Thread by @heymaxkoh

How I saved my first $100k.

In 2015, I had less than $8k in savings when I started my first job.

3 years later, I saved my first $100k.

Here's how I did it:

1. Don’t expect it to be linear

At the start, my savings were low.

Because my salary wasn't high, it was impossible to save much.

Over time, it grew exponentially as my income grew.

Here’s the figures:

Year 1: $16k
Year 2: $37k
Year 3: $60k

Expect it to be slow at first.

2. Have an expense goal

I do this at the start of each year.

Set a limit on how much $$ you plan to spend in the year at most.

Then I divide that by 12.

This tells me how much $$ I'm allowed to spend each month.

It helps to cap my expenses.

3. Aim for savings %

I didn't just set an absolute amount to save.

Instead, I put a percentage as my goal.

This forced me to save more as my salary grew.

I aimed for a savings rate of 40-50% in the early years.

And eventually hit 70% and higher as my income grew.

4. Pick a job where you are paid based on output

You can’t just save money.

If your salary is not growing fast, it’s going to be tough.

You need both savings + income to rise.

So I picked a job that paid me an average base...

And bonuses based on sales and results.

5. Develop high income skills

I picked up skills like:

• copywriting
• public speaking
• digital marketing

My communication became more persuasive.

I was able to stand out more at work.

In almost any career, being able to speak and write well will come in handy.

6. Have a craftsman mentality

To get paid well, I needed to be skilled in my domain.

For me, it was running FB ads and digital marketing.

I spent my weekends upgrading myself.

This allowed me to get better results for the company.

And translated to bigger bonuses.

7. Combine multiple skills

You don’t need to the best at what you do.

You just need to be different.

I wasn't the only one who could perform those skills.

But I was one of the few who could do them all, proficiently.

It helped me stand out and increase my market value.

8. Live like a student

No I’m not talking about eating scraps or being a miser.

I still ate out and went partying with friends occasionally.

My lifestyle was still enjoyable.

But beyond that, I lived simply.

I lived like I was in college. I spent only on what was needed.

9. Track expenses like a hawk

These were the days before budget tools got popular.

Everything I bought, I keyed it into a google sheet on my phone.

I do this so I’m aware of how much I’m spending monthly.

If I don’t measure it, I can’t improve it.

Tracking creates awareness.

10. Choose your social circle wisely

While I still went out with my usual friends, I reduced the frequency.

Instead I spent more time with those who had the same goals as me.

Environment is key.

You'll have a hard time hitting your goals if you're surrounded by distractions.

11. Have somewhere to put the money

You need a pull factor.

You cant just save for the sake of saving.

For me, it was putting my money into investments to grow my assets.

I knew it was going to multiply if I put it in the right place.

So that motivated me to save more.

12. Learn about investing and personal finance

This makes you more sophisticated.

I spent my free time reading about how to grow and compound my $$.

It opened my eyes to different strategies.

It gave me more tools to use, and accelerated my progress.

13. See it like a game.

Aim to beat last year’s savings

As my income continued to grow exponentially, I set higher savings goals.

This pushed me to keep expenses flat, while income grew.

I saw it like a challenge, and it made things fun.

That's it.

Many think saving $100k is all about living like a miser.

Wrong.

I lived a pretty good lifestyle:

• ate out
• went partying
• spent on gadgets I liked

The key is to focus not only on cutting expenses...

You need to develop skills to grow your income too.

The good news?

Once you cross your first $100k...

Everything else becomes easier from there.

You have more options to invest.

And your net worth also grows exponentially due to a larger base.

Go for it!

If you found this useful, do follow me at @heymaxkoh

I share my journey on how I attained financial freedom before 30...

By building high income skills + investing in great businesses.