horrible if you're a financial advisor.  Who's going to want to employ a financial advisor who's deep in debt?  You might also consider side hustles that might blow up to entrepeneurial adventures.  A good book to check out is #Girlboss by Sofia Amorosa, a young lady who started an eBay business flogging vintage fashons in her early 20's which morphed into a multi million dollar business before she got out of them

So if all else fails, read through the site and learn.  It won't make you instantly rich but better late than never.

jpdcpajd

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #25 on: July 23, 2014, 11:54:29 PM »
Spent first 10 yrs of 15 at  Big 4 and in addition to CPA had law license.  Yr 2000 first yr salary was 52k they lead you along, thinking that everyone wants to be partner. I am not a Millionaire  but I have made more money in last 5 yrs than first 10.  It makes sense to stay until senior associate and then jump.  Unless you think you want to be partner.   Law Firms usually have 1 partner ratio to 2-3 associates.  CPA firms in Big4 have 1 partner ratio to 10-12 professionals.

Goldielocks

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #26 on: July 24, 2014, 07:57:10 AM »
If you really want to be an entrepreneur, think carefully about the personality traits for successful finance graduates, and those for entrepreneur now.

If you like creativity, diversity, change, making something new, bending the rules-- entrepreneur, who needs to be a jack of all trades and strategic thinking, communication are paramount.  Think charles bronson for an extreme example.  If so, then finance and Big4 may be stifling.

If you like the idea of being a company controller, such as in charge of accounts receivable and accounts payable, like the idea of climbing a corporate ladder over 20 years and winning, and like to play inside the rules, finance is great.  Here the dream to be a franchisee and follow the rules is a good one.

If you are thinking trader, you can get that knowledge through other studies and hands on work, too.

Grateful Stache

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #27 on: July 24, 2014, 07:57:57 AM »
Marry rich.

MrsPete

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #28 on: July 24, 2014, 08:11:15 AM »
I want to live in a nice car
Well, living in a car will certainly allow you to save.

Seriously, this is a difficult task but not an impossible one:

- You're about to begin college.  At your age, your #1 Goal should be getting a profitable degree without accumulating debt.  This can be accomplished in a number of ways, but mostly it adds up to making good small choices and sticking to them.  Focus on living cheaply in college and finishing in four years.  Student loans will absolutely cut into the goals you've set for yourself.  Work hard, but not so much that your academics suffer. 

- Read everything provided by your university.  I remember being amazed at the things my fellow students didn't realize were provided by the university -- things that could've saved them money.  For example, when I was in school we could get over-the-counter medicines for free from the health center, yet many people didn't know, so they went to the drug store and paid their own money!  My daughter tells me the same type of thing now.  For example, in the dorm she was required to have a meal plan.  Every month Food Services sent out a newsletter to all the students, and the newsletter includes coupons!  Good coupons like "buy a bowl of soup and get a grilled cheese sandwich for free" or "buy a 12" sub and get a bag of chips and an apple free" -- and the students can print as many coupons as they want for that month.  It's a great way of stretching the meal plan, yet NONE of her friends knew about the coupons!  Worse still, when she shared them with her friends, only one was really interested and saw it as a good money saver.  Your university will provide lots of free (or inexpensive) entertainment, clubs, travel, and educational opportunities -- but you have to search them out.  One thing you should investigate:  Your college's Writing Resource Center; you do need to work on organizing your written thoughts and proofreading.  You want to work towards expressing yourself like a professional person, not an excited 18-year old.

- While you're in school, spend some time every week studying personal finance.  I personally became very interested in this topic during college (mainly because I didn't want to repeat my parents mistakes), and I'd go to the library between classes and read:  Books on frugal living, books on keeping your grocery bill low, books on real estate, books on investing, anything of that nature.  I didn't yet have the money to make these things happen, but I learned and formed opinions . . . and then when I graduated and started making money, I was ready to manage it well.  When I started my first "real job", I already knew about 401Ks, etc. 

- You say you want to work for a "Big 4".  I assume that's an accounting term that I don't know.  Keep this in mind, though.  Your classmates are also gunning for this big, best job.  None of them are saying, "Yeah, I'm going to do four years of work in accounting so I can do the books for a little construction company, and maybe I'll moonlight and do some taxes down at the Walmart every year" -- yet some of those accounting grads will end up in a lackluster job like that.  I teach high school seniors, and MANY of them sound just like you:  Big goals, no real concrete idea of how to reach them.  Many 18-year olds have this hazy idea that being successful in your career simply means choosing well, and they feel very secure in their ability to choose good things!  In reality, being successful also means setting goals -- both small and large -- and working hard to reach them.  So, if you want those big firms to look at you when you're done with school, what are you going to do today to set yourself apart from your fellow classmates?  Top grades are a must.  Do accounting students tend towards internships?  I don't know accounting, so I'm not able to give you concrete advice -- but you should seek out mentors in your field who can give you advice on making good choices early in your career.

- Once you're out of school, be prepared to work hard.  Continue to live frugally.  Put money aside.  This is possibly harder than being frugal while you're in school because many of your college friends will be "living it up" with their new paychecks.  Keep in mind that in those years you can buy the great condo with the downtown view, go out to the bars every weekend, and work 'til you're 70 . . . or you can live a frugal lifestyle and save money.  Be aware that as you start to save, the money will add up very slowly.  Someone once told me that it seems to take forever to save your first $100,000, but once you reach that goal, things begin to speed up.  That was true for us; that first $100,000 took years (of course, we were earning much less then too), but now our investments occasionally earn a month of our salary in a day or two!  Don't allow yourself to be discouraged when you're not seeing results like that in your first couple years of employment.  It takes time. 

- Oversave.  By the time you're 30-35, a million dollars may not be what it is today.  It probably won't allow you the nice-car, travel, help out the family lifestyle you're envisioning.  You'll have to pay attention to this as time goes on.   


 


Chranstronaut

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #29 on: July 24, 2014, 09:28:51 AM »
There's some great advice in this thread already, but for someone just barely entering college my largest recommendations are to focus heavily on what you can do now:

1) Take on zero debt.  No credit card debt and no student loan debt.
1a) It may seem like "the worst thing in the world" to take time off to save up and pay for your own school, but as someone on the other side of college, I can honestly tell you taking on student debt is my one regret.  I would have rather gone to community college for the first two years or saved up for a year before starting school if I could do it over again.  No one cares if you start college right at 18 or not.  Seriously.
2) Work hard and develop your self discipline and drive.  Get good grades and truly LEARN the material.  Work PT and summers and save as much as you can.
3) Have fun and figure out what REALLY makes you happy.  Remember all the fun and frugal things you can do as a student and don't lose site of that.

This, honestly, will get you pretty far.  If you come out of college with a high earning degree and job prospects with a well defined sense of self and no debt, you should be able to do it.
« Last Edit: July 24, 2014, 09:31:47 AM by ChransStache »

wjon16

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #30 on: July 24, 2014, 11:03:57 PM »
I'm not understanding why owning a franchise like McDonalds is wrong? US dollars are green and are green in any form of business. Money is money, so why does it matter what type of business I accumulate that money with as long as its legal.

I know someone who has a father that now owns 8 McDonalds and all he does now his sit back and travel. He worked his way up and saved his money and bought his first Mcdondals at age 38. He pays somebody 85K to manage each location, now he takes in about $9 million dollars a year all together and his business will never fail unless the US became communist. But anyway its a very secure way to make a lot of money.

I'm looking for something entrepreneurial that will allow me to have no limit on my salary and give me more freedom in the end time.

By the way, Big 4 pay is pretty decent by year. look at this: http://goingconcern.com/post/what-can-you-expect-make-big-4-firm-over-15-year-period
http://ipassthecpaexam.com/cpa-salary-guide/

Joel

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #31 on: July 24, 2014, 11:11:21 PM »
As a CPA at a big four, accounting is a career that provides tremendous opportunity. Begin positioning yourself as soon as possible for that. Join your college's accounting organization(s) as soon as possible and become involved. That combined with good grades and you will have your pick of companies wanting to hire you. That's what I did. You will need something to make you stand out though. Grades alone will not do that.

surfhb

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #32 on: July 24, 2014, 11:15:44 PM »
I'm not understanding why owning a franchise like McDonalds is wrong? US dollars are green and are green in any form of business. Money is money, so why does it matter what type of business I accumulate that money with as long as its legal.

I know someone who has a father that now owns 8 McDonalds and all he does now his sit back and travel. He worked his way up and saved his money and bought his first Mcdondals at age 38. He pays somebody 85K to manage each location, now he takes in about $9 million dollars a year all together and his business will never fail unless the US became communist. But anyway its a very secure way to make a lot of money.

I'm looking for something entrepreneurial that will allow me to have no limit on my salary and give me more freedom in the end time.

By the way, Big 4 pay is pretty decent by year. look at this: http://goingconcern.com/post/what-can-you-expect-make-big-4-firm-over-15-year-period
http://ipassthecpaexam.com/cpa-salary-guide/

I think that's the same advice everyone is giving you....get a good paying gig and save a lot till you have the capital to buy your first Mickey D.     Like your friends father

Goldielocks

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #33 on: July 25, 2014, 12:22:52 AM »
I'm not understanding why owning a franchise like McDonalds is wrong? US dollars are green and are green in any form of business. Money is money, so why does it matter what type of business I accumulate that money with as long as its legal.

I know someone who has a father that now owns 8 McDonalds and all he does now his sit back and travel. He worked his way up and saved his money and bought his first Mcdondals at age 38. He pays somebody 85K to manage each location, now he takes in about $9 million dollars a year all together and his business will never fail unless the US became communist. But anyway its a very secure way to make a lot of money.

I'm looking for something entrepreneurial that will allow me to have no limit on my salary and give me more freedom in the end time.

By the way, Big 4 pay is pretty decent by year. look at this: http://goingconcern.com/post/what-can-you-expect-make-big-4-firm-over-15-year-period
http://ipassthecpaexam.com/cpa-salary-guide/

I didn't read anyone saying no to McDonalds.  $1 million would be about right for the money needed without a huge loan.

I think the thought was to make sure you can get through 13 years of saving $50k a year.
My point is to figure out if finance is interesting to you as many entrepreneurs do not take to CPA style training and early career tasks.  Changing tracks during yr 3 is not a great way to start.  Great posts about keeping school debt low to zero...

My comment on no college routes is that you need time to get there..  College, CPA , possibly MBA are not getting you started until age 24...  Assuming no student loans or extensions to let you work part time.  That is only 11 years.

Would you start work at around 24 and save for 13 yrs until you are 37?   Still misses your age 35 goal.

Your chart and the comments of 3 yrs at each of assoc and senior levels  has the 10 yr average wage at $75k.  This is good with great potential, but $1 million by 35 goal will be a challenge in the first 4 years.  You'll need to invest nearly 100% of your anticipated salary to do this, or get to higher levels faster or get there before 40.



MandyM

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #34 on: July 25, 2014, 06:48:33 AM »
I'm not understanding why owning a franchise like McDonalds is wrong?
...
I'm looking for something entrepreneurial that will allow me to have no limit on my salary and give me more freedom in the end time.

I wouldn't say its wrong, but its the end game, not the path. From what I gather you need to accumulate a large pile of dough before owning a franchise and hiring out the management is a viable option. I'm all for goals, but that is what that is - a goal. It is not the "how."

My short answer on the how is that you will have to work harder than everyone else around you. And spend less than they do as well. If you are going to go to college, you need to be the one that is working all weekend instead of partying. You need to be riding your bike places instead of driving. Eating leftovers instead of going out.


Cpa Cat

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #35 on: July 25, 2014, 07:27:50 AM »
By the way, Big 4 pay is pretty decent by year. look at this: http://goingconcern.com/post/what-can-you-expect-make-big-4-firm-over-15-year-period
http://ipassthecpaexam.com/cpa-salary-guide/

Sure, it's fine. Look, a few of us who have responded are CPAs. Obviously, none of us are saying, "Zomg I'm soooo poor, being a CPA is the worst!" No. I'm willing to bet that none of us are poor. Most of us are probably well on the way to $1M or have surpassed it. But being a CPA isn't a get-rich-quick scheme. It's a get-rich-slow scheme.

HOWEVER - if getting rich quick(er) is your goal, there are ways to do it.

Big 4 has great marketing. They will be very convincing that this is the absolute best route for you. And maybe it is - if you want a conventional career. But you don't. You want to be rich right now. You want work life balance. You want to retire early. Don't nix it, but open your eyes wide to what else is out there.

Such as... I know some folks who just graduated. Offers coming out of Big Oil were around $90k to start, compared to Big 4, which was $50k. Shocking right? Unfortunately, you have to live in GodKnowsWhere, OilState. $90k now is better than $90k four-five years from now (Time Value of Money = Win).

Or... What about opening your own tax practice? You can do this pretty early in your career and be your own boss. But you don't get the small business/individual tax experience you'd need at Big 4. Not that you can't make it work, but the experience won't directly apply, for the most part.

Why McDonalds? Let's face it, Big 4 won't prepare you for running a restaurant. And you have to know how to run the first one before you can buy 8 more of them. So what DO you know about? What about H&R Block?

See, if you want to make big bucks early, you have to be unconventional. By default, almost everyone you know is conventional. You need to think outside the box and remove yourself from the herd. Big 4 = herd. And that's cool - going with the herd will get you where you want to be... eventually. It's not a loser choice.

PloddingInsight

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #36 on: July 25, 2014, 07:28:22 AM »
I want to live in a nice car and have a nice car and be able to use my wealth to travel the world. I also want to be able to give back to my family. My main reason to wanting to become wealthy is wanting to have the ability to travel whenever I want and experience many things with my friends and family I would not be able to do without money.

There's a problem with that word "nice".  Nice things are expensive.  Travel is expensive.  I don't want to rain on your parade, but you need a lot more than a million to do all that.  A 30-year-old can safely withdraw about $30k per year from a million dollar portfolio.  It sounds like you want to spend $100,000 a year or more.  I'd suggest either scaling back you spending ambitions or planning to save more like $3.5 mil.

iwasjustwondering

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #37 on: July 25, 2014, 08:20:19 AM »
Want to get rich?  Spend less than you earn.

Want to get rich quickly?  Spend a lot less than you earn.

boarder42

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #38 on: July 25, 2014, 08:40:54 AM »
Want to get rich?  Spend less than you earn.

Want to get rich quickly?  Spend a lot less than you earn.

boom

insightful and to the point.

THIS ISNT A GET RICH QUICK FORUM

THIS ISNT A FORUM ABOUT GROWING A GROSS AMOUNT OF WEALTH

THIS IS A FORUM ABOUT SAVING AND CUTTING SPENDING

boarder42

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #39 on: July 25, 2014, 08:43:31 AM »
i mean seriously... once you hit 1MM why go take on a franchise.  If you can get to 1MM by 35 that 1MM will grow to over 2.5MM by the time you're 40 in today's dollars(if you kept working and saving the same) and you didnt have to hassle with a business... now you can freely spend 100k a year with out thinking ... i dont know why you would need to spend that much but you could.

iris lily

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #40 on: July 25, 2014, 08:49:11 AM »
There is a thread on this forum called something like "Have $100,000 by the time I graduate college" and the dude is going to do it. Let that guy be your beacon of light.
« Last Edit: July 25, 2014, 09:46:34 AM by iris lily »

MrsPete

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #41 on: July 25, 2014, 09:14:49 AM »
I'm not understanding why owning a franchise like McDonalds is wrong? US dollars are green and are green in any form of business. Money is money, so why does it matter what type of business I accumulate that money with as long as its legal.

I know someone who has a father that now owns 8 McDonalds and all he does now his sit back and travel. He worked his way up and saved his money and bought his first Mcdondals at age 38. He pays somebody 85K to manage each location, now he takes in about $9 million dollars a year all together and his business will never fail unless the US became communist. But anyway its a very secure way to make a lot of money.

I'm looking for something entrepreneurial that will allow me to have no limit on my salary and give me more freedom in the end time.

By the way, Big 4 pay is pretty decent by year. look at this: http://goingconcern.com/post/what-can-you-expect-make-big-4-firm-over-15-year-period
http://ipassthecpaexam.com/cpa-salary-guide/
I don't think owning a McD's franchise is necessarily a bad idea, but I see two big issues here:

- If the OP plans to earn a degree in accounting, he will be superb at doing the books . . . but not necessarily skilled in management.  Of course, he has the option to hire a manager and simply supervise, but a good manager will cost money and will cut into his profits.  If the end game is franchise ownership, it might make more sense to go for a business degree instead of the accounting degree.   

- McD's is already a HUGE corporation, and the OP would have to pay top dollar to get in.  In my mind -- and admittedly I'm not a business person -- it would make more sense to go with a "lesser" franchise or a mom-and-pop type place that wouldn't cost a million dollars (my guess, not research) to buy into.  The upfront cost of an already-established, household name franchise is simply huge.  On the other hand, you can't deny that every McD's is crowded every minute of every day. 



dragoncar

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #42 on: July 25, 2014, 10:02:33 AM »
I'm not understanding why owning a franchise like McDonalds is wrong? US dollars are green and are green in any form of business. Money is money, so why does it matter what type of business I accumulate that money with as long as its legal.

I know someone who has a father that now owns 8 McDonalds and all he does now his sit back and travel. He worked his way up and saved his money and bought his first Mcdondals at age 38. He pays somebody 85K to manage each location, now he takes in about $9 million dollars a year all together and his business will never fail unless the US became communist. But anyway its a very secure way to make a lot of money.

I'm looking for something entrepreneurial that will allow me to have no limit on my salary and give me more freedom in the end time.

By the way, Big 4 pay is pretty decent by year. look at this: http://goingconcern.com/post/what-can-you-expect-make-big-4-firm-over-15-year-period
http://ipassthecpaexam.com/cpa-salary-guide/
I don't think owning a McD's franchise is necessarily a bad idea, but I see two big issues here:

- If the OP plans to earn a degree in accounting, he will be superb at doing the books . . . but not necessarily skilled in management.  Of course, he has the option to hire a manager and simply supervise, but a good manager will cost money and will cut into his profits.  If the end game is franchise ownership, it might make more sense to go for a business degree instead of the accounting degree.   

- McD's is already a HUGE corporation, and the OP would have to pay top dollar to get in.  In my mind -- and admittedly I'm not a business person -- it would make more sense to go with a "lesser" franchise or a mom-and-pop type place that wouldn't cost a million dollars (my guess, not research) to buy into.  The upfront cost of an already-established, household name franchise is simply huge.  On the other hand, you can't deny that every McD's is crowded every minute of every day.

McD's success will largely hinge on real estate.  You'll need a franchise in an unsaturated market.  So you have to pick your location well, in an area that is growing rapidly (because if it was already mature, there would be a McD's in that area).  But what happens if growth stalls?  Around here the exurbs were hit extra hard in 2008 after a few years of phenomenal growth.  Wonder how new McDs fared out there.

Cwadda

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #43 on: July 25, 2014, 10:05:23 AM »
The best thing you can do now is learn, learn, learn about everything. Speaking from experience, college is a time where you will learn a great deal about yourself.

It's not a bad thing to have high levels of foresight and ambition. Just be sure to use this time to learn about everything - yourself, what you want to do, and how you're going to do it.

carozy

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #44 on: July 25, 2014, 10:18:23 AM »
I think you would be interested in a book called The Millionaire Fastlane by MJ DeMarco.  The book is about how young millionaires are made.  It takes a lot of work, and some risk, and working differently than what's normal.  For instance, creating a business and selling it.  Publishing novels or ebooks over and over again that sell.  Finding a need and fulfilling it for the masses.  Being a business owner rather than worker.  The book goes into detail.  Their website is www.fastlaneforum.com.  MMM wrote a post about The Millionaire Fastlane also.

anisotropy

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #45 on: July 25, 2014, 10:42:13 AM »
Such as... I know some folks who just graduated. Offers coming out of Big Oil were around $90k to start, compared to Big 4, which was $50k. Shocking right? Unfortunately, you have to live in GodKnowsWhere, OilState.


Hey dont be making fun os us Oil People living under the hills (or on the hills?).


JoyBlogette

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #46 on: July 25, 2014, 12:45:18 PM »
Want to get rich?  Spend less than you earn.

Want to get rich quickly?  Spend a lot less than you earn.

boom

insightful and to the point.

THIS ISNT A GET RICH QUICK FORUM

THIS ISNT A FORUM ABOUT GROWING A GROSS AMOUNT OF WEALTH

THIS IS A FORUM ABOUT SAVING AND CUTTING SPENDING

+1 OP I think you might be in the wrong place.  Try looking up Tim Ferriss.  He might have a forum that is more what you are looking for.

davef

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #47 on: July 25, 2014, 03:05:50 PM »
I want to live in a nice car
Well, living in a car will certainly allow you to save.

Seriously, this is a difficult task but not an impossible one:

- You're about to begin college.  At your age, your #1 Goal should be getting a profitable degree without accumulating debt.  This can be accomplished in a number of ways, but mostly it adds up to making good small choices and sticking to them.  Focus on living cheaply in college and finishing in four years.  Student loans will absolutely cut into the goals you've set for yourself.  Work hard, but not so much that your academics suffer. 

- Read everything provided by your university.  I remember being amazed at the things my fellow students didn't realize were provided by the university -- things that could've saved them money.  For example, when I was in school we could get over-the-counter medicines for free from the health center, yet many people didn't know, so they went to the drug store and paid their own money!  My daughter tells me the same type of thing now.  For example, in the dorm she was required to have a meal plan.  Every month Food Services sent out a newsletter to all the students, and the newsletter includes coupons!  Good coupons like "buy a bowl of soup and get a grilled cheese sandwich for free" or "buy a 12" sub and get a bag of chips and an apple free" -- and the students can print as many coupons as they want for that month.  It's a great way of stretching the meal plan, yet NONE of her friends knew about the coupons!  Worse still, when she shared them with her friends, only one was really interested and saw it as a good money saver.  Your university will provide lots of free (or inexpensive) entertainment, clubs, travel, and educational opportunities -- but you have to search them out.  One thing you should investigate:  Your college's Writing Resource Center; you do need to work on organizing your written thoughts and proofreading.  You want to work towards expressing yourself like a professional person, not an excited 18-year old.

- While you're in school, spend some time every week studying personal finance.  I personally became very interested in this topic during college (mainly because I didn't want to repeat my parents mistakes), and I'd go to the library between classes and read:  Books on frugal living, books on keeping your grocery bill low, books on real estate, books on investing, anything of that nature.  I didn't yet have the money to make these things happen, but I learned and formed opinions . . . and then when I graduated and started making money, I was ready to manage it well.  When I started my first "real job", I already knew about 401Ks, etc. 

- You say you want to work for a "Big 4".  I assume that's an accounting term that I don't know.  Keep this in mind, though.  Your classmates are also gunning for this big, best job.  None of them are saying, "Yeah, I'm going to do four years of work in accounting so I can do the books for a little construction company, and maybe I'll moonlight and do some taxes down at the Walmart every year" -- yet some of those accounting grads will end up in a lackluster job like that.  I teach high school seniors, and MANY of them sound just like you:  Big goals, no real concrete idea of how to reach them.  Many 18-year olds have this hazy idea that being successful in your career simply means choosing well, and they feel very secure in their ability to choose good things!  In reality, being successful also means setting goals -- both small and large -- and working hard to reach them.  So, if you want those big firms to look at you when you're done with school, what are you going to do today to set yourself apart from your fellow classmates?  Top grades are a must.  Do accounting students tend towards internships?  I don't know accounting, so I'm not able to give you concrete advice -- but you should seek out mentors in your field who can give you advice on making good choices early in your career.

- Once you're out of school, be prepared to work hard.  Continue to live frugally.  Put money aside.  This is possibly harder than being frugal while you're in school because many of your college friends will be "living it up" with their new paychecks.  Keep in mind that in those years you can buy the great condo with the downtown view, go out to the bars every weekend, and work 'til you're 70 . . . or you can live a frugal lifestyle and save money.  Be aware that as you start to save, the money will add up very slowly.  Someone once told me that it seems to take forever to save your first $100,000, but once you reach that goal, things begin to speed up.  That was true for us; that first $100,000 took years (of course, we were earning much less then too), but now our investments occasionally earn a month of our salary in a day or two!  Don't allow yourself to be discouraged when you're not seeing results like that in your first couple years of employment.  It takes time. 

- Oversave.  By the time you're 30-35, a million dollars may not be what it is today.  It probably won't allow you the nice-car, travel, help out the family lifestyle you're envisioning.  You'll have to pay attention to this as time goes on.

^ Great advice, read it, save it and follow it.


I have similar goals but did not start until I was 27. I had a high 5 figure income but 0 net worth. 5 years later (after selling my fancy car and making some good investments I have a net worth of 400k on track to hit 1 mil by 35-36)

Remeber to take things one step at a time. And the more you save early the more you will net. Remember compound interest and growth works both ways. Just as 50,000/year now will be worth a million in 14 years invested properly that $5 you might spend on a pack of smokes or a beer at age 18 would be worth $100 by the time you are 21 if you invest that 5$.

You need a good income. You need to make money to earn money. Figure out how to get a six figure salary. Do it without accumulating much debt. Scholorships should be a focus now.
Make it a goal to save half of your salary every year, even if its only 25k. Do a mixture of Large cap ETFs mid Cap ETFs and real estate. At your age no bonds.
 
Track every penny you spend. Study it at the end of the year.
Never pay fees. Atm fees, overdraft frees. annual credit card fees, etc. are penalties for poor planning and completely avoidable
Take on no debts, except mortgages with low interest rates.
After college buy an affordable, practical car. A camry or similar. 

Calcualte you net worth every quarter.

Most importantly, find a spouse that shares your ambition, goals, and dicipline.

Buy yourself your nice car.... as a reward for hitting the 1M mark when you are 35ish. If you buy it sooner you are going to set yourself back years.
Keep a desktop picuture of it and use that as your motivation. By the time you get 1 mil invested buying a 100k car is only a 1 year setback. If you do it when your net worth is 200k it is a 10 year setback.

As others said. You are going to need more like 3-5  mill If you want to live with nice cars and travel off of it. Unless you get a 250k salary or get very lucky that is going to take till at least 40. Make the car your mid term goal and retirement at 40 your long term goal. 

Goldielocks

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #48 on: July 25, 2014, 07:57:36 PM »
By the way, Big 4 pay is pretty decent by year. look at this: http://goingconcern.com/post/what-can-you-expect-make-big-4-firm-over-15-year-period
http://ipassthecpaexam.com/cpa-salary-guide/

Sure, it's fine. Look, a few of us who have responded are CPAs. Obviously, none of us are saying, "Zomg I'm soooo poor, being a CPA is the worst!" No. I'm willing to bet that none of us are poor. Most of us are probably well on the way to $1M or have surpassed it. But being a CPA isn't a get-rich-quick scheme. It's a get-rich-slow scheme.

HOWEVER - if getting rich quick(er) is your goal, there are ways to do it.

Big 4 has great marketing. They will be very convincing that this is the absolute best route for you. And maybe it is - if you want a conventional career. But you don't. You want to be rich right now. You want work life balance. You want to retire early. Don't nix it, but open your eyes wide to what else is out there.

Such as... I know some folks who just graduated. Offers coming out of Big Oil were around $90k to start, compared to Big 4, which was $50k. Shocking right? Unfortunately, you have to live in GodKnowsWhere, OilState. $90k now is better than $90k four-five years from now (Time Value of Money = Win).

Or... What about opening your own tax practice? You can do this pretty early in your career and be your own boss. But you don't get the small business/individual tax experience you'd need at Big 4. Not that you can't make it work, but the experience won't directly apply, for the most part.

Why McDonalds? Let's face it, Big 4 won't prepare you for running a restaurant. And you have to know how to run the first one before you can buy 8 more of them. So what DO you know about? What about H&R Block?

See, if you want to make big bucks early, you have to be unconventional. By default, almost everyone you know is conventional. You need to think outside the box and remove yourself from the herd. Big 4 = herd. And that's cool - going with the herd will get you where you want to be... eventually. It's not a loser choice.


+1000.  Awesome post. 

I take back saying that CPA's who love their work tend to prefer to work within the lines... If your response is typical for the group.

Cpa Cat

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Re: How can I become a MILLIONAIRE at a young age?
« Reply #49 on: July 25, 2014, 08:59:09 PM »
- You say you want to work for a "Big 4".  I assume that's an accounting term that I don't know. 

Just FYI - Big 4 refers to the biggest 4 accounting firms. PriceWaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, Deloitte and Ernst and Young. Arthur Andersen was #5 before it blew up in the Enron debacle. It basically got absorbed by the other four, which only got bigger. They do just about all audits/tax for any publicly traded company you're familiar with, including internationally.

They are enormous recruiting and marketing machines. They own accounting departments in business schools. They employ many thousands of accountants. There's a big status push for young accountants to work for them, which can be hard to fight. They'll pick up students in internships as early as sophomore year and put out job offers to lock people down that early.
« Last Edit: July 25, 2014, 09:35:50 PM by Cpa Cat »